Zephaniah 2:11

“The Lord [will be] terrible unto them, etc.] To the Moabites and Ammonites in the execution of his judgments upon them, and make their proud hearts tremble; for with him is terrible majesty; he is terrible to the kings of the earth, and cuts off the spirit of princes, (<183722>Job 37:22) (<197612>Psalm 76:12) or, as Kimchi observes, this may be understood of the people of God reproached by the Moabites and Ammonites, by whom the Lord is to be feared and reverenced with a godly and filial fear: so it may be rendered, “the Lord is to be feared by them”f81; and to this inclines the Targum, “the fear of the Lord is to redeem them;” for he will famish all the gods of the earth; particularly of…”

“famish--bring low by taking from the idols their former fame; as beasts are famished by their food being withheld. Also by destroying the kingdoms under the tutelage of idols (Psa 96:4; Isa 46:1). gods of the earth--who have their existence only on earth, not in heaven as the true God. every one from his place--each in his own Gentile home, taught by the Jews in the true religion: not in Jerusalem alone shall men worship God, but everywhere (Psa 68:29-30; Mal 1:11; Joh 4:21; Co1 1:2; Ti1 2:8). It does not mean, as in Isa 2:2; Mic 4:1-2; Zac 8:22; Zac 14:16 that they shall come from their several places to Jerusalem to worship [MAURER]. all . . . isles of . . . heathen--that is, all the…”

“The Lord will be terrible unto - (upon) them that is, upon Moab and Ammon, and yet not in themselves only, but as instances of His just judgment. Whence it follows, “For He will famish all the gods of the earth” (Rup.). Miserable indeed, to whom the Lord is terrible! Whence is this? Is not God by Nature sweet and pleasurable and serene, and an Object of longing? For the Angels ever desire to look into Him, and, in a wonderful and unspeakable way, ever look and ever long to look. For miserable they, whose conscience makes them shrink from the face of Love. Even in this life they feel this shrinking, and, as if it were some lessening of their grief, they deny it, as though this could destroy…”

“Famish - Take away all their sacrifices and drink - offerings. The gods - Idols of those lands. From his place - Not only at Jerusalem, but every where. Zephaniah 2:12”

“2:11 nations . . . will worship the Lord: At the end of history, all people in all places will worship God alone (3:9; Ps 66:4; Mic 4:1-2; Zech 14:16).”

“for: Deu 32:38; Hos 2:17; Zac 13:2 famish: Heb. make lean and men: Psa 2:8-12, Psa 22:27-30, Psa 72:8-11, Psa 72:17, Psa 86:9, Psa 97:6-8, Psa 117:1, Psa 117:2, Psa 138:4; Isa 2:2-4, Isa 11:9, Isa 11:10; Mic 4:1-3; Zac 2:11, Zac 8:20, Zac 8:23, Zac 14:9-21; Mal 1:11; Joh 4:21-23; Ti1 2:8; Rev 11:15 the isles: Gen 10:5; Isa 24:14-16, Isa 42:4, Isa 42:10, Isa 49:1 Zephaniah 2:12”

“"Fearful is Jehovah over them, for He destroyeth all the gods of the earth; that all the islands of the nations, every one from its place, may worship Him." Whilst עליהם refers to what precedes, the next clause in the reason assigned points to the announcement of judgment upon the remaining nations of the earth in Zep 2:12.; so that Zep 2:11 cannot be taken either as the conclusion of the previous threat, or as the commencement of the following one, but leads from the one to the other. Jehovah is terrible when He reveals Himself in the majesty of Judge of the world. The suffix appended to עליהם does not refer to עם יהוה, but to the להם in Zep 2:10, answering to the Moabites and Ammonites.…”