I tend to agree with the latter.

“He will quiet you by his love.” Zeph3.17 ESV
“He will be quiet in His love” Zeph3.17 NASB


We say that a person, “keeps their peace, or “holds their tongue,” and by it we mean that they are practicing self-restraint. There is some room in translating this verse, hence, I have offered two translations. It either says that God will keep us quiet in His love, or that God will keep Himself quiet in His love. The former might mean that we are so overwhelmed by God’s love that we will be speechless. The latter may mean that while God could say something, He chooses because of love to remain silent. I tend to agree with the latter translation.
Love often chooses silence as the best response to someone’s immaturity. Because it is never rude, love is tactful, especially in its response to adolescent behavior. Love doesn’t always say what could be said. God could all the time be correcting and chiding us, but He instead keeps His peace in love. Just as a loving parent will overlook the rash words of an immature teenager, God is patient with His own and gracious in His responses to us. I am reminded of the professor who told his students that He would prove that there is no God. He then jumped up on his desk and yelled toward the ceiling, "God if you are there, prove it to us all and strike me dead." There is of course some room translating what happened next. The silence that followed could mean that God was not there or He was there and lovingly held His peace. I tend to agree with the latter. 6/6/2008 ts