The Prophecy of Zephaniah

As I write these notes in November 2023, the world focus is once again, as often before, upon the State of Israel. The response of the Israeli Defence Force to the unprovoked and murderous attack upon the kibbutzim adjacent to the Gaza Strip has alienated the greater part of world opinion against Israel, and strengthened the resolve of Arab and Middle Eastern nations to attempt the destruction of Israel and the Jewish people.

The little prophecy of Zephaniah, just fifty-three verses, written some 2600 years ago not only gives assurance that the Gentile nations will never achieve their objective, but will, in seeking to do so, call down divine judgement upon themselves to their utter destruction.

The population of Israel amounts to 0.11% and their land area occupies just 0.01% of the world’s total population and area. Israel is smaller than the Solomon Islands and a little larger than Fiji, yet, since biblical days, conflicts have scarred that land, with Jerusalem the most contested piece of real estate on the planet.

The only way to understand why an almost insignificant piece of land should be the object of such generational animosity is to read the Bible. The word we repeatedly hear today in referring to the Jewish people is ‘Semitic’. That means descendants of Shem, the son of Noah, thus acknowledging the truth of the Genesis record. Again, the very name ‘Israel’ refers to that given by God to Jacob in Genesis chapter 32 verse 28. An open-minded and intelligent reader of scripture would soon discover that God used this line of genealogy to bring His Son, the Lord Jesus Christ, into the world, perfect man yet eternally God, as the means of salvation for those who believe. Since Eden’s garden, Satan, the adversary, has sought to thwart God’s purposes of grace. If, therefore, he could dispossess the nation of Israel and annul God’s promises to Abraham and David, it would effectively call into question the veracity of the whole Bible!

So then, with that rather lengthy introduction, what bearing does it have on Zephaniah and his prophecy, and what can he tell us about the plan and purpose of God for days yet future?

First, we need to ask the question, ‘what do we know about Zephaniah?’ Then, when and to whom did he prophesy? We need to consider the burden of his message and to ask another question, ‘does he have a voice to us today?’ Finally, in a prophecy which, as we shall see, is largely of judgement, is there something here that will lift our heads and quicken our steps as we await our Lord’s return?

But before we are introduced to Zephaniah, the Spirit of God makes us aware that the words which follow are ‘the word of the Lord’ and He closes the book with ‘saith the Lord’, so we are left in no doubt that we are considering more than just the thoughts and words of man.

Ancestral introductions to the so-called minor prophets are generally brief. Of some, we know only their name. Of two, we know where they came from. On three occasions, the father’s name is given, and, of one, Zechariah, his grandfather. But of Zephaniah we are given four generations, taking us back to his great, great, grandfather, Hezekiah (Hizkiah, KJV), king of Judah, directing F. Tatford to call his exposition, Prophet of Royal Blood. This is significant, as Zephaniah had strong words of condemnation for ‘the princes, and the king’s children’, 1. 8; his own family!

We know that he lived and prophesied during the reign of Josiah, which would make him a contemporary of Jeremiah and Habakkuk. All foresaw the coming Chaldean invasion which would destroy Jerusalem and take the nation into captivity because of their sin. The effect on Jeremiah was to bring him to tears. Habakkuk recoiled in amazement that God would do such a thing to His own people. Zephaniah saw beyond the present parochial judgement to a future global retribution for sin.

Josiah’s reign was book-ended by wickedness and weakness: wickedness in the reigns of Manasseh and Amon, then weakness in the four kings who followed Josiah to the time of the captivity. Josiah was only eight years old when he ascended the throne, and it was in his twelfth year that he began ‘to purge Judah’, 2 Chr. 34. 3. It may well be that since Zephaniah gives no indication of reforms, he spoke in the first twelve years of Josiah’s reign. His name means ‘hidden by God’ which could have been his experience, being a young man during the excesses of Manasseh’s reign.

What then was the burden of his message? When Paul wrote to the Romans, he drew their attention to ‘the goodness and severity of God’, Rom. 11. 22; two aspects of the divine nature seen throughout the scriptures. Zephaniah deals with both, but in the reverse order, severity in chapters 1 and 2, goodness in the major part of chapter 3. Although his prophecy deals with the immediate circumstances of his day, his words embrace ‘the day of the Lord’, a time yet future which occupies the attention of much prophetic writing. This is not a 24-hour day, as those of creation, but a period of time commencing after the rapture, during which time the authority and Lordship of Christ will be evident. It extends through and beyond tribulation days and the Millennium, until, finally, when all God’s purposes concerning the earth are fulfilled, the day of God, the eternal state, is ushered in.

