צפניה, פרק א׳, פסוק י׳

On God's day of judgment, the sounds of destruction and despair will echo throughout Jerusalem and its surroundings. The devastation will spread like a wave from one physical and social level to the next, reaching everyone from the common people to the highest leadership. The panic begins with a loud cry erupting from the Fish Gate. The primary approach among commentators is that this was one of Jerusalem's city gates, likely a bustling marketplace where merchants sold fish [רד״ק, אברבנאל].

From the marketplace, the noise swells into a bitter wail as it reaches the Mishneh, a secondary district of the city. Commentators offer various explanations for the exact nature of this location. It may refer to a newer residential neighborhood added to Jerusalem [ביאור שטיינזלץ], or the space situated between two of the city walls [מצודת ציון]. Others suggest it points to the king's palace [אבן עזרא, אברבנאל], or the study hall where sages and prophets, such as Huldah the prophetess, gathered [רד״ק]. A unique perspective identifies this spot as the Bird Gate, an area physically secondary to the Fish Gate [רש״י].

Finally, the wailing builds into the sound of a massive crash echoing from the hills, referring to the mountains surrounding and near Jerusalem [מצודת דוד, אבן עזרא, רד״ק, ביאור שטיינזלץ]. By tracing the movement of these sounds, commentators map out a clear social and physical progression of the city's ruin. The disaster strikes first at the lowest point, the Fish Gate by the outer wall, where the commoners and tradesmen live. The panic then climbs to the higher, secondary wall, where government ministers, sages, and nobles reside. Ultimately, the devastation reaches the highest peaks of Mount Zion and the Temple Mount. This is the seat of the king and his advisors, marking the location of the ultimate downfall [מלבי״ם, אברבנאל].

Alongside this focus on Jerusalem, an additional tradition expands the map of destruction to other cities across the land. In this view, the Fish Gate hints at the coastal city of Acre. The secondary district represents the city of Lod, which sits near Jerusalem. Finally, the hills symbolize Sepphoris, a city built high upon the mountain peaks [רד״ק, אברבנאל].