It is a joy to celebrate today with you. If you’re visiting, you’ll notice this is a special day for our church. What we’re going to do is worship through song, sit under his Word, and give all the glory to God for what he has done. So if you would turn to Zephaniah… If that book is unfamiliar, go to Matthew (where we’ve been for a couple of years), and then back up four books, and you’ll find Zephaniah.
Is Christianity on the rise or in decline in the United States? Good question. Tough question. Are we experiencing an awakening or a deadening as a country? Well, it depends. The data is both encouraging and disturbing, because it depends on where you look.
If you look at some campuses— Like Ohio State has seen a number of movements of God drawing scores of students to himself. Last week at Clemson, they saw hundreds of students give their lives to follow Jesus. This is hugely encouraging.
Pew Research from 2007 to 2019 says there has been a steady decline in Americans who identify as Christians, but you’ll notice it kind of levels off around 2019, and then dips a little more, and then begins to rise in 2022 and following. That’s the question: Is that going to continue to rise or not? We pray so.
But at the same time, there is a significant rise in paganism and witchcraft, kind of a ghoulish goulash of ecological activism and paganism. Emma Kathryn illustrates this when she writes,
“As a witch who believes that everything is alive with spirit in the same way that I am, why would I not protect the land that is my ally in the same way I would a person?”
Whenever a bush is viewed as just as valuable as a baby, humans are dehumanized. Now, as Christians, we’re concerned to steward creation well, of course, but that’s not what’s being said. “Humans are the same as animals or trees.” This is hugely disturbing. So could it be said that Christianity is on the rise in some ways and in some places, and in decline in some ways and in some places? This is strikingly similar to what we see in the little book of Zephaniah.
Zephaniah ministered in Judah in the late seventh century BC, a little over 600 years before Jesus was born. He was ministering at the same time as Nahum, who is one of the prophets we learned about last Sunday. His name means Yahweh was “hidden.” Yahweh (is God’s covenant name) was hidden.
Zephaniah was born under the reign of King Manasseh, who was one of the most wicked kings ever to rule over Judah, which is the southern kingdom of Israel. These were dark days of rampant idolatry, child sacrifice, and every kind of pagan immorality. Zephaniah’s parents may have named him “Yahweh was hidden” because it sure felt that way.
But by the time Zephaniah is grown and ministering, a new king is on the throne, King Josiah. He has a personal transformation experience before God and begins to bring about major changes. He’s restoring the covenant between Israel and God, so you might tend to think, “Hey, things are on the rise. Revival is happening.” But at the same time, many were digging in and opposing that. So, in a sense (like our nation today), things are getting better and worse at the same time.
The theme of Zephaniah is the Day of the Lord. The word “day” appears around 16 times in three short chapters. It raises the question: Is the Day of the Lord a day of judgment or a day of joy? One of the places we wrestle with this question is not just in the ultimate Day of the Lord (at the end of time when Christ returns), but also, you see these micro days of the Lord that are previewing the coming Day of the Lord.
For example, in Exodus, when Moses returned to Egypt, was that a day of judgment or a day of joy? It depends. If you’re an Egyptian worshiping false gods and enslaving the Israelites, it is a day of horrible judgment. If you, by faith, covered the door frame with the blood of a sacrificial lamb, when the death angel went over, it was a day of joy, a day of shackles being broken and seas parting, liberation and freedom. A day of the Lord.
The Day of the Lord is when God manifests his judgment and his joy (or mercy). We can see both judgment and joy sprinkled throughout Zephaniah. So what I’d like us to do is walk through the book, see how it unfolds (pretty quickly), and then look at the climax of the book in chapter three, and then we’ll focus in on one verse. So, what is it like when God is in the midst for judgment and joy?
1. The day of judgment for Judah
This section begins with universally cataclysmic language, kind of an undoing of Genesis 1. The de-creation, the demolition of creation. Look at verse two, this is Yahweh speaking:
“‘I will utterly sweep away everything from the face of the earth,’ declares the Lord. ‘I will sweep away man and beast; I will sweep away the birds of the heavens and the fish of the sea, and the rubble with the wicked. I will cut off mankind from the face of the earth,’ declares the Lord. ‘I will stretch out my hand against Judah and against all the inhabitants of Jerusalem; and I will cut off from this place the remnant of Baal and the name of the idolatrous priests along with the priests, those who bow down on the roofs to the host of the heavens, those who bow down and swear to the Lord and yet swear by Milcom” (Zephaniah 1:2-5).
Milcom means king, and it’s probably referring to Baal, the false god. Notice the syncretism: We’re going to swear to the Lord and swear to Baal. Verse nine:
“On that day I will punish everyone who leaps over the threshold, and those who fill their master’s house with violence and fraud” (Zephaniah 1:9).
