Zephaniah 2:7-9 New English Translation

⁷Those who are left from the kingdom of Judah^[a] will take possession of it.^[b]
By the sea^[c] they^[d] will graze,
in the houses of Ashkelon they will lie down in the evening,
for the Lord their God will intervene for them^[e] and restore their prosperity.^[f]
⁸“I have heard Moab’s taunts
and the Ammonites’ insults.
They^[g] taunted my people
and verbally harassed those living in Judah.^[h]
⁹Therefore, as surely as I live,” says the Lord of Heaven’s Armies, the God of Israel,
“be certain that Moab will become like Sodom
and the Ammonites like Gomorrah.
They will be overrun by weeds,^[i]
filled with salt pits,^[j]
and permanently desolate.
Those of my people who are left^[k] will plunder their belongings;^[l]
those who are left in Judah^[m] will take possession of their land.”

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Footnotes

Zephaniah 2:7 tn Heb “the remnant of the house of Judah.”
Zephaniah 2:7 tn Or “the coast will belong to the remnant of the house of Judah.”
Zephaniah 2:7 tc Heb “on them.” But there is no clear antecedent to match the masculine plural pronoun. It is preferable to emend the text from עֲלֵיהֶם (ʿalehem) to עַל־הַיָּם (ʿal hayyam, “by the sea”). This emendation assumes a transposition of letters and then an improper word division in the MT (cf. NEB “They shall pasture their flocks by the sea”). See J. J. M. Roberts, Nahum, Habakkuk, and Zephaniah (OTL), 192.
Zephaniah 2:7 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”).
Zephaniah 2:7 tn Or “will care for them.”
Zephaniah 2:7 tn Traditionally, “restore their captivity,” i.e., bring back their captives. This followed the understanding of the LXX and other versions (cf. KJV “turn away their captivity”). The Hebrew tradition is mixed, the consonantal text implies the reading שְׁבוּת (shevut) but it is vocalized as if שְׁבִית (shevit). It is more likely the noun means “fortunes” (HALOT 1386 s.v. שְׁבִית, שְׁבוּת) as in the expression “restore their fortunes” (cf. NEB, NASB, NIV, NRSV).
Zephaniah 2:8 tn Heb “who.” A new sentence was begun here in the translation for stylistic reasons.
Zephaniah 2:8 tn Heb “and they made great [their mouth?] against their territory.” Other possible translation options include (1) “they enlarged their own territory” (cf. NEB) and (2) “they bragged about [the size] of their own territory.”
Zephaniah 2:9 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.”
Zephaniah 2:9 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.
Zephaniah 2:9 tn Or “The remnant of my people.”
Zephaniah 2:9 tn Heb “them.” The actual object of the plundering, “their belongings,” has been specified in the translation for clarity.
Zephaniah 2:9 tn Heb “[the] nation.” For clarity the “nation” has been specified as “Judah” in the translation.

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