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ZEPHANIAH 1

PARAGRAPH DIVISIONS OF MODERN TRANSLATIONS *

* Although they are not inspired, paragraph divisions are the key to understanding and following the original author's intent. Each modern translation has divided and summarized the paragraphs. Every paragraph has one central topic, truth, or thought. Each version encapsulates that topic in its own distinct way. As you read the text, ask yourself which translation fits your understanding of the subject and verse divisions.

In every chapter we must read the Bible first and try to identify its subjects (paragraphs), then compare our understanding with the modern versions. Only when we understand the original author's intent by following his logic and presentation can we truly understand the Bible. Only the original author is inspired - readers have no right to change or modify the message. Bible readers do have the responsibility of applying the inspired truth to their day and their lives.

Note that all technical terms and abbreviations are explained fully in the following documents: Hebrew Grammatical Tems, Textual Criticism, and Glossary.

READING CYCLE THREE (see "Bible Interpretation Seminar")

FOLLOWING THE ORIGINAL AUTHOR'S INTENT AT THE PARAGRAPH LEVEL

This is a study guide commentary, which means that you are responsible for your own interpretation of the Bible. Each of us must walk in the light we have. You, the Bible, and the Holy Spirit are priority in interpretation. You must not relinquish this to a commentator.

Read the chapter in one sitting. Identify the subjects. Compare your subject divisions with the five translations above. Paragraphing is not inspired, but it is the key to following the original author's intent, which is the heart of interpretation. Every paragraph has one and only one subject.

1. First paragraph
2. Second paragraph
3. Etc.

WORD AND PHRASE STUDY

NASB (UPDATED) TEXT: 1:1
  ¹The word of the Lord which came to Zephaniah son of Cushi, son of Gedaliah, son of Amariah, son of Hezekiah, in the days of Josiah son of Amon, king of Judah:

1:1 "The word of the Lord which came" This is the same prophetic formula as Jer. 1:2,4; Hos. 1:1; Joel 1:1; Jon. 1:1; Mic. 1:1; Hag. 1:1; Zech. 1:1. This is not simply a man's understanding of history but it is a Divine communication from the covenant God, cf. Zeph. 1:3e, 10.

Jeremiah 18:18 lists the different ways YHWH revealed Himself in a message.

1. the law from the priests
2. counsel from the sage or wise man
3. the "word" (BDB 182) from the prophet

He also reveals Himself through nature, cf. Job 37-41; Ps. 8:1,3; and esp. Ps. 19:1-6, but the word of YHWH is wonderfully specific (cf. Ps. 19:7-14)! He has not left His faithful followers in a fallen, capricious world without clear instruction. Thank God for the Bible! See SPECIAL TOPIC: THE BIBLE (it's uniqueness and inspiration).

For "Lord" see SPECIAL TOPIC: NAMES FOR DEITY, D., YHWH.

▣ "Zephaniah" The etymology of this word is somewhat in dispute. Some take it from the root which means "to hide" (BDB 861), therefore, "YHWH hides," or "YHWH shelters" (BDB 861). Others take it from the root "to watch" and, therefore, the "watchman of YHWH" (BDB 859).

▣ "the son of Cushi" Zephaniah 1:1 is the longest genealogical introduction in the prophets. There has been much discussion about the length.

1. Some say it is because of the word "Cushi" (BDB 469, a name, cf. Jer. 36:14), which means "dark" or "swarthy" (often used of people from Ethiopia, cf. 2 Sam. 18:21; 2 Kgs. 19:9; Isa. 18:1), and it was needed to prove his Jewishness.
2. Others have assumed that because the fourth person mentioned is Hezekiah, which is a rare name in the OT, that this refers to King Hezekiah, therefore, asserting the royal ancestry of Zephaniah.

▣ "Hezekiah" This seems to relate to one of the godly kings of Judah (716-687 B.C.). If this is true, then Zephaniah had the same teachers as his cousin, King Josiah, another godly king of Judah who reigned from 640-609 B.C.

