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“I will sweep away everything from the face of the earth, says the Lord.” (Zeph. 1:2,
NLT). What a scary thing to hear from the Lord. This is what the people of Judah heard from the
prophet Zephaniah. Zephaniah was warning them of what was coming for them if they did not
turn from their sinful ways. He was telling them to repent and turn back to God. Zephaniah ends
up describing to them about the Day of the Lord. Let us take a deeper look into the Day of the
Lord.
Here is information about what was going on at the time of Zephaniah. This time period
was “during the Babylonian crisis prior to the fall of Jerusalem in 587 B.C.”1 It said that he
spoke this during the “reign of Josiah”2 During this time,
Judah was guilty of gross negligence in its relationship with the God, and as a result
Zephaniah warns that judgement is coming. However, this is not your typical warning of
judgement. In what is arguably a more intense and extensive warning than anywhere else
in Scripture.3
He goes into great detail of God’s judgement, but he ends with hope of God restoring his people.
Why does God bring judgement on the people of Judah? “This God is completely
disgusted with Judah and Jerusalem because of their false and sensual worship and is enraged
with the nation because of their unjust treatment of Judah and their corrupt deeds.”4 God comes
to deal with the “idolatrous and unjust people”5 There was a lot of “pagan idoltry”6 going on. But
God puts his focus on his own people to bring judgement on. “God is going to judge the people
Footnotes
1. Carol J. Dempsey, Amos, Hosea, Micah, Nahum, Zephaniah, Habakkuk, (Minnesota: Liturgical Press,
2013),.20L.
2. Robert B. Chisholm Jr., Handbook on the Prophets: Isaiah Jeremiah Lamentations Ezekiel Daniel Minor
Prophets, (Michigan: Baker Academic, 2002), 443.
3. Micah Fries, Stephen Rummage, and Robby Gallaty, Exalting Jesus in Zephaniah, Haggai, Zechariah, and
Malachi, (Tennessee: B & H Publishing Group, 205), 3.
4. Carol J. Dempsey, Amos, Hosea, Micah 20m.
5. Carol J. Dempsey, Amos, Hosea, Micah,20o.
6. Iain M. Duguid and Matthew P. Harmon, Zephaniah, Haggai, Malachi, (New Jersey: P & R Publishing,
2018), 24.
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that He loves, mainly because they have begun functioning as those who are not His own.”7 No
one is exempt from this judgement, “no one regardless of class, status, or birth order, who can
avoid God’s judgement”8
“The Lord’s judgement would devastate the entire surface of the earth, including
mankind and animals. Even the birds in the sky and the fish in the sea would be destroyed. The
extent of the devastation rivals that of the Noahic flood, to which allusion is made here.”9 This is
in verse 1:3.
Zephaniah continues to explain in the following verses that God will “reduce the wicked
to heaps of rubble,” “crush Judah and Jerusalem with my fist,” and “destroy these who used to
worship me but now no longer do” (v. 1:3-6a). Zephaniah continues on in chapter 1 talking about
how God will “punish the leaders and princes of Judah” (v. 8b) and those who “participate in
pagan worship” (v. 9). He says that God will destroy the properties, make houses where no one
lives, and vineyards that no one drinks wine from. (v. 13). There will be bitter tears, distress and
anguish and darkness and gloom. (v. 15) “On this day the victims’ cries of terror would
intermingle with the warriors’ battle cries. It is portrayed a day of divine anger, characterized by
panic, ruin, darkness, and the sound of warfare.”10
Then, God calls judgement on various nations as well. He calls judgement on the Philistia
which he “will destroy you until no one of you is left” (v. 2:5). Then, he passes judgement on
Moab and Ammon. He says will destroy them as well “destroyed as completely as Sodom and
Gomorrah.” (v. 2:9b). Now, he passes judgement on Ethiopia and Assyria. “You
Footnotes
7. Micah Fries, Stephen Rummage, and Robby Gallaty, Exalting Jesus, 5.
8. Micah Fries, Stephen Rummage, and Robby Gallaty, Exalting Jesus, 7.
9. Robert B. Chisholm Jr., Handbook on the Prophets, 445.
10. Robert B. Chisholm Jr., Handbook on the Prophets. 44.
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Ethiopians will be slaughtered by my sword…. strike the lands of the north with his fist.” (v.
2:12-13).
But despite all this judgement, there is hope for God’s people. “The faith of the godly
would be rewarded, for the Lord’s judgement would have a purifying effect and be followed by a
time of salvation for both the nations and Jerusalem”11 Zephaniah chapter 3:19-20 describes this.
He talks about “purifying the speech of all people” (v. 3:9) This will occur when people repent
and are forgiven. “The result of this purification, then, will be a readiness to call on Yahweh and
worship Him with their lives.”12 God goes on and restores their dignity where they will no longer
be ashamed. He will restore them back to the “condition Adam and Eve were in the garden of
Eden before they sinned.”13 shown in verse 3:13.
Wow, to know that after God’s judgement of his people to know that those who were
faithful to him and repented, he will do all this for them. Gives us hope today to know that even
when we sin or go through hardship, God will retore us.
In closing chapter 3, “God promises Israel the hope of eternity. He brings them back
together. He brings them back to him. He pursues those who attack his children and vanquishes
them. He takes those who have been broken and restore them to health.”14 This should give
believers hope that what God promises, He will fulfill.
We can see God’s judgement in the New Testament. We can see this in Ephesian 5, where
it talks about that no person who are “immoral, impure, or greedy person inherit the Kingdom of
Christ and of God.” (v. 5). God wants to give us the Kingdom of Christ.
Footnotes
11. Robert B. Chisholm Jr., Handbook on the Prophets, 449.
12. Micah Fries, Stephen Rummage, and Robby Gallaty, Exalting Jesus, 35.
13. Ibid, 37.
14. Ibid, 43.
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We get all of this because of Jesus Christ. When we believe in him, we get this
inheritance because he came down to earth and took the penalty of sin for us. We can see that
Jesus Christ was the only one who could do that for us, take the wrath of God which was death
because we have sinned. “He would take the place of Israel under God’s wrath, despised and
rejected by men, afflicted beyond recognition, and thereby provide the refuge in which the
remnant could hid on the day of judgement.”15 This is backed up in 2 Corinthians 5:31, where it
talks about Christ was made to be the offering for our sin. Then, in Romans 5:12-21, we see that
Adam brought the sin penalty death, but Jesus brings forgiveness to us. “For those who will
repent--who will hear His voice and return to Him—to them He promises grace and
restoration.”16
Footnotes
15. Iain M. Duguid and Matthew P. Harmon, Zephaniah, Haggai, 29.
16. Micah Fries, Stephen Rummage, and Robby Gallaty, Exalting Jesus, 43
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Bibliography
Chrisholm Jr., Robert B. Handbook on the Prophets: Isaiah, Jeremiah, Lamentations, Ezekiel,
Daniel, Minor Prophets. Michigan: Baker Academic, 2002.
Dempsey, Carol J., Amos, Hosea, Micah, Nahum, Zephaniah, Habakkuk, Minnesota: Liturgical
Press, 2013.
Duguid, Iain M., and Matthew P. Harmon, Zephaniah, Haggai, Malachi, New Jersey: P & R
Publishing, 2018.
Platt, David, Stephen Rummage, and Robby Gallaty, Exalting Jesus in Zephaniah, Haggai,
Zechariah, and Malachi, Tennessee: B & H Publishing Group, 2015.
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