Zephaniah 1:2 (LSB)

Passage

“I will completely end all things From the face of the ground,” declares Yahweh.

Nearby Context

Zephaniah 1:1 The word of Yahweh which came to Zephaniah son of Cushi, son of Gedaliah, son of Amariah, son of Hezekiah, in the days of Josiah son of Amon, king of Judah:

Zephaniah 1:2 “I will completely end all things From the face of the ground,” declares Yahweh.

Zephaniah 1:3 “I will end man and beast; I will end the birds of the sky And the fish of the sea And the ruins along with the wicked; And I will cut off man from the face of the ground,” declares Yahweh.

Zephaniah 1:4 “So I will stretch out My hand against Judah And against all the inhabitants of Jerusalem. And I will cut off the remnant of Baal from this place, And the names of the idolatrous priests along with the priests,

Study Lenses

The verse centers on "all things", "completely", "face", "ground", "declares", and "yahweh". It is saying that the verse draws attention to "all things" and "completely", so its meaning should be read from those terms before moving to application.

The nearby context moves from verse 1's "The word of Yahweh which came to..." into verse 3's "I will end man and beast I...", so "all things" and "completely" 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 "all things" and "completely" with trust shaped by these words, not by a vague optimism outside the passage.