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THE MINOR PROPHETS

 

The Prophet Zephaniah

The Day of Retribution & The Day of Return

Lesson #10

Victor M. Eskew

 

INTRODUCTION

 

A.   We have arrived at the ninth Minor Prophet, Zephaniah.

 

B.   It is a brief book of 3 chapters and 53 verses.

 

C.   It opens with hopelessness (Zeph. 1:3) and closes with hopefulness (Zeph. 3:20).

 

D.   Geisler gives a very simple outline for the book:

 

i.             RETRIBUTION (1)

ii.            REPENTANCE (2)

iii.          REDEMPTIION (3)

 

E.   Again, there are interesting verses that we will not be able to cover in detail.

1.    “And it shall come to pass at that time, that I will search Jerusalem with candles, and punish the men that are settled on their lees:  that say in their heart, The Lord will not do good, neither will he do evil” (Zeph. 1:12).

a.    Settled on their lees

b.    A statement of a Deist:  “The Lord will not do good, neither will he do evil.”

2.    “Neither their silver nor their gold shall be able to deliver then in the day of the Lord’s wrath…” (Zeph. 1:18a).

3.    “Gather yourselves together, yea, gather together, O nation not desired” (Zeph. 2:1).  This is an interesting text when compared to 1 Peter 2:9.

4.    This shall they have for their pride, because they have reproached and magnified themselves against the people of the Lord of hosts” (Zeph. 2:10).

5.    “She obeyed not the voice; she received not correction; she trusted not in the Lord; she drew not near to her God” (Zeph. 3:2).

6.    “Her princes within her are roaring lions; her judges are evening wolves; they gnaw not the bones till the morrow.  Her prophets are light and treacherous persons:  her priests have polluted the sanctuary, they have done violence to the law” (Zeph. 3:3-4).

 

F.    Let’s look at Zephaniah’s prophecy and glean some helpful information from an overview of the book.

 

I.             THE AUTHOR

 

A.   The author of the book is set forth in Zephaniah 1:1.

 

The word of the Lord which came unto Zephaniah…

 

1.    First, note that this prophecy is “the word of the Lord.”  Zephaniah spoke the words that he received from the mind of God through the Spirit of God (See 2 Pet. 1:20-21).

2.    The prophets were the mouthpiece for God.  They were instruments used by God to make His message known to various recipients.

 

B.   Facts we know about Zephaniah.

1.    His name

a.    Meaning:  the Lord hides, Yahweh hides, Yahweh has hidden

b.    Two interesting points were made about his name.

1)    Wilkinson and Boa note that Zephaniah was probably born in the latter part of Manasseh’s reign.   He may have been one who was hidden from the king’s atrocities.

2)    There may be a play on his name in Zephaniah 2:3.

 

Seek ye the Lord, all ye meek of the earth, which have wrought his judgment; seek righteousness, seek meekness:  it may be ye shall be hid in the day of the Lord’s anger.

 

2.    Zephaniah reveals his genealogy in Zephaniah 1:1.

 

…the son of Cushi, the son of Gedaliah, the son of Amariah, the son of Hizkiah…

 

a.    Hizkiah is Hezekiah, one of the good kings of Judah.

b.    Thus, Zephaniah is of royal lineage.  He was probably a kinsman to the king during whose reign he prophesied (See Zeph. 1:1).

 

…in the days of Josiah the son of Amon, king of Judah.

 

3.    He appears to have been familiar with Jerusalem.  “Because Zephaniah used the phrase ‘this place’ (1:4) to refer to Jerusalem and was quite familiar with its features (cf. 1:9-10; 3:1-7), he was probably an inhabitant of Judah’s royal city” (Wilkinson & Boa, 278).

 

II.           THE DATE

 

A.   We know that Zephaniah received his prophecy during the reign of Josiah (Zeph. 1:1).

 

B.   Josiah’s reign was from 640 B.C. to 608 B.C.

1.    Josiah was 8 years old when he began to reign (2 King 22:1)

2.    In the twelfth year of his reign, he began to make serious reforms in Judah after finding a copy of the law in the temple (See 2 Chron. 34:3).

3.    Since Zephaniah was of the royal line, he may have had access to Josiah during his reign.  Thus, his prophecies may have assisted in bringing about the reforms.

