Zefanya 3:18-19

3:18 “As for those who grieve because they cannot attend the festivals –

I took them away from you;

they became tribute and were a source of shame to you. ¹ 

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

I will rescue the lame sheep ² 

and gather together the scattered sheep.

I will take away their humiliation

and make the whole earth admire and respect them. ³ 

Zefanya 3:10

3:10 From beyond the rivers of Ethiopia, ⁴ 

those who pray to me ⁵  will bring me tribute.

Zefanya 3:20

3:20 At that time I will lead you –

at the time I gather you together. ⁶ 

Be sure of this! ⁷  I will make all the nations of the earth respect and admire you ⁸ 

when you see me restore you,” ⁹  says the Lord.

Zefanya 2:7

2:7 Those who are left from the kingdom of Judah ¹⁰  will take possession of it. ¹¹ 

By the sea ¹²  they ¹³  will graze,

in the houses of Ashkelon they will lie down in the evening,

for the Lord their God will intervene for them ¹⁴  and restore their prosperity. ¹⁵ 

[3:18]  ¹ tn Heb “The ones grieving from an assembly I gathered from you they were, tribute upon her, a reproach.” Any translation of this difficult verse must be provisional at best. The present translation assumes three things: (1) The preposition מִן (min) prefixed to “assembly” is causal (the individuals are sorrowing because of the assemblies or festivals they are no longer able to hold). (2) מַשְׂאֵת (mas’et) means “tribute” and refers to the exiled people being treated as the spoils of warfare (see R. D. Patterson, Nahum, Habakkuk, Zephaniah [WEC], 385-86). (3) The third feminine singular suffix refers to personified Jerusalem, which is addressed earlier in the verse (the pronominal suffix in “from you” is second feminine singular). For other interpretive options see Adele Berlin, Zephaniah (AB 25A), 146.

[3:19]  ² 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]  ³ 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.

[3:10]  ⁴ tn Or “Nubia”; Heb “Cush.” “Cush” is traditionally assumed to refer to the region south of Egypt, i.e. Nubia or northern Sudan, referred to as “Ethiopia” by classical authors (not the more recent Abyssinia).

[3:10]  ⁵ tn Heb “those who pray to me, the daughter of my dispersed ones.” The meaning of the phrase is unclear. Perhaps the text is corrupt at this point or a proper name should be understood. For a discussion of various options see Adele Berlin, Zephaniah (AB 25A), 134-35.

[3:10]  sn It is not certain if those who pray to me refers to the converted nations or to God’s exiled covenant people.

[3:20]  ⁶ tn In this line the second person pronoun is masculine plural, indicating that the exiles are addressed.

[3:20]  ⁷ tn Or “for.”

[3:20]  ⁸ tn Heb “I will make you into a name and praise among all the peoples of the earth.” Here the word “name” carries the nuance of “good reputation.”

[3:20]  ⁹ tn Heb “when I restore your fortunes to your eyes.” See the note on the phrase “restore them” in 2:7.

[2:7]  ¹⁰ tn Heb “the remnant of the house of Judah.”

[2:7]  ¹¹ tn Or “the coast will belong to the remnant of the house of Judah.”

[2:7]  ¹² tc Heb “on them,” but the antecedent of the masculine pronoun is unclear. It may refer back to the “pasture lands,” though that noun is feminine. It is preferable to emend the text from עֲלֵיהֶם (’alehem) to עַל־הַיָּם (’al-hayyam, “by the sea”) an emendation that assumes a misdivision and transposition of letters in the MT (cf. NEB “They shall pasture their flocks by the sea”). See J. J. M. Roberts, Nahum, Habakkuk, and Zephaniah (OTL), 192.

[2:7]  ¹³ tn The referent of the pronominal subject (“they”) is unclear. It may refer (1) to the shepherds (in which case the first verb should be translated, “pasture their sheep,” cf. NEB), or (2) to the Judahites occupying the area, who are being compared to sheep (cf. NIV, “there they will find pasture”).

[2:7]  ¹⁴ tn Or “will care for them.”

[2:7]  ¹⁵ tn Traditionally, “restore their captivity,” i.e., bring back their captives, but it is more likely the expression means “restore their fortunes” in a more general sense (cf. NEB, NASB, NIV, NRSV).