Zephaniah 1:6
in Zephaniah 1and those who turn back from following the LORD, neither seeking the LORD nor inquiring of Him.”
BSB
The same verse in ASV and KJV ▾
ASV
and them that are turned back from following Jehovah; and those that have not sought Jehovah, nor inquired after him.
KJV
And them that are turned back from the Lord; and those that have not sought the Lord, nor enquired for him.
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This verse in Zephaniah 1
Commentary
8 notes on this verseThis site's exposition
every remnant of Baal
on Zephaniah 1:4-6
The list names Baal, "the idolatrous and pagan priests," "the host of heaven" worshiped on the rooftops, and Milcom, the god of the Ammonites. These cults were left from Manasseh's reign, and verse 5 charges those who "swear by the LORD but also swear by Milcom," a worship divided.
This site's exposition
those who turn back from following the LORD
Verse 6 adds two groups to the idolaters of verses 4 and 5. The first once followed the LORD and turned away, and the second never sought Him or asked for His guidance. Both stand under one sentence.
The record, by era
The Church Fathers1 voice
(Verse 4 and following) And I will stretch out my hand over Judah and over all the inhabitants of Jerusalem, and I will destroy from this place the remnants of Baal, and the names of the idolatrous priests together with the priests, and those who worship on the rooftops the host of heaven, and those who worship and swear by the Lord, and swear by Melchom; and those who turn away from the Lord, and those who have not sought the Lord or inquired of him.
The Puritans and the Awakening3 voices
); and so he goes on in the rest of the chapter, setting both the judgments before them, that they might prevent them or prepare for them, and the sins that destroy them, that they might judge themselves, and justify God in what was brought upon them. They must hold their peace because they had greatly sinned,
quarantine:debris (2026-07-29) — leading-punctuation+unbalanced-parens
7 Hold thy peace at the presence of the Lord G OD : for the day of the L ORD is at hand: for the L ORD hath prepared a sacrifice, he hath bid his guests. 8 And it shall come to pass in the day of the L ORD 's sacrifice, that I will punish the princes, and the king's children, and all such as are clothed with strange apparel.
quarantine:scripture (2026-07-29) — scripture-overlap:88%@v7-8
And them that are turned back from the Lord,....
The Nineteenth Century1 voice
Them that are turned back - Who have forsaken the true God, and become idolaters. Nor inquired for him - Have not desired to know his will.
1 more voice on this verse
The Nineteenth Century1 voice
A commentator
Albert Barnes1798–1870
Notes, Explanatory and Practical, on the Old and New Testaments (1832-1869)
proposed
And them that are turned back from - (Literally, have turned themselves back from following after) the Lord From this half-service, the prophet goes on to the avowed neglect of God, by such as wholly fall away from Him, not setting His will or law before them, “but turning away from” Him. It is their misery that they were set in the right way once, but themselves “turned themselves back,” now no longer “following” God, but “their own lusts, drawn away and enticed” Jas 1:14 by them. How much more Christians, before whose eyes Christ Jesus is set forth, not as a Redeemer only but as an Example that they should “follow His steps!” 1Pe 2:21. And those that have not sought the Lord, nor inquired for Him - This is marked to be a distinct class. “And those who.” These did not openly break with God, or turn away overtly from Him; they kept (as men think) on good terms with Him, but, like “the slothful servant,” rendered Him a listless heartless service. Both words express diligent search. God is not found then in a careless way. They who “seek” Him not “diligently” Mat 2:8, do not find Him. “Strive,” our Lord says, “to enter in at the strait gate, for many, I say unto you, shall seek to enter in, and shall not be able” Luk 13:24. She who had lost the one piece of silver, “sought” “diligently” Luk 15:8, until she had found it. Thus, he has gone through the whole cycle. First, that most horrible and cruel worship of Baal, the idolatrous priests and those who had the name of priests only, mingled with them, yet not openly apostatizing; then the milder form of idolatry, the star-worshipers; then those who would unite the worship of God with idols, who held themselves to be worshipers of God, but whose real king was their idol; then those who openly abandoned God; and lastly those who held with Him, just to satisfy their conscience-qualms, but with no heart-service. […]
The words behind it
11 Hebrew wordsEvery Hebrew word of this verse in the order it stands, with what it means and the door to its own study. The last column counts the times a word stands in the whole Bible: the rarer the word, the more the places it appears belong together.
