The Fifth Sunday in Lent (OT)

Zephaniah 1:7-18
7 Be silent before the Lord GOD!
For the day of the LORD is near;
the LORD has prepared a sacrifice
and consecrated his guests.
8 And on the day of the LORD’s sacrifice—
“I will punish the officials and the king’s sons
and all who array themselves in foreign attire.
9 On that day I will punish
everyone who leaps over the threshold,
and those who fill their master’s house
with violence and fraud.
10 “On that day,” declares the LORD,
“a cry will be heard from the Fish Gate,
a wail from the Second Quarter,
a loud crash from the hills.
11 Wail, O inhabitants of the Mortar!
For all the traders are no more;
all who weigh out silver are cut off.
12 At that time I will search Jerusalem with lamps,
and I will punish the men
who are complacent,
those who say in their hearts,
‘The LORD will not do good,
nor will he do ill.’
13 Their goods shall be plundered,
and their houses laid waste.
Though they build houses,
they shall not inhabit them;
though they plant vineyards,
they shall not drink wine from them.”
14 The great day of the LORD is near,
near and hastening fast;
the sound of the day of the LORD is bitter;
the mighty man cries aloud there.
15 A day of wrath is that day,
a day of distress and anguish,
a day of ruin and devastation,
a day of darkness and gloom,
a day of clouds and thick darkness,
16 a day of trumpet blast and battle cry
against the fortified cities
and against the lofty battlements.
17 I will bring distress on mankind,
so that they shall walk like the blind,
because they have sinned against the LORD;
their blood shall be poured out like dust,
and their flesh like dung.
18 Neither their silver nor their gold
shall be able to deliver them
on the day of the wrath of the LORD.
In the fire of his jealousy,
all the earth shall be consumed;
for a full and sudden end
he will make of all the inhabitants of the earth.
The Holy Bible: English Standard Version. 2001 (Zep 1:7–18). Wheaton: Standard Bible Society.

The Day of the LORD appears to be at hand. The Day of Judgment when God will send his wrath upon the people. This Day of Trumpets and Day of wrath will come with fire. Zephaniah gives us a picture of battlements and military strength, while the people of Israel find pain and torment.

There is much that could be taught here. But I find the phrase interesting, "The LORD will not do good, nor will he do ill." Does this mean the LORD will merely sit on the sidelines. The people of God have put him on the bench. Eventually God will come to be the Judge. He will return the balance to all things. He is our Master not our servant.

Many pagan religions treat the gods like servants of men. They call upon their gods when they need something. When humans no longer call upon them, they will stop existing. Therefore, the people of nothing to worry about when God sits on the sidelines. But we do not have a God that sits on the sidelines.

We have a God that gets involved with his people. We have a God that comes to meet his people in a time of slavery. We have a God that comes down to become one of us. He does desire to get involved in our lives. He does so to save us from our sins. But here Zephaniah reminds us that he also comes to judge. And so he shall show his wrath to those who place him on the sidelines, when he finally gets involved.