Ye Ethiopians also, ye shall be slain by my sword.
Parallel translations
- WEB You Cushites also, you will be killed by my sword.
- BSB “You too, O Cushites, will be slain by My sword.”
- NKJV “YouEthiopians also, You shall be slain by My sword.”
- NASB ¶“You also, Ethiopians, will be slain by My sword.”
- NLT “You Ethiopians will also be slaughtered by my sword,” says the Lord.
Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
Scripture quotations taken from the (NASB®) New American Standard Bible®, Copyright © 1960, 1971, 1977, 1995, 2020 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission. All rights reserved. lockman.org
Scripture quotations are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.
Quick answer
God declares that the Cushites also will fall by His sword. It matters because it extends the judgment southward, showing no nation is beyond His reach.
Overview
Cush, in the region south of Egypt, represents distant peoples drawn into the universal day of judgment. The brevity of the oracle underscores the certainty of God's verdict. Yet later in the book Cush also appears among those who will bring offerings, hinting that judgment is not God's final word.
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 10
- Ezek 30:4–9And the sword shall come upon Egypt, and great pain shall be in Ethiopia, when the slain shall fall in Egypt, and they shall take away her multitude, and her foundations shall be broken down.
- Jer 46:9–10Come up, ye horses; and rage, ye chariots; and let the mighty men come forth; the Ethiopians and the Libyans, that handle the shield; and the Lydians, that handle and bend the bow.
- Isa 20:4–5So shall the king of Assyria lead away the Egyptians prisoners, and the Ethiopians captives, young and old, naked and barefoot, even with their buttocks uncovered, to the shame of Egypt.
- Isa 18:1–7Woe to the land shadowing with wings, which is beyond the rivers of Ethiopia:
- Isa 43:3For I am the LORD thy God, the Holy One of Israel, thy Saviour: I gave Egypt for thy ransom, Ethiopia and Seba for thee.
- Jer 51:20–23Thou art my battle axe and weapons of war: for with thee will I break in pieces the nations, and with thee will I destroy kingdoms;
- Isa 13:5They come from a far country, from the end of heaven, even the LORD, and the weapons of his indignation, to destroy the whole land.
- Ps 17:13Arise, O LORD, disappoint him, cast him down: deliver my soul from the wicked, which is thy sword:
- Jer 47:6–7O thou sword of the LORD, how long will it be ere thou be quiet? put up thyself into thy scabbard, rest, and be still.
- Isa 10:5O Assyrian, the rod of mine anger, and the staff in their hand is mine indignation.
Themes, concepts, people & topics
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Christ at the center
The day of the LORD gives way to the promise that God himself will be in the midst of his people, rejoicing over them with singing — fulfilled in the saving presence of Christ.
How Zephaniah 2:12 points to him is part of the one story that runs through all Scripture — meet Jesus at the heart of the web, or follow a trail that traces him from Genesis to Revelation.
Original language
Each word below is tagged with its Strong’s number — tap one to see the underlying Hebrew word, its meaning, and every verse that uses it.