Discovering Zephaniah
Background Information
We don’t know much about the author of this book, but he does identify himself by means of a genealogy (1:1), tracing his ancestry back through four generations. This is a unique approach among Old Testament (OT) prophetic literature: eight of the writing prophets provide no family record, while six give the name of their father, and only one names his grandfather as well as his father. This genealogy is especially remarkable, though, because it identifies Zephaniah as the great-great-grandson of the godly king, Hezekiah. Having this lineage would have granted Zephaniah special access to the royal court and increased the perceived authority of his message.
So far as his contemporary situation was concerned, he prophesied during the early years of King Josiah’s reign, prior to the sweeping spiritual reformation which would occur during his reign (2 Kgs 22). This man became king at 8 yrs. old and reigned 31 yrs. in total, but most notably instituted a nationwide reformation after the high priest, Hilkiah, discovered the “Book of the Law” and his royal scribe read it to him. This reformation (and Josiah’s reign) had come in the wake of the spiritually disastrous reigns of the wicked Manasseh and Amon, who had followed Hezekiah.
Zephaniah’s ministry overlapped with the early years of Jeremiah’s ministry and occurred before the nation declined conclusively during the reigns of Josiah’s successors, Jehoahaz, Jehoiakim, Jehoiachin, and Zedekiah. In addition to the spiritually positive features and leadership of Josiah’s reign, world circumstances were favorable as well, since Assyria was in a state of decline, while Babylon had not yet established itself as the unquestioned world superpower to replace them. As a result, Judah (the Southern Kingdom) enjoyed a period of relative freedom during this period.
To date this book, we know first that Zephaniah ministered during the reign of King Josiah, who reigned 640-609 BC. (Zephaniah was likely a child, then, during the final years or Manasseh’s reign.) Mention of existing Baal shrines, astrological cults, and Molech worship (1:4-5), as well as the unjust behavior of priests and princes (1:8-9), indicate that Zephaniah prophesied in the first half of Josiah’s reign, before sweeping reformation occurred, placing the date of this book somewhere approx. 640-621 BC.
Purpose for the Book
Through his prophecy, Zephaniah focuses his message on the “upper echelons of society,” such as kings, princes, judges, priests, and false prophets, giving little if any attention to the ordinary people outside of these social circles. His message also focuses on the problems of urban Israel, primarily Jerusalem. He focuses on the behavior and sins of civil and religious leaders rather than the plight of the poor and the average citizens. In this way, his message is somewhat unique from other OT prophets, which speak more to all levels of society.
The primary purpose for Zephaniah’s message seems to be announcing the impending “day of the Lord,” focusing on God’s coming judgment of Judah and the nations for their disobedience to him.
As a secondary emphasis throughout the book, Zephaniah explains how God will preserve a remnant of people who faithfully trust in him (Zeph 3:12-13). A key statement sums up the message of this book, found in Zeph 1:7: “Be silent in the presence of the Lord Yahweh; for the day of Yahweh is at hand.” My OT professor, Tim Berrey, gives as the theme for this book: “Judah and the Nations in the Day of the Lord.”
Outline and Content
An outline of this book is as follows:
From this outline, you can see that the book arranges into two primary focuses and sections. The first section focuses on God’s judgment, the (-) side of the Day of the Lord, then the second focuses on God’s restoration, the (+) side of the Day of the Lord.
As Rob D. Bell points out:
Although the concept that Yahweh will come to this earth to judge mankind is as old as Enoch (see Jude 14-15) and appeared at the end of the Song of Moses (Deut 32:43), God did not reveal the term and many of the details until the ninth century BC.
It was not until the messages of Joel, Obadiah, Isaiah, and then Zephaniah that the details for this coming “Day of the Lord” became more clear, concrete, and vivid. So, what is the “Day of the Lord” in Scripture? To answer this question, let’s review what we said about this in our study of Joel, another minor prophet who preceded Zephaniah by a couple of centuries.
