Israel will Again Experience God’s Love.

Zephaniah 3:1-20

“Woe to her that is filthy and polluted, to the oppressing city!  She obeyed not the voice; she received not correction; she trusted not in the LORD; she drew not near to her God.  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.” (Zephaniah 3:1-4)

God’s judgment is coming on Jerusalem.  They have polluted themselves with various idols, and have ignored sin.  They’ve taken advantage of others people and refused to listen when God tried to straighten them out.  The rulers and leaders are like lions, just doing as they please, and the lawyers and judges are like a bunch of wolves waiting for a weak person to take advantage of, not content to just attack those who have done wrong.  Their evangelists and preachers focus on frivolous subjects and cannot be trusted and the worship leaders treat the church like a theater or sports arena. 

“The just LORD is in the midst thereof; he will not do iniquity: every morning doth he bring his judgment to light, he faileth not; but the unjust knoweth no shame.  I have cut off the nations: their towers are desolate; I made their streets waste, that none passeth by: their cities are destroyed, so that there is no man, that there is none inhabitant.  I said, Surely thou wilt fear me, thou wilt receive instruction; so their dwelling should not be cut off, howsoever I punished them: but they rose early, and corrupted all their doings.” (Zephaniah 3:5-7)

God is a righteous God who will not do wrong and does not change.  Every day, he shows what is right, but the wicked refuse to acknowledge their sin.   God has destroyed entire nations for their sin, leaving fortresses in ruins and their streets deserted.  Entire cities are completely uninhabited.  God has done this in hopes they would respect or fear him enough to change in an effort to save their lives but they ignored his every effort, determined to go their own way, and Judah has done the same thing.

“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 one consent.” (Zephaniah 3:8-9)

As a result, Judah will not see God’s blessings fully until the time of Christ’s kingdom, when he draws all the nations together for destruction and pours out his judgment on the earth.  Then he will restore the people to a single nation where all speak the same language and all of them call on the Lord in full agreement, with no confusion.

“From beyond the rivers of Ethiopia my suppliants, even the daughter of my dispersed, shall bring mine offering.  In that day shalt thou not be ashamed for all thy doings, wherein thou hast transgressed against me: for then I will take away out of the midst of thee them that rejoice in thy pride, and thou shalt no more be haughty because of my holy mountain. ” (Zephaniah 3:10-11)

In that day worshippers of God will come from beyond Ethiopia to worship God in Jerusalem.  They will no longer harbor a sense of guilt for turning away because God will destroy those who have rebelled, thinking God wouldn’t punish them.  The Jews will no longer5 hav e pride because God’s temple is among them. 

“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. ” (Zephaniah 3:12-13)

The people who survive in Israel will be people who have suffered for their faith and are aware of God’s concern for them.  They will not deliberately do wrong like Israel has done in the past.  Instead of lying and tricking people, they will focus on just living for God, and they will not have to deal with threats from others. 

“Sing, O daughter of Zion; shout, O Israel; be glad and rejoice with all the heart, O daughter of Jerusalem.  The LORD hath taken away thy judgments, he hath cast out thine enemy: the king of Israel, even the LORD, is in the midst of thee: thou shalt not see evil any more. ” (Zephaniah 3:14-15)

Judah and Israel will be able to rejoice in God’s blessings, because they will no longer suffer his punishment.  Their enemies will have been destroyed, and Jesus Christ will be their king, living among them.  They will never again face the evil they have in the past. 

“In that day it shall be said to Jerusalem, Fear thou not: and to Zion, Let not thine hands be slack.  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.  I will gather them that are sorrowful for the solemn assembly, who are of thee, to whom the reproach of it was a burden. ” (Zephaniah 3:16-18)

In that day, they will no longer need to be constantly on guard or worry about being defeated.  Christ himself will be among them to protect them, enjoying his time with them and sharing his love.  He will bring them together and take away their sorrow. 

“Behold, at that time I will undo all that afflict thee: and I will save her that halteth, and gather her that was driven out; and I will get them praise and fame in every land where they have been put to shame.  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. ” (Zephaniah 3:19-20)

They will be restored to their own land and their enemies wiped out.  They will no longer be ashamed or try to hide their Jewish heritage, because it will respected in the day God sets them free and re-establishes them. 