Leaping over the threshold was a pagan practice that kept you from stepping on the threshold as you’re entering the home. It was believed that when you stepped on the threshold, you allowed evil spirits to enter that home. So what God is doing is confronting his people for worshiping him and adopting pagan practices simultaneously. Look at verse 12.
“At that time I will search Jerusalem with lamps [so I’m going to expose things that aren’t visible], and I will punish the men who are complacent, those who say in their hearts, ‘The Lord will not do good, nor will he do ill’” (Zephaniah 1:12).
God is tolerant. He’s affirming. “Just do your thing. He’ll be good.” Verse 14.
“The great day of the Lord is near, near and hastening fast; the sound of the day of the Lord is bitter; the mighty man cries aloud there” (Zephaniah 1:14).
Then he’s going to start the next sentences with “a day” six times. Think of where else were their six days? Creation. Now de-creation.
“A day of wrath is that day, a day of distress and anguish, a day of ruin and devastation, a day of darkness and gloom, a day of clouds and thick darkness, a day of trumpet blast and battle cry” (Zephaniah 1:15-16a).
We get to this point, and it’s terrifying. Everything you count on—the air you breathe, the ground you stand on, the heart that’s beating within you—all of it coming apart at the seams on the judgment day. And just when we’ve lost hope, Zephaniah says, “Repent. There’s hope.” Look at verse one.
“Gather together, yes, gather, O shameless nation, before the decree takes effect” (Zephaniah 2:1-2a).
Why do we want to gather? Skip down to verse three.
“Seek the Lord, all you humble of the land, who do his just commands; seek righteousness; seek humility; perhaps you may be hidden on the day of the anger of the Lord” (Zephaniah 2:3).
Hidden, on the day of the anger of the Lord, so there is hope.
2. The Day of Judgment for the nations
In 2:4, Zephaniah begins warning specific nations of this coming day: Philistines, Moab and Ammon, Cush (which is referring to the area that we now know of as Ethiopia and beyond), Assyria (the same nation we talked about last week), Jerusalem — Whoa. Jerusalem, God’s people, are being lumped in with all the nations. Why? If you live like the nations, you’ll be judged like the nations. Verse eight.
“‘Therefore wait for me,’ declares the Lord, ‘for the day when I rise up to seize the prey. For my decision is to gather nations, to assemble kingdoms, to pour out upon them my indignation, all my burning anger; for in the fire of my jealousy all the earth shall be consumed” (Zephaniah 3:8).
And once again, we’re brought to a place of hopelessness. And once again, Zephaniah says, “Repent. There’s hope.” Verse nine is immediately following—don’t miss this—verse eight, which was intense judgment. Now look at verse nine.
“For at that time I will change the speech of the peoples to a pure speech, that all of them may call upon the name of the Lord and serve him with one accord. From beyond the rivers of Cush my worshippers, the daughter of my dispersed ones, shall bring my offering” (Zephaniah 3:9-10).
He’s talking about us, people who live beyond the rivers of Cush, who speak odd languages and don’t know the word of the Lord. They begin to learn a new word and they call upon the name of the Lord. Zephaniah is predicting a day when people from many nations will be calling upon the name of the Lord and experiencing not judgment but joy. And this leads to the climax. Verse 14.
“Sing aloud, O daughter of Zion; shout, O Israel! Rejoice and exult with all your heart, O daughter of Jerusalem! The Lord has taken away the judgments against you; he has cleared away your enemies. The King of Israel, the Lord, is in your midst [Emmanuel, God with us]; you shall never again fear evil. On that day it shall be said to Jerusalem: ‘Fear not, O Zion; let not your hands grow weak’” (Zephaniah 3:14-16).
All of this leads to what Robertson calls “the John 3:16 of the Old Testament,” verse seventeen, and answers the question: What happens when God is in the midst of his people to bring joy? Four things happen. The Lord your God is in your midst…
1. He saves us with his might.
He saves us with his might. Verse 17, “a mighty one who will save.” This word “mighty” is typically used of military champions. It’s communicating the fact that the most powerful person in the universe is marshaling all of his omnipotent strength not to judge you, but to save you, to give you joy.
This is the idea that began the transformation in my wife so many years ago, when she was bound in panic attacks and depression for several years. What if God is not against me but for me? What if he’s fighting not to judge me but to bring me joy, forgiveness, mercy? One of the key passages the Lord used to open her heart to this was Psalm 18:16.
“He sent me from on high, he took me; he drew me out of many waters. He rescued me from my strong enemy and from those who hated me, for they were too mighty for me. They confronted me in the day of my calamity, but the Lord was my support. He brought me out into a broad place; he rescued me, because he delighted in me” (Psalm 18:16-19).
