INTRODUCTION TO

Zephaniah

ZEPHANIAH FORESAW the ravages of the Day of the Lord. Zephaniah not only proclaimed the details of God’s judgment, but he also conveyed that God’s faithful people would one day live in a world of righteousness and experience the everlasting peace, prosperity, and joy that God has prepared for all who love him.

AUTHOR

The prophet Zephaniah traces his patrilineage four generations back to a certain Hezekiah. Jewish (e.g., Ibn Ezra, Kimchi) and Christian (e.g., Walker) commentators alike have commonly identified this Hezekiah with the king by that name. Although Laetsch (1956:254) is doubtless correct in stating that “Zephaniah’s royal descent cannot be proven,” the unusual notice concerning four generations of family lineage indicates, at the very least, that Zephaniah came from a distinguished family.

Zephaniah was a man for his times. Not only was he aware of the spiritual debauchery and materialistic greed of his people, as well as of world conditions, but God’s prophet was a man of deep spiritual sensitivity who had a real concern for God’s reputation (1:6; 3:7) and for the well-being of all who humbly trust in him (2:3; 3:9, 12-13).

DATE AND OCCASION OF WRITING

Although Zephaniah dates his ministry to the reign of Josiah (640–609 BC), a question remains as to the specific period within the Judean king’s reign.[103] Some scholars (e.g., Feinberg, Keil) suggest that Zephaniah’s denunciation of Judah’s apostasy and immorality becomes more dramatic if delivered after the recovery of the Book of the Law (2 Kgs 22:8) in 621 BC and the subsequent Josianic reforms (2 Kgs 23:1-27; 2 Chr 34:29–35:19). Others (e.g., Pusey, Laetsch) decide for the earlier period, before the boy king was able to deal with the ruinous effects of Judah’s two preceding wicked kings, Manasseh and Amon (2 Kgs 21).

Several conclusions drawn from Zephaniah’s message seem to favor the earlier period in Josiah’s reign: (1) Religious practices in Judah were still plagued with Canaanite syncretistic rites such as characterized the era of Manasseh (1:4-5, 9); (2) many failed to worship Yahweh at all (1:6); (3) the royalty were enamored with wearing the clothing of foreign merchants (1:8; see NASB, NIV) who had extensive business enterprises in Jerusalem (1:10-11); and (4) Judahite society was beset by socioeconomic ills (1:12-13, 18) and political and religious corruption (3:1-4, 7, 11). All this sounds like the same sort of wickedness that weighed heavily on the heart of Habakkuk. Moreover, several of the specific sins (e.g., 1:4-5, 9; 3:4) would have been corrected in Josiah’s reforms.

Accepting such a date means that the historical setting has advanced little beyond that of Nahum and Habakkuk. Externally, the Pax Assyriaca held sway. Of that great era W. W. Hallo observes that, in addition to the Assyrian rulers’ attention to administrative matters and details related to extensive building projects, literature and learning also came into their own, and the vast library assembled by Ashurbanipal at Nineveh is only the most dramatic expression of the new leisure. In spite of their protestations to the contrary, the later Sargonid kings were inclined to sit back and enjoy the fruits of empire.[104]

Ashurbanipal’s preoccupation with the belles lettres inspired him to collect ancient texts, particularly those dealing with traditional wisdom and religious matters.[105] Ashurbanipal’s more leisurely lifestyle is reflected not only in his literary interests but in various interests in matters other than the affairs of state. As a result of this attitude, the empire began to show signs of the decay that would hasten its demise a scant generation after his death in 626 BC.[106] Already by Zephaniah’s day, an uneasy consciousness of impending disaster hung over the empire. The whole ancient Near East was in the grip of climactic change, as the balance of power in the Near Eastern world shifted radically from what it had been for nearly 300 years. Assyria’s death throes were fast approaching.

Under such conditions, it is small wonder that Josiah was increasingly free to pursue his reform policies, extending them even to the former northern kingdom. In addition, Judah would know a political and economic resurgence that it had not experienced since the days of Hezekiah. When one considers that Josiah was only eight years old when he ascended the throne in 640 BC and that his reforms were not instituted until the twelfth year of his reign (628 BC), four years after his initial spiritual awakening (2 Chr 34:3), Zephaniah’s prophetic activities may have had a salutary effect in the reformation of that era. Thus, a date of 635–630 BC is not unlikely.

