Hope Beyond Judgment
Robert Dawson
Zephaniah 3:1-5, 8-17
Growing up, I would occasionally do something away from home, in public, that got me in trouble. When I did, my parents would say something like, ‘‘Just wait until I get you home.’’ Suddenly home became a place I dreaded. Thoughts of home were not enjoyable. I didn’t want any part of what might be waiting on me there. As long as we were in town, there was hope. Town meant they were busy and distracted. Town meant there was time for them to forget. Attention diverted. Punishment averted.
Eventually you came back home. Groceries unloaded and put away. Nothing said. No punishment meted out. About the time you relaxed, thinking you had escaped impending doom, they would say ‘‘let’s talk about earlier today’’ and all the bad feelings concerning your bad behavior quickly returned.
Zephaniah’s audience, the people of Jerusalem and Judah, had relaxed thinking their ‘‘wait until we get home’’ moment, which was announced in the first chapter, had passed. Earlier in Zephaniah’s prophecy God speaks of judgment on a large global scale. He lets them know they are included in that global judgment. No exemption for them. (We have a bad habit of thinking everybody means everybody but us. They were no different). Then God starts naming names. Specific nations/peoples. Philistia. Moab. Ammon. Assyria. Ethiopia. In the process Zephaniah spends time describing God’s judgment as fast approaching, certain, severe and complete.
It’s possible they started to think, ‘‘Maybe this isn’t really about us.’’
Zephaniah 3 shifts attention back to Jerusalem and Judah. Now their ‘‘maybe this isn’t about us’’ thoughts quickly disappeared as verse 1 gives way to verses 2, 3, 4 and 5. Those verses leave no room for doubt as to who the subject of this declaration of judgment was referring to.
If anything, God’s disappointment, displeasure, and anger with them was even greater because they knew better. Th ...
Robert Dawson
Zephaniah 3:1-5, 8-17
Growing up, I would occasionally do something away from home, in public, that got me in trouble. When I did, my parents would say something like, ‘‘Just wait until I get you home.’’ Suddenly home became a place I dreaded. Thoughts of home were not enjoyable. I didn’t want any part of what might be waiting on me there. As long as we were in town, there was hope. Town meant they were busy and distracted. Town meant there was time for them to forget. Attention diverted. Punishment averted.
Eventually you came back home. Groceries unloaded and put away. Nothing said. No punishment meted out. About the time you relaxed, thinking you had escaped impending doom, they would say ‘‘let’s talk about earlier today’’ and all the bad feelings concerning your bad behavior quickly returned.
Zephaniah’s audience, the people of Jerusalem and Judah, had relaxed thinking their ‘‘wait until we get home’’ moment, which was announced in the first chapter, had passed. Earlier in Zephaniah’s prophecy God speaks of judgment on a large global scale. He lets them know they are included in that global judgment. No exemption for them. (We have a bad habit of thinking everybody means everybody but us. They were no different). Then God starts naming names. Specific nations/peoples. Philistia. Moab. Ammon. Assyria. Ethiopia. In the process Zephaniah spends time describing God’s judgment as fast approaching, certain, severe and complete.
It’s possible they started to think, ‘‘Maybe this isn’t really about us.’’
Zephaniah 3 shifts attention back to Jerusalem and Judah. Now their ‘‘maybe this isn’t about us’’ thoughts quickly disappeared as verse 1 gives way to verses 2, 3, 4 and 5. Those verses leave no room for doubt as to who the subject of this declaration of judgment was referring to.
If anything, God’s disappointment, displeasure, and anger with them was even greater because they knew better. Th ...
There are 17386 characters in the full content. This excerpt only shows a 2000 character sample of the full content.
Price: $5.99 or 1 credit