▣ "Josiah" This young king came to the throne at the age of eight years. He reigned for a long period of time. He instituted a major spiritual reform in 621 B.C. Many believe that Zephaniah was written before this reform was instituted. This godly king was killed in a strange accident as he tried to stop Pharaoh Necho II from helping the retreating Assyrian army against Babylon (cf. 2 Kgs. 23:28-30). Therefore, his reforms did not take hold and succeed.

There is an interesting comment by David Baker in the Tyndale OT Commentary Series, p. 86.

"Another important aspect of the prophecy arises when one notices the serious moral and spiritual decline following the vigorous reforms of Hezekiah (see p. 81), which would in turn follow those being undertaken by Zephaniah's contemporary Josiah (see 2 Ki. 23:31-24:4). Dependence on the faith and piety of a preceding generation is not enough. A personal commitment to the covenant was needed by each successive king and each generation of Israel, as it still is for each generation in the church. Neither the twentieth-century church nor the Israel of the monarchy can be second-generation children of God. The commitment must be made individually and personally by everyone."

NASB (UPDATED) TEXT: 1:2-6
  ²"I will completely remove all things
 From the face of the earth," declares the Lord.
 ³"I will remove man and beast;
 I will remove the birds of the sky
 And the fish of the sea,
 And the ruins along with the wicked;
 And I will cut off man from the face of the earth," declares the Lord
 ⁴"So I will stretch out My hand against Judah
 And against all the inhabitants of Jerusalem.
 And I will cut off the remnant of Baal from this place,
 And the names of the idolatrous priests along with the priests.
 ⁵And those who bow down on the housetops to the host of heaven,
 And those who bow down and swear to the Lord and yet swear by Milcom,
 ⁶And those who have turned back from following the Lord
 And those who have not sought the Lord or inquired of Him."

1:2 "I will completely remove" This is made up of two inflected words spelled the same.

1. VERB, "gather," "remove" ‒ BDB 62, KB 74, Qal INFINITIVE ABSOLUTE
2. VERB, "come to an end" ‒ BDB 692, KB 746, Hiphil JUSSIVE form but functioning as an IMPERFECT VERB (three times, Zeph. 1:2,3)

The INFINITIVE ABSOLUTE and the thrice repeated VERB, all spelled אסף, make a very emphatic statement by YHWH (cf. Jer. 8:13)! This is prophetic hyperbole. See D. Brent Sandy, Plowshares and Pruning Hooks.

1:2-3 "I will completely remove all things" These verses are a strong hyperbolic passage on the universal judgment. The extent of species destroyed here is even wider than for the flood destruction of Genesis 6 and 7. This passage is the imagery of a second worldwide judgment, like the flood. It is hyperbolic for an ANE period but, in reality, for an eschatological event. See G. B. Caird, The Language and Imagery of the Bible.

▣ "earth. . .man" The term "earth" is the term adamah," while the term "man" is the term adam. Both BDB 9 relate this text to the catechismic judgment of Genesis 6-9.

1:3c "fish of the sea" Even the flood did not affect aquatic life forms, yet this judgment will! In Romans 8:18,19 we see that mankind's sin has affected all nature.

1:3d This line of poetry is translated several ways. The "stumbling blocks of the wicked" refers to idolatry (NKJV footnote). The following verses affirm this (i.e., Zeph. 1:4-6; Ezekiel 8). The NET Bible, p. 1656, #4, suggests the idols are of the animals or fish mentioned in Zeph. 1:3a-c.

There are apparently three types of wicked Judeans.

1. idolaters, Zeph. 1:4-5
2. apathetic (i.e., practical atheist), Zeph. 1:6 (cf. Isa. 1:4)
3. wicked merchants, Zeph. 1:11

All will be judged and destroyed in Zeph. 1:14-18. However, there is a faithful remnant mentioned in Zeph. 2:3,7,9.

SPECIAL TOPIC: THE REMNANT, THREE SENSES.

1:4 "So I will stretch out My hand against Judah. . .Jerusalem" This is an anthropomorphic phrase to speak of God's power to act in history (cf. Exod. 7:5; 15:12; Isa. 5:25; 23:11; Jer. 6:12; 15:6; 51:25; Ezek. 6:14; 14:13; 16:27; 25:7,13,16; Zeph. 2:13). It is so surprising that the universal judgment of God is going to fall upon His own covenant people. The book of Zephaniah shows that God is no respecter of persons. The idolatry which took the northern ten tribes into captivity was repeated by Judah and God also disciplined them (cf. Ezekiel 23). God is a moral, just God. His people must reflect His character.

