Zephaniah 3:12 (DRB)

Passage

And I will leave in the midst of thee a poor and needy people: and they shall hope in the name of the Lord.

Nearby Context

Zephaniah 3:10 From beyond the rivers of Ethiopia, shall my suppliants, the children of my dispersed people, bring me an offering.

Zephaniah 3:11 In that day thou shalt not be ashamed for all thy doings, wherein thou hast transgressed against me for then I will take away out of the midst of thee thy proud boasters, and thou shalt no more be lifted up because of my holy mountain.

Zephaniah 3:12 And I will leave in the midst of thee a poor and needy people: and they shall hope in the name of the Lord.

Zephaniah 3:13 The remnant of Israel shall not do iniquity, nor speak lies, nor shall a deceitful tongue be found in their mouth: for they shall feed, and shall lie down, and there shall be none to make them afraid.

Zephaniah 3:14 Give praise, O daughter of Sion: shout, O Israel: be glad, and rejoice with all thy heart, O daughter of Jerusalem.

Study Lenses

The verse centers on "leave", "midst", "thee", "poor", "needy", "people", "shall", and "hope". It is saying that the verse draws attention to "leave" and "midst", so its meaning should be read from those terms before moving to application.

The nearby context moves from verse 11's "In that day thou shalt not be..." into verse 13's "The remnant of Israel shall not do...", so "leave" and "midst" belong inside that flow. In Zephaniah context, the local focus is covenant, worship, and faithfulness.

A plain takeaway is to answer the verse's own emphasis on "leave" and "midst" with trust shaped by these words, not by a vague optimism outside the passage.