Zephaniah 2:4

Judgment on Surrounding Nations

2:4 Indeed, ¹  Gaza will be deserted ² 

and Ashkelon will become a heap of ruins. ³ 

Invaders will drive away the people of Ashdod by noon, ⁴ 

and Ekron will be overthrown. ⁵ 

Zephaniah 2:13

2:13 The Lord ⁶  will attack the north ⁷ 

and destroy Assyria.

He will make Nineveh a heap of ruins;

it will be as barren ⁸  as the desert.

Zephaniah 1:17

1:17 I will bring distress on the people ⁹ 

and they will stumble ¹⁰  like blind men,

for they have sinned against the Lord.

Their blood will be poured out like dirt;

their flesh ¹¹  will be scattered ¹²  like manure.

Zephaniah 1:11

1:11 Wail, you who live in the market district, ¹³ 

for all the merchants ¹⁴  will disappear ¹⁵ 

and those who count money ¹⁶  will be removed. ¹⁷ 

Zephaniah 1:4

1:4 “I will attack ¹⁸  Judah

and all who live in Jerusalem. ¹⁹ 

I will remove ²⁰  from this place every trace of Baal worship, ²¹ 

as well as the very memory ²²  of the pagan priests. ²³ 

Zephaniah 3:8

3:8 Therefore you must wait patiently ²⁴  for me,” says the Lord,

“for the day when I attack and take plunder. ²⁵ 

I have decided ²⁶  to gather nations together

and assemble kingdoms,

so I can pour out my fury on them –

all my raging anger.

For ²⁷  the whole earth will be consumed

by my fiery anger.

Zephaniah 1:14

1:14 The Lord’s great day of judgment ²⁸  is almost here;

it is approaching very rapidly!

There will be a bitter sound on the Lord’s day of judgment;

at that time warriors will cry out in battle. ²⁹ 

Zephaniah 3:15

3:15 The Lord has removed the judgment against you; ³⁰ 

he has turned back your enemy.

Israel’s king, the Lord, is in your midst!

You no longer need to fear disaster.

Zephaniah 3:19

3:19 Look, at that time I will deal with those who mistreated you.

I will rescue the lame sheep ³¹ 

and gather together the scattered sheep.

I will take away their humiliation

and make the whole earth admire and respect them. ³² 

Zephaniah 3:3

3:3 Her princes ³³  are as fierce as roaring lions; ³⁴ 

her rulers ³⁵  are as hungry as wolves in the desert, ³⁶ 

who completely devour their prey by morning. ³⁷ 

Zephaniah 3:14

3:14 Shout for joy, Daughter Zion! ³⁸ 

Shout out, Israel!

Be happy and boast with all your heart, Daughter Jerusalem!

Zephaniah 3:11

3:11 In that day you ³⁹  will not be ashamed of all your rebelliousness against me, ⁴⁰ 

for then I will remove from your midst those who proudly boast, ⁴¹ 

and you will never again be arrogant on my holy hill.

Zephaniah 1:15

1:15 That day will be a day of God’s anger, ⁴² 

a day of distress and hardship,

a day of devastation and ruin,

a day of darkness and gloom,

a day of clouds and dark skies,

Zephaniah 2:3

2:3 Seek the Lord’s favor, ⁴³  all you humble people ⁴⁴  of the land who have obeyed his commands! ⁴⁵ 

Strive to do what is right! ⁴⁶  Strive to be humble! ⁴⁷ 

Maybe you will be protected ⁴⁸  on the day of the Lord’s angry judgment.

Zephaniah 3:6

The Lord’s Judgment will Purify

3:6 “I destroyed ⁴⁹  nations;

their walled cities ⁵⁰  are in ruins.

I turned their streets into ruins;

no one passes through them.

Their cities are desolate; ⁵¹ 

no one lives there. ⁵² 

[2:4]  ¹ tn Or “for” (KJV, NAB, NASB, NRSV).

[2:4]  ² tn There is a sound play here in the Hebrew text: the name Gaza (עַזָּה, ’azzah) sounds like the word translated “deserted” (עֲזוּבָה, ’azuvah).

