Our Lesson today studies one of the most unusual Texts in the whole Bible. Due to the fact that here … God is “singing!” Not humanity singing, but the Lord Himself!

Here is Zephaniah 3:16-17, in the King James Bible: “In that day it shall be said to Jerusalem, Fear thou not: and to Zion, Let not thine hands be slack. The LORD thy God in the midst of thee is mighty; he will save, he will rejoice over thee with joy; he will rest in his love, he will joy over thee with singing.”

Wow, what a list of blessings!

First of all, God wants to remove the anxieties of His people, “fear not.” Remember how many times Jesus said “Peace be unto you?” God’s Nature is “Peace, peaceful!” Paul once even called Jesus our “Peace!” Ephesians 2:14 … “For He is our peace.”

Then He (the Lord) also wants to encourage, strengthen them, “let not thine hands be slack.” The writer of Hebrews picks up this expression and uses it skillfully. “Wherefore lift up the hands which hang down, and the feeble knees; and make straight paths for your feet, lest that which is lame be turned out of the way; but let it rather be healed.” Hebrews 12:12-13, don’t quit. Stay faithful!

Then in our Text God (still in their “midst,” not having “left them”) reminds Israel of His Strength, of His Might. The Hebrew word here is “gibbor,” meaning “Champion, Chief, Brave!”

Note yet again what happens next: The LORD thy God in the midst of thee is mighty; he will save.” God as Saviour! And the Hebrew noun standing behind the verb used is essentially “Joshua” or “Jesus!” Spelled “yasha” or “yeshuah” in Hebrew.

God is going to some day “save” Israel! Paul again in Romans 11:26. “And so ALL ISRAEL SHALL BE SAVED: as it is written, There shall come out of Sion the Deliverer, and shall turn away ungodliness from Jacob.”

Next come three glorious things the God of Salvation will do over His newly redeemed people: “He will rejoice over thee with joy; he will rest in his love, he will joy over thee with singing.”

Look at the total “joy” expressed here, three different Hebrew words, 2 verbs and a noun! Here they are: “sus” (to leap for joy) and “simchah” (gladness, gaiety, mirth) and “giyl” (to twirl round and round, literally).

The clause “He will rest in His love,” paints a word picture. He will make Love a Habit, God just loving and loving and loving and loving! No more judgment! No more chastening! Implying (which we shall see tomorrow) no more sin!

I must put the pieces of our Text back together now and let you read it in its entirety. What a Day this will be! “In that day it shall be said to Jerusalem, Fear thou not: and to Zion, Let not thine hands be slack. The LORD thy God in the midst of thee is mighty; he will save, he will rejoice over thee with joy; he will rest in his love, he will joy over thee with singing.”

Even so, come Lord Jesus!

— Dr. Mike Bagwell

 

As these Lesson on Zephaniah began, I observed that the Book begins with “judgment,” and ends with “blessing!” Indeed it does. As today’s Text attests:

“Sing, O daughter of Zion; shout, O Israel; be glad and rejoice with all the heart, O daughter of Jerusalem. The LORD hath taken away thy judgments, he hath cast out thine enemy: the king of Israel, even the LORD, is in the midst of thee: thou shalt not see evil any more.” Zephaniah 3:14-15

Wow!

What a change of “mood!”

Gladness now.

And joy.

Punishment, judgment is gone.

The enemy is no more.

And God has “moved in” to dispel any further “evil.”

Notice this also. The people are being addressed now as “Israel,” the whole Nation of Jews! Earlier in Zephaniah she was merely “Judah,” a small fraction of all the total population. Reunification has happened!

The verb “sing” is a command, an imperative. It means to loudly express joy, music!

“Shout” is here a synonym, a “battle cry” of victory!

Then two more “matching” verbs are used, “be glad” and “rejoice.” Meaning respectively, “to shine with delight” and “to triumph.”

“Taken away” means “turned aside.” Proof God can either “deflect” or “invite” circumstances into our lives! To “cast out” means “to turn away,” again synonyms.

I think Zephaniah has just become a poet! (One of the chief characteristics of Hebrew poetry is “matching” thought patterns. Parallelism, it’s called.)

“Sing, O daughter of Zion; shout, O Israel; be glad and rejoice with all the heart, O daughter of Jerusalem. The LORD hath taken away thy judgments, he hath cast out thine enemy: the king of Israel, even the LORD, is in the midst of thee: thou shalt not see evil any more.”

For God to be “in the midst” (in Hebrew “qereb”) is astounding. The word means the “innermost” part.

Not “to see evil” means no more catastrophes await! No more secret attacks! It could also carry the idea that her “sins” are gone! I am sure repentance has occurred, on Israel’s part.

Both verses today “reek” of Grace!

And we have only begun!

Don’t miss tomorrow’s Lesson, more good things are on the way.

