Zephaniah 3:8-20 - Yahweh the Singing Warrior

Podcast Transcript (Auto-Transcribed by Apple Podcasts)

Hello, and welcome back to Tabernacle Talk in absolutely record time. We have blown through a book of the Bible. The first book that we went through was 48 episodes.

The next book, book one of Psalms, was 41 episodes. And this book of the Bible, Zephaniah, was only three episodes. And that's because it's a much shorter book.

But it was one that, in this collection of the minor prophets, what was called back in around the time of Jesus, the Book of the Twelve, it was all 12 of these minor prophets, kind of shorter books, not less important than the major prophets, but

shorter in length than the major prophets. That would be Isaiah, Ezekiel, Jeremiah, and Daniel.

And as the Hebrews, as they looked at these 12 books and they saw, it ranges from before the Northern Kingdom of Israel had been taken out by Assyria to even after Jerusalem and Judah had returned from their exile in Babylon after Babylon had

destroyed Jerusalem. And you have some of the prophets like Malachi and others that are prophesying during that time. It's just all of those messages.

And they saw in that these continual promises about God's goodness and his faithfulness that they could see, hey, hundreds of years ago, we were being told that there would be punishment for this sin, but that God would bring us back.

And yeah, our ancestors were in captivity. Like we were working hard for the Babylonians for decades and decades, but God has brought us back. And it inspired faith in them.

It inspired some fear in them as well, some holy fear that God is true to his word.

And maybe these people that lived a couple hundred years or a couple decades before Assyria came or before Babylon came, maybe they didn't believe these prophets at the time, but now looking back, we definitely believe them.

And we're not going to make the same mistake that they did. We're not gonna fall into idolatry again. We're not gonna fall into worshiping false gods and all of that anymore.

We're gonna go on a new path. And obviously they would do that with some level of success, but they still needed the new heart that only God could provide. And then when Jesus came onto the scene, he referenced even some of these books.

You can look as he speaks with the disciples at large, as he talks with the two disciples on the road to Emmaus. And it says that he told them, he expounded to them everything in the scriptures about himself.

It says beginning at the law and the prophets, beginning from Moses all the way through to that end writing of the Psalms. And that was kind of the heading whatever of the Ketuvim, that last collection of books in the Old Testament.

He says, from the whole thing, Jesus showed them where he was. And so hopefully as we look at the end of Zephaniah today, that's what we'll see.

Once more, just in recap, since there's only three episodes on this, Zephaniah, he's a prophet during the last decades of the Southern Kingdom of Judah.

He's prophesying about the coming destruction that is coming on Judah because of their wickedness, because of their idolatry, because of their trust in other nations, because of the wickedness that their leaders were involved in and that they

themselves were involved in. He told them, I don't want to crush you. And so everyone that turns to me, everyone that repents, I'm gonna seal, I'm gonna protect, I'm going to conceal and I'm going to protect.

Then yesterday, we looked at Zephaniah 2 where he says, and as proof of this, everyone around you as well is going to fall under this judgment, this condemnation that I'm bringing.

So whether it's the Canaanites to the west, whether it's Assyria to the north, whether it's Moab and Ammon to the west, the east, or whether it's Kush to the south, everyone is getting some judgment.

And he ended with this that we read yesterday in Zephaniah 3 and verse number eight that will then take us into the end of the book today. He says, therefore wait for me. This is Yahweh's declaration.

Until the day I rise up for plunder, for my decision is to gather nations, to assemble kingdoms in order to pour out my indignation on them. All my burning anger for the whole earth will be consumed by the fire of my jealousy.

Here God is, he's often referenced as a jealous God. Now when we think of jealousy, we think of it in a bad way. We think someone being over possessive, but here that's not at all what the word means.

It's I am jealous for the love of my wife and that is a good thing to have, especially in a marriage, especially a Christian marriage, that you would have that exclusivity for one another. And here this is what God's saying.

