Sofonias 1

Sofonias 1

Stedman - Zephaniah: The Day Of The Lord's Wrath One of the shortest of the books is that by the prophet Zephaniah. Yet it is a book which is almost overwhelming in its darkness and gloom. The theme of this book is "the day of the Lord." It is a view of the back side of God's love -- in other words, his wrath. It is a book which sets forth the burning jealousy of God. The Bible frequently says that God is a jealous God. That doesn't mean jealousy as we usually think of it -- being suspicious all the time and looking for expected violations of love. It simply means that God loves so thoroughly, so completely, that he cannot brook a rival to his love. God will destroy anything which hurts his loved one. (See Israel the Wife of Jehovah) This is why he is sometimes so ruthless with us. When he sees us loving and clinging to things which are damaging and hurting us, God's jealousy comes in and says, "No, you can't have them." We plead with him and say, "Lord, let me keep them. Why, this friend I have -- I enjoy him so, or love her so! Let me keep her; let me have him." And God says, "No, you can't." So we have to give these things up. This book sets forth the jealousy of God. There could be no love on God's part if there were not the ultimate exercise of wrath. You say you can't accept a God of wrath? Then you can't believe in a God of love, because a God who can't get angry at what injures the person he loves is not capable of love. Zephaniah is the great prophet of God's jealousy. . . Zephaniah means "hidden of the Lord" and the prophet is speaking as if he were a representative of the remnant of faith -- those relatively few people who will remain true to God and be faithful to his word through the time of trouble that is to come upon the earth. They will be hidden, as it were, by God himself among the nations of the earth and God will watch over them to keep them in faith during this time. And it is about these people that the book of Zephaniah is written, and especially of that coming day, the Day of the LORD, which is vividly described by the prophet. (Zephaniah: The Day Of The Lord's Wrath) NORMAN GEISLER - ZEPHANIAH 1:1—Hasn’t it been demonstrated that Zephaniah is actually composed of two books with different messages? PROBLEM: Conservative scholars maintain that the Book of Zephaniah is a single work composed by the prophet Zephaniah. However, modern scholarship claims that the book is actually two books with different messages put together as if it were one. The very beginning of this book is a message of dread and coming judgment. The overriding theme is the devastation and destruction that is about to fall in the swiftly approaching Day of the Lord (1:7, 8, 10, 14–15, etc.) However, verses 8–13 of chapter 3 present a message of hope that seems completely out of keeping with the theme of the book as a whole. How can this book be considered the sole work of one person, Zephaniah? SOLUTION: There is no reason to suppose that the messages of judgment and hope are incompatible. In fact, it is the message of the Book of Zephaniah that the coming judgment of the Day of the Lord is the very means by which God would bring about the ultimate restoration of His people. The Day of the Lord is a day of purification from sin and salvation of the remnant. The hope of salvation in the midst of judgment, is found as early as 2:1–3 and 3:8–9, clearly pointing out that it is this purifying judgment that will prepare the way for the restoration of God’s people. Zephaniah is a single unified work by the prophet Zephaniah. (SEE WHEN CRITICS ASK) ILLUSTRATION - Paul Apple - THE CALM BEFORE THE STORM Imagine waking up to a perfectly calm morning—blue skies, no wind, no clouds—only to discover later that day a hurricane was already forming offshore, invisible to the naked eye but absolutely certain in its arrival. That was the experience of my family back in 1989 when Hurricane Hugo was unleashing its devastating power. Karen and her Mom and our four kids drove down to Florida to stay at Patrick AFB right on the beach for their annual pre-homeschool vacation. The weather was beautiful. They stayed in SC in a nice motel along I-95 and enjoyed the outdoor pool. When they drove back a week later, Hugo had swept thru the region, snapped off all the trees like toothpicks; wiped out the motel and left the pool filled with tree limbs and debris. What a dramatic picture of powerful destruction seemingly coming out of nowhere. That is the setting for the prophecy of Zephaniah. But in his case the nation had ample warning. Judah appears religiously active, politically stable, and morally indifferent. But beneath the surface, divine judgment is gathering momentum. Zephaniah is the prophet who pulls back the curtain and says, “The storm is not coming—it is already on the way.” Oscillating Prophecy – Swings back and forth  Prophecy bounces back and forth between near term judgment on apostate Judah – when King Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon will destroy Jerusalem in 586 BC; and the end times scenario when God’s wrath will be unleashed against the whole world  The prophecy bounces back and forth between an emphasis on God judging the nations and on God judging His own people in Judah and Jerusalem.  The Prophecy moves from judgment and wrath to salvation and blessing as Chap. 3 finishes with a description of eventual salvation for the believing remnant. Twofold Division: I. 1:2 – 3:7 THE DAY OF THE LORD UNLEASHES DIVINE JUDGMENT II. 3:8-20 THE DAY OF THE LORD CULMINATES IN MESSIANIC BLESSING Hampton Keathley (Zephaniah - Overview - Summary section by section) summarizes the key principles in Zephaniah: (1) God is full of grace, gladness and tenderness, but also justice. Wrath Zeph 1:15, 18 Terror Tenderness Zeph 2:7, 3:17 (2) God deals in grace. In the midst of the troubles that are coming God will... REMOVE RESTORE Idolatry - Zeph 1:4-6 Pride - Zeph 3:11-12 Deceit - Zeph 3:13 Fear - Zeph 3:13, 15-16 Enemies - Zeph 3:15, 19 Reproach - Zeph 3:18-19 Shame - Zeph 3:11 Safety - Zeph 2:3, 3:13 Prosperity - Zeph 2:7, 3:20 Purity - Zeph 3:9 Worship - Zeph 3:9-10 Trust - Zeph 3:12 Joy - Zeph 3:14 Remnant - Zeph 3:10, 18-20 His presence - Zeph 3:15, 17 Therefore I should trust God to work out his plan. What do I need to do? What do I need to do? I need to wait on God (Zeph 3:8). He will right the wrongs and restore the righteous. I just want to be sure I'm counted among the righteous. Therefore.... I need to “Seek the Lord” (Zeph 2:3) This means that my number one goal in life is to know God - to have an intimate relationship with him. I need to be humble (Zeph 2:3b). This involves self denial. Vertical and horizontal - which leads to the next requirement. I need to obey God’s ordinances (Zeph 2:3) = love my neighbor In Explore the Book here is Sidlow Baxter's Outline: Through Judgment to Blessing I. Look Within! – Wrath Coming on Judah (Zeph 1:1–2:3) The Purpose of Jehovah to Judge (Zeph 1:1-6) The “Day” of Jehovah “at hand” (Zeph 1:7-18) And so – plea to Jerusalem (Zeph 2:1-3) II. Look Around! – Wrath on All Nations (Zeph 2:4 – 3:8) West, East – Philistia, Moab, Ammon (Zeph 2:4-11) South, North – Ethiopia and Assyria (Zeph 2:12-15) And so – “Woe” to Jerusalem (Zeph 3:1-8) III. Look Beyond! – After Wrath, Healing (Zeph 3:9-20) Conversion of Gentile Peoples (Zeph 2:9) Restoring of Covenant People (Zeph 2:10-15) And so – the new Jerusalem (Zeph 2:16-20) G Campbell