Zephaniah 3:1-8

CHAPTER XXII

COMFORT AND CONSOLATION

REAFFIRMATION OF JUDGEMENT. Zephaniah 3:1-8

RV. Woe to her that is rebellious and polluted! to the oppressing city! She obeyed not the voice; she received not correction; she trusted not in Jehovah; she drew not near to her God. Her princes in the midst of her are roaring lions; her judges are evening wolves; they leave nothing till the morrow. Her prophets are light and treacherous persons; her priests have profaned the sanctuary, they have done violence to the law. Jehovah in the midst of her is righteous; he will not do iniquity; every morning doth he bring his justice to light, he faileth not; but the unjust knoweth no shame. I have cut off nations; their battlements are desolate; I have made their streets waste, so that none passeth by; their cities are destroyed so that there is no man, so that there is no inhabitant. I said, Only fear thou me; receive correction; so her dwelling shall not be cut off, according to all that I have appointed concerning her: but they rose early and corrupted all their doings. Therefore wait ye for me, saith Jehovah, until the day that I rise up to the prey; for my determination is to gather the nations, that I may assemble the kingdoms, to pour upon them mine indignation, even all my fierce anger; for all the earth shall be devoured with the fire of my jealously,
LXX. Alas the glorious and ransomed city. The dove hearkened not to the voice; she received not correction; she trusted not in the Lord, and she drew not near to her God. Her princes within her were as roaring lions, her judges as the wolves of Arabia; they remained not till the morrow. Her prophets are light and scornful men: her priests profane the holy things, and sinfully transgress the law. But the just Lord is in the midst of her, and he will never do an unjust thing: morning by morning he will bring out his judgement to the light, and it is not hidden, and he knows not injustice by extortion, nor injustice in strife. I have brought down the proud with destruction; their corners are destroyed: I will make their ways completely waste, so that none shall go through: their cities are come to an end, by reason of no man living or dwelling in them. I said, But do ye fear.me, and receive instruction, and ye shall not be cut off from the face of the land for all the vengeance I have brought upon her; prepare thou, rise early: all their produce is spoilt. Therefore wait upon me, saith the Lord, until the day when I rise up for a witness: because my judgement shall be on the gatherings of the nations, to draw to me kings, to pour out upon them all my fierce anger: for the whole earth shall be consumed with the fire of my jealousy.

COMMENTS

In Chapter s Zephaniah 1:2 to Zephaniah 2:3, social sin and injustice are hardly noted. In the section before us, Zephaniah briefly but emphatically indicates that it is social injustice, such as that spelled out by Micah, Amos and Isaiah, for which Israel will be led captive. This supreme sin, man's inhumanity to man, is the inevitable consequence of the false religion dealt with in Zephaniah's first two Chapter s.

HER THAT IS REBELLIOUS. Zephaniah 3:1

Jerusalem is not named, but is obviously intended. Her rebellion against Jehovah worship has caused her social pollution. The oppression of the have nots by the haves is the consequence of the religious syncretism of the haves.
The-twentieth century nonsense that it doesn-'t make any difference what he believes so long as he is sincere is proven erroneous in the history of Judah's punishment. The social evil in America today is in large measure the result of the same sort of religious non-commitment that brought about the downfall of Judah. No culture can remain just and equitable that does not have a certain moral and spiritual base. The social inequity resulting from a lack of religious certainty is the dry rot which destroys civilizations. Mere lip service to Jehovah is not enough.

OBEYED NOT. RECEIVED NOT. TRUSTED NOT. DREW NOT. Zephaniah 3:2

The prophet's charge of rebellion against Jerusalem is spelled out in verse two. Four failures have brought her to the brink of destruction. First, she obeyed not the voice of God. Hebrews 1:1 tells of God speaking to the fathers in the prophets. Their voice was His voice. His people did not obey.

