Zeph. 3:8-17 - A REASON FOR HOPE
LAST WEEK: In Zeph. 1:1-11, we were introduced to Zephaniah, a prophet of Judah during the reign of king Josiah (640-609 B.C.) who delivered an "oracle," which we learned wasn't a call to repentance like many prophecies but a pronouncement that the annihilation of Jerusalem (a metaphor for the whole nation of Judah) was imminent. In terms of modern application, Zephaniah could stand in our church pulpits today and delver the very same message: That any nation that refuses to follow God or has turned away from Him (like the U.S. and other western democracies), will face certain judgment. For churches in America, it means that a return to both faith and the moral standards expressed in the Bible is our nation's only hope, and this will only come from revival, a great awakening that will sweep across America from shore to shore. As Christians, we can't force our nation to change, but as revived churches we can spearhead this event by sharing the gospel of Jesus Christ in our cities, towns, and communities. Bottom Line: It's up to us. Do you see that? Say Amen if you agree.
THIS WEEK: In Zeph. 3:8-17, shifting gears after last week's dark message, we'll hear the prophet deliver a message of hope. However, before this, in 3:1-7, the prophet reiterated all the reasons why Jerusalem and Judah must suffer God's judgment first, which I will summarize: (1) Because the greed and corruption of Jerusalem's civil rulers and judges had oppressed the poor and weak; (2) because the city's religious elite had been faithless, allowing idolatry, syncretism, and backsliddeness to corrupt the worship of the one true GOD (YHWH); (3) and finally, both the city's leaders and people had apparently forgotten (or ignored) how YHWH had used His power to judge nations in the past, e.g., the Assyrian Empire forming the most recent example. They needed to learn a lesson the hard way. And we-modern Christians in the United Stated of America-need to examine ourselves and ask if we are guilty of the same things. The next question is what can we do about it?
Read Zeph. 3:8-11 - JUDGMENT ON ALL NATIONS
8 "Therefore wait for Me," declares the Lord, "For the day when I rise up as a witness. Indeed, My decision is to gather nations, To assemble kingdoms, To pour out on them My indignation, All My burning anger; For all the earth will be devoured By the fire of My zeal. 9 For then I will restore to the peoples pure lips, So that all of them may call on the name of the Lord, To serve Him shoulder to shoulder. 10 From beyond the rivers of Ethiopia My worshipers, My dispersed ones, Will bring My offerings. 11 On that day you will feel no shame Because of all your deeds By which you have rebelled against Me; For then I will remove from your midst Your proud, arrogant ones, And you will never again be haughty On My holy mountain.
NOTE: The prophecies that follow will have both a near-term and end-time fulfillment.
v. 8: "Therefore wait for Me," declares the LORD, "For the day when I rise up as a witness. Indeed, My decision is to gather nations, To assemble kingdoms, To pour out on them My indignation, All My burning anger; For all the earth will be devoured By the fire of My zeal. - God intends to gather up all the nations, including Judah, and pour-out His wrath on them in judgment. This happened to Judah in the near-term when the Babylonian army totally destroyed Jerusalem in 587 B.C.; however,
the world is still waiting for the LORD to pour-out His wrath on all the nations. God hasn't done this up to now because He's patient and is giving people time to repent. Yet, this Day-The Day of the LORD-is surely coming, and maybe sooner than we expect. Because of this, all Christians everywhere need to be looking forward to and seeking a hastening of that Day in our preaching and our prayers (2 Pet. 3:11). The great outpouring of God's divine wrath will take place during the Tribulation, before our Lord Jesus Christ returns to establish His kingdom on earth (Rev. 16:14-16).
v. 9a: "For then I will restore to the peoples pure lips," - The conjunction "then" signals a major change in time as well as the focus of Zephaniah's prophecy. It is a turning point that serves as a transition from judgment in the Tribulation to blessings in the Millennium. "Then," after these judgments, the LORD promised to give the people of the world "lips" that would speak truth and grace rather than lies and deceitful words.
