Zephaniah 1:4 (KJV)

Passage

I will also stretch out mine hand upon Judah, and upon all the inhabitants of Jerusalem; and I will cut off the remnant of Baal from this place, and the name of the Chemarims with the priests;

Nearby Context

Zephaniah 1:2 I will utterly consume all things from off the land, saith the LORD.

Zephaniah 1:3 I will consume man and beast; I will consume the fowls of the heaven, and the fishes of the sea, and the stumbling blocks with the wicked: and I will cut off man from off the land, saith the LORD.

Zephaniah 1:4 I will also stretch out mine hand upon Judah, and upon all the inhabitants of Jerusalem; and I will cut off the remnant of Baal from this place, and the name of the Chemarims with the priests;

Zephaniah 1:5 And them that worship the host of heaven upon the housetops; and them that worship and that swear by the LORD, and that swear by Malcham;

Zephaniah 1:6 And them that are turned back from the LORD; and those that have not sought the LORD, nor enquired for him.

Study Lenses

The verse centers on "stretch", "mine", "hand", "upon", "judah", "inhabitants", and "jerusalem". It is saying that the verse draws attention to "stretch" and "mine", so its meaning should be read from those terms before moving to application.

The nearby context moves from verse 3's "I will consume man and beast I..." into verse 5's "And them that worship the host of...", so "stretch" and "mine" 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 "stretch" and "mine" with trust shaped by these words, not by a vague optimism outside the passage.