צפניה, פרק א׳, פסוק ב׳

A harsh and sweeping divine declaration of absolute destruction opens the prophecy. God announces the complete annihilation and eradication of all living things [רש"י, מצודת ציון, רד"ק, אברבנאל]. This initial warning serves as a broad, overarching statement of total ruin, setting a dark stage that will be explained and detailed in the subsequent prophecies [מלבי"ם, רד"ק].

While the sweeping language sounds as though it threatens the entire globe, the specific target of this impending doom is the Land of Israel. God is declaring the removal of everything that exists upon its soil [מצודת דוד, רד"ק].

The unusual repetition of the words describing this destruction serves to intensify the threat. One approach views this repetition as an emphatic way of describing a complete gathering up and removal of life [רש"י, מצודת ציון, אברבנאל]. Another perspective suggests that the double expression represents two distinct concepts: the physical gathering up of all things, followed by bringing them to an absolute and final end. This combination stresses the absolute finality of the coming devastation [אבן עזרא, רד"ק, מלבי"ם]. This precise phrasing, with its severe repetition of gathering and destruction, was carefully preserved and appears exactly this way in early midrashic sources [מנחת שי].