Zephaniah 2:5

Verse

Woe to the dwellers of the seacoast, O nation of the Cherethites! The word of the LORD is against you, O Canaan, land of the Philistines: “I will destroy you, and no one will be left.”

American Standard Version (1901)

Woe unto the inhabitants of the sea-coast, the nation of the Cherethites! The word of Jehovah is against you, O Canaan, the land of the Philistines; I will destroy thee, that there shall be no inhabitant.

Bible in Basic English

Sorrow to the people living by the sea, the nation of the Cherethites! The word of the Lord is against you, O Canaan, the land of the Philistines; I will send destruction on you till there is no one living in you.

Douay-Rheims 1899

Woe to you that inhabit the sea coast, O nation of reprobates: the word of the Lord upon you, O Chanaan, the land of the Philistines, and I will destroy thee, so that there shall not be an inhabitant.

Free Bible Version

What disaster is coming to you Philistines, you sea-people who live along the coast and in the land of Canaan! The Lord has passed judgment on you. I will destroy you—there will be no survivors.

Geneva Bible 1599

Wo vnto the inhabitants of the sea coast. the nation of the Cherethims, the worde of the Lord is against you: O Canaan, the lande of the Philistims, I will euen destroye thee without an inhabitant.

King James (Authorized) Version

Woe unto the inhabitants of the sea coast, the nation of the Cherethites! the word of the LORD is against you; O Canaan, the land of the Philistines, I will even destroy thee, that there shall be no inhabitant.

Translation for Translators

And terrible things will happen to you people of Philistia who live near the sea, because Yahweh has decided [MTY] that he will punish [MTY] you, also. He will get rid of all of you; not one person will ◄survive/remain alive►.

Unlocked Literal Bible

Woe to the inhabitants of the seacoast, the nation of the Kerethites! Yahweh has spoken against you, Canaan, land of the Philistines. I will destroy you until no inhabitant remains.

Noah Webster Bible

Woe to the inhabitants of the sea coasts, the nation of the Cherethites! the word of the LORD is against you; O Canaan, the land of the Philistines, I will even destroy thee, that there shall be no inhabitant.

World English Bible

Woe to the inhabitants of the sea coast, the nation of the Cherethites! Yahweh’s word is against you, Canaan, the land of the Philistines. I will destroy you until there is no inhabitant.

Young's Literal Translation

Ho! O inhabitants of the sea-coast, Nation of the Cherethites, A word of Jehovah [is] against you, Canaan, land of the Philistines, And I have destroyed thee without an inhabitant.

Context

Judgment on the Philistines

⁴For Gaza will be abandoned, and Ashkelon left in ruins. Ashdod will be driven out at noon, and Ekron will be uprooted. ⁵Woe to the dwellers of the seacoast, O nation of the Cherethites! The word of the LORD is against you, O Canaan, land of the Philistines: “I will destroy you, and no one will be left.” ⁶So the seacoast will become a land of pastures, with wells for shepherds and folds for sheep.

Summary

Zephaniah 2:5 warns the inhabitants of Philistia, a region known for its idolatry and opposition to God's people, of impending judgment. The verse serves as a call to repentance, urging them to turn from their wicked ways and seek the Lord before His righteous anger is unleashed. It emphasizes the sovereignty of God over all nations and His intolerance of sin, reminding us of the importance of living in obedience to His commandments. Ultimately, Zephaniah 2:5 conveys the message that God's judgment is certain, but there is still an opportunity for repentance and reconciliation with Him.

Commentary

Adam Clarke
Jamieson-Fausset-Brown
John Gill
Tyndale

Adam Clarke Bible Commentary

The sea-coasts, the nation of the Cherethites - The sea-coasts mean all the country lying on the Mediterranean coast from Egypt to Joppa and Gaza. The Cherethites - the Cretans who were probably a colony of the Phoenicians. See on Sa1 30:14 (note), and Amo 9:7 (note).

