ZEPHANIAH
ZEPHANIAH 1:1-6
1 The word of the Lord which came to Zephaniah the son of Cushi, the son of Gedaliah, the son of Amariah, the son of Hezekiah, in the days of Josiah the son of Amon, king of Judah.
2 “I will utterly consume everything from the face of the land,” says the Lord;
3 “I will consume man and beast, I will consume the birds of the heavens, the fish of the sea, and the stumbling blocks along with the wicked. I will cut off man from the face of the land,” says the Lord.
4 “I will stretch out My hand against Judah, and against all the inhabitants of Jerusalem. I will cut off every trace of Baal from this place, the names of the idolatrous priests with the pagan priests—
5 Those who worship the host of heaven on the housetops; those who worship and swear oaths by the Lord, but who also swear by Milcom;
6 Those who have turned back from following the Lord, and have not sought the Lord, nor inquired of Him.”
Zephaniah (Hebrew: YHWH hides) appears to have been a great, great grandson of King Hezekiah of Judah though little else is known about him. The dates of his prophecy are uncertain, although the text seems to refer to the coming assault of Babylon against Judah and Jerusalem and says the prophecy occurred during the reign of king Josiah which would place it between 649 - 609 B.C.
God’s wrath is about to fall upon all of Judah for their wickedness and idolatry. He had pleaded through the prophet Jeremiah for 40 years, saying that the king of Babylon would come as a scourge upon the land and had made horrifying pronouncements concerning conditions of the upcoming siege but no one listened or repented.
Assyria and later Babylon would be laid waste, but they fell quickly to their enemies after a short siege. But God’s fury at Jerusalem and its people was to be far worse, a lengthy siege that would cause starvation to set in. God had warned;
JEREMIAH 19:8-9
8 I will make this city desolate and a hissing; everyone who passes by it will be astonished and hiss because of all its plagues.
9 And I will cause them to eat the flesh of their sons and the flesh of their daughters, and everyone shall eat the flesh of his friend in the siege and in the desperation with which their enemies and those who seek their lives shall drive them to despair.” ’
He had finally had enough of their wickedness and lack of repentance and is about to strike. The siege was to become so desperate that cannibalism would be rampant within the city. He had previously prophesied through Moses;
DEUTERONOMY 28:52-57
52 “They shall besiege you at all your gates until your high and fortified walls, in which you trust, come down throughout all your land; and they shall besiege you at all your gates throughout all your land which the Lord your God has given you.
53 You shall eat the fruit of your own body, the flesh of your sons and your daughters whom the Lord your God has given you, in the siege and desperate straits in which your enemy shall distress you.
54 The sensitive and very refined man among you will be hostile toward his brother, toward the wife of his bosom, and toward the rest of his children whom he leaves behind,
55 so that he will not give any of them the flesh of his children whom he will eat, because he has nothing left in the siege and desperate straits in which your enemy shall distress you at all your gates.
56 The tender and delicate woman among you, who would not venture to set the sole of her foot on the ground because of her delicateness and sensitivity, will refuse to the husband of her bosom, and to her son and her daughter,
57 her placenta which comes out from between her feet and her children whom she bears; for she will eat them secretly for lack of everything in the siege and desperate straits in which your enemy shall distress you at all your gates.
One can only imagine the despair and horror of that siege.....
The god Milcom is another name for the disgusting Canaanite god Molech, who demanded child sacrifice. The idol was huge, made of bronze, and had a furnace in its belly where babies and small children were thrown in alive and burned to death. This is referred to in Scripture as “causing children to pass through the fire” a practice that God determined was an abomination.
Baal (Canaanite: Ba’al: Lord, Master) was a Canaanite Storm god, worshiped throughout the Middle East. The worship of this god was especially prevalent during the reign of king Ahab and his infamous wife Jezebel who ruled the Northern kingdom of Israel (after the 10 northern tribes split from Judah and Benjamin after the death of Solomon), during the time of Elijah, denoted in the book of 1 Kings.
Idolatry had become so bad in Judah that the Lord had shown the contemporary prophet Ezekiel in a vision;
EZEKIEL 8:15-16
15 Then He said to me, “Have you seen this, O son of man? Turn again, you will see greater abominations than these.”
16 So He brought me into the inner court of the Lord’s house; and there, at the door of the temple of the Lord, between the porch and the altar, were about twenty-five men with their backs toward the temple of the Lord and their faces toward the east, and they were worshiping the sun toward the east.
ZEPHANIAH 1:7-11
7 Be silent in the presence of the Lord God; for the day of the Lord is at hand, for the Lord has prepared a sacrifice; He has invited His guests.
8 “And it shall be in the day of the Lord’s sacrifice, that I will punish the princes and the king’s children, and all such as are clothed with foreign apparel.
