From beyond the rivers of Cush, my worshipers, even the daughter of my dispersed people, will bring my offering.
Parallel Translations
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From beyond the rivers of Cush, my worshipers, even the daughter of my dispersed people, will bring my offering.
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From beyond the rivers of Ethiopia my suppliants, even the daughter of my dispersed, shall bring mine offering.
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From beyond the rivers of Ethiopia shall they bring My suppliants, even the daughter of My dispersed, as Mine offering.
Cross-references (15)
Passages linked to Zephaniah 3:10 in the Treasury of Scripture Knowledge, ordered by reader-vote popularity; verse text shown in World English Bible.
- Psalms 68:31 Princes shall come out of Egypt. Ethiopia shall hurry to stretch out her hands to God.
- Isaiah 11:11 It will happen in that day that the Lord will set his hand again the second time to recover the remnant that is left of his people from Assyria, from Egypt, from Pathros, from Cush, from Elam, from Shinar, from Hamath, and from the islands of the sea.
- Isaiah 18:1 Ah, the land of the rustling of wings, which is beyond the rivers of Ethiopia;
- Romans 15:16 that I should be a servant of Christ Jesus to the Gentiles, serving as a priest of the Good News of God, that the offering up of the Gentiles might be made acceptable, sanctified by the Holy Spirit.
- 1 Peter 1:1 Peter, an apostle of Jesus Christ, to the chosen ones who are living as foreigners in the Dispersion in Pontus, Galatia, Cappadocia, Asia, and Bithynia,
- Psalms 72:8-11 He shall have dominion also from sea to sea, from the River to the ends of the earth. Those who dwell in the wilderness shall bow before him. His enemies shall lick the dust. The kings of Tarshish and of the islands will bring tribute. The kings of Sheba and Seba shall offer gifts. Yes, all kings shall fall down before him. All nations shall serve him.
- Isaiah 18:7 In that time, a present will be brought to Yahweh of Armies from a people tall and smooth, even from a people awesome from their beginning onward, a nation that measures out and treads down, whose land the rivers divide, to the place of the name of Yahweh of Armies, Mount Zion.
- Isaiah 27:12-13 It will happen in that day that Yahweh will thresh from the flowing stream of the Euphrates to the brook of Egypt; and you will be gathered one by one, children of Israel. It will happen in that day that a great trumpet will be blown; and those who were ready to perish in the land of Assyria, and those who were outcasts in the land of Egypt, shall come; and they will worship Yahweh in the holy mountain at Jerusalem.
- Isaiah 49:20-23 The children of your bereavement will say in your ears, ‘This place is too small for me. Give me a place to live in.’ Then you will say in your heart, ‘Who has conceived these for me, since I have been bereaved of my children and am alone, an exile, and wandering back and forth? Who has brought these up? Behold, I was left alone. Where were these?’ ” The Lord Yahweh says, “Behold, I will lift up my hand to the nations, and lift up my banner to the peoples. They shall bring your sons in their bosom, and your daughters shall be carried on their shoulders. Kings shall be your foster fathers, and their queens your nursing mothers. They will bow down to you with their faces to the earth, and lick the dust of your feet. Then you will know that I am Yahweh; and those who wait for me shall not be disappointed.”
- Isaiah 60:4-12 “Lift up your eyes all around, and see: they all gather themselves together. They come to you. Your sons will come from far away, and your daughters will be carried in arms. Then you shall see and be radiant, and your heart will thrill and be enlarged; because the abundance of the sea will be turned to you. The wealth of the nations will come to you. A multitude of camels will cover you, the dromedaries of Midian and Ephah. All from Sheba will come. They will bring gold and frankincense, and will proclaim the praises of Yahweh. All the flocks of Kedar will be gathered together to you. The rams of Nebaioth will serve you. They will be accepted as offerings on my altar; and I will beautify my glorious house. “Who are these who fly as a cloud, and as the doves to their windows? Surely the islands will wait for me, and the ships of Tarshish first, to bring your sons from far, their silver and their gold with them, for the name of Yahweh your God, and for the Holy One of Israel, because he has glorified you. “Foreigners will build up your walls, and their kings will serve you: for in my wrath I struck you, but in my favor I have had mercy on you. Your gates also shall be open continually; they shall not be shut day nor night, that men may bring to you the wealth of the nations, and their kings led captive. For that nation and kingdom that will not serve you shall perish; yes, those nations shall be utterly wasted.