Many of us view Jesus as a meek and mild Savior, and he is, but never forget he saves us with his might. Colossians 2:13,
“And you, who were dead in your trespasses and the uncircumcision of your flesh, God made alive together with him, having forgiven us all our trespasses, by canceling the record of debt that stood against us with its legal demands. This he set aside, nailing it to the cross. He disarmed the rulers and authorities and put them to an open shame, by triumphing over them in him” (Colossians 2:13-15).
He triumphed over our enemies through his death, burial, and resurrection. When God is in the midst, he saves us with his might.
2. He sends us with his joy.
The idea of “sending” is a bit of an interpretive step. Let me show you where I get that. Verse 17, “he will rejoice over you with gladness.” I’m getting this idea of “sending” from two places.
One is that little preposition “over.” The Hebrew word could be translated “above” or “upon.” It’s a very general word. Most of the time, it’s used in a very general sense, but there are times when it is used in a very specific context of anointing, sending, or commissioning. Look at this example in Isaiah 61:1,
“The Spirit of the Lord God is upon me [there it is, “upon me”], because the Lord has anointed me to bring good news to the poor; he has sent me to bind up the brokenhearted… (Isaiah 61:1a).
Jesus applies this statement to himself in Luke 4:18. The Spirit is resting “upon” in order to anoint and commission and send. So what is he anointing us to do in the context of Zephaniah 3? If you back up a couple verses to verse 14,
“Sing aloud, O daughter of Zion; shout, O Israel! Rejoice and exult with all your heart” (Zephaniah 3:14a).
Those words that we are called to do (rejoice, exalt) are the same actions that God is taking in verse 17. So we are being commissioned to do what he is doing also. Look at verse sixteen,
“Fear not, O Zion; let not your hands grow weak” (Zephaniah 3:16).
To grow weak is to droop or sink. Fallen hands follow fearful hearts. If our hearts are fearful, our hands will eventually be fallen. We will never know what we are called to do if we don’t know what God is doing. His commission to us flows from his affection over us. So the antidote to discouragement (fallen hands), to not knowing what I’m supposed to do or having the power to do it, is to look at what God is doing.
He is rejoicing over us with gladness. And his joy over us is an anointing, energizing force within us to enable us to do what he’s called us to do as individuals and a church. The joy of the Lord is our what? Strength (Nehemiah 8:10). His joy over us is fueling us to lift up our drooping hands and rejoice, and therefore have the power to go out and fulfill his calling for us.
When we gather and sing, like we’re doing today, it’s not just to have a musical experience and say, “Wow, the music was good,” “The music was bad today,” “Let’s go get lunch.” It’s much more. We are collectively calibrating our hearts to his. He is rejoicing over us; therefore, we rejoice in him, and that energizes us to go and fulfill his calling in us. He saves us with might, he sends us with joy.
3. He stabilizes us with love.
Verse 17, next phrase, “he will quiet you by his love.” This statement is difficult to translate because there are two good options.
One is, as the ESV says, “he will quiet you by his love.” All that clamor that’s going on in your heart, he will calm your heart by his love. He will speak, “Peace be still,” by his love to your heart. That’s true.
The second option, Alec Motyer, an Old Testament scholar, translates this, “he will be silent in his love.” Or as O. Palmer Robertson, “he will be quiet [over you] in his love.” The intransitive verb and the Hebrew parallelism seem to point toward the second interpretation, but I don’t think the two are mutually exclusive. Let me illustrate.
When my kids were little, often before I went to sleep, I went through a ritual of going through all their bedrooms and checking on them. Often they would have thrown their covers off (this is before the sleep sack was invented), and they may be cold, or they’re sleeping upside down or something. So I would get them back under their covers, and as I did that, often I would pray over them.
Sometimes I would find myself just staring at them and listening to them breathe. As a parent, there is something overwhelming about that experience. I started feeling an overwhelming affection for this precious little child. And so here you are, in speechless affection for this little person. There’s something like that happening here.
Our Father is hovering over his children in wordless wonder, speechless, quiet. His love is quiet. Does that seem weird to you? Or maybe I should ask, does that seem hard to believe to you?
Imagine that happening right now. You’re just sitting there, you’re not doing anything. You’re not earning his favor. You didn’t have a great week this week. You didn’t do enough. You’re not enough, and he’s just staring at you right now in speechless wonder.
The interesting thing about this love is this quiet love actually can be quieting. This wordless wonder works wonders because the little child who is enveloped in parental love can sleep, can rest. The child of God who is in the cocoon of our Father’s quiet love can rest, quiet the clamor, the worries, the stress wrapped up in his love.
