Zephaniah 2:9

2:9 Therefore, as surely as I live,” says the Lord who commands armies, the God of Israel,

“be certain that Moab will become like Sodom

and the Ammonites like Gomorrah.

They will be overrun by weeds, ¹ 

filled with salt pits, ² 

and permanently desolate.

Those of my people who are left ³  will plunder their belongings; ⁴ 

those who are left in Judah ⁵  will take possession of their land.”

Zephaniah 2:15

2:15 This is how the once-proud city will end up ⁶  –

the city that was so secure. ⁷ 

She thought to herself, ⁸  “I am unique! No one can compare to me!” ⁹ 

What a heap of ruins she has become, a place where wild animals live!

Everyone who passes by her taunts her ¹⁰  and shakes his fist. ¹¹ 

[2:9]  ¹ tn The Hebrew text reads מִמְשַׁק חָרוּל (mimshaq kharul, “[?] of weeds”). The meaning of the first word is unknown. The present translation (“They will be overrun by weeds”) is speculative, based on the general sense of the context. For a defense of “overrun” on linguistic grounds, see R. D. Patterson, Nahum, Habakkuk, Zephaniah (WEC), 347. Cf. NEB “a pile of weeds”; NIV “a place of weeds”; NRSV “a land possessed by nettles.”

[2:9]  ² tn The Hebrew text reads וּמִכְרֵה־מֶלַח (umikhreh-melakh, “and a [?] of salt”). The meaning of the first word is unclear, though “pit” (NASB, NIV, NRSV; NKJV “saltpit”), “mine,” and “heap” (cf. NEB “a rotting heap of saltwort”) are all options. The words “filled with” are supplied for clarification.

[2:9]  ³ tn Or “The remnant of my people.”

[2:9]  ⁴ tn Heb “them.” The actual object of the plundering, “their belongings,” has been specified in the translation for clarity.

[2:9]  ⁵ tn Heb “[the] nation.” For clarity the “nation” has been specified as “Judah” in the translation.

[2:15]  ⁶ tn Heb “this is the proud city.”

[2:15]  ⁷ tn Heb “the one that lived securely.”

[2:15]  ⁸ tn Heb “the one who says in her heart.”

[2:15]  ⁹ tn Heb “I [am], and besides me there is no other.”

[2:15]  ¹⁰ tn Heb “hisses”; or “whistles.”

[2:15]  ¹¹ sn Hissing (or whistling) and shaking the fist were apparently ways of taunting a defeated foe or an object of derision in the culture of the time.