SPECIAL TOPIC: THE PROBLEMS AND LIMITATIONS OF HUMAN LANGUAGE

▣ "the remnant of Baal" The Septuagint has "names of Baal." This refers to the Phoenician fertility god and his consort, Anath. In the Bible, Ba'al's consort is Ashtaroth. This cultic fertility worship had invaded even the people of God, cf. 2 Chr. 33:3,7; Mic. 5:13-14; see NIDOTTE, vol. 4, pp. 422-428.

SPECIAL TOPIC: FERTILITY WORSHIP OF THE ANCIENT NEAR EAST

▣ "the names of the idolatrous priests along with the priests" The term "idolatrous priests" (BDB 1027 CONSTRUCT BDB 485) is also found in 2 Kgs. 23:5; Hos. 10:5. As these cultic priests performed their tasks, they were joined by some Levitical priests. Both will be destroyed.

These Hebrew consonants kmr (BDB 485) form the term "priests" and have several connotations.

1. to be warm (or blackened), BDB I, Lam. 5:10
2. to be black (from Syriac), BDB II, possibly "black robed priests"
3. to lay prostrate, BDB III, bows to the ground before idols
4. a snare or net, Ps. 141:10; Hab. 1:15, play on the root for idolatry's terrible consequences

1:5-6 Notice how Zeph. 1:5-6 describes the faithless, idolatrous followers.

1. those who bow down to the host of heaven
2. those who swear to YHWH by Milcom
3. those who have turned back from following YHWH
4. those who have not sought YHWH
5. those who have not inquired of YHWH

These people are not God's people. Only faithful followers are God's people. God wants a people to reflect His character to a fallen, lost, unbelieving world. When the messenger (i.e., Israel) gives the wrong message, He must act to restore His ultimate purpose, the salvation and fellowship of all people made in His image (cf. Gen. 1:26,27; 3:8).

SPECIAL TOPIC: YHWH'S ETERNAL REDEMPTIVE PLAN

1:5 "who bow down on the housetops to the host of heaven" This refers to astral worship. When Manasseh was forced to pay tribute to Assyria, he was also forced to worship the Assyrian astral deities (cf. 2 Kgs. 21:3-5). We learn from Jer. 19:13; 32:29 that Jerusalem was actively involved in this housetop worship. The host of heaven is condemned in Deut. 4:19; Job 31:26-27. Idolatry was the reason for the fall and exile of the northern ten tribes (cf. 2 Kgs. 17:16), but Judah did not listen and even became more perverse (cf. 2 Kgs. 21:3,5; 23:4,5,11,12; Jer. 7:18; 8:2; 44:17,30; Ezekiel 23).

▣ "Milcom" This fertility god of the ANE was known by several closely related titles (all forms of the Hebrew root for "King," mlk, BDB 572).

1. Milcom, Molcom ‒ BDB 575, Ammonite form (cf. 1 Kgs. 11:5; 2 Kgs. 23:13; also note LXX, Peshitta, Vulgate)
2. Molech ‒ BDB 574, KB 592
3. Moloch, Molekh, Molok, Melek, Melech ‒ other spellings of #2
4. MT has "Malcom" or "their King" (cf. Jer. 49:1)
5. even possibly a Babylonian god—Malku, Akkadian root

In Jer. 19:3-6 the fertility god of Canaan, Ba'al, is linked with Molech.

Notice how Judah has combined the worship of (cf. Ezekiel 8, violating Exod. 20:3; Deut. 5:7):

1. YHWH
2. Mesopotamian astral worship
3. fertility worship
   1. Ammon ‒ Milcom
   2. Phoenician ‒ Molech
   3. Canaan ‒ Ba'al

They formed faithless Judah's new pantheon of hope and prosperity (i.e., alliances and trade)!