v. 9b: "So that all of them may call on the name of the Lord, To serve Him shoulder to shoulder." - YHWH would bring about this change in people all over the world so that they will worship Him and serve Him as one united family of nations. Scholars see this event as a reversal of Babel (Gen. 11:1-9). This revelation also tells us that everyone living on earth at the beginning of the Millennium will be a believer in Jesus Christ (Mt. 25:31-46).
v. 10: "From beyond the rivers of Ethiopia My worshipers, My dispersed ones, Will bring My offerings." - The phrase, "beyond the rivers of Ethiopia," is a metaphor for everywhere in the world. His "dispersed ones" are His Covenant people, the Jews. They would come to Jerusalem, the city the LORD chose as the place where He would dwell among His people. This prophecy was partially fulfilled when the exiles returned from Babylon (about 535 B.C.). The end-time fulfillment will not occur until all of the Messianic Jews saved during the Tribulation return to Jerusalem as their holy city during the Millennium.
v. 11: "On that day you will feel no shame Because of all your deeds By which you have rebelled against Me; For then I will remove from your midst Your proud, arrogant ones, And you will never again be haughty On My holy mountain." - This verse pictures the end-time Messianic Jews. In that day the Jews will not feel any shame for their previous rebellion against the LORD, because God will have blotted it out, erased their transgressions forever. They will no longer pride themselves in the exclusiveness of their relationship with YHWH or the sanctity of their temple or its provision of worship. They agree that Gentiles should be admitted to the covenant, and share in their historic privileges. Out of this, we see the Christian Church, an organized body no longer local-a spiritual temple open to all believers.
Read Zeph. 3:12-13 - THE REMNANT OF ISRAEL
12 But I will leave among you A humble and lowly people, And they will take refuge in the name of the Lord. 13 The remnant of Israel will do no wrong And tell no lies, Nor will a deceitful tongue Be found in their mouths; For they will feed and lie down With no one to frighten them."
v. 12: "But I will leave among you A humble and lowly people, And they will take refuge in the name of the LORD." - As described in vv. 1-7, the people of Judah had been proud-vain and conceited, and their pride had created a barrier, separating them from the LORD GOD of Israel. When God brings judgment on them, He would eliminate the "proud, arrogant ones" (3:11), but will leave in their midst "A humble and lowly people"-which describes a people who have been humbled to the point that they are now fully aware of their own personal limitations as human beings and understand their total dependence on their LORD GOD (YHWH) as their "refuge," for help and survival.
v. 13a: "The remnant of Israel will do no wrong And tell no lies, Nor will a deceitful tongue Be found in their mouths;" - The biblical term "remnant" is important in both the OT and NT. The concept was introduced with Noah and the flood, where God destroyed an evil people but preserved a righteous man (Noah) and his family (Gen. 6-9). The theological premise behind the remnant is that God will be faithful even when His people are not-and the people's apostasy will not nullify God's promise. God will at times impose harsh judgment, but for the purpose of purifying rather than destroying, thus insuring that a righteous remnant will survive. In this instance, the surviving remnant "will do no wrong And tell no lies...no "deceitful tongues" in their mouths.
v. 13b: "For they will feed and lie down With no one to frighten them." - The imagery of this phrase pictures the remnant as sheep in God's flock. As their shepherd, YHWH will provide ample provisions with no need to live in fear. He will make them lie down in green pastures, lead them beside still waters, and restore their souls. Even though they walk through the valley of the shadow of death, they will fear no evil because God's rod and staff will protect them. Their cup will run over. (Ps. 23).
Read Zeph. 3:14-15 - SHOUT IN TRIUMPH ISRAEL!
14 Shout for joy, O daughter of Zion! Shout in triumph, O Israel! Rejoice and exult with all your heart, O daughter of Jerusalem! 15 The LORD has taken away His judgments against you, He has cleared away your enemies. The King of Israel, the Lord, is in your midst; You will fear disaster no more.
v. 14: "Shout for joy, O daughter of Zion! Shout in triumph, O Israel! Rejoice and exult with all your heart, O daughter of Jerusalem!" - This verse has both near-term and end-times fulfillment.