[2:4]  ³ tn Or “a desolate place.”

[2:4]  ⁴ tn Heb “[As for] Ashdod, at noon they will drive her away.”

[2:4]  ⁵ tn Heb “uprooted.” There is a sound play here in the Hebrew text: the name “Ekron” (עֶקְרוֹן, ’eqron) sounds like the word translated “uprooted” (תֵּעָקֵר, te’aqer).

[2:13]  ⁶ tn Heb “He”; the referent (the Lord) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

[2:13]  ⁷ tn Heb “he will stretch out his hand against the north.”

[2:13]  ⁸ tn Or “dry.”

[1:17]  ¹¹ tn “The people” refers to mankind in general (see vv. 2-3) or more specifically to the residents of Judah (see vv. 4-13).

[1:17]  ¹² tn Heb “walk.”

[1:17]  ¹³ tn Some take the referent of “flesh” to be more specific here; cf. NEB (“bowels”), NAB (“brains”), NIV (“entrails”).

[1:17]  ¹⁴ tn The words “will be scattered” are supplied in the translation for clarity based on the parallelism with “will be poured out” in the previous line.

[1:11]  ¹⁶ tn Heb “in the Mortar.” The Hebrew term מַכְתֵּשׁ (makhtesh, “mortar”) is apparently here the name of a low-lying area where economic activity took place.

[1:11]  ¹⁷ tn Or perhaps “Canaanites.” Cf. BDB 489 s.v. I and II כְּנַעֲנִי. Translators have rendered the term either as “the merchant people” (KJV, NKJV), “the traders” (NRSV), “merchants” (NEB, NIV), or, alternatively, “the people of Canaan” (NASB).

[1:11]  ¹⁸ tn Or “be destroyed.”

[1:11]  ¹⁹ tn Heb “weigh out silver.”

[1:11]  ²⁰ tn Heb “be cut off.” In the Hebrew text of v. 11b the perfect verbal forms emphasize the certainty of the judgment, speaking of it as if it were already accomplished.

[1:4]  ²¹ tn Heb “I will stretch out my hand against,” is an idiom for hostile action.

[1:4]  ²² map For location see Map5 B1; Map6 F3; Map7 E2; Map8 F2; Map10 B3; JP1 F4; JP2 F4; JP3 F4; JP4 F4.

[1:4]  ²³ tn Heb “cut off.”

[1:4]  ²⁴ tn Heb “the remnant of Baal.”

[1:4]  ²⁵ tn Heb “name.” Here the “name” is figurative for the memory of those who bear it.

[1:4]  ²⁶ tc Heb “of the pagan priests and priests.” The first word (כְּמָרִים, kÿmarim) refers to idolatrous priests in its two other appearances in the OT (2 Kgs 23:5, Hos 10:5), while the second word (כֹּהֲנִים, kohanim) is the normal term for “priest” and is used of both legitimate and illegitimate priests in the OT. It is likely that the second term, which is omitted in the LXX, is a later scribal addition to the Hebrew text, defining the extremely rare word that precedes (see J. J. M. Roberts, Nahum, Habakkuk, and Zephaniah [OTL], 167-68; cf. also NEB, NRSV). Some argue that both words are original; among the modern English versions that include both are NASB and NIV. Possibly the first word refers to outright pagan priests, while the second has in view once-legitimate priests of the Lord who had drifted into idolatrous practices. Another option is found in Adele Berlin, who translates, “the idolatrous priests among the priests,” understanding the second word as giving the general category of which the idolatrous priests are a part (Zephaniah [AB 25A], 75).

[3:8]  ²⁶ 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.

[3:8]  ²⁷ 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).

[3:8]  ²⁸ tn Heb “for my decision is.”

[3:8]  ²⁹ tn Or “certainly.”

[1:14]  ³¹ tn Heb “The great day of the Lord.” The words “of judgment” are supplied in the translation here and later in this verse for clarity. See the note on the expression “day of judgment” in v. 7.

