| Zephaniah
BOOK
: Zephaniah
Description
: Warnings
to idolatrous Judah and Jerusalem and hope for the faithful ones.
Author:
Zephaniah, a prophet,
possible of royal family
Date
written : Somewhere between
627 and 609BC
Chapters
:
3
Brief
Synopsis:
•
Zephaniah's main theme is the coming of
the day of the Lord, a day of judgment on the sins of Judah and Jerusalem.
•
Yet in the midst of the nation there is
always a faithful remnant and they will be saved.
1:1
The prophet
1:4-18
God's Judgment Coming on Judah
1:4-6
Condemnation of the Idolaters in Judah &
Jerusalem
1:7-13
Judgment that will bring wailing in the city
1:14-18
The Day of the judgment through invasion
2:1-3:8
God's Judgment Coming on the Nations
2:4-15
Judgment on Philistia, Moab, Ammon, Cush, & Assyria
3:1-5
Judgment on Jerusalem
3:6-8
Jerusalem 's Refusal to Repent
3:9-20
Yet Redemption of the Remnant
3:9-13
A Remnant will be purified and restored
3:14-17
Rejoicing in the City
3:18-20
The Nation Restored
Key
Verses :
The
prophet from a royal line
1:1
The
word of the LORD that came to Zephaniah son of Cushi, the son of Gedaliah,
the son of Amariah, the son of Hezekiah, during the reign of Josiah
son of Amon king of Judah
Purging
judgment to remove idolatry from Judah and Jerusalem
1:4
I
will stretch out my hand against Judah and against all who live in Jerusalem
. I will cut off from this place every remnant of Baal, the names of
the pagan and the idolatrous priests
1:9
On
that day I will punish all who avoid stepping on the threshold, who
fill the temple of their gods with violence and deceit
The
judgment will be by invasion
1:14
The
cry on the day of the LORD will be bitter, the shouting of the warrior
there.
The
humble are called to repentance to seek salvation
2:3
Seek
the LORD, all you humble of the land, you who do what he commands. Seek
righteousness, seek humility; perhaps you will be sheltered on the day
of the LORD's anger.
Jerusalem
had
refused to repent
3:7
I
said to the city, `Surely you will fear me and accept correction!' Then
her dwelling would not be cut off, nor all my punishments come upon
her. But they were still eager to act corruptly in all they did.
Yet
at the end the Lord will save the faithful remnant
3:13
The remnant of Israel will do no wrong;
they will speak no lies, nor will deceit be found in their mouths. They
will eat and lie down and no one will make them afraid."
3:17
The
LORD your God is with you, he is mighty to save. He will take great
delight in you, he will quiet you with his love, he will rejoice over
you with singing."
•
At first sight this seems a short book
of condemnation but of course the role of the prophet was to face the
nation with its shortcomings (idolatry) and warn that if not dealt with
the Law had warned that God would bring disciplinary judgment on them.
•
It looks, initially at least, as if the
judgment is a foregone conclusion, but there will be a faithful remnant
in the midst of the unfaithful nation, and that remnant will be saved.
•
Understand that wherever there is warning
of judgment there is always hope provided for the faithful remnant,
for the Lord always looks to preserve His faithful ones.
Additional
Resources on this site:
|