Zephaniah 1
January 17
Reading: Zephaniah 1
1 The word of the LORD that came to Zephaniah the son of Cushi, son of Gedaliah, son of Amariah, son of Hezekiah, in the days of Josiah the son of Amon, king of Judah.
2 "I will utterly sweep away everything
from the face of the earth," declares the LORD.
3 "I will sweep away man and beast;
I will sweep away the birds of the heavens
and the fish of the sea,
and the rubble with the wicked.
I will cut off mankind from the face of the earth," declares the LORD.
4 "I will stretch out my hand against Judah
and against all the inhabitants of Jerusalem;
and I will cut off from this place the remnant of Baal
and the name of the idolatrous priests along with the priests,
5 those who bow down on the roofs to the host of the heavens,
those who bow down and swear to the LORD and yet swear by Milcom,
6 those who have turned back from following the LORD,
who do not seek the LORD or inquire of him."
7 Be silent before the Lord GOD!
For the day of the LORD is near;
the LORD has prepared a sacrifice
and consecrated his guests.
8 And on the day of the LORD's sacrifice—
"I will punish the officials and the king's sons
and all who array themselves in foreign attire.
9 On that day I will punish everyone who leaps over the threshold,
and those who fill their master's house with violence and fraud.
10 "On that day," declares the LORD,
"a cry will be heard from the Fish Gate,
a wail from the Second Quarter,
a loud crash from the hills.
11 Wail, O inhabitants of the Mortar!
For all the traders are no more;
all who weigh out silver are cut off.
12 At that time I will search Jerusalem with lamps,
and I will punish the men who are complacent,
those who say in their hearts,
'The LORD will not do good, nor will he do ill.'
13 Their goods shall be plundered,
and their houses laid waste.
Though they build houses,
they shall not inhabit them;
though they plant vineyards,
they shall not drink wine from them."
14 The great day of the LORD is near,
near and hastening fast;
the sound of the day of the LORD is bitter;
the mighty man cries aloud there.
15 A day of wrath is that day,
a day of distress and anguish,
a day of ruin and devastation,
a day of darkness and gloom,
a day of clouds and thick darkness,
16 a day of trumpet blast and battle cry
against the fortified cities
and against the lofty battlements.
17 I will bring distress on mankind,
so that they shall walk like the blind,
because they have sinned against the LORD;
their blood shall be poured out like dust,
and their flesh like dung.
18 Neither their silver nor their gold
shall be able to deliver them
on the day of the wrath of the LORD.
In the fire of his jealousy,
all the earth shall be consumed;
for a full and sudden end he will make
of all the inhabitants of the earth.
The prophet Zephaniah served God during the reign of good King Josiah in Jerusalem. Despite the good things taking place, idolatry persisted, and would come roaring back to the national scene upon the king’s death. Zephaniah is announcing the coming Day of the Lord, which is the Babylonian invasion. His prophecy is all about the wrath of the Lord (Zephaniah 1:1-3:7) and the Lord’s rescue of His faithful remnant (Zephaniah 3:8-20). The fear of the Lord and His great mercy is here on display.
Zephaniah 1 focuses on the Lord’s wrath toward faithless Judah. We are confronted immediately with the comprehensive nature of God’s judgment. He is going to destroy everything! Verses 4-6 help us to understand why. Idolatry. Throughout the Old Testament we find that idolatry is the besetting sin of the people of God. Idolatry is the worship of things other than God, or the worship of things and God (vs. 5). It is forbidden in the first two of the Ten Commandments.
What are your idols? What things are you tempted to serve or worship other than God? Do you seek comfort? Money? Stuff? Fun? Friends? Personal advancement? A girlfriend or boyfriend? Family? Country? Idols can be good things made more important than God.
The judgment of God upon His people because of their idolatry will be catastrophic. (vss. 7-13) People do not believe it will happen (vs. 12) but that has no bearing on the situation. People never believe catastrophe is coming until it arrives.
In verses 14-18 the prophet makes it clear that this “Day of the Lord” is inevitable. It cannot be stopped. No amount of military might, or money, can help them. This was true about the day when Babylon invaded Judah 2,600 years ago. This is true today as we await the great day of the Lord coming upon the entire earth. The Lord will return in vengeance and jealousy to pour out His wrath on all this idolatrous world. We need to humble ourselves and be ready.