He's saying I am supposed to be Israel's God. I'm supposed to be Judah's God, but they are not worshiping me alone. They are worshiping all these other nations' gods.

And so here he says there is going to be a fire, if you will, that consumes. And we would know from history in 586 BC Babylon was that fire that came through and devoured Judah and Jerusalem.

But then he says this, the fire comes, the fire of his jealousy on all these assembled nations.

And then verse nine, for I will then restore pure speech to the peoples, that is all the nations, so that all of them may call on the name of Yahweh and serve him with a single purpose.

From beyond the rivers of Cush, so beyond Ethiopia, my supplicants, my dispersed people will bring an offering to me. On that day, you will not be put to shame because of everything you have done in rebelling against me.

For then, I will remove from among you your jubilant, arrogant people and you will never again be haughty on my holy mountain. I will leave a meek and humble people among you and they will take refuge in the name of Yahweh.

The remnant of Israel will no longer do wrong or tell lies. A deceitful tongue will not be found in their mouths. They will pasture and lie down with nothing to make them afraid.

Sing for joy. Well, here, I'm going to stop right here.

So here, God says this fire that's coming, that's going to consume all of the earth, as we think about it, if we're thinking like, you know, kind of a Zeus version of God, yes, he just wants to destroy everyone.

And he says the fire that comes down is going to purge evil and it's going to make it so that what is left of mankind follows him, is pure in heart, that does not lie, that does not do injustice.

Instead, they will live their lives, and it says with nothing to make them afraid. I love even some of George Washington's final statements as he left office. I've heard it put to song, obviously.

There's a very famous musical that does that. And he mentions this phrase, they will pasture and lie down with nothing to make them afraid.

And I think here we're probably intended to think about David's words in Psalm 23, that he makes me to lie down in green pastures. He leads me beside the still waters. And there in that day, when God purges all evil, we will be forever safe.

There will never be a moment where you will have to fear a cancer diagnosis.

There will be a day where you don't have to fear, maybe if someone will break into your home or if you go on a walk, if something bad will happen to you, there will be no more fear in that day.

You won't have to fear even offending someone else with your actions. It will be peaceful. It will be rejoicing.

There will be happiness. And this is then what he goes on to say in verse number 14. Sing for joy, daughter Zion.

Shout loudly, Israel. Be glad and celebrate with all your heart, daughter Jerusalem. Yahweh has removed your punishment.

He has turned back your enemy. The king of Israel, Yahweh, is among you. You need no longer fear harm.

Man, can you imagine that day when Jesus returns and with all of his saints, he comes, he has punished sin and the nations of the earth there at Armageddon, and he shows up, and Zion and Jerusalem are safe forever.

And then, not only that, but as his saints join into that thousand-year reign that he has afterwards, we too enjoy this, that the king of Israel, Yahweh, he has removed our punishment.

It was all placed on Jesus, and there is no more punishment left for us. He is the one that has turned back our enemy.

Satan has been foiled, that he who once ruled our souls, Paul would phrase it, that we were the children of disobedience, that Satan was our father, even as Jesus would say in John 8, that no longer does our enemy have any sway over us.

He has been cast down into the pit, and as a result, we no longer need to fear harm. It says, on that day it will be said to Jerusalem, do not fear. Zion, do not let your hands grow weak.

Don't freak out. He says, Yahweh, your God is among you, that Jesus will be with us. We will no longer just believe in Him because of what He said in His Word.

We won't just believe in Him because of His Spirit living in us. We won't just believe in Him because of the testimony of the saints for the past 2,000 years. Instead, He will be with us.

Emmanuel, God made flesh, and we will never be apart from Him, that He will always be with us. Yahweh, your God is among you. He is a warrior who saves.

When it comes to that final battle, when it comes to your battles that you fight today, you are not fighting them. You are reliant on the warrior, on the God who fights battles that you cannot see that over and over again in the Old Testament.

