Zephaniah 1
A Prophecy of Judgment for Judah and the World
Zephaniah’s prophecies are all about "the day of the LORD." He revealed two things about this "day." First, it would involve judgment (Zephaniah 1:2-3:8) and, second, it would eventuate in blessing (Zephaniah 3:9-20). - Thomas Constable
Author Introduced
Vs. 1 - The word of the Lord that 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.
Zephaniah recorded his genealogy, the longest genealogy of a writing prophet in any prophetical book. It goes back four generations to Zephaniah’s great-great-grandfather, or possibly more distant relative, Hezekiah. - Thomas Constable
Offenders Identified
All Mankind
Vs. 3 - I will cut off mankind from the face of the earth.
Vs. 18 -The whole earth will be consumed by the fire of his jealousy, for he will make a complete, yes, a horrifying end of all the inhabitants of the earth.
Yahweh revealed that He would completely remove everything from the face of the earth. This is one of the most explicit announcements of the total devastation of planet Earth in the Old Testament. While it may involve some hyperbole, it seems clearly to foretell a worldwide judgment. - Thomas Constable
Perhaps Peter’s understanding of the total devastation of God’s future global judgment was shaped by Zephaniah’s prophecy.
2 Peter 3:10, 12-13 - But the day of the Lord will come like a thief; on that day the heavens will pass away with a loud noise, the elements will burn and be dissolved, and the earth and the works on it will be disclosed. Because of that day, the heavens will be dissolved with fire and the elements will melt with heat. But based on his promise, we wait for new heavens and a new earth, where righteousness dwells.
Peter also urged his audience to strive for holiness and godliness, knowing that a “day of the Lord” was coming when all would be judged.
Judah
Vs. 4 - I will stretch out my hand against Judah and against all the residents of Jerusalem.
The prophet opens with a general statement about judgment that probably comes as no surprise to the people of Jerusalem. He announces that God will destroy sin from the earth. What surprises the hearers is Zephaniah’s assertion that God will destroy them, for they too are sinners. - Don Fleming
Zephaniah described God’s judgment of the people of Judah without specifying exactly when He would judge them. Most of what Zephaniah prophesied in this pericope found fulfillment, at least initially, in 586 B.C. - Thomas Constable
Judgment Described
Vs. 7 - Be silent in the presence of the Lord God, for the day of the Lord is near.
This is Zephaniah’s first reference to the day of the Lord, to which he referred 24 times in this book. - Thomas Constable
As employed by the prophets, the Day of the Lord is that time when, for His glory and in accordance with His purposes, God intervenes in human affairs in judgment against sin or for the deliverance of His own. - Patterson
Sin Condemned
Idolatry - vs. 5 - those who bow in worship on the rooftops to the stars in the sky; those who bow and pledge loyalty to the Lord but also pledge loyalty to Milcom;
Oppression - vs. 9 - On that day I will punish all who skip over the threshold, who fill their master’s house with violence and deceit.
Indifference - Vs. 12 - And at that time I will search Jerusalem with lamps and punish those who settle down comfortably, who say to themselves: The Lord will do nothing—good or bad.
