Zephaniah 1:1-13 |
There's a first time for everything - and, yes, this is my first time to do a study on the book of Zephaniah. That's a pity, for I've really missed out, big time. Mind you, I can't imagine too many of you folks reading it in your quiet time either - I'd be surprised if a lot of preachers have ever ministered on it, it's a real shame but it's one of those books that we tend to shy away from.
If the truth be told, here's a wee book with a lot to say on the unfolding purpose of God in history; it's a book which focuses on the amazing ability of God to do what he wants to do, when he wants to do it; it's a prophecy that reminds us of the ultimate prize at the end of time.
The book of Zephaniah is tucked away towards the end of the Old Testament, he's in the section dedicated to the so-called 'minor' prophets, he's number four from the far end. Take it from me, there's nothing incidental or insignificant about his message - this guy is on the ball, he has his finger on the pulse, he's aware of what's happening all around him, he has a true appreciation of the big picture - he comes across as someone who's not afraid to tell it like it is.
His was a kind of in-your-face message, no doubt about that - but, he didn't shirk his onerous responsibility, he didn't back-off when God told him what he wanted him to write, he didn't back-down when faced with the withering challenge of delivering a message that the nations needed to hear - it was what they needed, but they didn't want to know. This preacher man Zephaniah is a tough cookie, he's resilient, he's up for it, he's in it for the long haul.
It's only three chapters, 53 verses, the kind of script you could easily read in 7/8 minutes - you should do it sometime, it'll give you a flavour of his entire message, you'll get a feel for what he's trying to say - when you read a book like this, it puts a lot of things in perspective. A lot of what the prophet says is so relevant to our situation, we'll find out more of that as we get into the heart of his message.
It seems to me there are so many of us who want a religion that gives us access to God without having to bother with people. We want to go to God for comfort and inspiration when we're fed up with everyone around us. We want God to give us an edge in the dog-eat-dog competition of daily life. We want an inside track with God and, at the same time, we want to deal with people however we like. As it were, we want the cherry, but we don't want the pits!
There's nothing new about that attitude - it's as old as the hills. It's the sort of mindset that men like Zephaniah were determined to root out, they are dead set against it. That's why he preached his socks off 2,600 years ago; that's why so much of what Zephaniah says leaves us feeling a little uncomfortable, it encroaches on our comfort zone, it gives it a squeeze. There is a relevance to God's word - it's timeless, it answers the big questions you're asking right now, it scratches where folks are itching.
Let me give you a quickie outline of the book - it'll help you remember what the prophet is on about: in chapter one, we are aware of the determination of the Lord; in chapter two, the focus is very much on the day of the Lord; and, in chapter three, the gloom is dispelled as we zoom in on the deliverance of the Lord.
It's a 3D picture: we see a God who knows what he's doing, a God who works according to schedule, a God who specialises in bringing hope and salvation to people; the God we're talking about here is a God who doesn't leave us in the doldrums, he wants us to experience and enjoy his intimate presence in our daily lives.
You see, it's all about relationship - our relationship with God; that's how the prophet rounds off his timely message - we read in 3:16, 17 some marvellously, wonderful words [I'm reading from the New Living Translation] - Cheer up, Zion! Don't be afraid! For the Lord your God has arrived to live among you. He is a mighty saviour. He will rejoice over you with great gladness. With his love, he will calm all your fears. He will exult over you by singing a happy song. See what I mean, this God meets us where we are and he takes us to where he wants us to be - he specialises in the personal touch and, when we are walking with him, he finds immense pleasure in us.
OK, let's go back to the beginning and see if we can find out a little more about our friend Zephaniah. We want to trace his roots. Who is he? Where did he come from? What do we know about him? What's on his CV? Important questions; the reality is, we don't have much to go on! One verse and that's about it!
The first thing we're told about him in verse 1 is his name, he's called: Zephaniah. It's worth noting that his name means: 'Jehovah hides' or 'Jehovah protects'. The thought is, there is safety in the Lord, he gives security to his people, he looks after his own. We can turn to him in the hour of crisis, he's a shelter in the time of storm. When troubles and trials come, the Lord is our refuge.