- Isaiah 66:18-21 “For I know their works and their thoughts. The time comes that I will gather all nations and languages, and they will come, and will see my glory. “I will set a sign among them, and I will send those who escape of them to the nations, to Tarshish, Pul, and Lud, who draw the bow, to Tubal and Javan, to far-away islands, who have not heard my fame, nor have seen my glory; and they shall declare my glory among the nations. They shall bring all your brothers out of all the nations for an offering to Yahweh, on horses, in chariots, in litters, on mules, and on camels, to my holy mountain Jerusalem, says Yahweh, as the children of Israel bring their offering in a clean vessel into Yahweh’s house. Of them I will also select priests and Levites,” says Yahweh.
- Malachi 1:11 For from the rising of the sun even to its going down, my name is great among the nations, and in every place incense will be offered to my name, and a pure offering: for my name is great among the nations,” says Yahweh of Armies.
- Acts 8:27 He arose and went; and behold, there was a man of Ethiopia, a eunuch of great authority under Candace, queen of the Ethiopians, who was over all her treasure, who had come to Jerusalem to worship.
- Acts 24:17 Now after some years, I came to bring gifts for the needy to my nation, and offerings;
- Romans 11:11-12 I ask then, did they stumble that they might fall? May it never be! But by their fall salvation has come to the Gentiles, to provoke them to jealousy. Now if their fall is the riches of the world, and their loss the riches of the Gentiles; how much more their fullness?
Cross-references from openbible.info (CC BY 4.0)
Explain this verse (15 sources)
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John Calvin 1540 · Public Domain Interpreters agree not as to the meaning of this…
Interpreters agree not as to the meaning of this verse; for some of the Hebrews connect this with the former, as though the Prophet was still speaking of the calling of the Gentiles. But others, with whom I agree, apply this to the dispersed Jews, so that the Prophet here gives hope of that restoration, of which he had before spoken. They who understand this of the Gentiles, think that Atharai and Phorisai are proper names. But in the first place, we cannot find that any nations were so called; and then, if we receive what they say, these were not separate nations, but portions of the Ethiopians; for the Prophet does not state the fact by itself, that Atharai and Phorisai would be the worshipers of God; but after having spoken of Ethiopia, he adds these words: hence we conclude, that the Prophet means this,—that they would return into Judea from the farthest region of the Ethiopians to offer sacrifices to God. And as he mentions the daughter of the dispersion, we must understand this of the Jews, for it cannot be applied to the Ethiopians. And this promise fits in well with the former verse: for the Prophet spoke, according to what we observed yesterday, of the future calling of the Gentiles; and now he adds, the Jews would come with the Gentiles, that they might unite together, agreeing in the same faith, in the true and pure worship of the only true God. He had said, that the kingdom would be enlarged, for the Church was to be gathered from all nations: he now adds, that the elect people would be restored, after having been driven away into exile.
Hence he says, Beyond the rivers of Ethiopia shall be my suppliants: for עתר, otar, means to supplicate; but it means also sometimes to be pacified, or to be propitious; and therefore some take עתרים, otarim, in a passive sense, they who shall be reconciled to God; as though he had said, God will at length be propitious to the miserable exiles, though they have been cast away beyond the rivers of Ethiopia: they shall yet again be God’s people, for he will be reconciled to them. As David calls Him the God of his mercy, because he had found him merciful and gracious, (Psalm 59:17,) so also in this place they think that the Jews are said to be the עתרי, the reconciled of Jehovah, because he would be reconciled to them. But this exposition is too forced: I therefore retain that which I have stated,—that some suppliants would come to God from the utmost parts of Ethiopia, not the Ethiopians themselves, but the Jews who had been driven there.
