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Book 36 of 39 · Minor Prophets

Zephaniah

The Day of the LORD
Narrated book coming soon

Overview

Zephaniah prophesied "in the days of Josiah the son of Amon, king of Judah" (1:1), around 640–609 BC. Unusually, his ancestry is traced back four generations to "Hizkiah", most likely King Hezekiah, making Zephaniah a member of the royal family. His harsh descriptions of idolatry in Jerusalem suggest he spoke early in Josiah's reign, before the great reform of 622 BC that followed the finding of the book of the law (2 Kings 22–23). Josiah's grandfather Manasseh had reigned for 55 years and filled Judah with pagan worship.

The book's central theme is "the day of the LORD": a coming day of judgement on Judah and on all nations, followed by purification and joy. It is a short book of three chapters, moving from universal judgement to universal hope.

Structure: judgement on Judah and the whole earth (1:1–2:3); judgement on the nations (2:4–15); judgement on Jerusalem and the promise of restoration (chapter 3).

Part 1 — The Day of the LORD Against Judah (chapters 1:1–2:3)

A universal sweep (1:2–3). "I will utterly consume all things from off the land, saith the LORD": man and beast, birds and fish, and the stumbling blocks of the wicked. The language reverses creation.

Judah's idolatry (1:4–6). God will cut off the remnant of Baal and the idolatrous priests, those who worship "the host of heaven upon the housetops", and those who swear both by the LORD and by Milcom. He will also cut off those who have turned back and "have not sought the LORD".

The LORD's sacrifice (1:7–13). "Hold thy peace at the presence of the Lord GOD: for the day of the LORD is at hand." God has prepared a sacrifice and invited guests. He will punish princes who wear foreign clothing, those who fill their masters' houses with violence, and the merchants of the Maktesh. "I will search Jerusalem with candles" and punish men "settled on their lees", who say, "The LORD will not do good, neither will he do evil." They will build houses and not live in them.

The great day (1:14–18). "The great day of the LORD is near... That day is a day of wrath, a day of trouble and distress, a day of wasteness and desolation, a day of darkness and gloominess, a day of clouds and thick darkness, a day of the trumpet and alarm." The Latin hymn "Dies Irae" takes its name from this passage. "Neither their silver nor their gold shall be able to deliver them."

A call to repent (2:1–3). "Gather yourselves together" before the decree takes effect. "Seek ye the LORD, all ye meek of the earth... seek righteousness, seek meekness: it may be ye shall be hid in the day of the LORD's anger."

Part 2 — The Day of the LORD Against the Nations (chapter 2:4–15)

West: Philistia (2:4–7). Gaza will be forsaken, Ashkelon a desolation; Ashdod and Ekron uprooted. The sea coast will become pastures for shepherds and belong to the remnant of Judah. East: Moab and Ammon (2:8–11). They reproached God's people and boasted against their borders. They will become "as Sodom... and as Gomorrah, even the breeding of nettles, and saltpits". God will famish all the gods of the earth, and the islands of the nations will worship him. South: Ethiopia (2:12). "Ye Ethiopians also, ye shall be slain by my sword." North: Assyria (2:13–15). God will make Nineveh "a desolation, and dry like a wilderness". Flocks will lie down in it; cormorant and bittern will lodge in its pillars. This was "the rejoicing city that dwelt carelessly, that said in her heart, I am, and there is none beside me." Nineveh fell in 612 BC.

Part 3 — Jerusalem Judged and Restored (chapter 3)

Woe to the oppressing city (3:1–7). "Woe to her that is filthy and polluted, to the oppressing city!" Jerusalem "obeyed not the voice; she received not correction; she trusted not in the LORD." Her princes are "roaring lions", her judges "evening wolves", her prophets treacherous, her priests have polluted the sanctuary. The just LORD is in her midst every morning, "but the unjust knoweth no shame". Even after seeing the nations cut off, she did not change.

Wait for the LORD (3:8–13). "Therefore wait ye upon me, saith the LORD." After the fire of judgement, "then will I turn to the people a pure language, that they may all call upon the name of the LORD, to serve him with one consent." Worshippers will come from beyond the rivers of Ethiopia. The proud will be removed, leaving "an afflicted and poor people" who trust in the LORD. The remnant will do no iniquity, speak no lies, and "none shall make them afraid".

The song of joy (3:14–20). "Sing, O daughter of Zion; shout, O Israel." The LORD has taken away her judgements and cast out her enemy; the King of Israel is in her midst. "The LORD thy God in the midst of thee is mighty; he will save, he will rejoice over thee with joy; he will rest in his love, he will joy over thee with singing" (3:17). He will gather the lame and the outcast, and make them "a name and a praise among all people of the earth, when I turn back your captivity before your eyes".

Key themes, and the bridge to Haggai

  • The day of the LORD. A coming day of judgement that reaches Judah first and then every nation.
  • Complacency. The deepest sin is assuming God will do nothing, "neither good nor evil".
  • Seeking God in humility. The meek who seek righteousness may be sheltered in the day of wrath.
  • A purified remnant. Judgement is not the end; God preserves a humble people who trust him.
  • God's joy over his people. The book that opens with the undoing of creation ends with God singing over Jerusalem.

Zephaniah's warnings were partly heeded in Josiah's reforms, but the change did not last beyond his death in 609 BC. Jerusalem fell to Babylon in 586 BC. The promise of gathering and return began to be fulfilled when exiles came home under Persian rule, and the next book, Haggai, picks up the story among those returned exiles in 520 BC, with the temple still in ruins.