Zephaniah 3:3

3:3 Her princes ¹  are as fierce as roaring lions; ² 

her rulers ³  are as hungry as wolves in the desert, ⁴ 

who completely devour their prey by morning. ⁵ 

Matthew 7:15

A Tree and Its Fruit

7:15 “Watch out for false prophets, who come to you in sheep’s clothing but inwardly are voracious wolves. ⁶ 

John 10:12

10:12 The hired hand, ⁷  who is not a shepherd and does not own sheep, sees the wolf coming and abandons ⁸  the sheep and runs away. ⁹  So the wolf attacks ¹⁰  the sheep and scatters them.

Acts 20:29

20:29 I know that after I am gone ¹¹  fierce wolves ¹²  will come in among you, not sparing the flock.

[3:3]  ¹ tn Or “officials.”

[3:3]  ² 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]  ³ tn Traditionally “judges.”

[3:3]  ⁴ 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]  ⁵ 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.

[7:15]  ⁶ sn Sheep’s clothing…voracious wolves. Jesus uses a metaphor here to point out that these false prophets appear to be one thing, but in reality they are something quite different and dangerous.

[10:12]  ⁷ sn Jesus contrasts the behavior of the shepherd with that of the hired hand. This is a worker who is simply paid to do a job; he has no other interest in the sheep and is certainly not about to risk his life for them. When they are threatened, he simply runs away.

[10:12]  ⁸ tn Grk “leaves.”

[10:12]  ⁹ tn Or “flees.”

[10:12]  ¹⁰ tn Or “seizes.” The more traditional rendering, “snatches,” has the idea of seizing something by force and carrying it off, which is certainly possible here. However, in the sequence in John 10:12, this action precedes the scattering of the flock of sheep, so “attacks” is preferable.

[20:29]  ¹¹ tn Grk “after my departure.”

[20:29]  ¹² tn That is, people like fierce wolves. See BDAG 167-68 s.v. βαρύς 4 on the term translated “fierce.” The battle that will follow would be a savage one.