 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.
The Coming Judgment on 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.” The Day of the Lord Is Near 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[c] 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[d] 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,[e] 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. Meditation God’s sovereign grace invites us to walk in the ways of the Lord. To reject God and His grace is to walk in the ways of the wicked, a path leading to perishing (Psalm 1:6) and problems (Proverbs 15:9). During the reign of Josiah (@ 620 BC), Zephaniah warned Judah about God’s coming judgement through the Babylonians. Born from a royal line (1), the contemporary of Jeremiah preached to help God’s people reclaim right worship by returning to God in their hearts. Zephaniah’s message contains rich OT prophetic literature: sin, punishment, and restoration; centered on a central motif: The Day of the Lord (7, 9, 10, 14). King Josiah’s rule was marked with religious reform (2 Kings 23). Wayward people rejected revival by walking the path of the wicked and welcoming self-rule. Symptoms of such rebellion include prayerlessness, not listening to God’s word, avoiding or abusing corporate worship, injustice, and foolishness. Wayward ways welcome ruin at the cost of rejecting God’s grace and His promise of restoration. Jesus proclaims, “I am the way… no one comes to the Father but through me” (John 14:6). Jesus went the way of the cross so we can be welcomed by our Father’s unconditional love. Jesus took God’s Day of judgement so all who believe can be born again in our Father’s family! To walk in the way of righteousness is to look to Jesus and trust Him in every step of life. Richly Dwelling -Which way is your heart leading you to walk- The path of righteousness through the person of Jesus or the way of the wicked, a path leading to pain and problems? -God’s message of His judgement is good news, leading people to repent and return to Him. Where do you need to see God’s provision on the cross and repent of your rejection of His love and grace? -Jesus is the way, the path of righteousness back to our Father. How can you respond to God’s grace by trusting Him, focusing on Him, every step you take? Key Verse 4 “I will stretch out my hand against Judah and against all the inhabitants of Jerusalem; and I will cut off from this place …6 those who have turned back from following the Lord, who do not seek the Lord or inquire of him.” Comments are closed.
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