4.    This means that he prophesied early in Josiah’s reign (640 B.C. to 628 B.C.).

 

C.   Two other factors in dating the book.

1.    According to Zephaniah 2:13, Nineveh had not yet fallen.  Thus, he was prophesying before 612 B.C.

2.    Some believe that he may have been referencing the Scythian invasion about about 630 B.C. in chapter 2. 

 

D.   “As a contemporary of Jeremiah and Habakkuk, Zephaniah was one of the eleventh-hour prophets to Judah” (Wilkinson & Boa, 279).

 

III.         THE RECIPIENTS

 

A.   The book tells us God’s judgment to come upon all evil nations. 

 

 

B.   However, God’s focus is primary upon Judah and Jerusalem.

1.    Zechariah 1:4

 

I will also stretch out mine hand upon Judah, and upon all the inhabitants of Jerusalem…

 

2.    Zechariah 1:12

 

And it shall come to pass at that time, that I will search Jerusalem with candles…

 

3.    The prophet refers to a “nation not desired” in Zechariah 2:1.

4.    He notes “the oppressing city” in Zechariah 3:1.

5.    Zion, Israel, and the daughter of Jerusalem are mentioned in Zechariah 3:14.

 

IV.         THE THEME

 

A.   Zephaniah mentions two days in the book:  “A Day of Retribution and A Day of Return.”  The first day ultimately leads to the second.

 

B.   The Day of Retribution is referred to as “the day of the Lord” in the prophecy.

1.    The day of the Lord is mentioned seven times in the book (1:7, 8, 14 (2x), 18, 2:2, 3).

2.    “Amos (5:18) was the first writing prophet to use it.  Joel used it five times, and it occurs in Isaiah, Hosea, Micah, Obadiah, and other prophets” (Dunn, 380).

3.    In Zechariah 1:15-17a, that day is described.

 

That day is a day of wrath, a day of trouble and distress, a day of wasteness and desolation, a day of darkness and gloominess, a day of clouds and thick darkness.  A day of the trumpet and alarm against the fenced cities, and against the high towers.  And I will bring distress upon men, that they shall walk like blind men…

 

4.    The reason for the judgment is summed up in one simple phrase:  “…because they have sinned against the Lord…” (Zech. 1:17).  “…howsoever I punished them:  but they rose up early, and corrupted all their doings” (Zech. 2:7b).

5.    Twice in the book, God is described as being a “jealous” God (Zeph. 1:18; 3:8).

 

…but the whole land shall be devoured by the fire of his jealousy…”

 

a.    When we think of jealousy, we think of something that is sinful and condemned.

b.    Dunn presents a good discussion of God’s jealousy in his book, Know Your Bible.  He writes:  “This is not the miserable, torturing suspicion of unfaithfulness, but the kind of jealousy that is the outcome of love.  God so love his people that he cannot bear a rival, and must have their whole-hearted devotion; and he will do everything to secure this, even going to the length of awful judgment, as here (Robert Lee, The Outlined Bible, p. 36)” (381).

6.    Zechariah presents this divine retribution three times moving from general judgment upon all to specific judgment of His people.

a.    Universal judgment (1:1-3) to judgment upon Judah (1:4-2:3)

b.    Judgment of surrounding nations (2:4-15) to judgment upon Jerusalem (3:1-7).

c.    The cleansing of the nations (3:8-10) to restoration of Israel (3:11-20).

 

C.   God is not unjust in bringing about judgment.  In fact, in this prophecy there is a call to repentance (Zech. 2:1-3).

 

Gather yourselves together, yea, gather together, O nation not desired; before the decree bring forth, before the day pass, as the chaff, before the fierce anger of the Lord come upon you, before the day of the Lord’s anger come upon you.  Seek ye the Lord, all ye meek of the earth, which have wrought his judgment; seek righteousness, seek meekness:  it may be ye shall be hid in the day of the Lord’s anger.

 

D.   The purpose of the Day of the Lord is not just to punish.  Another purpose is to cause men to change and return to God.

1.    Zechariah 3:8-9 (See 1 Cor. 5:5)

 

Therefore wait ye upon me, saith the Lord, 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 jealousy.  For then will I turn to the people a pure language, that they may all call upon the name of the Lord, to serve him with consent.

 

2.    Sadly, the majority of the people will not turn back.  They will perish in the destruction.

3.    But, there will be a remnant who will be faithful to God.

a.    Zechariah 2:9

 

Therefore as I live, saith the Lord of hosts, the God of Israel, Surely Moab shall be as Sodom, and the children of Ammon as Gomorrah, even the breeding of nettles, and saltpits, and a perpetual desolation:  the residue of my people shall spoil them, and a remnant of my people shall possess them.

