Zephaniah 1:15-16

1:15 That day will be a day of God’s anger, ¹ 

a day of distress and hardship,

a day of devastation and ruin,

a day of darkness and gloom,

a day of clouds and dark skies,

1:16 a day of trumpet blasts ²  and battle cries. ³ 

Judgment will fall on ⁴  the fortified cities and the high corner towers.

[1:15]  ¹ tn Heb “a day of wrath.” The word “God’s” is supplied in the translation for clarification.

[1:16]  ² tn Heb “a ram’s horn.” By metonymy the Hebrew text mentions the trumpet (“ram’s horn”) in place of the sound it produces (“trumpet blasts”).

[1:16]  ³ sn This description of the day of the Lord consists of an initial reference to anger, followed by four pairs of synonyms. The joining of synonyms in this way emphasizes the degree of the characteristic being described. The first two pairs focus on the distress and ruin that judgment will bring; the second two pairs picture this day of judgment as being very dark (darkness) and exceedingly overcast (gloom). The description concludes with the pairing of two familiar battle sounds, the blast on the ram’s horn (trumpet blasts) and the war cries of the warriors (battle cries).

[1:16]  ⁴ tn Heb “against.” The words “judgment will fall” are supplied in the translation for clarification.