This “Day of the Lord” is a key concept in the OT prophets, appearing 21 times throughout Isaiah, Jeremiah, Ezekiel (major prophets) and Joel, Amos, Obadiah, and Zephaniah (minor prophets). To understand what this concept entails, you should understand at least four related observations.
One of my theology professors, Dr. Layton Talbert, explained the “Day of the Lord” concept in Scripture this way:
It is “a prophesied period of God's sovereign and spectacular intervention in human history to accomplish His will. There are two aspects to the Biblical concept of the day of the Lord: (1) historical – some OT references to the day of the Lord were past or present at the time of writing (e.g., Joel 1, Isa 13); (2) eschatological – the impending climax of God's sovereign and decisive intervention in human history, beginning with the Tribulation and running through the New Creation (2 Pet 3:10), for 3 major purposes, (a) catastrophic judgment of all the wicked, (b) purification and blessing of the righteous, and (c) establishment of His universal reign and worship. Major passages include Joel, Amos (Ch. 8), Obadiah, Zephaniah, Zechariah (Chs. 9, 12-14), Malachi (Chs. 3-4).”
As Zephaniah gives his message, he first announces God’s intention to judge the entire world (1:2-3), but he transitions quickly to God’s intention to include Judah in his judgment (1:4-2:3). This might have surprised some in Jerusalem who believed that they would receive a “free pass” or a lighter judgment because they were God’s chosen, special people. As this part of his message unfolds, he focuses specifically on the city of Jerusalem, as a representative of the entire nation. Zeph 2:1-3 gives a dramatic call for national repentance.
In Zeph 1:14-18, we find an extended description of the Day of the Lord, one which seems to describe not the final, ultimate Day of the Lord at the end of world history, but the soon-coming invasion of Judah by Babylon. Throughout the OT, the prophets often intermix references to historical, localized instances of the Day of the Lord with the larger, future, even global instances which are still too come. To the OT prophets, all such divine activity and intervention into the world constituted “the Day of the Lord” as a large, overarching concept and plan of God that he is working out in the world.
In the next subsection, Zephaniah addresses Philistia, Israel’s longtime neighboring enemies (2:4-7), Moab (descendants of Lot and his oldest daughter) and Amon (descendants of Lot and his youngest daughter) (2:8-11), Cush (also called Ethiopia) (2:12), and Assyria (2:13-15). In this section, we find two good examples of how the OT often blends together past, historical instances of the Day of the Lord (such as the invasion of Judah by Babylon) with yet-to-be-fulfilled future instances. Judah inhabiting the extended regions of Philistia (2:7) and the universal worship of Yahweh by the Gentiles (2:11) have yet to occur.
Zeph 3:1-7 returns focus to Jerusalem, a city which Zephaniah has clearly in view, even though he doesn’t give its name. Zephaniah presents this section as a divine woe, an ominous declaration of judgment. As part of his message here, he points out that despite the severe measures God has taken against other nations for the sake of Jerusalem, the city has still rebelled against him, therefore requiring the same kind of severe measures to fall on them. Since they required more judgment and purging of their own, God tells them (esp. those who are believing and righteous among them) to “wait for me” to “gather the nations” (3:8), which seems to be a rather clear reference to the future Battle of Armageddon, which will occur before and usher in the resulting Millennial Kingdom (Matt 25:32; Rev 16:16; 19:19).
God’s announcement of future restoration begins in a surprising way, focusing first on restoring not Israel but the Gentile nations of the world (3:9-10). It is fascinating, here, to observe how the book of Acts highlights the conversion of the Ethiopian eunuch as the first Gentile convert to Christ (Acts 8:26-40), a kind of “first fruit” and “preview” of what OT prophets like Zephaniah foretold and of what will happen in large scale in the future.
This future gathering of those who believe to worship God from Jerusalem will include believing Israelites as well (3:11-13), culminating in a future kingdom of God from Zion (3:14-20), which will be fulfilled in the Millennial Kingdom and the New Creation which follows. The very city which Zephaniah urges to repent will become the center of faith, worship, and the rule of God.
Personal Takeaways
How can the message of Zephaniah impact our faith and lives today?