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To the same purpose is what is added, The daughter of my dispersed; for פוף, puts, means to scatter or to disperse. Hence by the daughter of the dispersed he means the gathered assembly of the miserable exiles, who for a time were considered as having lost their name, so as not to be counted as the people of Israel. These then shall again offer to me a gift, that is, they are to be restored to their country, that they may there worship me after their usual manner. Now though this prophecy extends to the time of the Gospel, it is yet no wonder, that the Prophet describes the worship of God such as it had been, accompanied with the ceremonies of the Law. We now then perceive what Zephaniah means in this verse,—that not only the Gentiles would come into the Church of God, but that the Jews also would return to their country, that they might together make one body. It follows,—
John Calvin's Commentaries (1540-1563) — public domain. Text from the Calvin Translation Society English edition (1840s-50s) via the Christian Classics Ethereal Library (ccel.org). Calvin's coverage is partial (roughly two-thirds of the Bible); uncommented books and verses are honest gaps, never fabricated. The 19th-century editor's footnotes and remarks are omitted so the notes are faithfully Calvin's own voice.
Geneva Bible translators 1599 · Public Domain That is, the Jews shall come as well as…
That is, the Jews shall come as well as the Gentiles: which is to be understood under the time of the Gospel.
Geneva Bible (1599) marginal notes — public domain.
John Trapp 1656 · Public Domain Zep 3:10 From beyond the rivers of Ethiopia my…
Zep 3:10 From beyond the rivers of Ethiopia my suppliants, [even] the daughter of my dispersed, shall bring mine offering.
Ver. 10. From beyond the rivers of Ethiopia] Heb. Of Chush, that is of Arabia Chusaea, which lay between Judea and Egypt. Confer Isa 18:1; Isa 18:7. Some understand it of Ethiopia, which is beyond the river Nile, and hath two very great rivers. See this in part fulfilled by that Ethiopian eunuch, Act 8:26-40; neither may we think that he was alone in that country. Matthias the apostle is said to have preached the gospel to the Ethiopians (Euseb. i. 1). The large region of Nubia there had from the apostles’ time (as it is thought) professed the Christian faith, till about two hundred years since it forsook the same (Alvarez, Hist. Aethiopic.). The kingdom of Habassia, held by presbyter John, are yet Christians, differing from us in a few ceremonies only. {See Trapp on "Zep 2:12"}
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My suppliants] My praying people, that ply the throne of grace, and multiply strong suits, pouring out a flood of words in humble supplication (as the Hebrew signifieth), continuing instant in prayer, as knowing that their safety here and salvation hereafter is of me alone.
Even the daughter of my dispersed] Jews and Gentiles, elect of both sorts, Joh 11:52, scattered here and there, as the salt of the earth upon the face thereof, to keep it from putrefying. Danaeus thinketh that there is mention made of the daughter of the dispersed affectionately; namely, both to describe the earnestness of the saints in serving God (for women, quicquid volunt, valde volunt whatever they wish, they greatly prefer), and that this so goodly and joyful a spectacle or sight of women worshipping and serving God, and of virgins especially, might stir up and move affections. It is easy to observe that the New Testament affordeth more store of good women than the old, who can make masculine prayers, mingled with tears; and as music upon the waters sounds further and more harmoniously than upon the land, so do prayers well watered.
Shall bring mine offering] Heb. My meat offering, or rather my wheat offering (Minchathi), their bodies and souls, Rom 12:1, that best of sacrifices, for a reasonable service, a solemn present; such that the Chaldee paraphrast might express; he translateth it thus: They shall bring as presents unto me the banished of my people, who were carried captive, and shall return by my mercies. Some think that here is foretold the return of the Jews to their own land, toward the end of the world, to set up the spiritual worship of God there; the famous Church that shall be among them, full of sanctity and rid of all wicked ones, Zep 3:11-13, the joy and gladness that shall possess their souls, Zep 3:14, through God’s removing of all cause of fear from them, Zep 3:15, the encouragement they shall receive from others, Zep 3:16, and (which is the cause of all this) the apparent arguments of God’s great love and favour, Zep 3:17, the quality of those that shall be received to be citizens of this New Jerusalem, Zep 3:18, the utter rooting out of all their enemies, the fame and dignity that this Church of the Jews shall be of among all nations, Zep 3:19-20. Thus they: quam recte iudicium sit penes Lectorem.
John Trapp, A Commentary or Exposition upon All the Books of the Old and New Testament (1647–1656) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
Matthew Poole 1685 · Public Domain From beyond the rivers; the coasts which lie beyond…
From beyond the rivers; the coasts which lie beyond the rivers of India, saith the Chaldee paraphrast, but I doubt whether the captive Jews were carried so far.