John Gill Bible Commentary

Woe unto the inhabitants of the sea coasts, the nation of the Cherethites Which is a name of the Philistines in general, as Kimchi and Ben Melech; or these were a particular tribe belonging to them, that inhabited the southern part of their country; see ( 1 Samuel 30:14 1 Samuel 30:16 ) those on the sea coast, the coast of the Mediterranean sea, and so lay between that and Judea: out of this nation, in the times of David and Solomon, were some choice soldiers selected, called the Cherethites and Pelethites, who were their bodyguards, as Josephus F1 calls them; a royal band, which never departed from the king's person; see ( 2 Samuel 15:18 ) ( 2 Samuel 20:7 2 Samuel 20:23 ) . The Septuagint version calls them "strangers of the Cretians"; and are thought by some to be a colony of the Cretians; a people that came originally from the island of Crete, and settled here; but, on the contrary, rather Crete was a colony of the Philistines, and had its name from them; for by the Arabians F2, the country of Palestine, or the Philistines, is called Keritha; and by the Syrians Creth; and, by the Hebrews the inhabitants thereof are called Cherethites, as here, and in ( Ezekiel 25:16 ) and so the south of the Cherethites, in ( 1 Samuel 30:14 ) , is, in ( Ezekiel 25:16 ) , called the land of the Philistines. In all the above places, where they are spoken of as the attendants of Solomon and David, they are in the Targum called "archers"; and it is a clear case the Philistines were famous for archery, whereby they had sometimes the advantage of their enemies; see ( 1 Samuel 31:3 ) and bows and arrows were the arms the Cretians made use of, and were famous for, as Bochart F3 from various writers has shown; the use of which they learned very probably from the Philistines, from whom they sprung; though Solinus F4 says they were the first that used arrows; and, according to Diodorus Siculus, Saturn introduced the art of using bows and arrows into the island of Crete; though others ascribe it to Apollo F5; and it is said that Hercules learnt this art from Rhadamanthus of Crete; which last instance seems to favour the notion of those, that these Cherethites were Cretians, or sprung from them; to which the Septuagint version inclines; and Calmet F6 is of opinion that Caphtor, from whence the Philistines are said to come, ( Amos 9:7 ) and who are called the remnant of the country of Caphtor, ( Jeremiah 47:4 ) is the island of Crete; and that the Philistines came from thence into Palestine; and that the Cherethites are the ancient Cretians; the language, manners, arms, religion and gods, of the Cretians and Philistines, being much the same; though so they might be, as being a colony of the Philistines; (See Gill on Amos 9:7) though a learned man {1}, who gives into the opinion that these were royal guards, yet thinks they were not strangers and idolaters, but proselytes to the Jewish religion at least; and rather Israelites, choice selected men, men of strength and valour, of military courage and skill, picked out of the nation, to guard the king's person; and who were called Cherethites and Pelethites, from the kind of shields and targets they wore, called "cetra" and "pelta": and it is a notion several of the Jewish writers {2} have, that they were two families in Israel; but it seems plain and evident that a foreign nation is here meant, which lay on the sea coast, and belonged to the Philistines. Another learned man F7 thinks they are the Midianites, the same with the Cretians that Luke joins with the Arabians, ( Acts 2:11 ) as the Midianites are with the Arabians and Amalekites by Josephus F8; however, a woe is denounced against them, and they are threatened with desolation. The Vulgate Latin version is, "a nation of destroyed ones": and the Targum, ``a people who have sinned, that they might be destroyed:'' the word of the Lord is against you; inhabitants of the sea coast, the Cherethites; the word of the Lord conceived in his own mind, his purpose to destroy them, which cannot be frustrated. So the Targum, ``the decree of the word of the Lord is against you;'' and the word pronounced by his lips, the word of prophecy concerning them, by the mouth of former prophets, as Isaiah, ( Isaiah 14:29 Isaiah 14:31 ) and by the mouth of the present prophet: O Canaan, the land of the Philistines; Palestine was a part of Canaan; the five lordships of the Philistines before mentioned belonged originally to the Canaanite, ( Joshua 13:3 ) and these belonged to the land of Israel, though possessed by them, out of which now they should be turned, and the country wasted, as follows: I will even destroy thee, that there shall be no inhabitant; so great should be the desolation; all should be removed from it, either by death or by captivity; at least there should be no settled inhabitant. FOOTNOTES: F1 Antiqu. l. 7. c. 5. sect. 4. and c. 11. sect. 8. Vid. Opitii Exercitat. de Crethi & Plethi. F2 Giggeius apud Bochart. Canaan, l. 1. c. 15. col. 422. F3 Ibid. col. 423. F4 Polyhistor. c. 16. F5 Diodor. Sicul. Bibliothec. l. 5. p. 334, 341. F6 Dictionary, in the word "Caphtor". {1} Fortunati Scacchi Elaeochrism, Myrothec. l. 3. c. 18, 19. {2} Kimchi & Ben Gersom in 2 Sam. viii. 18. and xv. 18. F7 Texelii Phoenix. l. 3. c. 21. sect. 4. p. 389, 390. F8 Antiqu. l. 5. c. 6. sect. 1.

Zephaniah 2:5

Judgment on the Philistines

Scripture
Sermons
Commentary

Berean Standard Bible

Woe to the dwellers of the seacoast, O nation of the Cherethites! The word of the LORD is against you, O Canaan, land of the Philistines: “I will destroy you, and no one will be left.”

American Standard Version (1901)

Bible in Basic English

Douay-Rheims 1899

Free Bible Version

What disaster is coming to you Philistines, you sea-people who live along the coast and in the land of Canaan! The Lord has passed judgment on you. I will destroy you—there will be no survivors.

Geneva Bible 1599

Wo vnto the inhabitants of the sea coast. the nation of the Cherethims, the worde of the Lord is against you: O Canaan, the lande of the Philistims, I will euen destroye thee without an inhabitant.

King James (Authorized) Version

Translation for Translators

Unlocked Literal Bible

Woe to the inhabitants of the seacoast, the nation of the Kerethites! Yahweh has spoken against you, Canaan, land of the Philistines. I will destroy you until no inhabitant remains.

Noah Webster Bible

World English Bible

Woe to the inhabitants of the sea coast, the nation of the Cherethites! Yahweh’s word is against you, Canaan, the land of the Philistines. I will destroy you until there is no inhabitant.

Young's Literal Translation

Ho! O inhabitants of the sea-coast, Nation of the Cherethites, A word of Jehovah [is] against you, Canaan, land of the Philistines, And I have destroyed thee without an inhabitant.

Adam Clarke
Jamieson-Fausset-Brown
John Gill
Tyndale

Adam Clarke Bible Commentary

John Gill Bible Commentary

Zephaniah 2:5

Verse

Context

Judgment on the Philistines

Summary

Commentary

Adam Clarke Bible Commentary

Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Bible Commentary

John Gill Bible Commentary

Tyndale Open Study Notes

Zephaniah 2:5

Judgment on the Philistines

Adam Clarke Bible Commentary

Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Bible Commentary

John Gill Bible Commentary

Tyndale Open Study Notes