2:13 The Lord 1 will attack the north 2
and destroy Assyria.
He will make Nineveh a heap of ruins;
it will be as barren 3 as the desert.
3:3 Her princes 4 are as fierce as roaring lions; 5
her rulers 6 are as hungry as wolves in the desert, 7
who completely devour their prey by morning. 8
1 tn Heb “He”; the referent (the
2 tn Heb “he will stretch out his hand against the north.”
3 tn Or “dry.”
4 tn Or “officials.”
5 tn Heb “her princes in her midst are roaring lions.” The metaphor has been translated as a simile (“as fierce as”) for clarity.
6 tn Traditionally “judges.”
7 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.
8 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.