Of Ethiopia, in Arabia, bordering on Egypt, whither it is easy to conceive many Jews might betake themselves, who are here called
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dispersed, or dispersion, somewhat distinguished from captives.
My suppliants; praying to me, saith one version.
The daughter of my dispersed: this explains who the suppliant is; the praying remnant of the scattered Jews, who had gotten into those parts of Arabia that were coasting along the rivers which divided Ethiopia Cusaea from the rest of Arabia.
Shall bring mine offering; shall return to their land and bring themselves an offering unto the Lord, which was done when Cyrus, in league with these Ethiopians, procured their favour for the dispersed Jews, that they might return to Jerusalem, meet their captive brethren, and offer a gift to God.
Matthew Poole's English Annotations on the Holy Bible (1683–1685) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.
John Gill 1763 · Public Domain From beyond the rivers of Ethiopia Either the African…
From beyond the rivers of Ethiopia Either the African Ethiopia, or Arabia Chusea, which lay between Judea and Egypt: here some particular places and people are mentioned, in whom the preceding prophecy would be fulfilled. If these rivers of Ethiopia are such as ran in the midst of the country, and so point at some parts of it, though on the other side of them, then this prophecy might have its accomplishment, at least when the Evangelist Matthew went thither, and preached the Gospel, and very likely the Apostle Paul; as also when the Ethiopian eunuch was converted, who doubtless did what in him lay to promote the interest of Christ in those parts. Ben Melech makes this parallel with and illustrates it by ( Isaiah 18:1 Isaiah 18:7 ) , (See Gill on Isaiah 18:1), (See Gill on Isaiah 18:7); but if these design rivers on the furthermost borders of the country, which divided it from others, then Egypt, which lay beyond it, seems to be intended; and so the prophecy, in connection with the foregoing verse ( Zephaniah 3:9 ) , is the same with ( Isaiah 19:18 ) "in that day shall five cities in the land of Egypt speak the language of Canaan"; of these rivers of Ethiopia, whether in Africa or Arabia Chusea, (See Gill on Isaiah 18:1). The Targum renders it ``beyond the rivers of India:'' my suppliants, [even] the daughter of my dispersed: Aben Ezra, Kimchi, Abarbinel, and Ben Melech, take the words "Atharai Bathpusai" to be the proper name of a nation or family beyond the rivers of Ethiopia F12; whereas they are characters which describe persons there, who should have the pure language turned to them, and call on the name of the Lord; even such, who, being made sensible of sin, and of their danger, would be humble supplicants at the throne of grace, and pray to the Lord for the discovery and application of pardoning grace and mercy to them, agreeably to the prophecy in ( Psalms 68:31 ) "princes shall come out of Egypt; Ethiopia shall soon stretch out her hands unto God"; that is, in prayer: and these are the sons and daughters of the Almighty, who are scattered abroad in the several parts of the world, and among the rest here; but as they are gathered together by Christ in redemption, so they are found out and reached by efficacious grace in calling, whether Jews or Gentiles. Some think the Jews are here meant, even the elect of God among them, who were dispersed in several nations, and particularly in Egypt and Ethiopia; who were met with by the Gospel, and converted in the first times of it; to these Peter and James direct their epistles: and of whom, being called by grace, it is said, they shall bring mine offering; themselves as an offering to the Lord, souls and bodies, with all other spiritual sacrifices of prayer, praise, and well doing; and likewise such persons they may be the instruments of the conversion of, called the offering of the Gentiles, ( Romans 15:16 ) . FOOTNOTES: F12 So Menasseh ben Israel. Spes Israelis, p. 57.
John Gill's Exposition of the Whole Bible (1746–1763) — public domain (CC PDM 1.0). Text via the HelloAO Bible API.
John Wesley 1765 · Public Domain My dispersed - The praying remnant of the scattered…
My dispersed - The praying remnant of the scattered Jews shall return to their own land, and bring themselves an offering unto the Lord.
John Wesley, Explanatory Notes Upon the Whole Bible (1754–1765) — public domain. Text via the GEBible commentary corpus.
