Zephaniah Calls to Repentance

ZEPHANIAH 1:12-18

ZEPHANIAH was the ninth of the Minor Prophets. The name signifies “hidden by Jehovah.” His prophecy is one of warning against the backsliding nation of Israel, and of destruction for all the kingdoms of this world, a consuming that would be accomplished in the “day of the Lord,” the day of his wrath against this “present evil world.” In keeping with the meaning of his name, the prophet admonishes all to “seek righteousness” and “meekness,” indicating that those who do “may be” hidden in the “day of the Lord’s anger.”—Zeph. 2:3

Portions of the prophecy had a fulfillment in the removal of God’s typical people from their land at the time they were taken captive into Babylon; but its larger application is to the “day of the Lord,” the day of his wrath against all nations at the close of the present Gospel age. In chapter 3 verse 8, the Lord tells us that in the day of his wrath all nations will be gathered, and that the whole symbolic earth will be devoured with the fire of his jealousy.

The Lord says that he will “search Jerusalem.” This, in the larger application of the prophecy, might well refer to the religious institutions of the “present evil world,” one of the characteristics of which is described to be a lack of faith that God is really interested in the people, that “he will not do good, neither will he do evil.” How true this is of nominal churchianity today! The attitude is that if the churches are able to accomplish something good for the world, the Lord will go along with them, but if they fail, the Lord will let the world continue to suffer.

In the 13th verse we have a symbolic description of human failure to make adequate provisions for security and life—they “shall build houses, but not inhabit them; and they shall plant vineyards, but not drink the wine thereof.” Note the contrast to this in a prophecy which describes the blessings of the people under the administration of Christ’s kingdom—“They shall build houses, and inhabit them; and they shall plant vineyards, and eat the fruit of them.”—Isa. 65:21

We might naturally suppose that “the great day of the Lord” would be one of peace and joy and life, and ultimately, of course, it will be, for it is a day which will last for a thousand years. The prophecies make it plain, however, that to begin with, it will be a warlike day of trouble when the “mighty man shall cry bitterly.” The prophet continues to describe it as a “day of wrath, a day of trouble and distress, a day of wasteness and desolation, a day of darkness and gloominess, a day of clouds and thick darkness.”

The Apostle Paul identifies the time for the fulfillment of this and similar prophecies of the Old Testament as during the period of Christ’s second presence, declaring that the “day of the Lord” was to come upon the world as a “thief in the night,” and explaining that it would be a day of “sudden destruction” to the world. (I Thess. 5:1-3) Jesus also associated it with the time of his return, when, he prophesied, there would be “upon the earth distress of nations with perplexity,” and that men’s hearts would fail them for fear as they looked ahead to the things coming upon the earth.—Luke 21:25,26

We are undoubtedly in the “day of the Lord” now, and have been for many years. And how true that it has been a time of “trouble” and “distress,” of “wasteness and desolation.” It has also been one of “darkness and gloominess,” and symbolically speaking, “a day of clouds and thick darkness.” The wasteness and desolation is represented particularly in the war-stricken areas of Europe and Asia, where hundreds of towns and villages have been laid waste; and in the fact that a generation of war economy has reduced a large part of the world to a near starvation level of existence.

Revelation 1:7 harmonizes with this prophecy, and tells us that the presence of the Lord would be manifested by this time of “clouds and thick darkness.” “Behold, he cometh with clouds and every eye shall see him,” writes the Revelator. If he came in literal clouds no one could see him, but the symbolic clouds of this day of the Lord will ultimately reveal his presence to the world; for mankind will recognize their own failure and will turn to the Lord for help. They have not yet turned toward the Lord in their distress because they still think that human wisdom can find a way out of their dilemma.

This “day of the Lord” is also to be a “day of the trumpet and alarm against the fenced cities.” The use of the trumpet in the prophecies is quite common, being employed in both the Old and New Testaments. Its symbolic meaning is that of a message, or messages.

Seven different trumpets are mentioned in the Book of Revelation, and the sounding of the seventh of these is associated with the day of God’s wrath, the time when the kingdoms of the world become the kingdom of our God and of his Christ. See Revelation 11:15-18, Diaglott.

It is this same trumpet that is referred to by the Apostle Paul in I Thessalonians 4:16 and called the “trump of God.” It is the trump of God because its message pertains to that which God purposes to do for the people. In part, at least, the message of the “trump of God” was prefigured by the jubilee trumpets which were blown by the ancient Levites to announce the incoming year of jubilee, that year during which the wealth of Israel was redistributed and all slaves were set free. This jubilee arrangement was, in a general way, typical of the “times of restitution of all things,” when mankind will be restored to the long-lost edenic home, and to life everlasting.