SPECIAL TOPIC: MOLECH

SPECIAL TOPIC: MONOTHEISM

1:6 There are two aspects to biblical fellowship with YHWH. One is negative (repentance) and one is positive (faith). This text expresses the same thought with

1. turn back ‒ they stopped following YHWH's guidance, cf. Isa. 1:4. They are moving away from Him (BDB 690, KB 744, Niphal ACTIVE PARTICIPLE). A good example is Isa. 59:13.
2. not seeking ‒ they stopped trusting YHWH (see Zeph. 2:3)

The VERB "seek" (BDB 134, KB 152, Piel PERFECT) could denote three things.

1. seek fellowship with YHWH (cf. Deut. 4:29; 1 Chr. 16:10; 2 Chr. 11:16; Isa. 51:1; Jer. 50:4; Hos. 3:5; Zech. 8:21-22)
2. seek information (cf. Pro. 28:5; Zeph. 1:6). The exodus contexts (Exod. 33:13) fit Moses as judge (i.e., oracle of YHWH). Often in the Psalms (with different phrasing) worshipers ask for God to teach them His ways, truth, will (cf. Ps. 16:11; 25:4; 119:66; 142:8).
3. seek the Lord's help (i.e., 2 Chr. 20:1-13)

These same pillars of biblical faith can be seen in the NT.

1. Jesus' words ‒ Mark 1:15
2. Peter's words ‒ Acts 3:16,19
3. Paul's words ‒ Acts 20:21; 26:20

SPECIAL TOPIC: REPENTANCE (OT)

SPECIAL TOPIC: REPENTANCE (NT)

SPECIAL TOPIC: BELIEVE, TRUST, FAITH, AND FAITHFULNESS IN THE OLD TESTAMENT

SPECIAL TOPIC: FAITH, BELIEVE, TRUST (NT)

NASB (UPDATED) TEXT: 1:7-13
  ⁷Be silent before the Lord God!
 For the day of the Lord is near,
 For the Lord has prepared a sacrifice,
 He has consecrated His guests.
 ⁸"Then it will come about on the day of the Lord's sacrifice
 That I will punish the princes, the king's sons
 And all who clothe themselves with foreign garments.
 ⁹And I will punish on that day all who leap on the temple threshold,
 Who fill the house of their lord with violence and deceit.
 ¹⁰On that day," declares the Lord
 "There will be the sound of a cry from the Fish Gate,
 A wail from the Second Quarter,
 And a loud crash from the hills.
 ¹¹Wail, O inhabitants of the Mortar,
 For all the people of Canaan will be silenced;
 All who weigh out silver will be cut off.
 ¹²It will come about at that time
 That I will search Jerusalem with lamps,
 And I will punish the men
 Who are stagnant in spirit,
 Who say in their hearts,
 'The Lord will not do good or evil!'
 ¹³Moreover, their wealth will become plunder
 And their houses desolate;
 Yes, they will build houses but not inhabit them,
 And plant vineyards but not drink their wine."

1:7 "Be silent before the Lord God" The context does not state exactly why the people are to be silent (BDB 245, used as an IMPERATIVE).

1. Some scholars suppose that silence accompanied sacrifice (Zeph. 1:7c; Jerome Biblical Commentary, p. 291).
2. silent at YHWH's deliverance of His people ‒ Zech. 2:13
3. silent during worship ‒ Hab. 2:20
4. silent during mourning ‒ Lam. 2:10; 3:28
5. silent so as to receive instruction from YHWH ‒ Isa. 41:1
6. silent to YHWH's not responding ‒ Ps. 28:1; 134:2; 141:2; Lam. 2:19
7. stopping the speech of the wicked ‒ Ps. 31:17-18
8. silencing the wicked in Sheol ‒ 1 Sam. 2:9
9. in this context the term may be purposefully ambiguous because
   1. this context stresses "the day of the Lord," which the covenant people thought would be good for them but not so, they are unfaithful idolaters and they will be judged
   2. silence was appropriate for both
      (1) worship and revelation
      (2) judgment and death

Notice "Lord" (BDB 10) in the first line is "Adon", but "Lord" in the second and this line is YHWH (BDB 217). They are parallel. Later in Judaism the title YHWH became so holy that the Jews substituted "Adon" when they read the Scriptures.