Adam Clarke 1810 · Public Domain Verse 10. From beyond the rivers of Ethiopia] This…
Verse 10. From beyond the rivers of Ethiopia] This may denote both Africa and the southern Arabia. Bochart thinks that Arabia Chusaer is meant; and that the rivers are Besor, which flows into the Mediterranean; Rhinocorura, which flows into the Lake Sirbonis; Trajanus Amnis, which flows into the Red Sea; and the river Corys. Calmet thinks that these rivers mean the Nile, which by seven mouths falls into the Mediterranean. The Nile comes from Ethiopia, properly so called; and runs through all Egypt, and falls into the sea at that part of Arabia which the Scripture calls Cush or Ethiopia.
My dispersed] The Jews, scattered through different parts of the world. Shall bring mine offering. Shall acknowledge my mercy in sending them the Messiah to bless them, by turning every one of them away from their iniquities.
Adam Clarke's Commentary on the Bible (1810–1826) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.
Joseph Benson 1811 · Public Domain Zep 3:10. From beyond the rivers of Ethiopia —…
Zep 3:10. From beyond the rivers of Ethiopia — The expression, מעבר, rendered from beyond, may be translated, from the borders of, as it signifies indifferently the hither or further side of a river. In the war with Pharaoh-necho, king of Egypt, many of the Jews were made captive and carried into Egypt, and from thence were sold into Ethiopia, properly so called. This prophecy, therefore, in its primary sense, seems to signify, that the posterity of these, termed here by God the daughter of his dispersed, should bring him an offering, namely, into his temple. And accordingly Cyrus, entering into an alliance with the Ethiopians, obtained that the Jews, who were captives among them, should have their liberty restored to them, that so they might return with others to their own country. In like manner Ptolemy Philadelphus, as Josephus relates, purchased the liberty of a vast number of the Jews, who were captives, or slaves, in very distant countries. Thus were the prophecies of bringing them from the east and the west, and from the north and the south, and from beyond the sea, very remarkably fulfilled. There can be no doubt, however, that this promise ultimately relates to the time when all Israel shall be saved, Rom 11:26; when “the Jews, who are dispersed in the most distant countries, such as was Ethiopia, which lay beyond Egypt, shall come into the Christian Church, and make their religious acknowledgments there.” — Lowth.
Joseph Benson's Commentary on the Old and New Testaments (1811–1818) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
Albert Barnes 1834 · Public Domain From beyond the rivers of Ethiopia - (See Isa…
From beyond the rivers of Ethiopia - (See Isa 18:1.) The farthest southern people, with whom the Jews had contact, stand as the type of the whole world beyond. The utmost bound of the known inhabited land should not be the bound of the Gospel. The conversion of Abyssinia is one, but the narrowest fulfillment of the prophecy. The whole new world, though not in the mind of the prophet, was in the mind of Him who spake by the prophet.
My suppliants - He names them as what they shall be when they shall come to Him. They shall come, as needy, to the Fountain of all good, asking for mercy of the unfailing Source of all mercy. He describes the very character of all who come to God through Christ. “The daughter of My dispersed.” God is, in the way of Providence, the Father of all, although, by sin, alienated from Him; from where Paul says, “we are the offspring of God” Act 17:28. They were “dispersed,” severed from the oneness in Him and from His house and family; yet still, looking on them as already belonging to Him, He calls them, “My dispersed,” as by Caiaphas, being high priest, He prophesied that “Jesus should die for that nation; and not for that nation only, but that also He should gather together in one the children of God that were scattered abroad” Joh 11:51-52.
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Shall bring Mine offering - o The offering is the same as that which Malachi prophesies shall continue under the New Testament, which offering was to be offered to the Name of God, not in Jerusalem, but Mal 1:11 “in every place from the rising of the sun unto the going down of the same.” The dark skin of the Ethiopian is the image of ingrained sin, which man could not efface or change Jer 13:23 : their conversion then declares how those steeped in sin shall be cleansed from all their darkness of mind, and washed white from their sins in Baptism and beautified by the grace of God. Cyril: “The word of prophecy endeth in truth. For not only through the Roman empire is the Gospel preached, but it circles round the barbarous nations. And there are Churches everywhere, shepherds and teachers, guides and instructors in mysteries, and sacred altars, and the Lamb is invisibly sacrificed by holy priests among Indians too and Ethiopians. And this was said plainly by another prophet also, ‘For I am a great King, saith the Lord, and My Name is great among the pagan, and in every place incense is offered to My Name and a pure sacrifice’ Mal 1:11.”