 

b.    Zechariah 3:12-13

 

I will also leave in the midst of thee an afflicted and poor people, and they shall trust in the name of the Lord.  The remnant of Israel shall not do iniquity, nor speak lies; neither shall a deceitful tongue be found in their mouth:  for they shall feed and lie down, and none shall make them afraid.

 

E.   When God’s people change, He promises to return them to their homeland

1.    Zephaniah 3:17

 

The Lord thy God is in the midst of thee is mighty; he will save, he will rejoice over thee with joy; he will rest in his love, he will joy over thee with singing.

 

2.    Zephaniah 3:20

 

At that time will I bring you again, even in the time that I gather you:  for I will make you a name and a praise among all people of the earth, when I turn back your captivity before your eyes, saith the Lord.

 

F.    The effect when the return occurs:

1.    The nation will be purified (Zeph. 3:13).

2.    They will sing, shout, be glad and rejoice with all their heart (Zeph. 3:14).

3.    The enemy would be cast out (Zeph. 3:15).

4.    The king of Israel, even the Lord, would be in the midst of them (Zeph. 3:15).

5.    There would be the solemn assembly (Zeph. 3:18).

6.    The nation would have its praise and fame restored (Zeph. 3:19).

V.           THE KEY VERSES

 

A.   The day of retribution (Zeph. 2:14)

 

The great day of the Lord is near, it is near, and hasteth greatly, even the voice of the day of the Lord:  the mighty man shall cry there bitterly.

 

B.   The day of return (Zeph. 3:20)

 

At that time will I bring you again, even in the time that I gather you:  for I will make you a name and a praise among all people of the earth, when I turn back your captivity before your eyes, saith the Lord.

 

CONCLUSION

 

A.   The book begins with the severity of God and ends with the goodness of God.

1.    Severity (Zeph. 1:2)

 

I will utterly consume all things from off the land, saith the Lord.

 

2.    Goodness (Zeph. 3:17)

 

The Lord thy God in the midst of thee is mighty; he will save, he will rejoice over thee with joy; he will rest in his love, he will joy over thee with singing.

 

B.   “The Savior is presented as the righteous Lord within Israel (3:5), the witness against the nations (3:8), and ‘the King of Israel, the Lord’ (3:15)’ (Geisler, 258).

 

C.   Three other elements of New Testament teaching found in the book of Zephaniah.

1.    The establishment of the church wherein all men are gathered together (Zeph. 2:11b).

 

…and men shall worship him, every one from his place, even all the isles of the Gentiles.

 

2.    The time when men will call upon the name of the Lord (Zeph. 3:9).

 

For then will I turn to the people a pure language, that they may all call upon the name of the Lord to serve him with one consent.

 

3.    “Zephaniah’s Day of the Lord is echoed in the New Testament concept of the final judgment day.  He speaks figuratively of God’s consuming all things (1:2-3), and of all the earth devoured by God’s fierce anger (3:8).  Similarly, Peter describes the destruction of the universe when the final day of the Lord comes, ‘in which the heavens shall pass away with a great noise, and the elements shall melt with fervent heat, and the earth and the works that are therein shall be burned up’ (II Peter 3:10)” (Dunn, 380-381).

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

12 THOUGHTS FOR CHRISTIAN WOMEN (1)

15 Encouraging Reminders For Every Christian Woman Trying To Live Out Her Faith | Thought Catalog

 

 

  1. When you are feeling lost, pray. There is nothing like a quiet moment with God on a crazy day to make you feel grounded.

 

 

  1. Even if you feel abandoned or hurt, know that God’s looking down on you. He might not answer your prayers in the way you want Him to, but that doesn’t mean He isn’t listening.

 

 

  1. Remember that every little bit counts—every smile, every positive interaction, every whispered prayer. It might not seem like you are making huge strides in your walk with God, but the little things you do reflect His love. And though they are little things, they can make a profound impact.

 

 

  1. Just because you are a woman of faith doesn’t mean that this road will be easy. It’s okay to admit defeat, frustration, confusion, or fear. You are not weak for being human. Remember that you are strong in Him.

 

 

  1. Your Bible is a beautiful tool. Open it when you need a reminder of God’s love. Open it out of habit. Open it because you cannot get through a day without it. Open it because it is God’s word poured out for you, and seek refuge in His words.

 

 

  1. Know that you are not alone. There are hundreds, thousands, millions of other women trying to find their way, just as you are. Seek out relationships and friendships that will encourage you, and people that will love and guide you along your spiritual journey. Know that there are so many people who love you, and a God who loves you even more.