God and the Nations

GOLDEN TEXT: “O let the nations be glad and sing for joy: for Thou shalt judge the people righteously, and govern the nations upon the earth.” —Psalm 67:4

ZEPHANIAH 3

OUR Golden Text is one of the inspiring kingdom promises of the Bible. It describes that glorious future day when, under the righteous administration of Christ’s kingdom all the families, or nations, of the earth will receive equitable treatment, and will prosper at the hand of the Lord. This promise envisages the time when the nations, under the rulership of Christ, will beat their swords into plowshares, and their spears into pruninghooks, and when they will learn war no more.—Isa. 2:4; Micah 4:3,4

Obviously no such condition exists on the earth today. The nations are not now singing for joy. Instead, and as Jesus foretold would be the case at this time, there is “upon the earth distress of nations, with perplexity.” Men’s hearts are failing them for fear as they look ahead to the things coming upon the earth.—Luke 21:25,26

Zephaniah’s prophecy was written during the days of Josiah, the youthful king of Judah who tried so nobly to reinstate the worship of the true God throughout the land of Judah and Israel. Although the Lord appreciated his efforts, the nation itself was doomed. Zephaniah wrote, “I will cut off man from off the land, saith the Lord. I will also stretch out mine hand upon Judah, and upon all the inhabitants of Jerusalem.”—Zeph. 1:3,4

Chapter 2, verses 8 to 15 of this prophecy, forecasts the doom of the Moabites, the Ammonites, and the Assyrians, and declares also that the Lord will make “Nineveh a desolation, and dry like a wilderness.” “Ye Ethiopians also, ye shall be slain by My sword.” In verse 7 of chapter 3, the Lord says, “Surely thou wilt fear me, thou wilt receive instruction; … but they rose early, and corrupted all their doings.”

Seemingly the thought is that although the Lord destroyed all those wicked nations of the past, and caused his own people to be taken into captivity, it did not make an end of evil. Neither Israel nor the heathen nations learned their lesson, so evil, corruption, and oppression have continued down through the centuries. But even so, those who have faith in the Lord need not be discouraged, for the final message of the prophecy is:

“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. For then will I turn to the people a pure language, that they may all call upon the name of the Lord, to serve him with one consent.”—ch. 3:8,9

From time to time throughout the ages one nation or another have been chastised by the Lord; but they did not learn the needed lesson, for always they have all continued in their sinful ways. Finally, the Lord gathers the nations—and we have seen this gathering in process—to pour upon them his fierce anger and indignation, with the result that the whole “earth,” or social order, is devoured, or destroyed, by the fire of his jealousy.

As a result of this final “time of trouble” (Dan. 12:1), the beginning of which the nations are already experiencing, they will learn their lesson. The trouble over, the Lord will turn to them a pure “language,” or message; and then, humbled and penitent, they will all call upon “the name of the Lord, to serve him with one consent.”

At that time also, this chapter reveals, the ancient chosen people of God receive his special blessing. Because of this they are prophetically admonished, “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.”—vss. 14,15

The statement, “Thou shalt not see evil any more,” indicates the fulfillment of this part of the prophecy to be in the distant future from the prophet’s day. The nation went into captivity in Babylon, and seventy years later was released, but continued to do evil. Later they were dispersed among all nations; but from this captivity also a return was promised, and we are now witnessing that return.

Concerning this final gathering, now taking place, the Lord says, “I will get them praise and fame in every land where they have been put to shame. At that time I will bring you again, even in the time that I gather you: for I will make you a name and a praise among all people of the earth, when I turn back your captivity before your eyes, saith the Lord.” (vss. 19,20) Thus we see that God’s rule over the nations, through his Son Christ Jesus, will result in peace and joy to all, both Jews and Gentiles.

QUESTIONS

When and how will the promise contained in our Golden Text be fulfilled?

When was Zephaniah’s prophecy written, and with what are its opening chapters chiefly concerned?

When was the prophecy of chapter 3, verse 8, due to be fulfilled?

How do we know that the nations will learn the needed lesson as a result of God’s final judgment upon them?

What does the Lord say in this chapter concerning his returning favor upon his ancient people Israel?

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