| Hebrew | Sound | Meaning | Word study | In the Bible |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| וְאֶת־ | veet | and <obj.> | H853 → | 10935 times |
| הַנְּסוֹגִ֖ים | hanesogim | those [who] have turned back | H5472 → | |
| מֵאַחֲרֵ֣י | meacharei | from after | H310 → | |
| יְהוָ֑ה | yahweh | Yahweh | H3068 → | 6520 times |
| וַאֲשֶׁ֛ר | vaasher | and [those] who | H834 → | 5497 times |
| לֹֽא־ | lo'- | not | H3808 → | 5168 times |
| בִקְשׁ֥וּ | vikshu | they have sought | H1245 → | 225 times |
| אֶת־ | ʾet- | <obj.> | H853 → | 10935 times |
| יְהוָ֖ה | yahweh | Yahweh | H3068 → | 6520 times |
| וְלֹ֥א | velo' | and not | H3808 → | 5168 times |
| דְרָשֻֽׁהוּ׃ | derashuhu | they have sought him | H1875 → |
וְאֶת־and <obj.>
veetH853 →10935 times
הַנְּסוֹגִ֖יםthose [who] have turned back
hanesogimH5472 →
מֵאַחֲרֵ֣יfrom after
meachareiH310 →
יְהוָ֑הYahweh
yahwehH3068 →6520 times
וַאֲשֶׁ֛רand [those] who
vaasherH834 →5497 times
לֹֽא־not
lo'-H3808 →5168 times
בִקְשׁ֥וּthey have sought
vikshuH1245 →225 times
אֶת־<obj.>
ʾet-H853 →10935 times
יְהוָ֖הYahweh
yahwehH3068 →6520 times
וְלֹ֥אand not
velo'H3808 →5168 times
דְרָשֻֽׁהוּ׃they have sought him
derashuhuH1875 →
A shaded row is a word that stands 400 times or fewer in the Bible.
The walk
8 stopsEach card is a verse this one points to, and under it the verses that one points to in turn. Where several paths arrive at the same place, that place is listed first: the text keeps returning to it.
Through
Jeremiah 2:13“For My people have committed two evils: They have forsaken Me, the fountain of living water, and they have dug their own cisterns—broken cisterns that cannot hold water.
it leads to
- John 4:14
But whoever drinks the water I give him will never thirst. Indeed, the water I give him will become in him a fount of water springing up to eternal life.”
- John 7:37
On the last and greatest day of the feast, Jesus stood up and called out in a loud voice, “If anyone is thirsty, let him come to Me and drink.
- Revelation 21:6
And He told me, “It is done! I am the Alpha and the Omega, the Beginning and the End. To the thirsty I will give freely from the spring of the water of life.
- Jeremiah 17:13
O LORD, the hope of Israel, all who abandon You will be put to shame. All who turn away will be written in the dust, for they have abandoned the LORD, the fountain of…
- Psalms 36:9
For with You is the fountain of life; in Your light we see light.
- John 4:14
Through
Jeremiah 2:17Have you not brought this on yourself by forsaking the LORD your God when He led you in the way?
it leads to
- Jeremiah 2:19
Your own evil will discipline you; your own apostasies will reprimand you. Consider and realize how evil and bitter it is for you to forsake the LORD your God and to have no fear…
Reached by 2 separate paths from here.
- Jeremiah 2:19
Through
Isaiah 1:4Alas, O sinful nation, a people laden with iniquity, a brood of evildoers, children of depravity! They have forsaken the LORD; they have despised the Holy One of Israel and turned their backs on…
it leads to
- Jeremiah 2:13
“For My people have committed two evils: They have forsaken Me, the fountain of living water, and they have dug their own cisterns—broken cisterns that cannot hold water.
Reached by 2 separate paths from here.
- Jeremiah 2:13
Through
Jeremiah 15:6You have forsaken Me, declares the LORD. You have turned your back. So I will stretch out My hand against you and I will destroy you; I am weary of showing compassion.
it leads to
- Jeremiah 7:24
Yet they did not listen or incline their ear, but they followed the stubborn inclinations of their own evil hearts. They went backward and not forward.
- Jeremiah 7:24
Where this verse is studied
About Zephaniah
This page draws on Adam Clarke, Commentary on the Bible; Albert Barnes, Notes on the Old Testament; Albert Barnes, Notes, Explanatory and Practical, on the Old and New Testaments (1832-1869); Jerome, Commentary on Zephaniah; John Gill, Exposition of the Old Testament; John Gill, Exposition of the Old Testament (1748-1763) and Matthew Henry, Commentary on the Whole Bible.