Zephaniah 1:6
“And them that are turned back from the LORD; and those that have not sought the LORD, nor enquired for him.”
King James Version (KJV)
Read this verse in context with translation switching:
Read Full Chapter →Judgment also falls on those who have drifted away from God and on those who never bothered to seek Him at all.
What Does Zephaniah 1:6 Mean?
Beyond active idolaters, the LORD names two quieter failures: those who have turned back from following Him, and those who simply never sought Him at all. The first abandoned a path they once knew; the second never set out. Neither raised an idol, yet both stand under the same word.
This verse exposes a sin easy to overlook, the sin of indifference. It is possible to offend God not by what we do but by what we never do, never seeking, never inquiring, drifting along as though He were not there. The Lord still says, seek and ye shall find. The remedy for a cold and wandering heart is to turn back and to begin asking after Him again, for He is found by those who truly look for Him.
In the Original Language
darash (דָּרַש), 'sought' -- to seek, inquire, or care about, implying a deliberate turning of attention toward God rather than passive neglect.