It is mind-boggling, especially when looking at the whole context. We should be judged. We should be condemned. We’re sinners. He is a holy God. He should be hovering over us in judgment and condemnation, and we’re floating in wordless affection because of Jesus. Jesus took it all. All the wrath is gone, and his love is over us.
Spurgeon also exhorts us to “remember the silence of Jesus.” As Jesus stood before his accusers on our behalf, he epitomized quiet love. Isaiah 53:7,
]”…like a lamb that is led to the slaughter, and like a sheep that before its shears is silent, so he opened not his mouth” (Isaiah 53:7b).
He loves us that much. When he was wrongfully accused and wrongfully condemned, he did not defend himself because he was absorbing our judgment for us so that we could rest under the quiet love of our Father. He loves us that much.
When the Lord is in our midst, his love is not only silent at times, but also he surrounds us with songs. Verse 17, last phrase, “he will exult over you with loud singing.” That word “exalt” is just another word for “rejoice” or “be glad,” but it’s different than the “rejoice” a couple lines above it. This word comes from the idea “to spin around in elation.” It is to encircle with overwhelming affection.
Picture an end zone where football players are surrounding, bouncing, hugging, acting rather unmanly, with a wide receiver who just caught a beautiful touchdown pass, celebrating, showing love and affection.
Or picture George Bailey in “It’s a Wonderful Life.” A man who just wanted to take his life, now surrounded by the songs of friends and family, encircled by song. When we sing this morning, we learn from Hebrews 2:12 that Jesus is in the midst, singing with us.
“I will tell of your name to my brothers; in the midst of the congregation I will sing your praise” (Hebrews 2:12).
So when the Lord is in the midst to bring joy, he saves us with his might, he sends us with his joy, he stabilizes us with his love, and he surrounds us with songs.
Let’s go back to the question we began with and personalize it. Not our country, but are you experiencing awakening or deadening? Аre you surging or growing closer to God or further? Or another way, in the context of Zephaniah, to ask that question is: Are you headed for judgment or joy? And if you’re unsure, hear the words of Zephaniah 2:3,
“Seek the Lord, all you humble of the land, who do his just commands; seek righteousness—” (Zephaniah 2:3)
Where am I going to get righteousness? Zephaniah 3:15, the king who is in our midst. Emmanuel, God with us, who came and is our righteousness.
“…seek humility; perhaps you may be hidden on the day of the anger of the Lord” (Zephaniah 2:3).
Paul picked up on this theme of the Day of the Lord in many places, but 1 Thessalonians 5,
“For you yourselves are fully aware that the day of the Lord will come like a thief in the night. While people are saying, ‘There is peace and security,’ then sudden destruction will come upon them as labor pains come upon a pregnant woman, and they will not escape. But you are not in darkness, brothers, for that day to surprise you like a thief. For you are all children of light, children of the day. We are not of the night or of the darkness” (1 Thessalonians 5:2-5).
“For God has not destined us for wrath, but to obtain salvation through our Lord Jesus Christ, who died for us so that whether we are awake or asleep we might live with him. Therefore encourage one another and build one another up, just as you are doing” (1 Thessalonians 5:9-11).
That’s why we gather: to encourage one another. What are we encouraging each other with? We encourage each other with the fact that all of us are in the same boat. We’re all under the judgment of God. But Jesus took that judgment so that we can be under the love, forgiveness, mercy of Christ. He, for the joy set before him, died for us so that our judgment would be transformed into joy. For 34 years, he has been in the midst, trading judgment for joy. If you are unsure which you are under, we pray that you would use the next few minutes to turn to him, because he loves to exchange judgment for joy.
I want us to do three things now as we respond to this word from Zephaniah.
Some of you, I hope, got — they’re not very big — little leaves. If you say, “I don’t have anything I can give in the offering,” or “I’m going to give another way,” but “I just want to thank the Lord,” or put down a prayer request, a way you want to honor the Lord, or ask for help. Or use a piece of paper on your own. You respond as the Spirit is leading you.
There will be people up here ready to pray with you. You can come up as an individual or a family, or a life group. You can present your offering. You can go off on the side where it’s a little quiet, or pray right here. There’ll be about five songs, so we’re not in a rush. We want to respond to him, to what he’s done and what he’s doing.
Father, thank you that we children of wrath are transformed into, by your grace, children of joy, “mercy’d” through Jesus. We commit this time to you, and we pray that it would be a time of sacrifice, a time of repenting and believing, and giving you glory. Thank you for your faithfulness to us as a church, to be in our midst, to bring us into your joy. We pray in Jesus’s name, amen.
