Zephaniah 3:10-12

New English Translation

Footnotes

1. Zephaniah 3:10 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).
2. Zephaniah 3:10 tn Heb “those who pray to me, the daughter of my dispersed ones.” The meaning of the phrase is unclear. 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.
3. Zephaniah 3:11 sn The second person verbs and pronouns are feminine singular, indicating that personified Jerusalem is addressed here.
4. Zephaniah 3:11 tn Heb “In that day you will not be ashamed because of all your actions, [in] which you rebelled against me.”
5. Zephaniah 3:11 tn Heb “the arrogant ones of your pride.”
6. Zephaniah 3:12 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.
7. Zephaniah 3:12 tn Heb “and they will take refuge in the name of the Lord.” sn Safety in the Lord’s presence. From the time the Lord introduced his special covenant name (Yahweh) to Moses, it served as a reminder of his protective presence as Israel’s faithful deliverer.