We must confidently wait for future restoration. Since we know that God’s purposes for the “Day of the Lord” have not yet been fully achieved, we must quietly and confidently wait for his remaining judgment and purging. This means that both Israel and the nations have more judgment and purging to experience, which will be an unpleasant experience for everyone in the world, including those who are faithful to God. Let us not complain or grow weary with the ways that God judges and purges the world, but may we view these things instead as having a front-row seat to God’s justice. We must not mistake his long-suffering and patience for a lack of ability or desire to judge evil (1:12).
We must recognize that God is both personal and sovereign. Through this book, we see that God sovereignly controls and guides the affairs of history, but he doesn’t do so as an indifferent, unfeeling, or capricious God. Instead, God controls history in a personal way, responding to particular nations, cities, and people in particular ways. As such, his involvement in human affairs is not as a neutral, law-enforcing god, but as a powerful yet personal God who feels strongly and responds accordingly.
We must rejoice that God has a plan for both Israel and the nations. First, from this prophecy we see that God remains faithful to his covenant with Israel, working out a plan to purify his people so that they will indeed become a holy, believing nation from whom – and from whose land and city – the millennial and eternal kingdom of God will. At the same time, God’s plan also intends to restore all the nations of the world to faith in him. As followers of Christ, we should pray for God purification of and blessing on Israel while also looking forward to his restoration of all nations of the world. This is what God is working out today as we wait for the coming, climactic “Day of the Lord” which is to come.
We don’t know much about the author of this book, but he does identify himself by means of a genealogy (1:1), tracing his ancestry back through four generations. This is a unique approach among Old Testament (OT) prophetic literature: eight of the writing prophets provide no family record, while six give the name of their father, and only one names his grandfather as well as his father. This genealogy is especially remarkable, though, because it identifies Zephaniah as the great-great-grandson of the godly king, Hezekiah. Having this lineage would have granted Zephaniah special access to the royal court and increased the perceived authority of his message.
So far as his contemporary situation was concerned, he prophesied during the early years of King Josiah’s reign, prior to the sweeping spiritual reformation which would occur during his reign (2 Kgs 22). This man became king at 8 yrs. old and reigned 31 yrs. in total, but most notably instituted a nationwide reformation after the high priest, Hilkiah, discovered the “Book of the Law” and his royal scribe read it to him. This reformation (and Josiah’s reign) had come in the wake of the spiritually disastrous reigns of the wicked Manasseh and Amon, who had followed Hezekiah.
Zephaniah’s ministry overlapped with the early years of Jeremiah’s ministry and occurred before the nation declined conclusively during the reigns of Josiah’s successors, Jehoahaz, Jehoiakim, Jehoiachin, and Zedekiah. In addition to the spiritually positive features and leadership of Josiah’s reign, world circumstances were favorable as well, since Assyria was in a state of decline, while Babylon had not yet established itself as the unquestioned world superpower to replace them. As a result, Judah (the Southern Kingdom) enjoyed a period of relative freedom during this period.
To date this book, we know first that Zephaniah ministered during the reign of King Josiah, who reigned 640-609 BC. (Zephaniah was likely a child, then, during the final years or Manasseh’s reign.) Mention of existing Baal shrines, astrological cults, and Molech worship (1:4-5), as well as the unjust behavior of priests and princes (1:8-9), indicate that Zephaniah prophesied in the first half of Josiah’s reign, before sweeping reformation occurred, placing the date of this book somewhere approx. 640-621 BC.
Purpose for the Book
Through his prophecy, Zephaniah focuses his message on the “upper echelons of society,” such as kings, princes, judges, priests, and false prophets, giving little if any attention to the ordinary people outside of these social circles. His message also focuses on the problems of urban Israel, primarily Jerusalem. He focuses on the behavior and sins of civil and religious leaders rather than the plight of the poor and the average citizens. In this way, his message is somewhat unique from other OT prophets, which speak more to all levels of society.
The primary purpose for Zephaniah’s message seems to be announcing the impending “day of the Lord,” focusing on God’s coming judgment of Judah and the nations for their disobedience to him.