Granted the conclusions reached above, the occasion for Zephaniah’s prophecy lies in the deplorable spiritual and moral condition of Judahite society in the early days of Josiah’s reign. Cognizant of the spiritual conditions that would surely spell the end of Judah itself, Zephaniah spoke out for God and against wickedness. He wrote to inform and warn his people of God’s coming judgment, not only against all the world (1:2-3), especially the nations that had oppressed God’s people (2:4-15), but also against Judah and Jerusalem (1:4-6; 3:1-7). In so doing, he exposed (1) the false worship practices that included the veneration of Baal and the astral deities and the syncretistic rites that emerged from attempting to blend their worship with that of Yahweh (1:4-6, 9; 3:2, 4) and (2) the corruption of Judahite society (3:1, 3, 5), especially its leaders and merchants (1:8, 10-13, 18; 3:5).[107]

Zephaniah also wrote to inform the people about God’s future program. On the one hand, he tells of the fearsome events of the Day of the Lord (1:14-16) that must come because of man’s sins (1:17-18) and, on the other, of the Lord’s undying concern for his people (3:5, 7), especially those who are of a humble and contrite heart (2:3; 3:12). Zephaniah therefore wrote to exhort and admonish the people to surrender to God (1:7) and to repent and seek him (2:1-3), not only to avoid the force of the Lord’s fiery blast but also in anticipation of that glorious time when a redeemed and purified people will rejoice in the salvation and delights of God’s love (3:14-17).

AUDIENCE

Zephaniah’s prophecies were delivered to a Judahite society beset by spiritual, socioeconomic, and moral corruption. Thoroughly at home in Jerusalem and aware of conditions there (1:10-13), this prophet of keen spiritual sensitivity and moral perception decried the apostate and immoral hearts of the people, especially those who were in positions of leadership (1:4-6, 9, 17; 3:1-4, 7, 11).[108] If, as suggested previously, Zephaniah was a man of social prominence and therefore had the ear of Judah’s leadership, it reminds all of us who read his messages that God uses people of all social strata. Zephaniah’s life and ministry are a testimony that one soul, yielded wholly to God, can effect great things.

CANONICITY AND TEXTUAL HISTORY

Although critical concern has been expressed as to the authenticity of Zephaniah, its canonicity has never been called into question. It was known to the author of Apocalypse of Zephaniah (as attested in line 7 of a Coptic Sahidic fragment [Frag. B]), accepted by Philo and Josephus, and included in the early-church canonical lists. Jesus appears to have drawn upon Zephaniah 1:3 in his parable concerning the end of the age (Matt 13:41), as did John (cf. Rev 6:17 with Zeph 1:14-18; Rev 14:5 with Zeph 3:13; Rev 16:1 with Zeph 3:8). In addition, the Talmud (b. Sanhedrin 98a) and early Christian Fathers (e.g., Clement of Alexandria, Cyprian, Augustine) cited Zephaniah as authoritative in their condemnations of pride and idolatry.

As for the text of Zephaniah, while it is true that the Masoretic Text is difficult to understand in places (e.g., 1:2, 14; 2:14), it may be safely affirmed that the Masoretic Text is the best form of the text available. Roberts (1991:163) appropriately remarks: “The text of Zephaniah is in relatively good condition. It has its text-critical problems, like many other prophetic books, but they are comparatively minor. . . . In general the book may be taken as a clear statement of the message of Zephaniah.”

LITERARY STYLE

Zephaniah, like several other Old Testament books, is arranged as a bifid—that is, it has a two-part structure.[109] This conclusion is reinforced by considering its structural components. (1) The section 1:1–2:3 comprises an inclusio formed by the occurrence of the theme of God’s dealing with the earth (1:2, 3; 2:2). A similar reference to the earth closes the second section and the book (3:20). (2) The two halves of Zephaniah are arranged in complementary fashion (see “Outline,” below), each section being bound together by distinctive stitch words.

Although Zephaniah does not display the genius of an Isaiah or Nahum, his literary artistry is not lacking. In addition to making frequent use of the customary judgment oracles (e.g., 1:2-6, 14-18; 2:4-15), one of which is in the form of a woe oracle (3:1-7), and salvation oracles (e.g., 3:9-13, 14-20), he also utilizes the lament (1:10-11) and instructional exhortation (2:1-3). He also employs several literary figures, especially metaphor and simile (1:7; 2:2; 3:3), synecdoche (1:16), and metonymy (3:16).[110] Perhaps most distinctive of all is his frequent use of repetition and wordplay, at times displayed as puns (e.g., 2:4-7). In addition, Zephaniah is fond of literary allusions (1:2-3; 3:9-10).

