Zephaniah 1:12 (GNV)

Passage

And at that time will I searche Ierusalem with lightes, and visite the men that are frosen in their dregges, and say in their heartes, The Lord will neither doe good nor doe euill.

Nearby Context

Zephaniah 1:10 And in that day, saith the Lord, there shall be a noise, and cry from the fishgate, and an howling from the second gate, and a great destruction from the hilles.

Zephaniah 1:11 Howle ye inhabitants of the lowe place: for the companie of the marchants is destroyed: all they that beare siluer, are cut off.

Zephaniah 1:12 And at that time will I searche Ierusalem with lightes, and visite the men that are frosen in their dregges, and say in their heartes, The Lord will neither doe good nor doe euill.

Zephaniah 1:13 Therefore their goods shall be spoyled, and their houses waste: they shall also build houses, but not inhabite them, and they shall plant vineyards, but not drinke the wine thereof.

Zephaniah 1:14 The great day of the Lord is neere: it is neere, and hasteth greatly, euen the voyce of the day of the Lord: the strong man shall cry there bitterly.

Study Lenses

The verse centers on "light", "time", "searche", "ierusalem", "lightes", "visite", "frosen", and "dregges". It is saying that the verse draws attention to "light" and "time", so its meaning should be read from those terms before moving to application.

The nearby context moves from verse 11's "Howle ye inhabitants of the lowe place..." into verse 13's "Therefore their goods shall be spoyled and...", so "light" and "time" 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 "light" and "time" with trust shaped by these words, not by a vague optimism outside the passage.