זַעֲוָה

From the study of Deuteronomy 28:25

Range of meaning

From the root זוע, 'tremble, quake, shake'. The noun means 'trembling, terror', and especially 'an object of horror': something or someone that makes others shudder when they see it. The same word appears in the spelling זְוָעָה in other passages (the two spellings swap two letters).

Against the English

BSB 'object of horror', NIV 'a thing of horror', ESV 'a horror', YLT 'a trembling'. KJV 'removed' and WEB 'tossed back and forth' follow a different understanding linked to the Greek and Latin translations (dispersion, being shaken about). The modern renderings match the Hebrew noun better.

How it drifted

The KJV's 'removed into all the kingdoms' was shaped by the Septuagint ('in dispersion') and the Vulgate ('dispersed'), which read the line as a prediction of scattering. That reading has some support from the root's sense of movement, but the Hebrew noun, as used elsewhere, means a horror, not a relocation.

Used elsewhere in the period

Jeremiah repeats the phrase 'a horror to all the kingdoms of the earth' (Jer 15:4; 24:9; 29:18; 34:17), applying this Deuteronomy curse to the Babylonian exile. Isa 28:19 and Ezek 23:46 use the related forms for terror. The Septuagint of this verse renders it ἐν διασπορᾷ, 'in dispersion', one of the earliest uses of the word 'diaspora' for Israel's scattering.

From the study of Jeremiah 15:4

Range of meaning

From the root zûaʿ, 'to tremble, quake, shake'. The noun names a 'trembling' or 'terror', and especially an object that causes others to shudder: a horror, a spectacle of disaster. BDB lists it as 'trembling, horror, object of terror'. HALOT gives 'object of terror, a fright'. The underlying root can also describe agitated, unsteady movement, which is why some older translators heard 'being shaken about'.

Against the English

BSB and ESV have 'a horror', NASB 'an object of horror', NIV 'abhorrent', YLT 'a trembling'. KJV 'removed' and WEB 'tossed back and forth' follow the motion sense of the root and read it as scattering or exile.

How it drifted

KJV's 'removed into all kingdoms' (here and in Deut 28:25) reflects older Jewish and Christian interpretation that took the root as 'be moved, agitated', possibly influenced by the Vulgate and rabbinic tradition. Modern lexicons based on comparative Semitic evidence prefer 'object of trembling'.

Used elsewhere in the period

Deut 28:25 is the source text: 'you shall become a zaʿăwāh to all the kingdoms of the earth', with the same Ketiv/Qere pattern. Jeremiah reuses the formula in 24:9, 29:18 and 34:17, often joined with 'a reproach, a byword, a taunt, a curse'. Isa 28:19 uses zəwāʿāh for sheer terror. In Ezek 23:46 the related zaʿăwāh means being handed over 'to terror and plunder'. The Septuagint here paraphrases with anankai, 'distresses'.

From the study of Jeremiah 24:9

Range of meaning

A rare noun from the root zw' ('to tremble, quake'). It means something that makes people shake: terror, horror, an appalling sight. A variant spelling, zewā'āh, occurs in Isaiah 28:19 ('sheer terror'). In Jeremiah it always comes in the fixed phrase 'I will make them a za'awah to all the kingdoms of the earth' (15:4; 24:9; 29:18; 34:17). The source of the phrase is Deuteronomy 28:25. Ezekiel 23:46 also has it, and 2 Chronicles 29:8 echoes it.

Against the English

Modern versions say 'horror', 'terror' or 'abhorrent'. KJV says 'removed into all the kingdoms', WEB 'tossed back and forth', YLT 'trembling'. KJV and WEB take the sense of shaking to mean being moved about, an idea of physical displacement that goes back to the Greek and Latin versions.

How it drifted

The older 'removed / tossed' rendering is not modern drift. It is an ancient interpretation. The Septuagint (Greek) of Deuteronomy 28:25 has 'you will be in diaspora (diaspora, dispersion) in all the kingdoms of the earth'. In Jeremiah 24:9 it has 'scattering' (diaskorpismos). That line is one of the sources of the word 'diaspora'.

Used elsewhere in the period

Deut 28:25 (Hebrew and Septuagint 'en diaspora'); Isa 28:19; Ezek 23:46; 2 Chr 29:8; Jeremiah's four uses. HALOT and BDB both give 'trembling, terror, object of terror'.