As a secondary emphasis throughout the book, Zephaniah explains how God will preserve a remnant of people who faithfully trust in him (Zeph 3:12-13). A key statement sums up the message of this book, found in Zeph 1:7: “Be silent in the presence of the Lord Yahweh; for the day of Yahweh is at hand.” My OT professor, Tim Berrey, gives as the theme for this book: “Judah and the Nations in the Day of the Lord.”
Outline and Content
An outline of this book is as follows:
- Introduction (1:1)
- Judgment in the Day of the Lord (1:2-3:8)
- Universal judgment (1:2-3)
- Judgment against Judah (1:4-2:3)
- Judgment against the nations (2:4-15)
- Judgment against Jerusalem (3:1-7)
- Judgment against all the earth (3:8)
- Restoration in the Day of the Lord (3:9-20)
- Restoration for the nations (3:9-10)
- Restoration for Israel (3:11-20)
From this outline, you can see that the book arranges into two primary focuses and sections. The first section focuses on God’s judgment, the (-) side of the Day of the Lord, then the second focuses on God’s restoration, the (+) side of the Day of the Lord.
As Rob D. Bell points out:
Although the concept that Yahweh will come to this earth to judge mankind is as old as Enoch (see Jude 14-15) and appeared at the end of the Song of Moses (Deut 32:43), God did not reveal the term and many of the details until the ninth century BC.
It was not until the messages of Joel, Obadiah, Isaiah, and then Zephaniah that the details for this coming “Day of the Lord” became more clear, concrete, and vivid. So, what is the “Day of the Lord” in Scripture? To answer this question, let’s review what we said about this in our study of Joel, another minor prophet who preceded Zephaniah by a couple of centuries.
This “Day of the Lord” is a key concept in the OT prophets, appearing 21 times throughout Isaiah, Jeremiah, Ezekiel (major prophets) and Joel, Amos, Obadiah, and Zephaniah (minor prophets). To understand what this concept entails, you should understand at least four related observations.
- Day here does not refer to a 24-hr. period but to a larger period of time with a set of shared features or characteristics.
- This phrase describes a period of time distinctively characterized by divine conquest and victory by Yahweh.
- Sometimes this phrase refers to some historical event or period in the past, such as the devastating plague of locusts in Joel’s lifetime.
- Other times this phrase refers to some grander, more impressive events or period in the future, like the coming Tribulation and Millennium. This seems to be the aspect that Zephaniah focuses upon.
One of my theology professors, Dr. Layton Talbert, explained the “Day of the Lord” concept in Scripture this way:
It is “a prophesied period of God's sovereign and spectacular intervention in human history to accomplish His will. There are two aspects to the Biblical concept of the day of the Lord: (1) historical – some OT references to the day of the Lord were past or present at the time of writing (e.g., Joel 1, Isa 13); (2) eschatological – the impending climax of God's sovereign and decisive intervention in human history, beginning with the Tribulation and running through the New Creation (2 Pet 3:10), for 3 major purposes, (a) catastrophic judgment of all the wicked, (b) purification and blessing of the righteous, and (c) establishment of His universal reign and worship. Major passages include Joel, Amos (Ch. 8), Obadiah, Zephaniah, Zechariah (Chs. 9, 12-14), Malachi (Chs. 3-4).”
As Zephaniah gives his message, he first announces God’s intention to judge the entire world (1:2-3), but he transitions quickly to God’s intention to include Judah in his judgment (1:4-2:3). This might have surprised some in Jerusalem who believed that they would receive a “free pass” or a lighter judgment because they were God’s chosen, special people. As this part of his message unfolds, he focuses specifically on the city of Jerusalem, as a representative of the entire nation. Zeph 2:1-3 gives a dramatic call for national repentance.
In Zeph 1:14-18, we find an extended description of the Day of the Lord, one which seems to describe not the final, ultimate Day of the Lord at the end of world history, but the soon-coming invasion of Judah by Babylon. Throughout the OT, the prophets often intermix references to historical, localized instances of the Day of the Lord with the larger, future, even global instances which are still too come. To the OT prophets, all such divine activity and intervention into the world constituted “the Day of the Lord” as a large, overarching concept and plan of God that he is working out in the world.
