Judgment Upon Jerusalem
Zephaniah begins this last chapter in his book with a statement of
judgment as he returns to Jerusalem.
Again we see the typical complaints.
The leaders are corrupt. The
people are oppressed. The religious
nature of God’s people has become profaned.
If we look at the leadership of the country, we see two analogies
here. First, the political leaders are
compared to roaring lions. The roaring
lion is a symbol of the person who boasts about their great and even unchallengeable
position. The political leaders were
proud and self-centered, boasting in arrogance of their own greatness. There was no humbleness to be found among
them.
If we look at the religious leaders, we hear that they are to be
compared to evening wolves. What do wolves
do? They hunt in packs. They run around picking off the weak, the
sick, and the young. They divide the
herd until some can be isolated and then devoured. Such are the religious leaders of Zephaniah’s
day. The religious leaders had been
called to unify, to bring people together, and to look out for the oppressed and
the orphan. Instead, the religious
leaders looked out for the weak in the culture so that they could devour them
and corrupt them.
This has created a corrupt religious culture that was no longer
open to hearing God’s word. They were no
longer open to correction. They would
only respond to appeasement. The people
would only respond when they were encouraged and told that they were right.
As I have often done in my journey along the Minor Prophets I once
more turn to look at modern society. How
many people do you know that are self-centered and really only interested in
listening to themselves and to those who validate themselves? Who knows, perhaps I am among them! Human beings – not just in modern times –
have always had a knack for finding those people who would agree with
them. The mature person isn’t one who
thinks that those who agree with them are wise.
The mature person is the one who realizes that wisdom is something that
lies outside of them and then has the strength to conform themselves to
wisdom. True maturity is one who looks
to improve themselves rather than one who looks to surround themselves with
people who already agree with them in every way.
Conversion out of the Nations
The ESV gives the middle section of text in Zephaniah 3 the title “Conversion
of the Nations.” I believe that is a bit
incorrect. This passage isn’t about the nations
turning to God. Rather, this passage is
about the fact that there will be some among the nations who respond to the
call to come to God. Among all the
nations there will be talk of God’s greatness and salvation. Out of those nations will come the
worshippers of God to bring offering to Him.
Of course, as Christians we believe the ultimate fulfillment of
this text is in Christ. Through Christ,
God has brought the means of salvation to humanity. The message of Christ is spreading throughout
the globe. Throughout the globe, people
within every nation are turning to Jesus Christ. Throughout the globe, people are turning to relationship
with God. Whole nations may not be
turning, but certainly people within such nations are turning!
In the midst of this passage of return, take a look at what God
says in verses 11-12. Who will God
remove? Who will God install? God says that He will remove the proudly
exultant and the haughty. In their
place, God will leave the humble and the lowly.
God’s point here is clear. If we
want to be close to Him, it is about submission. If we want to be close to Him, it is about
removing the spotlight away from our lives.
If we want to be close to Him, it is about coming to Him.
Restoration of Fortune
One of the things that I absolutely love about the close of
Zephaniah is its focus. As you read
through these concluding words, you hear words of restoration. You hear words of peace and joy and
love. But what you also hear is a clear
quality of focus.
And where is this focus? It
is upon the Lord, of course! It is the
Lord who takes away our judgments against us.
He clears away our enemies. He is
in our midst. It is on account of Him
that we shall not fear our enemies. He
saves us. He rejoices over us! {Yeah,
like we deserve that…} He quiets us
with His love. He sings over us. He gathers us so that we no longer suffer
reproach. He deals with the oppressors. He tends the lame and gathers the
outcast. He changes shame into
praise. He brings us in. He restores our fortune.
I don’t know about you, but I needed to hear those words
today. It is so difficult to live under
my own strength. It is so easy to only
see my failure. It is so easy to be
swallowed up in the oppressiveness of the future vision. I need to hear that it is about Him and His
work, not mine. He is in control. He is mighty.
He is powerful. The world rests
in His hands, not mine. Thanks be to
God!
How great is that! We don’t
deserve any of it, yet that is His promise to us. May His name be praised for all that He does!
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