Zephaniah 1:3

This verse particularizes the general statement in Zephaniah 1:2 (cf. Genesis 1:1-31). The Lord will remove animal life, not that plants will survive-if animals die, plants will undoubtedly die too-, but animal life was His focus of interest. This includes human beings, beasts of all types, birds, and fish, in other words, animal life on the land, in the air, and in the water. Ruins still standing from previous destructions, or perhaps false religious practices that have caused people to stumble, would perish, as would the wicked. The Lord repeated that He would cut off man to make that fact indisputable. This would be a reversal of Creation (cf. Genesis 1:20-26) and a judgment similar to the Flood in its scope (Genesis 6:17; Genesis 7:21-23).

Does this prophecy refer to the judgments that will come during the Tribulation (Revelation 6-18) or at the end of the Millennium (2 Peter 3:10; Revelation 20:11-15)? In view of what follows in this section describing judgment, especially Zephaniah 3:8, the parallel passage to Zephaniah 1:2-3, I think it refers to the Tribulation judgments.