[1:14]  ³² tn Heb “the sound of the day of the Lord, bitter [is] one crying out there, a warrior.” The present translation does four things: (1) It takes מַר (mar, “bitter”) with what precedes (contrary to the accentuation of the MT). (2) It understands the participle צָרַח (tsarakh, “cry out in battle”) as verbal with “warrior” as its subject. (3) It takes שָׁם (sham, “there”) in a temporal sense, meaning “then, at that time.” (4) It understands “warrior” as collective.

[3:15]  ³⁶ tn Heb “your judgments,” that is, “the judgments directed against you.” The translation reflects the implications of the parallelism.

[3:19]  ⁴¹ tn The word “sheep” is supplied for clarification. As in Mic 4:6-7, the exiles are here pictured as injured and scattered sheep whom the divine shepherd rescues from danger.

[3:19]  ⁴² tn Heb “I will make them into praise and a name, in all the earth, their shame.” The present translation assumes that “their shame” specifies “them” and that “name” stands here for a good reputation.

[3:3]  ⁴⁶ tn Or “officials.”

[3:3]  ⁴⁷ tn Heb “her princes in her midst are roaring lions.” The metaphor has been translated as a simile (“as fierce as”) for clarity.

[3:3]  ⁴⁸ tn Traditionally “judges.”

[3:3]  ⁴⁹ tn Heb “her judges [are] wolves of the evening,” that is, wolves that prowl at night. The translation assumes an emendation to עֲרָבָה (’aravah, “desert”). For a discussion of this and other options, see Adele Berlin, Zephaniah (AB 25A), 128. The metaphor has been translated as a simile (“as hungry as”) for clarity.

[3:3]  ⁵⁰ tn Heb “they do not gnaw [a bone] at morning.” The precise meaning of the line is unclear. The statement may mean these wolves devour their prey so completely that not even a bone is left to gnaw by the time morning arrives. For a discussion of this and other options, see Adele Berlin, Zephaniah (AB 25A), 129.

[3:14]  ⁵¹ sn This phrase is used as an epithet for the city and the nation. “Daughter” may seem extraneous in English but consciously joins the various epithets and metaphors of Israel and Jerusalem as a woman, a device used to evoke sympathy from the reader.

[3:11]  ⁵⁶ sn The second person verbs and pronouns are feminine singular, indicating that personified Jerusalem is addressed here.

[3:11]  ⁵⁷ tn Heb “In that day you not be ashamed because of all your actions, [in] which you rebelled against me.”

[3:11]  ⁵⁸ tn Heb “the arrogant ones of your pride.”

[1:15]  ⁶¹ tn Heb “a day of wrath.” The word “God’s” is supplied in the translation for clarification.

[2:3]  ⁶⁶ tn Heb “seek the Lord,” but “favor” seems to be implied from the final line of the verse.

[2:3]  ⁶⁷ tn Or “poor.” The precise referent of this Hebrew term is unclear. The word may refer to the economically poor or to the spiritually humble.

[2:3]  ⁶⁸ tn The present translation assumes the Hebrew term מִשְׁפָּט (mishpat) here refers to God’s covenantal requirements and is a synonym for the Law. The word can mean “justice” and could refer more specifically to the principles of justice contained in the Law. In this case the phrase could be translated, “who have promoted the justice God demands.”

[2:3]  ⁶⁹ tn Heb “Seek what is right.”

[2:3]  ⁷⁰ tn Heb “Seek humility.”

[2:3]  ⁷¹ tn Heb “hidden.” Cf. NEB “it may be that you will find shelter”; NRSV “perhaps you may be hidden.”

[3:6]  ⁷¹ tn Heb “cut off.”

[3:6]  ⁷² tn Heb “corner towers”; NEB, NRSV “battlements.”

[3:6]  ⁷³ tn This Hebrew verb (צָדָה, tsadah) occurs only here in the OT, but its meaning is established from the context and from an Aramaic cognate.

[3:6]  ⁷⁴ tn Heb “so that there is no man, without inhabitant.”