Zephaniah 1:12 (KJV)

Passage

And it shall come to pass at that time, that I will search Jerusalem with candles, and punish the men that are settled on their lees: that say in their heart, The LORD will not do good, neither will he do evil.

Nearby Context

Zephaniah 1:10 And it shall come to pass in that day, saith the LORD, that there shall be the noise of a cry from the fish gate, and an howling from the second, and a great crashing from the hills.

Zephaniah 1:11 Howl, ye inhabitants of Maktesh, for all the merchant people are cut down; all they that bear silver are cut off.

Zephaniah 1:12 And it shall come to pass at that time, that I will search Jerusalem with candles, and punish the men that are settled on their lees: that say in their heart, The LORD will not do good, neither will he do evil.

Zephaniah 1:13 Therefore their goods shall become a booty, and their houses a desolation: they shall also build houses, but not inhabit them; and they shall plant vineyards, but not drink the wine thereof.

Zephaniah 1:14 The great day of the LORD is near, it is near, and hasteth greatly, even the voice of the day of the LORD: the mighty man shall cry there bitterly.

Study Lenses

The verse centers on "shall", "come", "pass", "time", "search", "jerusalem", "candles", and "punish". It is saying that the verse draws attention to "shall" and "come", so its meaning should be read from those terms before moving to application.

The nearby context moves from verse 11's "Howl ye inhabitants of Maktesh for all..." into verse 13's "Therefore their goods shall become a booty...", so "shall" and "come" 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 "shall" and "come" with trust shaped by these words, not by a vague optimism outside the passage.