He wasn't born with a silver spoon in his mouth, but he has royal blood flowing in his veins. He has a significant ancestral history - it appears that he is the great, great, grandson of King Hezekiah. You'll recall, he ran the show for the best part of 29 years. He started out when he was 25 and, by the time he was in his mid-50s, he died. That was 686 BC.
He is fondly remembered, his was an illustrious career; and, on the whole, he made a huge impact on the nation. Scripture says of him: 'he did what was right in the eyes of the Lord'. He was extremely successful during his reign and is acclaimed as one of Israel's great kings - we read that, in everything he did, 'he sought his God and worked wholeheartedly'. Apart from a few hiccups, he was a good man, a godly man. That's the kind of vintage that Zephaniah springs from.
The good thing is, Zephaniah didn't let the side down - nor did he fail his Lord either. He was privileged to minister in the days of King Josiah - he's the man who turned the nation right side up, he led the nation in a religious reformation triggered by the finding of the Book of the Law in the temple in the year 622 - you read all about it in 2 Chronicles 34.
The intervening period between Hezekiah and Josiah was a real mess. Manasseh turned the clock back, he deliberately led the nation away from the Lord, he was into idolatry big time, he was a great believer in mediums and wizards, he was wicked in the best sense of that word; there's no doubt that his long reign was a recipe for spiritual disaster.
It has to be said that his son fared no better, he was a chip off the old block - his name was Amon. Mind you, he didn't last long. He was assassinated by his servants only two years into his reign. As they say: good riddance.
That's the appallingly awful situation that Josiah stepped into - only a lad, but God used him in a very special way to call his people back to himself. When a work needs to be done, age doesn't enter into it - Josiah was the new kid on the block, he was only a teenager, 16 years of age; see what God used him to accomplish. It's fantastic. Let's not underestimate what God can do in and through the lives of our young people. It doesn't matter what age we are, the Lord wants to use us!
We don't know for sure, but the chances are that Zephaniah preached God's message prior to this reformation, or he would have said something about it in his book. What we do know is that he and Jeremiah were contemporaries. So too were Nahum and Habakkuk. That tells me that God's word was given quite a billing during those massively important years. You see, the Lord never leaves himself without a witness, there is a voice in the wilderness. The challenge is: when people listen to God's word, do they hear what he says?
Before we get into the main text, let me ask you a question: what do these words have to teach us today? They remind us of one of the great needs in today's church; our days are not so different from the days of Josiah and Zephaniah. The nation in their day was in dire need of reformation, one that was sparked off by a rediscovery of the word of God. That's our need today - a spiritual revival. You see, as the church has departed from its biblical message, so society has slipped further and further away from God-honouring moorings; therefore, what we need is a rediscovery of the timeless truths of Scripture. We need to get back to the Bible, back to the Word of God.
We need men of the calibre of Zephaniah - men with guts, men with spiritual backbone, men who will boldly stand up and declare: thus says the Lord. Men with a sense of call on their lives, men who are passionate about God and his glory.
A look at his message tells us that Zephaniah wouldn't be the most popular preacher in town. He certainly wouldn't be seen as flavour of the month; we could almost say he has a one track mind, a man with only one string to his bow. He goes on and on about judgment.
Two things: it's certain and it's coming! You can bet your life on it, it will come, it's guaranteed. God says it, and God will do it. There's a two pronged feel to Zephaniah's message: it's for the here and now, but also for the there and then. It was partially fulfilled in his day, but it awaits a wider fulfilment in a coming day. His message was a wake-up call to the people.
Judah was in for a shake-up when the Babylonians came, it is scary stuff - no wonder Zephaniah gave them a rollicking. I reckon they didn't know what hit them when Zephaniah opened his mouth and gave it to them straight. He was shooting from the hip.
What happened then is a prelude, a curtain raiser, to what will happen on that final Day of the Lord. It was fairly local in his day, however, it will be global at the end of time. Mention that phrase and we have to take the message seriously. The day of the Lord tells us where things are going and how they're all going to end.
During the Day of the Lord, God will send tribulation to the world, he'll judge the nations, he'll save his people Israel, and then he'll establish his righteous kingdom, 1000 years of Jesus rule. What happened away back then is, therefore, a shadow of things to come.