— Dr. Mike Bagwell

 

See if today’s Zephaniah Text sounds like REVIVAL to you. REVIVAL … just as God when saved Nineveh, just as when God authored Pentecost, and now just as God led His Prophet to pen these words: “In that day shalt thou (Judah) not be ashamed for all thy doings, wherein thou hast transgressed against me: for then I will take away out of the midst of thee them that rejoice in thy pride, and thou shalt no more be haughty because of my holy mountain. I will also leave in the midst of thee an afflicted and poor people, and they shall trust in the name of the LORD. The remnant of Israel shall not do iniquity, nor speak lies; neither shall a deceitful tongue be found in their mouth: for they shall feed and lie down, and none shall make them afraid.” Zephaniah 3:11-13, God being the Speaker.

It actually says that God will excise (remove) all the wicked people from Judah’s midst! Particularly those being proud and haughty. The idea behind that noun “pride” is “swollen, puffed up.” And “haughty” is a synonym, meaning “exalted, upward,” even “arrogant.” The same sin that dethroned Satan, “pride!”

Also … the first “sin” on God’s “Things I Hate” List! See Proverbs 6:16-19, where “a proud look” leads that sobering litany!

And when the proud are removed (“sur” in Hebrew, translated “take away”) God can again bless His people. Implying “pride” robs a people of God’s foremost blessings!

And maybe the presence of a vast number of proud people (at least in part) causes the faithful people (who still love God) to be less ardent in their faithful service. “In that day shalt thou not be ashamed for all thy doings, wherein thou hast transgressed against me: for then I will take away out of the midst of thee them that rejoice in thy pride, and thou shalt no more be haughty ….”

“To be ashamed” translates the Hebrew verb “bush,” meaning here “to be confused, disappointed, disconcerted,” even “delayed” one time in the Old testament. Judah will NOT be these things! Because God no longer considers her a proud Nation! (This has been called a “back-door revival” a few times!) God expelling some, in order to bless others who have stood true to His Name.

And the “my Holy Mountain” phrase indicates the Temple precincts! There (God’s House) is pride most repugnant to our Creator and Redeemer.

But then notice again our Text, what a reversal! After God has removed the sinful …  I will also leave in the midst of thee an afflicted and poor people, and they shall trust in the name of the LORD. The remnant of Israel shall not do iniquity, nor speak lies; neither shall a deceitful tongue be found in their mouth.”

“Poor” means “weak, lean, needy!”

And “afflicted” means “lowly, belittled, brow beaten.”

God has built humility into the lives of His faithful! As in Matthew 5:3, “Blessed are the poor in spirit: for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.” And Matthew 5:5, “Blessed are the meek: for they shall inherit the earth.” Not counting the verse between: “Blessed are they that mourn: for they shall be comforted.”

The verb “trust” just means “to flee for safety!” A people not too vain or filled with self-worth … therefore willing to call on the Lord for help!

Now to Verse 13, the last for today … “The remnant of Israel shall not do iniquity, nor speak lies; neither shall a deceitful tongue be found in their mouth: for they shall feed and lie down, and none shall make them afraid.”

Then no “iniquity” will remain, in Hebrew “evel,” meaning “to rebel” against God and His Ways. The verb “do” has the idea of doing something over and over, habitually.

Also, “lying” is gone. “Deceit” being included. A population now who (using the words of Psalm 15) now “speak the truth in their hearts!”

Then, once true repentance has occurred … “feeding” and “lying down” (as depicted in Psalm 23) will occur! Plus this blessing, “all fear is gone.”

Yes, the similarities and points of contact are too many to be accidental. “The LORD is my shepherd; I shall not want. He maketh me to lie down in green pastures: he leadeth me beside the still waters. He restoreth my soul: he leadeth me in the paths of righteousness for his name’s sake. Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil: for thou art with me; thy rod and thy staff they comfort me. Thou preparest a table before me in the presence of mine enemies: thou anointest my head with oil; my cup runneth over. Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life: and I will dwell in the house of the LORD for ever.”

Wow!

Yes, this is true Revival, considered both negatively (what must GO) and positively (what must GROW). I would love to try to preach this Text some day!

— Dr. Mike Bagwell

I really feel like I just have preached it! My soul is thrilled. My mind excited. Psalm 119:18 has been answered this morning. “Lord, open Thou mine eyes, that I may behold wondrous things out of Thy Law, Thy Word.”

Amen.

 

The dark “night” of Israel’s existence is about to pass! “Morning” is coming! That’s one way the Old Testament Prophets saw their little Country, their Homeland. Even Zephaniah, our subject for the last few weeks, agrees! Days of unprecedented blessing yet await Judah!

This morning our Text is Zephaniah 3:9-10. “For then will I (the Lord) turn to the people (the Jews) a pure language, that they may all call upon the name of the LORD, to serve him with one consent. From beyond the rivers of Ethiopia my suppliants, even the daughter of my dispersed, shall bring mine offering.”

A people whose language has been corrupted, via too close company with the wicked, will get Divine tutoring on a “pure” language. I suspect a return to her “Mother Tongue,” ancient Hebrew. The adjective used here for “pure” is “barar,” meaning “polished” as well! “Bright!”