Albert Barnes' Notes on the Bible (1834–1885) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.
Haydock's Catholic Bible Commentary 1859 · Public Domain Ethiopia. The Nile arises in that country, and runs…
Ethiopia. The Nile arises in that country, and runs through Egypt and Arabia, which is often styled Ethiopia or Cush, Isaias xviii. 1. The Jews came from Egypt to adore at Jerusalem, even after the building of Onion. Yet this literally regard’s Christ’s Church. --- Offering. The Jews performed this after the captivity, coming or sending the half sicle to Jerusalem annually, from all quarters of the world, Numbers iii. 46., and Matthew xvii. 23. (Calmet)
George Leo Haydock (1774–1849), Haydock's Catholic Family Bible and Commentary, 1859 edition — public domain. Excludes Psalms (Douay-Rheims chapter numbering differs from Protestant) and Deuterocanonical books (Catholic canon only).
Robert Jamieson, A. R. Fausset & David Brown 1871 · Public Domain From beyond . . . Ethiopia my suppliants--literally, "burners…
From beyond . . . Ethiopia my suppliants--literally, "burners of incense" (compare Psa 141:2; Rev 5:8; Rev 8:3-4). The Israelites are meant, called "the daughter of My dispersed," a Hebrew idiom for My dispersed people. "The rivers of Ethiopia" are those which enclose it on the north. In the west of Abyssinia there has long existed a people called Falashas, or "emigrants" (akin to the synonym "Philistine"). These trace their origin to Palestine and profess the Jewish religion. In physical traits they resemble the Arabs. When Bruce was there, they had a Jewish king, Gideon, and his queen, Judith. Probably the Abyssinian Christians were originally in part converted Jews. They are here made the representatives of all Israel which is to be restored.
shall bring mine offering--that is, the offering that is My right. I prefer, with DE WETTE and Chaldee Version, making "suppliants" the objective case, not the nominative. The peoples: (Zep 3:8-9), brought to fear Me by My judgments, "shall bring as Mine offering My suppliants (an appropriate term for the Jews, on whom then there shall have been poured the spirit of supplications, Zac 12:10), the daughter of My dispersed." So Isa 66:20, "they shall bring all your brethren for an offering unto the Lord." Compare HORSLEY'S view of Isa 18:1-2, Isa 18:7. England in this view may be the naval power to restore Israel to Palestine (Isa 60:9). The Hebrew for "Ethiopia" is Cush, which may include not only Ethiopia, but also the region of the Tigris and Babylon, where Nimrod, Cush's son (Gen 10:8-12), founded Nineveh and acquired Babylon, and where the ten tribes are mentioned as being scattered (Pe1 1:1; Pe1 5:13; compare Isa 11:11). The restoration under Cyrus of the Jews transported under Pharaoh-necho to Egypt and Ethiopia, was an earnest of the future restoration under Christ.
Jamieson, Fausset & Brown — Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible (1871) — public domain (CC PDM 1.0). Text via the HelloAO Bible API.
The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges 1878 · Public Domain 10. The verse is obscure on account of the…
10. The verse is obscure on account of the uncertain meaning of several expressions in it. Its general sense is that the heathen nations, even those most distant, shall do homage to Jehovah and present offerings to Him. Jeremiah already predicts the conversion of the nations (Jer_3:17, Jer_16:19).
From beyond the rivers] This meaning is possible, but the usual sense would be: beyond the rivers—in answer to the question where, not, whence (Isa_18:1). On Ethiopia or Cush see on ch. Zep_2:12.
