2:7 Those who are left from the kingdom of Judah 1 will take possession of it. 2
By the sea 3 they 4 will graze,
in the houses of Ashkelon they will lie down in the evening,
for the Lord their God will intervene for them 5 and restore their prosperity. 6
3:8 Therefore you must wait patiently 7 for me,” says the Lord,
“for the day when I attack and take plunder. 8
I have decided 9 to gather nations together
and assemble kingdoms,
so I can pour out my fury on them –
all my raging anger.
For 10 the whole earth will be consumed
by my fiery anger.
1 tn Heb “the remnant of the house of Judah.”
2 tn Or “the coast will belong to the remnant of the house of Judah.”
3 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.
4 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”).
5 tn Or “will care for them.”
6 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).
7 tn The second person verb form (“you must wait patiently”) is masculine plural, indicating that a group is being addressed. Perhaps the humble individuals addressed earlier (see 2:3) are in view. Because of Jerusalem’s sin, they must patiently wait for judgment to pass before their vindication arrives.
8 tn Heb “when I arise for plunder.” The present translation takes עַד (’ad) as “plunder.” Some, following the LXX, repoint the term עֵד (’ed) and translate, “as a witness” (cf. NASB, NIV, NRSV). In this case the Lord uses a legal metaphor to picture himself as testifying against his enemies. Adele Berlin takes לְעַד (lÿ’ad) in a temporal sense (“forever”) and translates “once and for all” (Zephaniah [AB 25A], 133).
9 tn Heb “for my decision is.”
10 tn Or “certainly.”