The Coming Destruction of Judah’s Enemies

Zephaniah 2:1-15

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.” (Zephaniah 2:1-3)

Judah was a nation the other nations hated.   God’s judgment was looming but it had not yet fallen.  Zephaniah recommended that they act on the warnings before the prophecies came to pass.  If they would turn their attention from themselves to God, and obey him, they might yet escape the Judgment because God is a forgiving God. 

“For Gaza shall be forsaken, and Ashkelon a desolation: they shall drive out Ashdod at the noon day, and Ekron shall be rooted up.  Woe unto the inhabitants of the sea coast, the nation of the Cherethites! the word of the LORD is against you; O Canaan, the land of the Philistines, I will even destroy thee, that there shall be no inhabitant. ” (Zephaniah 2:4-5)

The Philistines had occupied the along the Mediterranean coast and never been driven out of Israel.  God warns that he will destroy them so completely there will be none of them left in the land.  The Palestinians of today are not living in the traditional Philistine lands. 

“And the sea coast shall be dwellings and cottages for shepherds, and folds for flocks.  And the coast shall be for the remnant of the house of Judah; they shall feed thereupon: in the houses of Ashkelon shall they lie down in the evening: for the LORD their God shall visit them, and turn away their captivity. ” (Zephaniah 2:6-7)

God will give the traditional lands of the Philistines to the descendants of Judah, because God will one day return Judah to their land. 

“I have heard the reproach of Moab, and the revilings of the children of Ammon, whereby they have reproached my people, and magnified themselves against their border.  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 the remnant of my people shall possess them.  This shall they have for their pride, because they have reproached and magnified themselves against the people of the LORD of hosts.  The LORD will be terrible unto them: for he will famish all the gods of the earth; and men shall worship him, every one from his place, even all the isles of the heathen. ” (Zephaniah 2:8-11)

The Moabites and Ammonites were descendants of Lot.  For centuries they had attempted to destroy Israel and Judah.  God said they would be as completely destroyed as Sodom and Gomorrah had been.  Ultimately all mankind, even those from the far flung islands will realize there is no god but God himself. 

Though the name of Ammon is perpetuated by the Capital of Jordan, Amman, the Ammonites and Moabites were defeated by the Babylonians and their land was eventually claimed  by the Nabateans, the people who built the city of Petra.    

“Ye Ethiopians also, ye shall be slain by my sword.  And he will stretch out his hand against the north, and destroy Assyria; and will make Nineveh a desolation, and dry like a wilderness.  And flocks shall lie down in the midst of her, all the beasts of the nations: both the cormorant and the bittern shall lodge in the upper lintels of it; their voice shall sing in the windows; desolation shall be in the thresholds: for he shall uncover the cedar work.  This is the rejoicing city that dwelt carelessly, that said in her heart, I am, and there is none beside me: how is she become a desolation, a place for beasts to lie down in! every one that passeth by her shall hiss, and wag his hand.” (Zephaniah 2:12-15)

Ethiopia had been a world power and attacked Judah in Hezekiah’s day, with over a million men.  They would later be ruled by the Persian and Greek Empires.  The Assyrian Empire would be destroyed and the city of Nineveh turned into an uninhabited wilderness where wild animals lived in the ruins and people herded sheep.  The beams and wood work would rot away.  The Babylonians destroyed Nineveh, and it faded into obscurity.  At the time of Zephaniah’s prophecy, Nineveh was still one of the largest and most powerful cities in the world.  They were confident nothing could ever destroy their power, and no longer paid any attention to God or his prophets. 

If Judah would repent and turn to God, they might escape that judgment.  

God’s Judgment Will Affect Everyone

Zephaniah 1:1-18

"The word of the LORD which came unto Zephaniah the son of Cushi, the son of Gedaliah, the son of Amariah, the son of Hizkiah, in the days of Josiah the son of Amon, king of Judah.” (Zephaniah 1: 1)

Josiah was Judah’s last good king.  He reigned just before 600 BC.  His father was a wicked king and his sons would emulate their grandfather, leading to the defeat of Judah, first by Egypt, then eight years later, by Babylon.  Like the other prophets, Zephaniah is warning what is about to happen.   I have not specified exact dates, because records discovered in  Babylon indicate the traditional historical dates are inaccurate, perhaps by as much as forty years. 