Some (e.g., G. A. Smith) have suggested that Zephaniah made use of the apocalyptic genre in his teachings concerning the Day of the Lord. Although Zephaniah 1:14-18 contains material of a sort that would one day become prominent in apocalyptic literature, it is not an apocalypse as such. Rather, it displays themes that are found in prophetic eschatology. To the extent that Zephaniah utilizes cosmic themes and extreme language, he thereby anticipates later apocalyptic thought. With Zephaniah, however, we are removed from the fervor that is characteristic of later Jewish apocalyptic literature, such as 2 Enoch, 3 Baruch, and the fragmentary apocalyptic pseudepigrapha attributed to Zephaniah. Like Joel, Zephaniah is not so much concerned with a future that breaks into the present as he is with the unfolding of God’s sovereign and ordered arrangement of history so as to bring it to its intended culmination.[111]

MAJOR THEMES

As in the book of Joel, Zephaniah’s major theme is the Day of the Lord. That coming day is to be one that involves all nations (1:2-4; 3:8a; cf. 2:4-15) and a time when God will pour out his wrath in judgment (1:14-18; 3:8b) for mankind’s sin and rebellion (1:2-6, 9-13; 2:1-3, 8-11; 3:2-4, 5-7). Accordingly, people are urged to humble themselves and repent (1:11; 2:1-3) in the hope that a loving and merciful God might ameliorate the penalty they deserve (2:3; 3:9-10).

Concomitant with the Day of the Lord theme is that of the remnant (cf. King 1994), which will be sheltered (2:3) and spared (1:12; 3:12) in that time of wrath. Therefore, believers are urged to wait for the Lord (3:8a) and his deliverance (3:14-17) in order that they may return to the land (3:18-20). There, they will become those who call upon the Lord and serve him (3:9, 13) so as to live in peace, purity, and everlasting felicity (3:13-14). The remnant theme thus contains within it both the realization of coming judgment and the expectation that God is a God who will hear the prayers of his repentant people, preserve them through danger, and deliver them to a joyful inheritance.

THEOLOGICAL CONCERNS

Zephaniah is best remembered for his presentation of God as the sovereign judge of all (1:2-3, 7, 14-18; 3:8), punishing the wickedness of people (1:8-9, 17; 3:7, 11) and nations (2:4-15; 3:6), particularly those who have opposed his people (2:8, 10).

Zephaniah also has much to say about the human condition. Zephaniah focuses on the basic problem of pride (2:15), which engenders a spirit of wickedness (1:3-6, 17; 3:1, 4). Such wickedness causes people to reason that God does not intervene in human affairs (1:12) and so to go on in their violence and deceit (1:9). Further, their greed occasions the oppression of those around them (1:10-11, 13, 18; 3:3). C. K. Lehman observes that “this book has gone to the greatest depths in its exposure of sin and man’s sinfulness.”[112]

These teachings are characteristically entwined in the Day of the Lord theme. As King (1995) shows, the day of the Lord’s universal sovereignty and superiority is one both of judgment and salvation, at times invoked as a matter of covenant implementation. VanGemeren (1989:674-679) notes the highly developed theological features of the Day of the Lord. He points out that it is (1) the day of Yahweh’s intrusion into human affairs, (2) the day of God’s judgment on all creation, (3) a day that is both historical and eschatological, (4) a day in which all creation must submit to God’s sovereignty (willingly or unwillingly), (5) a day which does not discriminate in favor of the rich and powerful but between the wicked and the humble, and (6) a day of deliverance, vindication, glorification, and full redemption of the godly.

Zephaniah holds out the hope that God will be receptive to everyone who repentantly surrenders to him (2:1-2). Such spiritual virtues as righteousness, humility, faith, and truth receive commendation and reward from Zephaniah (2:3; 3:12-13). The Lord has a plan for the humble and faithful remnant of his people (2:2-3, 9; 3:11-13).[113] He will purify them (3:9-10), gather and restore them to their land (3:20), and give them victory over their enemies (2:7, 9). Jerusalem will be a blissful place (3:11, 18) because Israel’s saving God (3:17) will bless his people (3:14-17) and in turn make them a channel of blessing to all (3:19-20).

OUTLINE

Superscription (1:1)

I.   The Announcement of the Day of the Lord (1:2–2:3)

A.   Pronouncements of Judgment (1:2-6)

B.   Warnings Based on Judgment (1:7-13)

C.   A Description of the Coming Judgment (1:14-18)

D.   An Exhortation in Light of the Judgment (2:1-3)

II.   Additional Details concerning the Day of the Lord (2:4–3:20)

A.   Further Pronouncements of Judgment (2:4–3:7)

1.   Pronouncement on the nations (2:4-15)

2.   Pronouncement on Jerusalem (3:1-7)

B.   Instructions Based on Judgment (3:8)

C.   A Description of the Coming Deliverance (3:9-13)

D.   Final Exhortation (3:14-20)