SPECIAL TOPIC: NAMES FOR DEITY, D.

▣ "the day of the Lord is near" This imagery dominates Zephaniah 1

The essence of this imagery is that God is both

1. transcendent ‒ we live our lives in faith not sight; biblical faith is a worldview, a faith relationship, and a godly lifestyle
2. immanent ‒ one day we will recognize that He was always with us (i.e., Psalm 139:7-12). On that day every human, created in the image and likeness of YHWH, will give an account to Him for their stewardship of the gift of life.

In time He comes for blessing (cf. Zeph. 3:9-20) and judgment (cf. Zeph. 1:2-6,7-13,14-18). At the end of time a culmination event will occur (cf. Matt. 25:31-46; Rev. 20:11-15).

The time element "near" (cf. Zeph. 1:14b; cf. Isa. 13:6; Ezek. 30:3; Joel 1:15; 2:1; 3:14; Obad. v. 15) has always been problematic because "the day" has two aspects.

1. temporal (any time, repeated)
2. eschatological (end-time, once)

This tension is carried over into the New Testament. Faithful followers must live every day as if it were the last day, but plan and organize as if it is far in the future.

SPECIAL TOPIC: THAT DAY

SPECIAL TOPIC: DAY OF THE LORD (NT)

SPECIAL TOPIC: JUDGE, JUDGMENT, and JUSTICE IN ISAIAH

SPECIAL TOPIC: JUDGMENT IN THE NT

SPECIAL TOPIC: THE JUDGEMENT SEAT OF CHRIST

SPECIAL TOPIC: SOON RETURN

▣ "For the Lord has prepared a sacrifice" God help us! The sacrifice is His own people (their blood "poured out" on the ground, Zeph. 1:17), and the consecrated guests mentioned next are either the Assyrians or the Scythians, or more probably, the Babylonians. God used cruel Assyria (Isa. 10:50) and godless Babylon (Isaiah 13; Hab. 1:5-11) to judge His own people because they became involved in idolatry and faithlessness. His judgment was actually an act of love to restore His covenant people.

1:8 This poetry is depicting the Judeans' (i.e., of every level of society, cf. Zeph. 3:3-4) worship of foreign gods (i.e., "foreign garments").

1. Ba'al, Zeph. 1:4c
2. host of heaven, Zeph. 1:5a
3. Milcom/Molech, Zeph. 1:5b

Ezekiel 8 shockingly invisions this pagan idolatry.

▣ "the princes, the king's son" Zephaniah was part of the royal extended family. He knew the court intrigue well! He was an insider!

▣ "All who clothe themselves with foreign garments" This refers to

1. Ba'al worship (cf. 2 Kgs. 10:22)
2. fashionable clothing of foreign nations (i.e., showing their influence, NIDOTTE, vol. 2, p. 258)

1:9 "all who leap on the temple threshold" Notice that the word "temple" is in italics, which means that it is not in the Hebrew text. However, the term "threshold" (BDB 837) is always used in the OT to refer to the Temple (cf. Ezek. 9:3; 10:4,18; 47:1). The threshold, in ancient societies, was a place of demonic spirits (cf. 1 Sam. 5:5, describes Philistine worship which has affected the Targum translation of this text). Our modern, western custom of carrying one's bride over the threshold is a cultural example of this belief. The VERBAL "leap" (BDB 194, KB 222, Qal ACTIVE PARTICIPLE) is used in 1 Kgs. 18:26 for a ritual dance of the Ba'al worshipers. This may be an allusion to the practice of Ba'alism even in the Temple of God, cf Ezekiel 8.

▣ "their lord" The intended referent is very ambitious. This could refer to

1. master of servants
2. priests of Temple (YWHW or Ba'al, Zeph. 1:4d)
3. invaders (sent by YHWH, Zeph. 1:13)
4. legal robbers (i.e., judges, the wealthy people/servants who exploit the poor)
5. merchants, Zeph. 1:11
6. NIV has "their gods"; NJB translates it "house" (BDB 108), as "temple," which supports the NIV understanding; REB has "their Lord's house," which capitalizes Adon (BDB 10; cf. Zeph. 1:7; NET Bible footnote has "king" or "pagan god")

1:10 "the Fish Gate" Many believe that this was on the north wall (closest to the Sea of Galilee) and would have been the first gate to be approached by an invader from the north (i.e., Jer. 1:13-15; 4:6; 6:1,22).

