Bible Strands
Zephaniah 1:7
Be silent in the presence of the Lord GOD, for the Day of the LORD is near. Indeed, the LORD has prepared a sacrifice; He has consecrated His guests.
Berean Standard Bible
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Study note
Setting — Yahweh speaks through the prophet to Judah, who have turned away from Him (1:6), announcing that the Day of the LORD is imminent. The "sacrifice" and "guests" are specified in the next verse (1:8) as princes and those in foreign apparel.
The words — הַס (has) is an abrupt imperative: "hush!" or "be still!" — a command, not an invitation. The BSB's "Be silent" retains the force, but the Hebrew is a single syllable of silence imposed.
The thread — Habakkuk 2:20 and Zechariah 2:13 issue the same command of silence before the LORD, and Zephaniah 1:14 repeats the nearness of the Day. The "sacrifice" language here is a judgment idiom, not a feast, as 1:8 makes explicit.
Why it lands — The verse tells the reader to stop and to recognize that the LORD's "sacrifice" is an act of execution, not communion. The "consecrated guests" are the condemned, not honored invitees.
Drafted by a language model from the text, its original words and its cross-references, then checked against them. It can still be wrong: open the verse in the app to report it.
The Hebrew words
King James Version
Hold thy peace at the presence of the Lord God: for the day of the Lord is at hand: for the Lord hath prepared a sacrifice, he hath bid his guests.
Cross-references
- Habakkuk 2:20 But the LORD is in His holy temple; let all the earth be silent before Him.
- Zechariah 2:13 Be silent before the LORD, all people, for He has roused Himself from His holy dwelling.”
- Zephaniah 1:14 The great Day of the LORD is near—near and coming quickly. Listen, the Day of the LORD! Then the cry of the mighty will be bitter.
- Isaiah 34:6 The sword of the LORD is bathed in blood. It drips with fat—with the blood of lambs and goats, with the fat of the kidneys of rams. For the LORD has a sacrifice in Bozrah, a great slaughter in the land of Edom.
- Jeremiah 46:10 For that day belongs to the Lord GOD of Hosts, a day of vengeance against His foes. The sword will devour until it is satisfied, until it is quenched with their blood. For the Lord GOD of Hosts will hold a sacrifice in the land of the north by the River Euphrates.
- Isaiah 13:6 Wail, for the Day of the LORD is near; it will come as destruction from the Almighty.
- 1 Samuel 16:5 “In peace,” he replied. “I have come to sacrifice to the LORD. Consecrate yourselves and come with me to the sacrifice.” Then he consecrated Jesse and his sons and invited them to the sacrifice.
- Isaiah 2:12 For the Day of the LORD of Hosts will come against all the proud and lofty, against all that is exalted—it will be humbled—
- Joel 2:31 The sun will be turned to darkness and the moon to blood before the coming of the great and awesome Day of the LORD.
- Amos 5:18 Woe to you who long for the Day of the LORD! What will the Day of the LORD be for you? It will be darkness and not light.