That's what's said, that yes, we interact with our world today, but when it comes to the Red Sea, we are not the ones that destroy Pharaoh and his chariots. When it comes to the walls of Jericho, we are not the ones who make the impossible happen.

When it comes to the city of Ai in the Book of Joshua, we are not the ones that have the brilliant battle tactics. It's God.

If we are the ones like in the story of Gideon in the Book of Judges that we can't fight the giant army all by ourselves, but God gives us, hey, here's a trumpet I want you to blow. Here's a lamp that I want you to light.

God is the one who fights our battles, who wins our victories. He is the one that surrounds our enemies with that angel army. He is the one that makes the fish spit out Jonah.

He is the one who makes a giant fall to a shepherd boy. He is the one that when we pray and when we praise, he's the one that opens the prison doors. He's the one that sends an angel to release Peter from jail.

He's the one that goes to a cross that dies in our place, that walks out of the grave and leaves an angel behind to let everyone know he's not here, he is risen. God is our warrior who saves us. The victory is not ours.

The battle belongs to Jesus. And then he says this, He, God, will rejoice over you with gladness. God is not unhappy that you are his child.

He is rejoicing with gladness. He is so happy that you are his. It says he will be quiet in his love.

That is that he will silence every fear that we have. As John puts it in Revelation, he will wipe every tear from our eye. Thank He ends verse 17 with this.

He will delight in you with singing. One of my favorite things in the world is to sing songs of praise to God, especially with his people. What an incredible thing on that day, when God sings because of his love for us.

I love hearing God's people sing. I can't wait to hear what it sounds like. For my savior to sing about his love for me.

And I think that will be such an incredible moment. He says then in verse number 18, I will gather those who have been driven from the appointed festivals. They will be a tribute from you and a reproach on her.

He says, yes, at that time, I will deal with all who oppress you. I will save the lame, those that cannot walk and gather the outcasts. I will make those who were disgraced throughout the earth receive praise and fame.

If you have been through that, you have maybe been one of those here, those that could not walk or maybe those that are blind, maybe those that have hearing issues, maybe those of all sorts, those that were outcasts, that were not good enough, strong

enough, smart enough. God says, I'm going to make those people receive praise and fame. Everyone, the lowest. And yes, He welcomes everyone in.

But at that time, He brings in those that are hurting, that all throughout this life received only ridicule. And He welcomes them in and praises them, sings over them. Verse number 20, He says, at that time, I will bring you back.

Yes, at the time I will gather you, I will give you fame and praise among all the peoples of the earth. When I restore your fortunes before your eyes, Yahweh has spoken. Man, what an amazing end of the book.

I don't know about you, when I started reading through the book and I read, hey, your blood will be like dust and your body's like dung and there's all this judgment coming, I got nervous. I went, oh man, like there's a lot going on.

But as God brings his justice on sin, he allows for complete repentance. And his goal is never to destroy us or to destroy mankind. His goal is to bring us back into the relationship that he made us for.

And one day, it's all going to be made right. I love this book. It's so small.

But all of the thoughts that he brings out are so important for us. We need to realize God's holiness and God's justice. We need to follow and obey him.

But we also need to realize that he is a God that is desperately in love with us, that one day he will rejoice over us with gladness. He will quiet us with his love. He will allow us to do our daily actions without any fear.

He will rejoice over us with singing. He will make those that were ridiculed and were nothing to anyone and make them receive praise and fame and accolades. It's going to be a wonderful future.

Are you prepared for it today? Do you know Christ as your Savior? Have you ever turned from your sin and repented and believed in his work entirely?

If you've never done that, you can do that today. If you have any questions about that, please message me, comment on whatever you're listening on, email pastorattbcsx.com. I would love to talk with you about having that relationship with Jesus.

Thank you for journeying with me through the Book of Zephaniah. Tomorrow, we're gonna be in the Book of Second John and looking forward to that time with you all going back over to the New Testament.