Zephaniah 3:15 (DRB)

Passage

The Lord hath taken away thy judgment, he hath turned away thy enemies: the king of Israel, the Lord, is in the midst of thee, thou shalt fear evil no more.

Nearby Context

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.

Zephaniah 3:15 The Lord hath taken away thy judgment, he hath turned away thy enemies: the king of Israel, the Lord, is in the midst of thee, thou shalt fear evil no more.

Zephaniah 3:16 In that day it shall be said to Jerusalem: Fear not: to Sion: Let not thy hands be weakened.

Zephaniah 3:17 The Lord thy God in the midst of thee is mighty, he will save: he will rejoice over thee with gladness, he will be silent in his love, he will be joyful over thee in praise.

Study Lenses

The verse centers on "lord", "hath", "taken", "away", "judgment", and "turned". It is saying that the verse draws attention to "lord" and "hath", so its meaning should be read from those terms before moving to application.

The nearby context moves from verse 14's "Give praise O daughter of Sion shout..." into verse 16's "In that day it shall be said...", so "lord" and "hath" 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 "lord" and "hath" with trust shaped by these words, not by a vague optimism outside the passage.