On that day they will say to Jerusalem: “Do not fear, O Zion; do not let your hands fall limp.
Parallel translations
- WEB In that day, it will be said to Jerusalem, “Don’t be afraid, Zion. Don’t let your hands be weak.”
- KJV In that day it shall be said to Jerusalem, Fear thou not: and to Zion, Let not thine hands be slack.
- NKJV In that day it shall be said to Jerusalem: “Do not fear; Zion, let not your hands be weak.
- NASB On that day it will be said to Jerusalem: “Do not be afraid, Zion; Do not let your hands fall limp.
- NLT On that day the announcement to Jerusalem will be, “Cheer up, Zion! Don’t be afraid!
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
In that day Jerusalem will be told not to fear or let its hands grow weak. It matters because God's saving presence replaces fear and discouragement with strength.
Overview
'Don't be afraid' and 'don't let your hands be weak' are calls to courage and renewed strength rooted in God's nearness. The promise counters the despair that judgment had threatened. This assurance anticipates the comfort Christ gives His people, who need not fear because He is with them.
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 18
- Heb 12:12Therefore strengthen your limp hands and weak knees.
- Isa 35:3–4Strengthen the limp hands and steady the feeble knees!
- Eph 3:13So I ask you not to be discouraged because of my sufferings for you, which are your glory.
- Isa 41:10Do not fear, for I am with you; do not be afraid, for I am your God. I will strengthen you; I will surely help you; I will uphold you with My right hand of righteousness.
- Gal 6:9Let us not grow weary in well-doing, for in due time we will reap a harvest if we do not give up.
- Rev 2:3Without growing weary, you have persevered and endured many things for the sake of My name.
- Isa 44:2This is the word of the LORD, your Maker, who formed you from the womb and who will help you: “Do not be afraid, O Jacob My servant, Jeshurun, whom I have chosen.
- 2 Cor 4:1Therefore, since God in His mercy has given us this ministry, we do not lose heart.
- Jer 46:27–28But you, O Jacob My servant, do not be afraid, and do not be dismayed, O Israel. For I will surely save you out of a distant place, your descendants from the land of their captivity! Jacob will return to quiet and ease, with no one to make him afraid.
- Isa 43:1–2Now this is what the LORD says—He who created you, O Jacob, and He who formed you, O Israel: “Do not fear, for I have redeemed you; I have called you by your name; you are Mine!
- Isa 41:13–14For I am the LORD your God, who takes hold of your right hand and tells you: Do not fear, I will help you.
- Isa 40:9Go up on a high mountain, O Zion, herald of good news. Raise your voice loudly, O Jerusalem, herald of good news. Lift it up, do not be afraid! Say to the cities of Judah, “Here is your God!”
- Job 4:3Surely you have instructed many, and have strengthened their feeble hands.
- Zech 8:15“so now I have resolved to do good again to Jerusalem and Judah. Do not be afraid.
- Heb 12:3–5Consider Him who endured such hostility from sinners, so that you will not grow weary and lose heart.
- John 12:12The next day the great crowd that had come to the feast heard that Jesus was coming to Jerusalem.
- Isa 54:4Do not be afraid, for you will not be put to shame; do not be intimidated, for you will not be humiliated. For you will forget the shame of your youth and will remember no more the reproach of your widowhood.
- Hag 2:4–5But now be strong, O Zerubbabel, declares the LORD. Be strong, O Joshua son of Jehozadak, the high priest. And be strong, all you people of the land, declares the LORD. Work! For I am with you, declares the LORD of Hosts.
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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 3:16 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.