9 In the same day I will punish all those who leap over the threshold, who fill their masters’ houses with violence and deceit.
10 “And there shall be on that day,” says the Lord, “The sound of a mournful cry from the Fish Gate, a wailing from the Second Quarter, and a loud crashing from the hills.
11 Wail, you inhabitants of Maktesh! For all the merchant people are cut down; all those who handle money are cut off.
The ‘guests’ referred to here are the vultures, crows and wild beasts who would feed on the corpses of the dead. When the Philistines had come to make war against Israel and future king David had accepted Goliath’s challenge to personal combat, David told Goliath;
1 SAMUEL 17:46
46 This day the Lord will deliver you into my hand, and I will strike you and take your head from you. And this day I will give the carcasses of the camp of the Philistines to the birds of the air and the wild beasts of the earth, that all the earth may know that there is a God in Israel.
The comment about foreign apparel doesn’t necessarily refer to clothing, but refers to those who follow foreign customs and worship practices.
The reference to ‘leaping over the threshold’ is fascinating in that it refers to the Philistine worship of their pagan fish god Dagon. During the time of the prophet Samuel, the Philistines had captured the Ark of the Covenant and had brought it to the city of Ashdod and had set it in the temple of Dagon before a large statue of Dagon. Scripture then says;
1 SAMUEL 5:2-5
2 When the Philistines took the ark of God, they brought it into the house of Dagon and set it by Dagon.
3 And when the people of Ashdod arose early in the morning, there was Dagon, fallen on its face to the earth before the ark of the Lord. So they took Dagon and set it in its place again.
4 And when they arose early the next morning, there was Dagon, fallen on its face to the ground before the ark of the Lord. The head of Dagon and both the palms of its hands were broken off on the threshold; only Dagon’s torso was left of it.
5 Therefore neither the priests of Dagon nor any who come into Dagon’s house tread on the threshold of Dagon in Ashdod to this day.
It seems that people in Judah had adopted the Philistine superstitious ritual of not stepping on the threshold of buildings out of respect for Dagon.
Maktesh is an unknown location, it’s meaning referring to a narrow, steep-walled canyon that usually had a seasonal stream running through it. God is saying that the entire city will bewail the coming destruction and the commerce that the city greedily seeks will be cut off.
ZEPHANIAH 1:12-13
12 “And it shall come to pass at that time that I will search Jerusalem with lamps, and punish the men who are settled in complacency, who say in their heart, ‘The Lord will not do good, nor will He do evil.’
13 Therefore their goods shall become booty, and their houses a desolation; they shall build houses, but not inhabit them; they shall plant vineyards, but not drink their wine.”
God is furious with the men of Jerusalem in that He has blessed them greatly with abundant harvests, food, rain, and trade, yet they do evil and say He will do nothing about it, believing Him to be uninterested, powerless or non-existent. He is about to prove them wrong on all counts.
ZEPHANIAH 1:14-18
14 The great day of the Lord is near; it is near and hastens quickly. The noise of the day of the Lord is bitter; there the mighty men shall cry out.
15 That day is a day of wrath, a day of trouble and distress, a day of devastation and desolation, a day of darkness and gloominess, a day of clouds and thick darkness,
16 A day of trumpet and alarm against the fortified cities and against the high towers.
17 “I will bring distress upon men, and they shall walk like blind men, because they have sinned against the Lord; their blood shall be poured out like dust, and their flesh like refuse.”
18 Neither their silver nor their gold shall be able to deliver them in the day of the Lord’s wrath; but the whole land shall be devoured by the fire of His jealousy, for He will make speedy riddance of all those who dwell in the land.
God is showing that might and riches will not save when He brings destruction on a city or a country. As God would later prophesy against mighty Babylon when they were to be attacked by the Medes and Persians;
ISAIAH 13:17-19
17 “Behold, I will stir up the Medes against them, who will not regard silver; and as for gold, they will not delight in it.
18 Also their bows will dash the young men to pieces, and they will have no pity on the fruit of the womb; their eye will not spare children.
19 And Babylon, the glory of kingdoms, the beauty of the Chaldeans’ pride, will be as when God overthrew Sodom and Gomorrah.
ZEPHANIAH 2:1-7
1 Gather yourselves together, yes, gather together, O undesirable nation,
2 Before the decree is issued, or the day passes like chaff, before the Lord’s fierce anger comes upon you, before the day of the Lord’s anger comes upon you!
3 Seek the Lord, all you meek of the earth, who have upheld His justice. Seek righteousness, seek humility. It may be that you will be hidden in the day of the Lord’s anger.
4 For Gaza shall be forsaken, and Ashkelon desolate; they shall drive out Ashdod at noonday, and Ekron shall be uprooted.