But the language is restored for a reason … “that they may all call upon the name of the LORD, to serve him with one consent.” Then God, presumably, loves to hear His children pray!

Notice too in the foregoing clause that the Lord equates “calling” on Him and “serving” Him! If you “pray” to Him, enjoying His Blessings … you should also “serve” him daily! Is the second the result of the first? Or is it “automatic,” if we really PRAY we will invariably really SERVE?

Either way, the two actions are linked.

Then note that the Lord is planning to “recall” His people to the Land! “From beyond the rivers of Ethiopia my suppliants, even the daughter of my dispersed, shall bring mine offering.”

This is Revival!

God’s “suppliants,” a word based on the Hebrew term “abundance,” are bringing Him an “offering!” From around the wortd, these being part of the “dispersion.” (Leviticus 26:33 clearly tells us that if Israel disobeys God … He will so “scatter” her, as in this prophecy: “And I will scatter you among the heathen.” An event of history now, “heathen” simply meaning the “gentile nations.”)

Ethiopia in our (King James) Bible is often expressed as the nation “Cush.” Even here in our verse today “Ethiopia” is spelled that way, “Kush.”

Lots of returning “converts,” eager to worship the Lord their God, with “offerings.” And “minchah” means “sacrifice, present, gift, tribute!”

Gift giving is a natural outflow of real love!

These two verses now set the “mood” for much to follow in Zephaniah.

Indeed, God usually saves the BEST for LAST! In the lives of His followers anyway.

— Dr. Mike Bagwell

The Lord willing, another Zephaniah Lesson tomorrow morning.

 

I call the event the “Battle of Armageddon.”

John mentions it in the Book of Revelation.

So does Zechariah, centuries prior to John! “For I will gather all nations against Jerusalem to battle; and the city shall be taken, and the houses rifled, and the women ravished; and half of the city shall go forth into captivity, and the residue of the people shall not be cut off from the city.” Zechariah 14:2, with the Lord Himself speaking. The key phrase may be “all nations.”

And my point today, even little ZEPHANIAH predicts this same situation too! With God being the Catalyst. “Therefore wait ye upon me, saith the LORD, until the day that I rise up to the prey: for my determination is to gather the nations, that I may assemble the kingdoms, to pour upon them mine indignation, even all my fierce anger: for all the earth shall be devoured with the fire of my jealousy.” Zephaniah 3:8, our focus verse this morning as we journey all the way through the Book of Zephaniah.

Notice please, God is “determined” to do this! The noun “determination” here is “mishphat,” the normal Old Testament word for “judgment!”

And look what God call all these “nations” (in Hebrew “goy”), the word for “gentiles!” They are His “prey,” or “booty, rewards of war!” The Lord at war!

God is here calling a convocation, using two similar verbs, “to gather” and “to assemble.” Our Lord often loves congregations! In fact, “Church” is such a thing, though for a somewhat different reason.

The verb “to pour” is a strong one, meaning “to gush out, to spill,” copiously, abundantly. (Does blood flowing to the “horses’ bridles” sound familiar?)

Then God uses another set of “parallel” words, “indignation” and “anger.” Well, add “jealousy” to the mix! Now it is trilateral parallelism! In Hebrew these three are (in order) … “zaam” (from a verb meaning “to abhor, to defy, to denounce) and “aph” (the word for “nostril” or “nose,” so mad one breathes heavily) and “quinah” (meaning “zeal” or even “envy” at times). Pretty intense!

Armageddon!

And WHY is God doing this?

The rest of the Book of Zephaniah will show us. As do the other Bible Prophets, several of them. To bring Israel to a place of repentance. To put her under conviction. To bring her to this critical point, using the words of Zechariah again: “For I (God Almighty) will gather all nations against Jerusalem to battle; and the city shall be taken, and the houses rifled, and the women ravished; and half of the city shall go forth into captivity, and the residue of the people shall not be cut off from the city. Then shall the LORD go forth, and fight against those nations, as when he fought in the day of battle. And his feet shall stand in that day upon the mount of Olives, which is before Jerusalem on the east, and the mount of Olives shall ….” Jesus’ literal Second Coming to earth … to interrupt the slaughter, to defend Israel!

Also … “And I (still the Lord of course) will pour upon the house of David, and upon the inhabitants of Jerusalem, the spirit of grace and of supplications: and they shall look upon me whom they have pierced, and they shall mourn for him, as one mourneth for his only son ….” This is deep hearted conviction, remorse, godly sorrow!

Then Isaiah explains … “Who hath heard such a thing? who hath seen such things? Shall the earth be made to bring forth in one day? or shall a nation be born (born again) at once? for as soon as Zion travailed, she brought forth her children.” Many saved!

Yes, Israel will be saved.

And God uses Armageddon to help prepare the hearts of these dear sons of Abraham.

Surely we call can say today (and will certainly say the day these things occur) … “This is the LORD’S doing; it is marvellous in our eyes.” Psalm 118:23

I stand amazed!

— Dr. Mike Bagwell