Imamat 11:16-18

11:16 the eagle owl, ¹  the short-eared owl, the long-eared owl, the hawk of any kind, 11:17 the little owl, the cormorant, the screech owl, 11:18 the white owl, the scops owl, the osprey,

Yesaya 34:11-15

34:11 Owls and wild animals ²  will live there, ³ 

all kinds of wild birds ⁴  will settle in it.

The Lord ⁵  will stretch out over her

the measuring line of ruin

and the plumb line ⁶  of destruction. ⁷ 

34:12 Her nobles will have nothing left to call a kingdom

and all her officials will disappear. ⁸ 

34:13 Her fortresses will be overgrown with thorns;

thickets and weeds will grow ⁹  in her fortified cities.

Jackals will settle there;

ostriches will live there. ¹⁰ 

34:14 Wild animals and wild dogs will congregate there; ¹¹ 

wild goats will bleat to one another. ¹² 

Yes, nocturnal animals ¹³  will rest there

and make for themselves a nest. ¹⁴ 

34:15 Owls ¹⁵  will make nests and lay eggs ¹⁶  there;

they will hatch them and protect them. ¹⁷ 

Yes, hawks ¹⁸  will gather there,

each with its mate.

Zefanya 2:14

2:14 Flocks and herds ¹⁹  will lie down in the middle of it,

as well as every kind of wild animal. ²⁰ 

Owls ²¹  will sleep in the tops of its support pillars;

they will hoot through the windows. ²² 

Rubble will cover the thresholds; ²³ 

even the cedar work ²⁴  will be exposed to the elements. ²⁵ 

[11:16]  ¹ tn Literally, “the daughter of the wasteland.” Various proposals for the species of bird referred to here include “owl” (KJV), “horned owl” (NIV, NCV), and “ostrich” (ASV, NAB, NASB, NRSV, NLT).

[34:11]  ² tn קָאַת (qa’at) refers to some type of bird (cf. Lev 11:18; Deut 14:17) that was typically found near ruins (see Zeph 2:14). קִפּוֹד (qippod) may also refer to a type of bird (NAB “hoot owl”; NIV “screech owl”; TEV “ravens”), but some have suggested a rodent may be in view (cf. NCV “small animals”; ASV “porcupine”; NASB, NRSV “hedgehog”).

[34:11]  ³ tn Heb “will possess it” (so NIV).

[34:11]  ⁴ tn The Hebrew text has יַנְשׁוֹף וְעֹרֵב (yanshof vÿ’orev). Both the יַנְשׁוֹף (“owl”; see Lev 11:17; Deut 14:16) and עֹרֵב (“raven”; Lev 11:15; Deut 14:14) were types of wild birds.

[34:11]  ⁵ tn Heb “he”; the referent (the Lord) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

[34:11]  ⁶ tn Heb “stones,” i.e., the stones used in a plumb bob.

[34:11]  ⁷ sn The metaphor in v. 11b emphasizes that God has carefully planned Edom’s demise.

[34:12]  ⁸ tn Heb “will be nothing”; NCV, TEV, NLT “will all be gone.”

[34:13]  ⁹ tn The words “will grow” are supplied in the translation for stylistic reasons.

[34:13]  ¹⁰ tc Heb “and she will be a settlement for wild dogs, a dwelling place for ostriches.” The translation assumes an emendation of חָצִיר (khatsir, “grass”) to חָצֵר (khatser, “settlement”). One of the Qumran scrolls of Isaiah (1QIsa^a) supports this emendation (cf. HALOT 344 s.v. II חָצִיר)

[34:14]  ¹¹ tn Heb “will meet” (so NIV); NLT “will mingle there.”

[34:14]  ¹² tn Heb “and a goat will call to its neighbor.”

[34:14]  ¹³ tn The precise meaning of לִּילִית (lilit) is unclear, though in this context the word certainly refers to some type of wild animal or bird. The word appears to be related to לַיְלָה (laylah, “night”). Some interpret it as the name of a female night demon, on the basis of an apparent Akkadian cognate used as the name of a demon. Later Jewish legends also identified Lilith as a demon. Cf. NRSV “Lilith.”

[34:14]  ¹⁴ tn Heb “and will find for themselves a resting place.”

[34:15]  ¹⁵ tn Hebrew קִפּוֹז (qippoz) occurs only here; the precise meaning of the word is uncertain.

[34:15]  ¹⁶ tn For this proposed meaning for Hebrew מָלַט (malat), see HALOT 589 s.v. I מלט.

[34:15]  ¹⁷ tn Heb “and brood [over them] in her shadow.”

[34:15]  ¹⁸ tn The precise meaning of דַּיָּה (dayyah) is uncertain, though the term appears to refer to some type of bird of prey, perhaps a vulture.

[2:14]  ¹⁹ tn Heb “flocks.” The Hebrew word can refer to both flocks of sheep and herds of cattle.

[2:14]  ²⁰ tn Heb “[and] all the wild animals of a nation.” How גוֹי (goy, “nation”) relates to what precedes is unclear. It may be a corruption of another word. See J. J. M. Roberts, Nahum, Habakkuk, and Zephaniah (OTL), 193.

[2:14]  ²¹ tn The Hebrew text reads here גַּם־קָאַת גַּם־קִפֹּד (gam-qa’at gam-qippod). The term קָאַת refers to some type of bird (see Lev 11:18; Deut 14:17) that was typically found near ruins (Isa 34:11); one of the most common translations is “owl” (cf. NEB “horned owl”; NIV, NRSV “desert owl”; contra NASB “pelican”). The term קִפֹּד may also refer to a type of bird (cf. NEB “ruffed bustard”; NIV, NRSV “screech owl”). Some suggest a rodent may be in view (cf. NASB “hedgehog”); this is not unreasonable, for a rodent or some other small animal would be able to sleep in the tops of pillars which would be lying in the ruins of the fallen buildings.

[2:14]  ²² tn Heb “a sound will sing in the window.” If some type of owl is in view, “hoot” is a more appropriate translation (cf. NEB, NRSV).

[2:14]  ²³ tn Heb “rubble [will be] on the threshold.” “Rubble” translates the Hebrew word חֹרֶב (khorev, “desolation”). Some emend to עֹרֵב (’orev, “raven”) following the LXX and Vulgate; Adele Berlin translates, “A voice shall shriek from the window – a raven at the sill” (Zephaniah [AB 25A], 104).

[2:14]  ²⁴ tn The meaning of the Hebrew word translated “cedar work” (so NASB, NRSV) is unclear; NIV has “the beams of cedar.”

[2:14]  ²⁵ tn Heb “one will expose.” The subject is probably indefinite, though one could translate, “for he [i.e., God] will lay bare.”