Isaiah 2:20-21

2:20 At that time ¹  men will throw

their silver and gold idols,

which they made for themselves to worship, ² 

into the caves where rodents and bats live, ³ 

2:21 so they themselves can go into the crevices of the rocky cliffs

and the openings under the rocky overhangs, ⁴ 

trying to escape the dreadful judgment of the Lord ⁵ 

and his royal splendor,

when he rises up to terrify the earth. ⁶ 

Isaiah 5:14

5:14 So Death ⁷  will open up its throat,

and open wide its mouth; ⁸ 

Zion’s dignitaries and masses will descend into it,

including those who revel and celebrate within her. ⁹ 

Genesis 31:1-2

Jacob’s Flight from Laban

31:1 Jacob heard that Laban’s sons were complaining, ¹⁰  “Jacob has taken everything that belonged to our father! He has gotten rich ¹¹  at our father’s expense!” ¹²  31:2 When Jacob saw the look on Laban’s face, he could tell his attitude toward him had changed. ¹³ 

Genesis 7:6-8

7:6 Noah ¹⁴  was 600 years old when the floodwaters engulfed ¹⁵  the earth. 7:7 Noah entered the ark along with his sons, his wife, and his sons’ wives because ¹⁶  of the floodwaters. 7:8 Pairs ¹⁷  of clean animals, of unclean animals, of birds, and of everything that creeps along the ground,

Genesis 7:15

7:15 Pairs ¹⁸  of all creatures ¹⁹  that have the breath of life came into the ark to Noah.

Psalms 49:16-17

49:16 Do not be afraid when a man becomes rich ²⁰ 

and his wealth multiplies! ²¹ 

49:17 For he will take nothing with him when he dies;

his wealth will not follow him down into the grave. ²² 

Proverbs 11:4

11:4 Wealth does not profit in the day of wrath, ²³ 

but righteousness delivers from mortal danger. ²⁴ 

Zephaniah 1:18

1:18 Neither their silver nor their gold will be able to deliver them

in the day of the Lord’s angry judgment.

The whole earth ²⁵  will be consumed by his fiery wrath. ²⁶ 

Indeed, ²⁷  he will bring terrifying destruction ²⁸  on all who live on the earth.” ²⁹ 

[2:20]  ¹ tn Or “in that day” (KJV).

[2:20]  ² tn Or “bow down to.”

[2:20]  ³ tn Heb “to the shrews and to the bats.” On the meaning of חֲפַרְפָּרָה (khafarparah, “shrew”), see HALOT 341 s.v. חֲפַרְפָּרָה. The BHS text as it stands (לַחְפֹּר פֵּרוֹת, perot lakhpor), makes no sense. Based on Theodotion’s transliteration and a similar reading in the Qumran scroll 1QIsa^a, most scholars suggest that the MT mistakenly divided a noun (a hapax legomenon) that should be translated “moles,” “shrews,” or “rodents.”

[2:21]  ⁴ sn The precise point of vv. 20-21 is not entirely clear. Are they taking the idols into their hiding places with them, because they are so attached to their man-made images? Or are they discarding the idols along the way as they retreat into the darkest places they can find? In either case it is obvious that the gods are incapable of helping them.

[2:21]  ⁵ tn Heb “from the dread of the Lord,” that is, from the dread that he produces in the objects of his judgment.” The words “trying to escape” are supplied in the translation for stylistic reasons.

[2:21]  ⁶ tn Or “land.” It is not certain if these verses are describing the judgment of Judah (see vv. 6-9) or a more universal judgment on all proud men. Almost all English versions translate “earth,” taking this to refer to universal judgment.

[5:14]  ⁷ tn Heb “Sheol” (so ASV, NASB, NRSV); the underworld, the land of the dead, according to the OT world view. Cf. NAB “the nether world”; TEV, CEV “the world of the dead”; NLT “the grave.”

[5:14]  ⁸ tn Heb “so Sheol will make wide its throat, and open its mouth without limit.”

[5:14]  ⁹ tn Heb “and her splendor and her masses will go down, and her tumult and the one who exults in her.” The antecedent of the four feminine singular pronominal suffixes used in v. 14b is unclear. The likely referent is personified Zion/Jerusalem (see 3:25-26; 4:4-5).

[31:1]  ¹⁰ tn Heb “and he heard the words of the sons of Laban, saying.”

[31:1]  ¹¹ sn The Hebrew word translated “gotten rich” (כָּבוֹד, cavod) has the basic idea of “weight.” If one is heavy with possessions, then that one is wealthy (13:2). Abraham, Jacob, and Joseph all became wealthy when they left the promised land. Jacob’s wealth foreshadows what will happen to Israel when they leave the land of Egypt (Exod 12:35-38).

[31:1]  ¹² tn Heb “and from that which belonged to our father he has gained all this wealth.”

[31:2]  ¹³ tn Heb “and Jacob saw the face of Laban, and look, he was not with him as formerly.” Jacob knew from the expression on Laban’s face that his attitude toward him had changed – Jacob had become persona non grata.

[7:6]  ¹⁴ tn Heb “Now Noah was.” The disjunctive clause (conjunction + subject + predicate nominative after implied “to be” verb) provides background information. The age of Noah receives prominence.

[7:6]  ¹⁵ tn Heb “and the flood was water upon.” The disjunctive clause (conjunction + subject + verb) is circumstantial/temporal in relation to the preceding clause. The verb הָיָה (hayah) here carries the nuance “to come” (BDB 225 s.v. הָיָה). In this context the phrase “come upon” means “to engulf.”

[7:7]  ¹⁶ tn The preposition מִן (min) is causal here, explaining why Noah and his family entered the ark.

[7:8]  ¹⁷ tn Heb “two two” meaning “in twos.”

[7:15]  ¹⁸ tn Heb “two two” meaning “in twos.”

[7:15]  ¹⁹ tn Heb “flesh.”

[49:16]  ²⁰ sn When a man becomes rich. Why would people fear such a development? The acquisition of wealth makes individuals powerful and enables them to oppress others (see vv. 5-6).

[49:16]  ²¹ tn Heb “when the glory of his house grows great.”

[49:17]  ²² tn Heb “his glory will not go down after him.”

[11:4]  ²³ sn The “day of wrath” refers to divine punishment in this life (R. N. Whybray, Proverbs [CBC], 67; e.g., also Job 21:30; Ezek 7:19; Zeph 1:18). Righteousness and not wealth is more valuable in anticipating judgment.

[11:4]  ²⁴ tn Heb “from death.”

[1:18]  ²⁵ tn Or “land” (cf. NEB). This same word also occurs at the end of the present verse.

[1:18]  ²⁶ tn Or “passion”; traditionally, “jealousy.”

[1:18]  ²⁷ tn Or “for.”

[1:18]  ²⁸ tn Heb “complete destruction, even terror, he will make.”

[1:18]  ²⁹ tn It is not certain where the Lord’s words end and the prophet’s words begin. It is possible that Zephaniah begins speaking in the middle of v. 17 or at the beginning of v. 18 (note the third person pronouns referring to the Lord).