It is not clear who these guests are. The verb for consecrate (קדשׁ) and the noun for guests (קרא) are combined elsewhere in contexts speaking of consecration for a holy feast (Leviticus 23:2, Leviticus 23:4, Leviticus 23:37; Leviticus 25:10; 2 Kings 10:20; Isaiah 58:13; Joel 1:14; Joel 2:15) or for holy war (Isaiah 13:3; Joel 3:9; Micah 3:5; Ezekiel 39:17–20). Commentators have argued for either context being in view in Zephaniah 1:7, with most arguing for the holy feast/sacrificial festival option. But it is not necessary to separate the two options; indeed, Ezekiel 39:17–20 joins together the theme of holy war with a sacrificial meal for the birds of prey and wild beasts. The guests, then, are typically identified as either the people of Judah, being invited as guests/sacrifice to their own slaughter, or the enemies of Judah, those whom the Lord has chosen to consume the sacrifice of his people. In the latter case, the enemy most immediately in view would be the Babylonians (Jeremiah 34:21–22; Habakkuk 1:6).¹