“I will utterly consume all things from off the land, saith the LORD.  I will consume man and beast; I will consume the fowls of the heaven, and the fishes of the sea, and the stumblingblocks with the wicked; and I will cut off man from off the land, saith the LORD.” (Zephaniah 1:2-3)  

When God wipes out the land, he said he will leave it desolate, with even the fish and birds wiped out.  The population will be completely removed, along with all the various idols that they have followed.  Four times in the next twenty years, huge invading armies would descend on the land, devouring all the food and killing the game before Nebuchadnezzar finally razed Jerusalem and the surrounding cities to end the constant rebellion, moving the people to Babylon, and Telabib, in present day Syria. 

“I will also stretch out mine hand upon Judah, and upon all the inhabitants of Jerusalem; and I will cut off the remnant of Baal from this place, and the name of the Chemarims with the priests; And them that worship the host of heaven upon the housetops; and them that worship and that swear by the LORD, and that swear by Malcham; And them that are turned back from the LORD; and those that have not sought the LORD, nor inquired for him.” (Zephaniah 1: 4-6)

Even in Josiah’s day there were those who worshipped Baal, the different stars and planets, and the Zidonian god, Milcom, even while participating in the Jewish religion.   Others had just rejected all religion, or just become indifferent.  God would destroy all of them. 

“Hold thy peace at the presence of the Lord GOD: for the day of the LORD is at hand: for the LORD hath prepared a sacrifice, he hath bid his guests.  And it shall come to pass in the day of the LORD'S sacrifice, that I will punish the princes, and the king's children, and all such as are clothed with strange apparel.  In the same day also will I punish all those that leap on the threshold, which fill their masters' houses with violence and deceit. ” (Zephaniah 1:7-9)  

When God’s judgment fell, Zephaniah and the people who served God were not interfere or try to prevent it.  It was God who would be punishing the leaders for adopting the religions and cultures of the other nations.  At the same time, he would punish the common people who were involved in crime and murder. 

“And it shall come to pass in that day, saith the LORD, that there shall be the noise of a cry from the fish gate, and an howling from the second, and a great crashing from the hills.  Howl, ye inhabitants of Maktesh, for all the merchant people are cut down; all they that bear silver are cut off. ” (Zephaniah 1: 10-11)

God’s judgment will affect everyone in the area, from the fishermen on the sea, to the shepherds and cattlemen ibn the hills, to the merchants downtown, to the bankers and stock traders.  The entire economy will be affected, and the survivalist hiding in the hills will not escape. 

“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.  Therefore their goods shall become a booty, and their houses a desolation: they shall also build houses, but not inhabit them; and they shall plant vineyards, but not drink the wine thereof. ” (Zephaniah 1:12-13)

There will be a thorough search of the city using candles or flashlights to find all the hiding places where people and valuables might be concealed.  They will find all the people that have believed God is powerless or doesn’t care.   The property will be taken by the searchers, and the homes left in ruins.  All their efforts to make things better will be wasted. 

“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.  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. ” (Zephaniah 1:14-16)

The day of God’s judgment was very close.  When it came, those who were considered strongest would cry in desperation because everything they had built and enjoyed was taken away, and their seemed to be no hope as both the small towns and major cities were destroyed. 

“And I will bring distress upon men, that they shall walk like blind men, because they have sinned against the LORD: and their blood shall be poured out as dust, and their flesh as the dung.  Neither their silver nor their gold shall be able to deliver them in the day of the LORD'S wrath; but the whole land shall be devoured by the fire of his jealousy: for he shall make even a speedy riddance of all them that dwell in the land. ” (Zephaniah 1:17-18)

People will be so upset they are unable to decide what to do, because of the results of their sin.  They will be killed indiscriminately, and their bodies treated like just a piece of garbage.  No amount of wealth will protect them, but the entire nation will be destroyed because of God’s anger.