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My suppliants] The word does not occur again in this sense, though a verb to supplicate, from which it might be derived, is not uncommon (Gen_25:21). In the sing, the word occurs Eze_8:11 in the sense of vapour or odour (R.V.) of incense, and this sense, being parallel to “mine offering,” might be adopted here.
even the daughter of my dispersed] Phrases like “daughter of Zion” (Zep_3:14), of Babylon (Psa_137:8), of Edom (Lam_4:21), signify the city or country named with its inhabitants. There is always in such phrases the name of a place, and this suggests that under the word “my dispersed” (pûtsai) there lurks some proper name. Ewald suggested Put, which is often named in connexion with Cush (cf. on Nah_3:9). “The daughter of Put” would then be parallel to “beyond the rivers of Cush.” Others have assumed that somewhat after the analogy of “daughter of Zion” in the sense of Zion with those inhabiting it, “the daughter of my dispersed” might mean those composing (comprised in) my dispersed. “My dispersed” must certainly refer to Jews; the view of Hitzig that they are the same as “those that escape” of the Gentiles and carry tidings of the greatness of Jehovah to all nations (Isa_66:18-19), has no probability. The general meaning of the verse would be that the most distant nations would bring back God’s dispersed people the Jews as an offering to Him (Isa_66:20): From beyond the rivers of Cush shall they bring my suppliants, even the daughter of my dispersed as mine offering. The term “suppliants” seems unnatural in the connexion. After all, the other sense appears at least equally probable: Beyond the rivers of Cush they shall offer me incense, the daughter of [Put] shall bring me an offering, the reference being to the service of Jehovah by all the nations. Comp. Isa_18:7; Isa_45:14; Psa_72:10.
The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges (gen. ed. J. J. S. Perowne; Cambridge University Press, 1878–1918) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
Ellicott's Commentary for English Readers 1878 · Public Domain (10) The daughter of my dispersed.—i.e., dropping the Hebrew…
(10) The daughter of my dispersed.—i.e., dropping the Hebrew idiom, “my dispersed people.” Even from the southern limit of the known world shall the new Church draw adherents. The “dispersed people” are not Jewish exiles, but the Gentile tribes of the dispersion (of Gen_11:8) which have been hitherto alienated from their Creator by ignorance and vice. Similarly, Caiaphas prophesies that Christ should not only die for the Jewish nation, but that “He should gather together in one” the children of God that “were scattered abroad” (Joh_11:51-52).
Bring mine offering.—The minchâh or bloodless oblation. The phrase here merely represents homage rendered to Jehovah as paramount. So in Mal_1:11 it is foretold that “in every place incense shall be offered unto my name, and a pure minchâh.” In Isa_66:20, on the other hand, the Gentiles are represented as bringing the dispersed Jews back to Jerusalem “as a minchâh to Jehovah.” De Wette and others (wrongly, as we believe), give this passage the same force, rendering, “From beyond the rivers of Ethiopia shall men bring my suppliants, even my dispersed people, as my offering.”
A Bible Commentary for English Readers, edited by Charles John Ellicott (1878–1897) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
The Pulpit Commentary 1880 · Public Domain From beyond the rivers of Ethiopia (Cush); i.e. from…
From beyond the rivers of Ethiopia (Cush); i.e. from the distant south, a type of the remotest parts of the world. (Zep_2:12) The rivers of Cush, (Isa_18:1) are the Nile, the Atbara, and their affluents. My suppliants, even the daughter of my dispersed, shall bring mine offering. From the ends of the earth, the Jews who have continued faithful to Jehovah, and have not lost their nationality among the Gentiles, but have considered themselves as belonging to "the dispersion," shall be again received of the Lord, and bring their oblations unto him. This may be the sense intended: but looking to the thought in Isa_66:20 (where it is said that the Gentiles shall bring the Israelites out of all nations as a meat offering unto the Lord), we had better render the passage as the Revised Version margin, "They shall bring my suppliants, even the daughter of my dispersed, for an offering unto me." The remote Gentiles shall show their faith in God by aiding the Hebrews among them to turn to the Lord; this shall be their offering to the true God, whom they have learned to adore. When they themselves are converted, they shall be evangelists to the Hebrews of the Dispersion. For this work of the Gentiles in converting the Hebrews, Wordsworth compares Son_3:4 Son_8:8, 9 Isa_61:5, 6 65:18-21. St. Paul speaks to the same effect in Ro 6. Offering (minehah). The pure meal offering. (Mal_1:10, Mal_1:11, where see notes; comp. Rom_15:16 Php_2:17) Dr. Briggs renders, "From beyond the rivers of Gush will be my incense (athar); the daughter of Phut will bring a minchah." This brings out the parallelism. The universal worship of Messianic times is expressed in the ceremonial terms of the old dispensation, but has a very real applicableness to the Christian religion. (see note on Mal_1:11)
The restoration of the Jews.