Moreover, when God sent other prophets to correct her failure to hear, Jerusalem (the spiritual center of Judah) did not recieve the correction, This stiff-necked attitude compounded to sin and pushed the nation farther down the slopes toward disaster.

She trusted not Jehovah. This would seem, in light of the first two charges, to be self-evident. No one really trusts God who does not heed His spokesmen. The prophet, in this third indictment, calls attention to Judah's alliances with foreign powers. Rather than trust Jehovah's might for her national security, Jerusalem aligned herself with the Assyrian-Egyptian power block in the struggle with Babylon. She would find herself on the losing side. America, whose currency bears the inscription in God we trust, seems unable to learn this lesson.

The final charge against Judah is that she drew not near to God. Instead, she sought Baal: The failure of Judah was not passive merely. She not only failed to hear and trust, she actively sought false gods.

HER PRINCES. HER JUDGES. HER PROPHETS. HER PRIESTS. Zephaniah 3:3-4

These verses are reminiscent of Micha's denunciation of the various influential classes in the culture of the people. Her princes, i.e., those who held political authority over the people, are roaring lions. They as Satan, go about seeking whom they may devour. (cp. Ezekiel 25:27)

Her judges are as wolves in the evening. Wolves feed at night, beginning at dusk and by morning there is little left of their victims. So with the common people who are at the mercy of corrupt courts. A corrupt judicial is ever the companion of an evil executive.

Her prophets are light and treacherous persons. These, more than any other, must answer for Judah's corrupt religion. As Micah accused them, they preached what their wealthy listeners wanted to hear rather than thundering forth God's truth. They proclaimed the imaginings of their own minds rather, than God's Word. A dangerous parallel could be drawn here by comparing the practice of these prophets to the modern preacher of topical sermons who neglects the expository treatment of God's Word.

Her priests have profaned the sanctuary. The present day American church-goer, with his blase-' attitude toward things sacred cannot appreciate the seriousness of this offense. One of the functions of the priests of Levi was to guard the sanctity of the Holy Place. The priests to whom Zephaniah writes have become so worldly-minded, so tolerant of false religion, they are no longer concerned for the sacredness of the temple. (cp. Ezekiel 22:26) They perverted the law to suit their own advantage while practicing a narrow legalism generally. They had forgotten the dramatic lesson of Uzzah who was struck dead for placing unclean hands on the sacred ark. (2 Samuel 6:7)

JEHOVAH IN THE MIDST. Zephaniah 3:5

God has not left His people. In the midst of rebellion and injustice. He is faithful to the covenant. He has not been turned aside from His purpose by the unfaithfulness of the people.

Every morning He brings justice to light. The worship of Baal began with greeting him at dawn in the rising sun. At this very hour when the people's unfaithfulness reached its daily pinnacle, Jehovah brings justice to light. His moral standards and His righteousness are as reliable, and more so than the rising of the sun. But the people refuse to see.

The unjust knoweth no shame. Even the constancy of Jehovah in the midst of their unfaithfulness does not shame them. They are unmoved in their pursuit of unrighteousness and error.

I HAVE CUT OFF THE NATIONS. Zephaniah 3:6

God's righteous judgements are not limited alone to Judah. The prophet has already listed the sentences of God against the surrounding Gentiles. It is God, not Zephaniah, who has cut off the nations. The desolation and ruin of those named in the previous chapter are not the result of Jewish nationalism but of God's universal judgement.
The archives of history are filled with the records of those nations cut down by God's righteous judgement because knowing God, they glorified Him not as God. (Romans 1:21) Judah had but to look north to Israel to remember how true this is and how certain are God's judgements.

