Slices
Prepare
Zephaniah tells us to ‘be silent’ (v 7) – so let’s give it a go! Focus your thoughts on God. (Perhaps picture the cross or empty tomb.) It may help to set a timer so you don’t clock-watch the silence away.
Bible passage
1 The word of the Lord that came to Zephaniah son of Cushi, the son of Gedaliah, the son of Amariah, the son of Hezekiah, during the reign of Josiah son of Amon king of Judah:
Judgment on the whole earth in the day of the Lord
2 ‘I will sweep away everything
from the face of the earth,’
declares the Lord.
3 ‘I will sweep away both man and beast;
I will sweep away the birds in the sky
and the fish in the sea –
and the idols that cause the wicked to stumble.’
‘When I destroy all mankind
on the face of the earth,’
declares the Lord,
4 ‘I will stretch out my hand against Judah
and against all who live in Jerusalem.
I will destroy every remnant of Baal worship in this place,
the very names of the idolatrous priests –
5 those who bow down on the roofs
to worship the starry host,
those who bow down and swear by the Lord
and who also swear by Molek,
6 those who turn back from following the Lord
and neither seek the Lord nor enquire of him.’
7 Be silent before the Sovereign Lord,
for the day of the Lord is near.
The Lord has prepared a sacrifice;
he has consecrated those he has invited.
8 ‘On the day of the Lord’s sacrifice
I will punish the officials
and the king’s sons
and all those clad
in foreign clothes.
9 On that day I will punish
all who avoid stepping on the threshold,
who fill the temple of their gods
with violence and deceit.
10 ‘On that day,’
declares the Lord,
‘a cry will go up from the Fish Gate,
wailing from the New Quarter,
and a loud crash from the hills.
11 Wail, you who live in the market district;
all your merchants will be wiped out,
all who trade with silver will be destroyed.
12 At that time I will search Jerusalem with lamps
and punish those who are complacent,
who are like wine left on its dregs,
who think, “The Lord will do nothing,
either good or bad.”
13 Their wealth will be plundered,
their houses demolished.
Though they build houses,
they will not live in them;
though they plant vineyards,
they will not drink the wine.’
Explore
The beginning of Zephaniah’s prophecy is breath-taking as God speaks (vs 2,3), threatening to undo his promise to Noah (see Genesis 9:15). This doesn’t mean God can’t be trusted to keep his promises; it is an example of prophetic hyperbole, where a prophet exaggerates to show how serious something is.
Verses 4–12 catalogue the sins of God’s people – and it’s quite the list. Zephaniah begins with idol worship (vs 4,5), specifically Baal (fertility cult), Molek (child sacrifice) and the stars. The people lived without reference to God (v 6), following foreign customs (v 8) and superstitions (v 9; see also 1 Samuel 5:5). God’s people are supposed to be different, yet they were behaving just like everyone else.
But it’s verse 12 where this prophecy hits home today. Read it again. This warning is to God’s own people. How often do we live as though God ‘will do nothing, either good or bad’? How often do we live as though there will be no consequences?
Respond
Zephaniah tells us what God wants (v 6). How might you ‘seek the Lord’ or ‘enquire of him’ with all your heart, in every decision and area of your life, not only when sitting quietly with your Bible notes?
Bible in a year
Read the Bible in a year: Leviticus 26,27; Matthew 13
Pray for Scripture Union
Praise God for all those staff and volunteers of SU and our partner organisations who develop and deliver Amplify. Ask God to help them to keep it really relevant to the needs of young people who want to share their faith. (This week's prayers relate to this story.)
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