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These words have been regarded by some biblical expositors as having reference to the conversion of the Gentiles. This utterance of Zephaniah in the Old Testament, and the prophecy of Caiaphas recorded in the New Testament, (Joh_11:51, Joh_11:52) have been associated together in their minds, and they have thought that by the "dispersed" Zephaniah meant the Gentiles, even as Caiaphas described the Gentiles as "the children of God that were scattered abroad," and that when the prophet alluded to the dispersed "beyond the rivers of Ethiopia," he meant to intimate that the Gentiles even from the remotest parts should eventually be brought home to God. Others, including many of the ablest interpreters, take the opposite view. They regard ver. 9 as referring to the Gentiles in their relation to the truth and the kingdom of God, and as intimating the great fact of the calling of the Gentiles, who should be led with one consent to serve the Lord, and then refer to this tenth verse as having special reference to the spiritual restoration of the Jews, who, through the agency of the Gentiles thus converted to God, should at length be brought in. (Rom_11:30, Rom_11:31) Accepting this latter interpretation, we have here declared the spiritual restoration of the Jews (ver. 10). Note
I THEIR PRESENT POSITION.
1. Dispersed. Scattered over the face of the whole earth. "Can you find a country which they can call their own? Can you find a nation in which they are not? In Europe, Asia, Africa, and America, and the furthest islands of the Southern Sea, among bond and tree, copper-coloured and yellows white and black, wherever there are men, there are Jews.
2. Yearning. Crying out to God, longing for the fulfilment of their cherished hopes. In exile they are still his "suppliants," expecting the promised Messiah, and, whilst many of them are embittered against Christianity, there are not wanting numbers who have embraced it, and openly avowed their faith in Christ, whilst many are his disciples "secretly," ready to avow themselves his, only shrinking from the pains and penalties involved, whilst a still larger number are inquiring concerning him, and are easily accessible to the missionary of the cross.
II THEIR ULTIMATE RESTORATION.
1. The fact of their spiritual recovery is here emphatically declared (ver.10). From the remotest parts they shall come and surrender themselves as an offering unto God. "All Israel shall be saved." They shall be brought in with the fulness of the Gentiles, and "there shall be one flock, one Shepherd". (Joh_10:16) Their restoration to their own land is a question of comparative unimportance in view of this spiritual recovery which is so frequently declared in the unerring Word of God. (Rom_9:1-6, Rom_9:8, 9 10:1-4 11:1, 9, 11-15, 23-32 2Co_3:12-16)
2. It is implied here that this spiritual restoration shall be effected through the agency of the Gentiles. The offering here referred to as to be brought unto the Lord was "the meat offering." The idea expressed here is that, just as the children of Israel presented the meat offering unto God, so the Gentiles themselves, converted to him, should labour for the conversion of the Jews, and, crowned with success in this holy service, should bring these Hebrew converts as a meat offering unto the Lord. And the meaning is still more clear if we remember the signification of the meat offering. It was a sacrifice in which the Jew recognized God"s goodness and grace in the bounties of his hand, and acknowledged that these gifts were his by right, and ought to be consecrated unto him. And even so, it is here declared that the Gentiles should recognize God"s mercy in bringing home to himself his chosen race, and should present these converts to him as those who were his in virtue of all he had done for them, and who ought to be entirely consecrated to his service. The Church of Christ should ever prove herself a missionary Church, and in these enterprises a conspicuous place should be assigned to work for the spiritual good of God"s ancient people, whose "falling away" shall result in "the reconciling of the world," and the restoration of whom shall be "as life from the dead". (Rom_11:15)
The Pulpit Commentary (1880–1919), ed. H.D.M. Spence-Jones & Joseph S. Exell — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
Tyndale Open Study Notes 2022 · CC BY-SA 4.0 3:10 The rivers of Ethiopia are the distant headwaters…
3:10 The rivers of Ethiopia are the distant headwaters of the Nile River. The ancient world considered the origin of the Nile a great mystery, so the expression speaks of the farthest reaches of the earth.
Tyndale Open Study Notes — © Tyndale Open Resources, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0. Text via the HelloAO Bible API.