▣ "the Second Quarter" This is believed to be a new extension of the city northwest of the Temple, cf. 2 Kgs. 22:14; 2 Chr. 34:22; Neh. 11:9. The Jewish Study Bible, p. 1236, says "probably refers to the Upper City of Jerusalem, the western hill, where the upper social strata of Jerusalem dwelled."

1:11 "wail" This is a Hiphil IMPERATIVE used often of YHWH's coming judgment.

1. Babylon comes ‒ Isa. 13:6; 14:31
2. Babylon judged ‒ Ezek. 30:2
3. Moab judged ‒ Jer. 48:20

▣ "the Mortar" This (BDB 509) was a part of Jerusalem. The term was used in Jdgs. 15:19 for a low place, therefore, many believe it to be the "Tryopoeon Valley," which separated the city of Jerusalem. It may have referred to the market place (NIDOTTE, vol. 2, p. 746).

▣ "the people of Canaan. . .all who weigh out silver" These are in a Hebrew parallel relationship. It refers to the idolatrous merchants. The terms "Canaanite" and "merchant" (BDB 489) are synonymous (cf. Pro. 31:24; Isa. 23:8; Zech. 14:21; Hos. 12:7, NIDOTTE, vol. 2, p. 669).

▣ "will be silenced. . .will be cut off" The two VERBS of Zeph. 1:11 are PROPHETIC PERFECTS. Future action is viewed as so certain that it is spoken of as already accomplished.

1:12 "I will search Jerusalem with lamps" This was not to find people who loved God, but to find those who loved idolatry, cf. Ezek. 9:4-11. It is God Himself who searches (similar imagery in Amos 9:3).

SPECIAL TOPIC: THE PROBLEMS AND LIMITATIONS OF HUMAN LANGUAGE

▣ "Who are stagnant in spirit" This is a metaphor from the wine industry. It is used in a good sense in Isa. 25:6; it is used in a bad sense in Jer. 48:11, where it refers to Moab. It refers to leaving wine too long on its lees so that it becomes stagnant and thick (i.e., the apathy of the people of God; some scholars slightly emend the phrase to read, "those who are at ease" (NIV, NRSV, cf. Isa. 32:9,11; Amos 6:1; Zech. 1:15; see Tyndale OT Commentary, p. 98, #1).

For "wine" see SPECIAL TOPIC: WINE AND STRONG DRINK.

▣ "The Lord will not do good or evil" This is a shocking statement from God's people. It is used in Isa. 41:23 to describe lifeless idols. This is "practical" atheism on the part of the apathetic inhabitants of Jerusalem (cf. Ezek. 8:12; 9:9).

1:13 "Yes, they will build houses but not inhabit them,
  And plant vineyards but not drink their wine" The covenant curses of YHWH are coming into play on His people because of their rebellion (cf. Lev. 26:32,33; Deut. 28:30; Amos 5:11; Mic. 6:15).

NASB (UPDATED) TEXT: 1:14-18
  ¹⁴Near is the great day of the Lord
 Near and coming very quickly;
 Listen, the day of the Lord
 In it the warrior cries out bitterly.
 ¹⁵A day of wrath is that day,
 A day of trouble and distress,
 A day of destruction and desolation,
 A day of darkness and gloom,
 A day of clouds and thick darkness,
 ¹⁶A day of trumpet and battle cry
 Against the fortified cities
 And the high corner towers.
 ¹⁷I will bring distress on men
 So that they will walk like the blind,
 Because they have sinned against the Lord
 And their blood will be poured out like dust
 And their flesh like dung.
 ¹⁸Neither their silver nor their gold
 Will be able to deliver them
 On the day of the Lord's wrath;
 And all the earth will be devoured
 In the fire of His jealousy,
 For He will make a complete end,
 Indeed a terrifying one,
 Of all the inhabitants of the earth.

