3:9 Know for sure that I will then enable
the nations to give me acceptable praise. 1
All of them will invoke the Lord’s name when they pray, 2
and will worship him in unison. 3
3:10 From beyond the rivers of Ethiopia, 4
those who pray to me 5 will bring me tribute.
3:11 In that day you 6 will not be ashamed of all your rebelliousness against me, 7
for then I will remove from your midst those who proudly boast, 8
and you will never again be arrogant on my holy hill.
3:12 I will leave in your midst a humble and meek group of people, 9
and they will find safety in the Lord’s presence. 10
3:13 The Israelites who remain 11 will not act deceitfully.
They will not lie,
and a deceitful tongue will not be found in their mouth.
Indeed, they will graze peacefully like sheep 12 and lie down;
no one will terrify them.”
1 tn Heb “Certainly [or perhaps, “For”] then I will restore to the nations a pure lip.”
sn I will then enable the nations to give me acceptable praise. This apparently refers to a time when the nations will reject their false idol-gods and offer genuine praise to the one true God.
2 tn Heb “so that all of them will call on the name of the
3 tn Heb “so that [they] will serve him [with] one shoulder.”
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).
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.
sn It is not certain if those who pray to me refers to the converted nations or to God’s exiled covenant people.
6 sn The second person verbs and pronouns are feminine singular, indicating that personified Jerusalem is addressed here.
7 tn Heb “In that day you not be ashamed because of all your actions, [in] which you rebelled against me.”
8 tn Heb “the arrogant ones of your pride.”
9 tn Heb “needy and poor people.” The terms often refer to a socioeconomic group, but here they may refer to those who are humble in a spiritual sense.
10 tn Heb “and they will take refuge in the name of the
sn Safety in the
11 tn Or “the remnant of Israel.”
12 tn The words “peacefully like sheep” are supplied in the translation for clarification.