5 Woe to the inhabitants of the seacoast, the nation of the Cherethites! The word of the Lord is against you, O Canaan, land of the Philistines. “I will destroy you; so there shall be no inhabitant.”
6 The seacoast shall be pastures, with shelters for shepherds and folds for flocks.
7 The coast shall be for the remnant of the house of Judah; they shall feed their flocks there; in the houses of Ashkelon they shall lie down at evening. For the Lord their God will intervene for them, and return their captives.
God warns Judah and those who fear Him to humble themselves and seek His forgiveness as He is about to pour His wrath out on many nations. He will cause Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon to destroy Judah and put a final end to Israel’s ancient enemies the Philistines. Note that He says that the remnant of Judah will possess the seacoast, referring to the remnant of Judah that would return after the 70 year captivity.
When Judah returned from Babylonian captivity they were able to occupy the coastlands formerly held by the Philistines.
ZEPHANIAH 2:8-15
8 “I have heard the reproach of Moab, and the insults of the people of Ammon, with which they have reproached My people, and made arrogant threats against their borders.
9 Therefore, as I live,” says the Lord of hosts, the God of Israel, “Surely Moab shall be like Sodom, and the people of Ammon like Gomorrah— overrun with weeds and salt pits, and a perpetual desolation. The residue of My people shall plunder them, and the remnant of My people shall possess them.”
10 This they shall have for their pride, because they have reproached and made arrogant threats against the people of the Lord of hosts.
11 The Lord will be awesome to them, for He will reduce to nothing all the gods of the earth; people shall worship Him, each one from his place, indeed all the shores of the nations.
12 “You Ethiopians also, you shall be slain by My sword.”
13 And He will stretch out His hand against the north, destroy Assyria, and make Nineveh a desolation, as dry as the wilderness.
14 The herds shall lie down in her midst, every beast of the nation. Both the pelican and the bittern shall lodge on the capitals of her pillars; their voice shall sing in the windows; desolation shall be at the threshold; for He will lay bare the cedar work.
15 This is the rejoicing city that dwelt securely, that said in her heart, “I am it, and there is none besides me.” How has she become a desolation, a place for beasts to lie down! Everyone who passes by her shall hiss and shake his fist.
The fact that God speaks of the destruction of Assyria as a future event places the writing of the book at sometime before 612 B.C., again supporting the prophecy occurring during the time of king Josiah. Assyria at the time was the greatly feared ‘super-power’ of the Middle East, stretching from the middle of present-day Turkey in the north, Syria, Lebanon, Canaan (including Israel), Ammon, Moab, Edom and Egypt to the west and south, and all of the Tigris and Euphrates rivers down to the mouth of the Persian Gulf to the east and south. God prophesied of its destruction, which indeed happened in 612 B.C. propelling Babylon to superpower status.
And as prophesied, Nineveh was never rebuilt following its destruction and remained lost to history until 1761 when rediscovered by a Danish archaeological expedition.
Ammon and Moab, countries on the east side of the Jordan River had long been enemies of Israel even though they were descendants of Abraham’s nephew Lot. Ammon was located directly to the east of Israel on the other side of the Jordan River and Moab was on the south-eastern side of the Dead Sea. Both nations were destroyed by the Babylonians when Nebuchadnezzar swept through the area, more than likely on his way to invading Egypt in 568 B.C.
Today the former territories of Ammon and Moab are part of the kingdom of Jordan and are dry, desolate deserts.
Although history appears to be silent concerning Ethiopia, it can be assumed that they tried to help the Egyptians when Nebuchadnezzar attacked and and were defeated.
ZEPHANIAH 3:1-5
1 Woe to her who is rebellious and polluted, to the oppressing city!
2 She has not obeyed His voice, she has not received correction; she has not trusted in the Lord, she has not drawn near to her God.
3 Her princes in her midst are roaring lions; her judges are evening wolves that leave not a bone till morning.
4 Her prophets are insolent, treacherous people; her priests have polluted the sanctuary, they have done violence to the law.
5 The Lord is righteous in her midst, he will do no unrighteousness. Every morning He brings His justice to light; He never fails, but the unjust knows no shame.
Jerusalem had become totally corrupt. Even though God had chastised its inhabitants they still refuse to turn from their wickedness. Princes and judges twist justice, accepting bribes, condemning the innocent for money. As God bitterly said through the prophets;
ISAIAH 1:23
23 Your princes are rebellious, and companions of thieves; everyone loves bribes, and follows after rewards. They do not defend the fatherless, nor does the cause of the widow come before them.
EZEKIEL 22:12
12 In you they take bribes to shed blood; you take usury and increase; you have made profit from your neighbors by extortion, and have forgotten Me,” says the Lord God.
AMOS 5:12
12 For I know your manifold transgressions and your mighty sins: afflicting the just and taking bribes; diverting the poor from justice at the gate.
