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 

Matthew 10:16

Persecution of Disciples

10:16 “I ⁷  am sending you out like sheep surrounded by wolves, ⁸  so be wise as serpents and innocent as doves.

Luke 10:3

10:3 Go! I ⁹  am sending you out like lambs ¹⁰  surrounded by wolves. ¹¹ 

John 10:12

10:12 The hired hand, ¹²  who is not a shepherd and does not own sheep, sees the wolf coming and abandons ¹³  the sheep and runs away. ¹⁴  So the wolf attacks ¹⁵  the sheep and scatters them.

John 10:2

10:2 The one who enters by the door is the shepherd of the sheep.

John 2:1

Turning Water into Wine

2:1 Now on the third day there was a wedding at Cana ¹⁶  in Galilee. ¹⁷  Jesus’ mother ¹⁸  was there,

[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.

[10:16]  ⁷ tn Grk “Behold I.” The Greek word ἰδού (idou) has not been translated because it has no exact English equivalent here, but adds interest and emphasis (BDAG 468 s.v. 1).

[10:16]  ⁸ sn This imagery of wolves is found in intertestamental Judaism; see Pss. Sol. 8:23, 30.

[10:3]  ⁹ tn Grk “Behold I.” The Greek word ἰδού (idou) has not been translated because it has no exact English equivalent here, but adds interest and emphasis (BDAG 468 s.v. 1).

[10:3]  ¹⁰ sn On the imagery of lambs see Isa 40:11, Ezek 34:11-31, and John 10:1-18.

[10:3]  ¹¹ sn This imagery of wolves is found in intertestamental Judaism as well; see Pss. Sol. 8:23.

[10:12]  ¹² 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]  ¹³ tn Grk “leaves.”

[10:12]  ¹⁴ tn Or “flees.”

[10:12]  ¹⁵ 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.

[2:1]  ¹⁶ map For location see Map1 C3; Map2 D2; Map3 C5.

[2:1]  ¹⁷ sn Cana in Galilee was not a very well-known place. It is mentioned only here, in 4:46, and 21:2, and nowhere else in the NT. Josephus (Life 16 [86]) says he once had his quarters there. The probable location is present day Khirbet Cana, 8 mi (14 km) north of Nazareth, or Khirbet Kenna, 4 mi (7 km) northeast of Nazareth.

[2:1]  ¹⁸ tn Grk “in Galilee, and Jesus’ mother.”