Ezekiel 38:19

38:19 In my zeal, in the fire of my fury, ¹  I declare that on that day there will be a great earthquake ²  in the land of Israel.

Deuteronomy 4:24

4:24 For the Lord your God is a consuming fire; he is a jealous God. ³ 

Isaiah 66:15-16

66:15 For look, the Lord comes with fire,

his chariots come like a windstorm, ⁴ 

to reveal his raging anger,

his battle cry, and his flaming arrows. ⁵ 

66:16 For the Lord judges all humanity ⁶ 

with fire and his sword;

the Lord will kill many. ⁷ 

Zephaniah 3:8

3:8 Therefore you must wait patiently ⁸  for me,” says the Lord,

“for the day when I attack and take plunder. ⁹ 

I have decided ¹⁰  to gather nations together

and assemble kingdoms,

so I can pour out my fury on them –

all my raging anger.

For ¹¹  the whole earth will be consumed

by my fiery anger.

Zechariah 1:15

1:15 But I am greatly displeased with the nations that take my grace for granted. ¹²  I was a little displeased with them, but they have only made things worse for themselves.

¹ sn The phrase “in the fire of my fury” occurs in Ezek 21:31; 22:21, 31.

² tn Or “shaking.”

³ tn The juxtaposition of the Hebrew terms אֵשׁ (’esh, “fire”) and קַנָּא (qanna’, “jealous”) is interesting in light of Deut 6:15 where the Lord is seen as a jealous God whose anger bursts into a destructive fire. For God to be “jealous” means that his holiness and uniqueness cannot tolerate pretended or imaginary rivals. It is not petty envy but response to an act of insubordination that must be severely judged (see H. Peels, NIDOTTE 3:937-40).

⁴ sn Chariots are like a windstorm in their swift movement and in the way that they kick up dust.

⁵ tn Heb “to cause to return with the rage of his anger, and his battle cry [or “rebuke”] with flames of fire.”

⁶ tn Heb “flesh” (so KJV, NASB, NRSV); NIV “upon all men”; TEV “all the people of the world.”

⁷ tn Heb “many are the slain of the Lord.”

⁸ tn The second person verb form (“you must wait patiently”) is masculine plural, indicating that a group is being addressed. Perhaps the humble individuals addressed earlier (see 2:3) are in view. Because of Jerusalem’s sin, they must patiently wait for judgment to pass before their vindication arrives.

⁹ tn Heb “when I arise for plunder.” The present translation takes עַד (’ad) as “plunder.” Some, following the LXX, repoint the term עֵד (’ed) and translate, “as a witness” (cf. NASB, NIV, NRSV). In this case the Lord uses a legal metaphor to picture himself as testifying against his enemies. Adele Berlin takes לְעַד (lÿ’ad) in a temporal sense (“forever”) and translates “once and for all” (Zephaniah [AB 25A], 133).

¹⁰ tn Heb “for my decision is.”

¹¹ tn Or “certainly.”

¹² tn Or “the nations that are at ease” (so ASV, NRSV). The Hebrew word in question is שַׁאֲנָן (sha’anan) which has the idea of a careless, even arrogant attitude (see BDB 983 s.v. שַׁאֲנָן); cf. NAB “the complacent nations.” Here it suggests that the nations take for granted that God will never punish them just because he hasn't already done so. Thus they presume on the grace and patience of the Lord. The translation attempts to bring out this nuance rather than the more neutral renderings of TEV “nations that enjoy quiet and peace” or NLT “enjoy peace and security.”