Jude 1:24

Final Blessing

1:24 Now to the one who is able to keep you from falling, ¹  and to cause you to stand, rejoicing, ²  without blemish ³  before his glorious presence, ⁴ 

Zephaniah 1:3

1:3 “I will destroy people and animals;

I will destroy the birds in the sky

and the fish in the sea.

(The idolatrous images of these creatures will be destroyed along with evil people.) ⁵ 

I will remove ⁶  humanity from the face of the earth,” says the Lord.

Zephaniah 1:1

Introduction

1:1 This is the prophetic message that the Lord gave to ⁷  Zephaniah son of Cushi, son of Gedaliah, son of Amariah, son of Hezekiah. Zephaniah delivered this message during the reign of ⁸  King Josiah son of Amon of Judah:

Zephaniah 1:9-10

1:9 On that day I will punish all who leap over the threshold, ⁹ 

who fill the house of their master ¹⁰  with wealth taken by violence and deceit. ¹¹ 

1:10 On that day,” says the Lord,

“a loud cry will go up ¹²  from the Fish Gate, ¹³ 

wailing from the city’s newer district, ¹⁴ 

and a loud crash ¹⁵  from the hills.

[1:24]  ¹ tn The construction in Greek is a double accusative object-complement. “You” is the object and “free from falling” is the adjectival complement.

[1:24]  ² tn Grk “with rejoicing.” The prepositional clause is placed after “his glorious presence” in Greek, but most likely goes with “cause you to stand.”

[1:24]  ³ tn The construction in Greek is a double accusative object-complement. “You” is the object and “without blemish” is the adjectival complement.

[1:24]  ⁴ tn Or “in the presence of his glory,” “before his glory.”

[1:3]  ⁵ tn Heb “And the stumbling blocks [or, “ruins”] with the evil”; or “the things that make the evil stumble.” The line does not appear in the original form of the LXX; it may be a later scribal addition. The present translation assumes the “stumbling blocks” are idolatrous images of animals, birds, and fish. See J. J. M. Roberts, Nahum, Habakkuk, and Zephaniah (OTL), 167, and Adele Berlin, Zephaniah (AB), 73-74.

[1:3]  ⁶ tn Heb “cut off.”

[1:1]  ⁷ tn Heb “The word of the Lord which came to.”

[1:1]  ⁸ tn Heb “in the days of.” The words “Zephaniah delivered this message” are supplied in the translation for clarification.

[1:9]  ⁹ sn The point of the statement all who hop over the threshold is unclear. A ritual or superstition associated with the Philistine god Dagon may be in view (see 1 Sam 5:5).

[1:9]  ¹⁰ tn The referent of “their master” is unclear. The king or a pagan god may be in view.

[1:9]  ¹¹ tn Heb “who fill…with violence and deceit.” The expression “violence and deceit” refers metonymically to the wealth taken by oppressive measures.

[1:10]  ¹² tn The words “will go up” are supplied in the translation for clarification.

[1:10]  ¹³ sn The Fish Gate was located on Jerusalem’s north side (cf. 2 Chr 33:14; Neh 3:3; 12:39).

[1:10]  ¹⁴ tn Heb “from the second area.” This may refer to an area northwest of the temple where the rich lived (see Adele Berlin, Zephaniah [AB 25A], 86; cf. NASB, NRSV “the Second Quarter”; NIV “the New Quarter”).

[1:10]  ¹⁵ tn Heb “great breaking.”