1:14-18 This is apocalyptic language that describes the end-time judgment on all the created order. A day of universal judgment is only possible if

1. YHWH is the one true creator God
2. YHWH is an ethical God
3. YHWH's words are true (i.e., Leviticus 26; Deuteronomy 28)

For the phrase "near and coming very quickly," see note at Zeph. 1:7b.

SPECIAL TOPIC: APOCALYPTIC LITERATURE

SPECIAL TOPIC: MONOTHEISM

1:14d Who is the warrior who cries out (NOUN, "listen," BDB 876, cf. Zeph. 1:14c; Isa. 13:4, plus Qal ACTIVE PARTICIPLE of "cries aloud," BDB 863, KB 1055, Zeph. 1:14d)?

1. the victims of YHWH's wrath
2. the Judean soldier viewing the invaders' victory
3. the war cry of the divine Warrior Himself (cf. Isa. 42:13; 59:17)

Number 3 would reflect "Holy War" terminology. However, for faithless, idolatrous Judah, He is the attacker, not the defender!

If #2 is the correct option, then the "battle cry" (BDB 929) of Zeph. 1:16 is a strong contrast. If #3 is the correct option, then Zeph. 1:16 is a parallel.

1:15 Similar imagery is in Joel's and Amos' description of "the day of the Lord" (cf. Joel 2:2; Amos 5:18,20).

1:16 "trumpet" This term (BDB 1051) is one of several horns used by Israel.

SPECIAL TOPIC: HORNS USED BY ISRAEL

▣ "Against the fortified cities
  And the high corner towers" This same imagery of judgment day is used in Isa. 2:12-22.

1:17b This is part of the curses of Deut. 28:29 (cf. Isa. 59:10).

1:17c The reason for the judgment (Zeph. 1:15) is "sin" (Gen. 6:5,11-12,13). For the pagan it was unbelief, but for Judah it was covenant disobedience (cf. Leviticus 26; Deuteronomy 28-30).

There are "in time" consequences to sin as well as "beyond time" consequences! Faith and obedience are both crucial (cf. James 2:14-26).

SPECIAL TOPIC: THE FALL (Genesis 3 in the NT)

1:17d,e Modern western people are uncomfortable with

1. the violence of ANE warfare (cf. Jer. 8:2; 9:22)
2. biblical prophetic hyperbole

I would like to make two comments.

1. God will judge sin and unbelief. It will be horrid and shocking but look at biblical history!
2. The best books I have read on biblical hyperbole are
   1. D. Brent Sandy, Plowshares and Pruning Hooks: Rethinking the Language of Biblical Prophecy and Apocalyptic, ISBN 0-8308-2653-X
   2. G. B. Caird, The Language and Imagery of the Bible, ISBN 0-8028-4221-6

1:18a-b This may refer to

1. the ANE practice of buying off an invader (cf. 2 Kgs. 15:20; 18:13-15), but YHWH cannot be bought off!
2. the lifeless idols and helpless gods that Judah was worshiping (i.e., Zeph. 1:4-5; Ezek. 7:19).

I think in context #2 is best.

▣ It is a fearful thing to fall into the hands of an angry God (cf. Gal. 6:7; Heb. 10:31).

SPECIAL TOPIC: FIRE

DISCUSSION QUESTIONS

This is a study guide commentary which means that you are responsible for your own interpretation of the Bible. Each of us must walk in the light we have. You, the Bible, and the Holy Spirit are priority in interpretation. You must not relinquish this to a commentator.

These discussion questions are provided to help you think through the major issues of this section of the book. They are meant to be thought-provoking, not definitive.

1. Why is the opening genealogy so long?
2. How is Zeph. 1:2-3 related to Genesis 1-2 and 6-9?
3. What two kinds of sinners are mentioned in Zeph. 1:4-6?
4. What does the phrase in Zeph. 1:12, "The Lord will not do good or evil" mean?
5. What does "near" and "coming very quickly" mean in apocalyptic literature?
6. Why is Zeph. 1:17c so significant?
7. Is God's judgment temporal or eschatological?

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