ONLY FEAR THOU ME. Zephaniah 3:7

God still speaks through Zephaniah. He calls the Hebrews back to the rudimentary beginning of wisdom. (cp. Proverbs 9:10)

Paul, quoting Psalm after Psalm, will prove that all social evil such as that against which the prophets spoke are the result of failure to fear God. He will list lack of righteousness, and understanding, failure to seek God, turning aside from His purpose, failure to do good, all spiritual uncleanness, deceitful speech, cursing and bitterness, war and destruction and misery and the futile search for peace as the consequences of not fearing Him. (cf. Roman Zephaniah 3:9-18)

One can only shudder today at the church member whose twisted misinformation about God's love has led him to a contemptuous familiarity which does not believe one should, or must fear Jehovah.
God's plea through Zephaniah is only fear me. Only. just. please! A deep and genuine fear of God will bring about the correction of the evil against which judgement must otherwise come

BUT THEY ROSE.EARLY AND CORRUPTED.

Despite God's plea to fear Him, the people ignored His plea and rose up early to greet the sun god. In so doing, they paved the way for all other corruption.

UNTIL THE DAY. Zephaniah 3:8

Here Zephaniah returns to the theme struck in Zephaniah 1:14. The great Day of Jehovah is again called to mind as the decisive day on which He will gather the nations before Him in wrath.

The meek. those who are humble before God (Zephaniah 2:3). are called to wait for that day when He will prey upon His enemies. In that day when Jehovah's wrath is poured out to devour the earth with fire (cp. 2 Peter 3:7) the meek shall inherit the new earth.

The idea of destruction by fire in relations to God's judgement is fairly distributed throughout the Bible. Joel spoke of a time which would be revealed in blood and fire and vapor of smoke (Joel 2:30). Psalms 50:3 depicts God's coming in company with a devouring fire. Isaiah wrote of similar phenomena. (Isaiah 29:6; Isaiah 30:30; Isaiah 66:15-16) We have heard Nahum speak of the hills burning and the earth burning in His presence. (Nahum 1:5-6) Malachi will tell us of the day of the Lord burning as an oven.

We are something less than wise not to fear Him!

Those nations found guilty in Jehovah's court of justice will feel the fiery fierceness of fire that is to devour the adversary. (Hebrews 10:27)

This gathering need not be seen as taking place in Jerusalem. There is no Biblical proof for the tradition that the final judgement will take place in the Kidron valley. The idea is that all nations simultaneously and universally are judged by God. His righteousness will flow across the earth as the fiery lava of a volcano consuming all that stand in the way of His covenant purpose.

Chapter XXIIQuestions

Comfort and Consolation

1.

The sin for which Judah will be led captive is ________________ sin.

2.

Social sin is inevitably the result of ________________.

3.

Though not specifically named in Zephaniah 3:1, ________________ is obviously intended by Her that is rebellious.

4.

In light of Zephaniah's pronouncement of judgement against social evil which results from false religion, discuss the statement it doesn-'t make any difference what one believes, so long as he is sincere.

5.

According to Zephaniah 3:2, four failures have brought her to the brink of destruction. They are: (1) ________________, (2) ________________, (3) ________________, and (4) ________________.

6.

Zephaniah condemns four classes of cultural leaders in Judah. They are: (1) ________________, (2) ________________, (3) ________________ and (4) ________________.

7.

The ________________ ________________ is the beginning of wisdom.

8.

Should a Christian fear God? Explain.

9.

What is meant (Zephaniah 3:7) by rose early and corrupted?

10.

Why is God's wrath poured out in human history?

11.

What is meant by turn? (Zephaniah 3:9)

12.

Pure Language is evidence of ________________.

13.

In Zephaniah 3:10 Ethiopia represents ______________.

14.

Is the idea of universal salvation found in the Old Testament? Discuss.

15.

What is meant by in that day? (Zephaniah 3:11)

16.

The closing verses of Zephaniah are in contrast to ________________.

17.

Who are the daughter of Zion. the daughter of Israel. the daughter of Jerusalem (Zephaniah 3:14)?

18.

Discuss the Messianic significance of the closing verses of Zephaniah.

19.

Discuss God will delight in His people.

20.

Discuss a praise and a name. (Zephaniah 3:19-20)