Zephaniah begins his prophecy with a statement of intent by One who has the power and the authority to carry it through. Six times the Almighty says, ‘I will’, followed by a declaration of judgement. The first two ‘I wills’ pronounce a devastation exceeding that of Noah’s day, almost a reversal of creation! This is the supremacy of the God whose word men and world leaders dismiss as irrelevant, and whose existence they deny as a fantasy. But such a day will come as clearly foretold in the scripture of truth, Heb. 1. 10-12; 2 Pet. 3. 7-10.

Zephaniah then narrows his focus from a world view, and places Judah and Jerusalem in the crosshairs of his vision to target each sin upon which judgement will fall, 1. 4-6. The charge is of idolatry, astrology, hypocrisy, apostasy, and apathy; all of which could be found in our present society without too much difficulty.

In the following verses, Zephaniah turns his attention to the coming Chaldean invasion. He does not name the aggressor, allowing some expositors to question the suggestion, but the time and the evident moral and spiritual anarchy point to the coming of that ‘bitter and hasty nation’ spoken of by Habakkuk, 1. 6. Judea is seen as a sacrifice prepared by the Lord and the Chaldees are the invited guests, v. 7. Chapter 1 continues by describing in detail the rapidity and rapaciousness of the invasion. From the royal family, through the city of Jerusalem, to the merchants in the marketplace, v. 11, none will escape. The idle rich who live in luxurious indifference to the voice of God will see their houses looted and left desolate, their planted vineyards will be abandoned, vv. 12, 13.

Zephaniah’s graphic description calls to mind ‘the great day of the Lord … a day of wrath, a day of trouble and distress’, vv. 14, 15, which will overtake a Christ-rejecting world when least expected, vv. 16-18. Also note 1 Thess. 5. 2, 3; Luke 17. 24-30.

In chapter 2, Zephaniah turns his attention to the Gentile nations surrounding Jerusalem. But, before detailing his judgements, there is an eleventh-hour appeal to all who will hear to ‘Seek … the Lord’. God is not willing that any should perish, so opportunity is given in order that they may be hid in the day of His anger, 2. 1-3.

In verses 4 to 15, Zephaniah turns his attention to the four points of the compass, with, as always in scripture, Jerusalem at the centre. To the west, he sees the destruction of Gaza and the cities of the sea coast, traditional and historic Philistine country, vv. 4-7. To the east, Moab and Ammon, vv. 8-11, persistent adversaries of Israel, now known as Jordan. To the south, Ethiopia, v. 12, who, at this time, exercised some authority over Egypt, and northward he prophesies the destruction of Assyria, vv. 13-15, with its capital Nineveh, land now occupied by Syria and Lebanon. Some names may have changed, but the occupants of those lands are still the inveterate enemies of Israel. In spite of their constant sabre rattling, their inevitable destruction is guaranteed.

The current devastation of Gaza and its environs, however, is not the fulfilment of prophecy but rather a foreshadowing of end times. Such events serve to assure the believer that, ‘now is our salvation nearer than when we believed’, Rom. 13. 11. Truly, ‘the night is far spent’, v. 12.

But chapter 3 commences with a reminder to Jerusalem that she has no reason to be proud or complacent. A catalogue exposing her sins, of which her princes, prophets and priests all stood accused, is given in verses 1 to 4. Josiah’s reforms proved to be superficial in many respects, dealing largely with the visible manifestations of evil rather than the root. In spite of God’s judgement on the Gentile nations, Judah obstinately refused to repent, thus the captivity became inevitable.

The remaining verses look forward to a restoration of the nation to their ‘promised land’, preparation for which begins in verse 8 with a summary of the divine programme against the opposing nations. Verse 9 may suggest a reversal of the Babel curse that ‘they may all call upon the name of the Lord, to serve him with one consent’. The regathering follows with the nation no longer proud and haughty, but in a spirit of affliction and poverty, dependent on the Lord, for millennial blessing, vv. 12, 13.

Verses 14 to 20 are remarkable in their contrast with the earlier chapters. There is singing and rejoicing because ‘the king of Israel, even the Lord, is in the midst’, v. 15. Jerusalem is the centre of administration reminding us of Psalm 2, ‘Yet have I set my king upon my holy hill of Zion’. Zephaniah began his prophecy with six ‘I wills’ of judgement. He closes with six ‘I wills’ of blessing.

Israel today is nationalistic to the point of arrogance. Yet there is an anticipation of the future. Their National Anthem is ‘Hatikvah’, the hope, and in the reception area of Tel Aviv airport is a large mural displaying Jeremiah chapter 31 verse 17, ‘There is hope in thine end, saith the Lord, that thy children shall come again to their own border’.

Our God keeps His promises.