(In ancient times, princes and judges listened to court cases at the entrance to the gates of a city in a form of ‘open court’ where people could hear their judgments and see justice dispensed).
The ‘prophets’ of Jerusalem proclaimed false prophecies and were greedy, arrogant, pompous men;
JEREMIAH 23:14
14 Also I have seen a horrible thing in the prophets of Jerusalem: they commit adultery and walk in lies; they also strengthen the hands of evildoers, so that no one turns back from his wickedness. All of them are like Sodom to Me, and her inhabitants like Gomorrah.
The duties of the priests were to teach the Law of Moses to the people, interpret the Law in court cases, sacrifice to the Lord and intercede with Him for the sins of the people. They were to devote themselves to this purpose and didn’t need money as they were provided for by the offerings of the people. Yet God said of them;
JEREMIAH 2:8
8 The priests did not say, ‘Where is the Lord?’ and those who handle the Law did not know Me; the rulers also transgressed against Me; the prophets prophesied by Baal, and walked after things that do not profit.
and;
MICAH 3:11
11 Her heads judge for a bribe, her priests teach for pay, and her prophets divine for money. Yet they lean on the Lord, and say, “Is not the Lord among us? No harm can come upon us.”
ZEPHANIAH 3:6-13
6 “I have cut off nations, their fortresses are devastated; I have made their streets desolate, with none passing by. Their cities are destroyed; there is no one, no inhabitant.
7 I said, ‘Surely you will fear Me, you will receive instruction’— so that her dwelling would not be cut off, despite everything for which I punished her. But they rose early and corrupted all their deeds.
8 “Therefore wait for Me,” says the Lord, “until the day I rise up for plunder; my determination is to gather the nations to My assembly of kingdoms, to pour on them My indignation, all My fierce anger; all the earth shall be devoured with the fire of My jealousy.
9 “For then I will restore to the peoples a pure language, that they all may call on the name of the Lord, to serve Him with one accord.
10 From beyond the rivers of Ethiopia My worshipers, the daughter of My dispersed ones, shall bring My offering.
11 In that day you shall not be shamed for any of your deeds in which you transgress against Me; for then I will take away from your midst those who rejoice in your pride, and you shall no longer be haughty in My holy mountain.
12 I will leave in your midst a meek and humble people, and they shall trust in the name of the Lord.
13 The remnant of Israel shall do no unrighteousness and speak no lies, nor shall a deceitful tongue be found in their mouth; for they shall feed their flocks and lie down, and no one shall make them afraid.”
God points to the destruction of other kingdoms and cities as examples of His wrath in hopes that His people will consider and change their ways, but they refused, believing that as God’s chosen people, He would spare them His fury at their dealings.
Yet God was so angry with them, He said;
EZEKIEL 22:13-16
13 “Behold, therefore, I beat My fists at the dishonest profit which you have made, and at the bloodshed which has been in your midst.
14 Can your heart endure, or can your hands remain strong, in the days when I shall deal with you? I, the Lord, have spoken, and will do it.
15 I will scatter you among the nations, disperse you throughout the countries, and remove your filthiness completely from you.
16 You shall defile yourself in the sight of the nations; then you shall know that I am the Lord.” ’ ”
God is so angry and frustrated that He literally beat his fists together in rage at their doings, promising to scatter them to the winds in His wrath.
He also speaks of when Jesus returns to rule the Earth and seems to indicate that the Earth will be given a new language at that time, putting an end to the profusion of languages created at the Tower of Babel in Genesis 11.
Upon His return, He will gather all of His people and will bring them to Israel once again. They will be a meek and humble people and will finally dwell in peace.
ZEPHANIAH 3:14-20
14 Sing, O daughter of Zion! Shout, O Israel! Be glad and rejoice with all your heart, O daughter of Jerusalem!
15 The Lord has taken away your judgments, He has cast out your enemy. The King of Israel, the Lord, is in your midst; you shall see disaster no more.
16 In that day it shall be said to Jerusalem: “Do not fear; Zion, let not your hands be weak.
17 The Lord your God in your midst, the Mighty One, will save; He will rejoice over you with gladness, He will quiet you with His love, He will rejoice over you with singing.”
18 “I will gather those who sorrow over the appointed assembly, who are among you, to whom its reproach is a burden.
19 Behold, at that time I will deal with all who afflict you; I will save the lame, and gather those who were driven out; I will appoint them for praise and fame in every land where they were put to shame.
20 At that time I will bring you back, even at the time I gather you; for I will give you fame and praise among all the peoples of the earth, when I return your captives before your eyes,” says the Lord.
God gives assurance of Israel’s future glory when He returns and promises that no one will ever afflict them again.
Comments? Questions? E:mail: watchmen_777@yahoo.com