The jubilee trumpet is one of alarm against the “fenced cities,” that is, a warning to those who cherish their vested rights and imagine that they can protect them regardless of the injustices which may result to others. In the type, this trumpet was to be sounded at the beginning of the jubilee year to proclaim liberty throughout all the land, unto all the inhabitants thereof. (Lev. 25:10) So today, because we are living in the “day of the Lord”—therefore in the early beginning of the antitypicaI jubilee year—we hear a great hue and cry for liberty everywhere. On this point we quote from “The Time Is at Hand,” pp. 197-199:

“In the early commotion each one who hears the jubilee trumpet of the new dispensation is forcibly struck by some one of its many features and heeds no other. One sees the propriety of, and calls for, governmental reforms, the abolition of standing armies and their burdensome tax. Another calls for the abolition of titled aristocracy and the recognition of every man by his manly qualities. Others call for abolition of landlordism, and demand that landholding shall be as at first, according to necessity, and ability and willingness to use. … Laws are enacted for the protection of the lives and the health of the people. … Wealthy corporations, such as own railroads and steamship lines, are compelled to care for the lives and interests of the people, the poor as well as the rich. These reforms are the results of the awakening of the people by the jubilee trump of knowledge and liberty, and are not traceable to pure benevolence on the part of the more favored class.”

This general commotion does not result in immediate peace and good will, but quite the reverse. How accurately did the Lord foretell the present chaotic state of the world which has resulted from the trumpet of knowledge, when he said, “I will bring distress upon men, that they shall walk like blind men, … and their blood shall be poured out as dust, and their flesh as the dung.” Has the world ever witnessed such a slaughter of human life as has taken place since 1914? And now destruction of life is threatened on a scale that would destroy the whole race were it not for the fact that the Lord has promised to intervene by shortening the days of trouble.

“Neither their silver nor their gold shall be able to deliver them in the day of the Lord’s wrath,” continues the prophet. How true that is proving to be! Much of the world today is depending upon the silver and gold of America to save them from the onrushing tide of communism and other evils which threaten to destroy still further the pre-1914 social order, but they will not be delivered for long, for the “whole [symbolic] land shall be devoured by the fire of his [God’s] jealousy.”—Verse 18

This is not a literal fire, nor will it destroy the physical earth. The reference is rather to the heat of God’s righteous anger against a sinful and selfish social order, the chief characteristic of which has been the oppression of the people. This must be, and will be destroyed. But the people will remain, and to these the Lord will turn a “pure language,” that they might all learn to serve him and rejoice in him as the God of their salvation.—Zeph. 3:9

ZEPHANIAH 3:16-20

THE fulfillment of this part of Zephaniah’s prophecy is said to be “in that day.” This is another reference to the day of the Lord, and in this passage we have depicted, not a scene of destruction upon the nations, but one of reconciliation and restoration. Its first application seems to be to natural Israel at the time when he turns back their captivity. We can rejoice, however, that the time for Israel’s deliverance will also be the time for the deliverance of the whole world of mankind. The “tents of Judah” will be saved first, but the foretold restitution blessings will continue to flow out to the lost world until all shall have had a full opportunity to partake of them.—Zech. 12:7

Of the Israelites the promise is made, “I will get them praise and fame in every land where they have been put to shame.” Of the natural Israelites it was literally true that they were put to shame in every country where they sought a home. But the Lord’s people as a whole, in every age, have been persecuted, and the Scriptures assure us that when the shame is removed from Israel the Lord will also “take away the rebuke of his people from off all the earth.” (Isa. 25:8) Truly the promises of God are reassuring, and we can look forward to their complete fulfillment with joy.

QUESTIONS

Does the Lord guarantee that those who seek meekness and righteousness will be saved from destruction in Armageddon?

What is one of the characteristics of Babylon’s lack of faith?

Is the day of the Lord, to begin with, a day of peace and joy?

What is symbolized in the prophecies by a trumpet?

In what sense is the jubilee trumpet now blowing?

What is the fire of God’s jealousy, and how does it devour the whole earth?

What time is referred to in the prophecy by the expression, “In that day”?

Who, besides the Israelites, will be restored during the “times of restitution”?

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