At this point, the time of punishment the prophet foresaw in his earlier chapters has ended. This is the rejoicing that Jewish people will experience when released from captivity in Babylonia and allowed to return to Jerusalem. But even more importantly, it foresees the restoration of Christian Jews to Jerusalem as their holy city when Jesus Christ returns to establish His kingdom on earth.
v. 15: The Lord has taken away His judgments against you, He has cleared away your enemies. The King of Israel, the LORD, is in your midst; You will fear disaster no more. " - The reason for rejoicing is that God by that time will have removed not only His judgment of Israel, but also all the enemies of the nation. In the immediate context, the exiles will rejoice over their release from captivity and the removal of Babylonia as a threat, but the prophecy will not be truly fulfilled until the people are in the midst of the true and omnipotent "King of Israel," in the person of their Messiah, Jesus Christ, during the Millennium (Rev. 21:2-4). Only then will Israel be in the position to "fear disaster no more."
Read Zeph. 3:16-17 - LOVE FROM ABOVE
16 In that day it will be said to Jerusalem: "Do not be afraid, O Zion; Do not let your hands fall limp. 17 "The LORD your God is in your midst, A victorious warrior. He will exult over you with joy, He will be quiet in His love, He will rejoice over you with shouts of joy.
v. 16a: "In that day it will be said to Jerusalem:" - "that day" refers back to v. 15, when God has removed His judgments and destroyed the Jewish nation's enemies.
v. 16b: "Do not be afraid, O Zion; Do not let your hands fall limp." - The term "Zion" has multiple meanings: It is the hill that David captured from the Canaanites upon which Jerusalem was built (2 Sam. 5:7) and it is a derivative name for Jerusalem itself. When the Northern Kingdom fell to Assyria, in 621 B.C., many of the faithful Jews who escaped captivity fled to Zion, Jerusalem. Then 44 years later, the Babylonians completely destroyed Jerusalem and took all it people into captivity as slaves. The phrase, Do not let your hands fall limp," refers to a position of the hands that reflects dejection and submission. But no more: With Christ as their Messiah King, the Jews in Zion can now hold their hands up in victory.
v. 17a: "The LORD your God is in your midst, A victorious warrior." - The day that the prophet is foretelling is a time when "God in your mist" will have defeated all opposition worldwide. This describes Jesus Christ as king during the Millennium.
v. 17b: "He will exult over you with joy, He will be quiet in His love, He will rejoice over you with shouts of joy." - The prophet has described how God's power will completely vanquish all enemies in the end times, but now He describes the power of God's love-love from above. The "quiet" or peaceable love of God will be like that of a bridegroom who rejoices over his bride with "shouts of joy" or just as a loving parent cradles a child and sings out of love, so God's song over His people is born of His great love. The reality of God's powerful, all-enveloping love, as personified by Jesus, their Messiah King, will bring peace to people who have been through tremendous turmoil and strife. You might ask how can the LORD can love such flawed people, who are all imperfect sinners? It can only be explained as a miracle of God's mercy and grace. So, after a time of hardship, our loving God dries His people's tears, comforts their hearts, and welcomes them to a new world.
APPLICATION-Love From Above:
1. Zephaniahs' prophecy shows us that when God bring judgment to punish His people, His purpose is to cleanse them. The prophet reminds us that God will not allow His people-which by definition includes 21st Century Christians-to escape punishment when they sin willfully. While punishment may be harsh and painful, God's purpose is redemptive, to bring the sinner to repentance and a return to faith.
2. The last word of Zephaniah's prophecy is a message of hope, not only to the Jews, but to the whole world. The prophet described a time when God, out of His love, mercy, and grace, promises not only a revival of true faith among His people Israel, but a worldwide movement of people turning to Him. We know that during the Tribulation millions of people from all of the nations will come to faith in Christ and will reign with Him in the Millennial Kingdom. Jew and Gentile alike will be heirs to the promise.
PRAYER: Ask to people to get up, gather around, and join hands, as we all pray for the decisions we are being called to make about the future of our church next Sunday.