The first picture is found in verses 2 and 3 - it's a universal flood. It's devastating in its consequences, a global tsunami. It sweeps away everything before it. What needs to be done will be done, and everything will go. Nothing is spared. Nothing is left, but piles of rubble. This is severe, it is comprehensive, it is unique, it is divine intervention. This is God doing what he would rather not do - but, because of who he is, he has no other option open to him.
The next paragraph from verse 4 down to verse 6 reveals a side to God's character that we're inclined to forget; it shows us that God's holiness and his justice demand that he step into the situation. Man has sunk into the mud and mire of religion, he has shut the living God out of his life, he has openly turned against his word and blasphemed his name - basically, modern man has shown God the two fingers.
People who ought to know better, people who have enjoyed so many special privileges; these just weren't any old Jews - they were from Judah, and they lived in Jerusalem! They had the right postcode. They knew their history, they came out tops when it came to tribal pecking order. They embraced a certain way of life but, tragically, they ended up whistling in the wind when it came to basic core values.
See what they did! It's a list as long as your arm, and it's not good reading at all. They were dabbling in all kinds of idol worship, anything to satisfy their spiritual desires, anything to give them a spiritual fix. Some of them even went so far as to engage in an early-day version of reading your stars, they were into worshiping the heavens. Not the kind of thing that Moses recommends in Deuteronomy 4.
Talk about pluralism, well, they had it back then - yes, there were those who fancied a mix-and-match religion and so they combined the worship of God with the worship of Molech. It's a form of syncretism. I can tell you that God is not amused with their religious shenanigans - they are two-timing him and he will have none of it.
You can't help but notice that for a lot of people, worship is fairly high up their to-do list. They want a meaningful spiritual experience. It's important to them, it obviously plugs a big hole in their hearts, it meets a need in their lives. The problem is, they're going about it the wrong way. I reckon we all know people like that today.
They're not all like that for we see in verse 6 that some folk have no time for God at all. He doesn't figure in their plans, he may as well not even exist so far as they are concerned. God, I don't know him, they say! Want nothing to do with him. He's a spoilsport, a killjoy!
We'll look at verse 7 in a moment or two . it wasn't just the nation's worship that was in deep trouble, so too were the royal court. They are spoken of in verses 8 and 9 - they have succumbed to the lure of 'all things foreign'. Even though Josiah was actively walking in the fear of the Lord, others in the upper echelons of power were walking down a different road. They had the mentality that said the grass is greener on the other side! When it came to fashions and faith, they were backing a loser. They wouldn't get off Scot-free. They would get their comeuppance when God intruded into their lives.
The nation's commercial life is also in for a hammering in verses 10-13. It's clear that Zephaniah knows the golden city of Jerusalem like the back of his hand - the places he refers to are centres of trade and industry. It's a hive of activity, there's a lot going on in the markets. Buying and selling, and not a few folks being ripped off.
That will come to an abrupt halt when God does what he has to do - in a matter of minutes, these guys will lose all their takings, all their resources, all their investments; even their land and homes will be demolished. They are left penniless. The economy will take a dramatic downturn - a once-thriving and healthy city will be brought to its knees. They have nothing, only the clothes they stand up in.
You see, they thought they could outdo the Lord, they were getting too big for their boots. Complacency crept in. We see an amazing picture of God in verse 12 as he searches the city - he has a lamp in his hand, he misses nothing, he sees all things, you can run but you can't hide. God is on the prowl, he's on the warpath, and he'll get his man. That's what judgment is all about.
You know, folks, when we see what Zephaniah had to say about the times in which he lived - to me, there's an uncanny resemblance to life in the twenty-first century. I believe that's why we need to take on board the message of verse 7 where he says: Be silent before the Sovereign Lord, for the day of the Lord is near.
Yes, there is a time for us to talk, but there is also a time for us to be silent! This is one of those God-moments, a moment when we're aware of God's unerring purpose, when we sense that God is on the verge of doing something big - when we're conscious that he is in total control, he is sovereign. At such times, the sound of silence is golden - in light of who he is, I can do nothing else but fall down and worship him. The Lord is king. And, one day, the King is coming back!
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