In the next subsection, Zephaniah addresses Philistia, Israel’s longtime neighboring enemies (2:4-7), Moab (descendants of Lot and his oldest daughter) and Amon (descendants of Lot and his youngest daughter) (2:8-11), Cush (also called Ethiopia) (2:12), and Assyria (2:13-15). In this section, we find two good examples of how the OT often blends together past, historical instances of the Day of the Lord (such as the invasion of Judah by Babylon) with yet-to-be-fulfilled future instances. Judah inhabiting the extended regions of Philistia (2:7) and the universal worship of Yahweh by the Gentiles (2:11) have yet to occur.
Zeph 3:1-7 returns focus to Jerusalem, a city which Zephaniah has clearly in view, even though he doesn’t give its name. Zephaniah presents this section as a divine woe, an ominous declaration of judgment. As part of his message here, he points out that despite the severe measures God has taken against other nations for the sake of Jerusalem, the city has still rebelled against him, therefore requiring the same kind of severe measures to fall on them. Since they required more judgment and purging of their own, God tells them (esp. those who are believing and righteous among them) to “wait for me” to “gather the nations” (3:8), which seems to be a rather clear reference to the future Battle of Armageddon, which will occur before and usher in the resulting Millennial Kingdom (Matt 25:32; Rev 16:16; 19:19).
God’s announcement of future restoration begins in a surprising way, focusing first on restoring not Israel but the Gentile nations of the world (3:9-10). It is fascinating, here, to observe how the book of Acts highlights the conversion of the Ethiopian eunuch as the first Gentile convert to Christ (Acts 8:26-40), a kind of “first fruit” and “preview” of what OT prophets like Zephaniah foretold and of what will happen in large scale in the future.
This future gathering of those who believe to worship God from Jerusalem will include believing Israelites as well (3:11-13), culminating in a future kingdom of God from Zion (3:14-20), which will be fulfilled in the Millennial Kingdom and the New Creation which follows. The very city which Zephaniah urges to repent will become the center of faith, worship, and the rule of God.
Personal Takeaways
How can the message of Zephaniah impact our faith and lives today?
We must confidently wait for future restoration. Since we know that God’s purposes for the “Day of the Lord” have not yet been fully achieved, we must quietly and confidently wait for his remaining judgment and purging. This means that both Israel and the nations have more judgment and purging to experience, which will be an unpleasant experience for everyone in the world, including those who are faithful to God. Let us not complain or grow weary with the ways that God judges and purges the world, but may we view these things instead as having a front-row seat to God’s justice. We must not mistake his long-suffering and patience for a lack of ability or desire to judge evil (1:12).
We must recognize that God is both personal and sovereign. Through this book, we see that God sovereignly controls and guides the affairs of history, but he doesn’t do so as an indifferent, unfeeling, or capricious God. Instead, God controls history in a personal way, responding to particular nations, cities, and people in particular ways. As such, his involvement in human affairs is not as a neutral, law-enforcing god, but as a powerful yet personal God who feels strongly and responds accordingly.
We must rejoice that God has a plan for both Israel and the nations. First, from this prophecy we see that God remains faithful to his covenant with Israel, working out a plan to purify his people so that they will indeed become a holy, believing nation from whom – and from whose land and city – the millennial and eternal kingdom of God will. At the same time, God’s plan also intends to restore all the nations of the world to faith in him. As followers of Christ, we should pray for God purification of and blessing on Israel while also looking forward to his restoration of all nations of the world. This is what God is working out today as we wait for the coming, climactic “Day of the Lord” which is to come.
Posted in Bible Talks
Tagged with Zephaniah, Minor Prophets, Old Testament, Worship, Israel, Jerusalem, Day of the Lord
Tagged with Zephaniah, Minor Prophets, Old Testament, Worship, Israel, Jerusalem, Day of the Lord
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