Last week we heard the prophet Zephaniah say: “[The Lord] will stretch out his hand against the north and destroy Assyria, and he will make Nineveh a desolation, a dry waste like the desert. Herds shall lie down in her midst, all kinds of beasts; even the owl and the hedgehog shall lodge in her capitals; a voice shall hoot in the window; devastation will be on the threshold; for her cedar work will be laid bare. This is the exultant city that lived securely, that said in her heart, ‘I am, and there is no one else.’ What a desolation she has become, a lair for wild beasts! Everyone who passes by her hisses and shakes his fist.”

The southern nation of the Israelite people (a nation called Judah) most certainly are completely thrilled to hear these prophesies against the enemy nation of Assyria. So far, the people of Judah and Jerusalem have heard judgments against their old archenemy the Philistines, judgments against their enemy cousins the Moabites and Ammonites, judgements against further away nations like Cush, and now they hear judgments on their new archenemy the Assyrians.

They can now let out a sigh of relief and cheer. Zephaniah announces the destruction of the enemies all around them. The ruthless, wicked, and grotesque Assyrians (who boast so confidently in their greatness, who terrorize those living around them) will be made nothing. Such a happy proclamation!

Brothers and sisters in Christ, the Lord makes the same promise to you. Your enemies (sin, death, hell, the devil, and the world) will be laid waste. God will judge them all. God will take out His vengeance. That’s great! That’s awesome! God will take out the powers of darkness. We find security in the message that the Lord will destroy the darkness.

Zephaniah says, “Woe to her who is rebellious and defiled, the oppressing city!” The “rebellious and defiled” city may be a Philistine city. The “oppressing city” may be Nineveh of the Assyrians. Judah rejoices to hear the Lord’s woe pronounced on their enemies.

What more does God declare about this rebellious, defiled, oppressing city? “She listens to no voice; she accepts no correction. She does not trust in the LORD; she does not draw near to her God. Her officials within her are roaring lions; her judges are evening wolves that leave nothing till the morning. Her prophets are fickle, treacherous men; her priests profane what is holy; they do violence to the law.” Uh oh! A plot twist! The rebellious, defiled, oppressing city isn’t Nineveh. It isn’t a Philistine city. It’s Jerusalem! Zephaniah crafts his language so the people cheer his message, even as they fail to recognize that in doing so they condemn themselves. It’s brilliant! This is a harsh rebuke of the people of Judah, Jerusalem, the kings, the false prophets, and the priests.

Well, how harsh is this message? When God’s prophets preached these kinds of messages, the kings of Judah often condemned them as traitors. Executions weren’t unknown. Zephaniah may have endangered his life by preaching this message—a far cry from a fickle false prophet.

The Lord brings criminal charges against those who are supposed to be His people. They don’t listen to anyone—even God. They only hear what they want to hear. When the Lord’s Law thunders, their response is that the messenger of God’s Law is being too mean and needs to be more openminded. They reject the Lord’s correction. They don’t trust the Lord, who has done so many miraculous deeds among them. They trust nations, people, statues, and the “gods” they invent in their own minds—even though none of these can do anything divine. They don’t draw near to God. They think they are doing fine without God.

The Lord can bring these charges against those who are supposed to be His people today—even against us! I’ve witnessed plenty of people not listen to God’s message. I’ve witnessed people openly reject the Lord’s Law. I’ve heard of faithful Christians being scolded for reciting Bible passages that others didn’t like. We all struggle with trusting the Lord with 100% of our hears 100% of the time. Worldly things we refuse to live without are idols. Any ideas or beliefs that we hold in contradiction to God’s Word are false religious beliefs. Our sinful natures hate drawing near to God. We may struggle with thinking that we are better than unbelievers like the way the people of Judah and Jerusalem thought they were better than their enemies.

Compare the charges against Judah, Jerusalem, and all sinners with the character and actions of the Lord. “The LORD within her is righteous; he does no injustice; every morning he shows forth his justice; each dawn he does not fail.” The Lord is among His people in Judah and Jerusalem—acting in righteousness and holiness, not defilement and oppression. The prominent among the people seek to take advantage of the widow and the fatherless, but the Lord comes to their defense in justice. The Lord is with them every morning for their benefit. He promises never to leave or forsake you—His people.

Those who refuse the Lord’s goodness and mercy, feel no shame in their rebellion, moral decay, and oppression of others. They often double down on these, bringing more hurt to others and themselves. The Lord seeks to break their hardened hearts with His Law.

Don’t think that the Lord is afraid to bring His judgment. He’s done so many times. Sodom and Gomorrah—destroyed. The powerful hand of God decimated the Egyptians. The Lord has shown His power to “cut off nations” and leave cities “laid waste.” His judgments are no joke! All sinners—all people—should take them seriously.

You would think that Judah and Jerusalem would’ve seen the deeds of the Lord (both His judgments and His acts of salvation) and repented in confession and faith—a proper fear of the Lord. You would think that they would finally actually receive the correction of the Lord. Instead, they double down on their sinful corruption, but that’s what unbelief does! The same thing happened during Jesus’ earthly ministry. The leaders heard His preaching, saw His deeds, and many of them doubled down on their unbelief!

What do we do? Do we reject with obstinate hearts or do we repent in confession and faith—a proper fear of the Lord? Do we receive the correction of the Lord that both His Law and His Gospel bring?

Scripture teaches the faithful to take courage and wait for the Lord. Well, Scripture also tells those who refuse to heed God’s warnings to “wait.” Wait for His “indignation.” Wait for His “burning anger.” Wait for “the fire” of His “jealousy” that consumes “all the earth.” What a dreadful waiting for those who refuse to receive the Lord’s goodness and mercy—a goodness and mercy He so much desires to give!

As sharp as Zephaniah has been, so he makes a sharp turn in his rhetoric. He suddenly prophesies not of destroying but of changing—changing peoples’ speech to pure speech. He prophesies of them not ignoring the Lord, but calling upon Him. He prophesies of them not rebelling against the Lord, but serving Him. He prophecies of those far away (farther away than Cush, the Gentiles) being “worshipers” of the Lord, bringing His offering. Zephaniah prophesies about you coming to faith in the Lord Jesus and calling on His name for forgiveness, life, and salvation in thanks and praise!

“On that day”, “On that day,” Zephaniah says, “On that day”, “you shall not be put to shame.” You won’t have reason for shame on that day. What day? “The day of the Lord” that Zephaniah warned of in chapter one. “The day of the Lord” that “is near.” What is “the day of the Lord”? The day of the Lord’s coming. The day of His reckoning. We can understand this in several ways.

The “day of the Lord” is when Jesus comes again in glory to Judge the living and the dead. The warning judgment of Judah and Jerusalem is a small picture of the final judgment to come upon all earth. Those who hear, receive, and believe God’s message of salvation will enter into eternal glory. Those who reject it will face His burning anger.

The “day of the Lord” is His coming among us in Word and Sacrament, for whenever the Lord comes among us in the means of grace a judgment takes place. It’s a private verdict—happening in the heart—of the public judgment on the Last Day. Those who receive and believe the Lord’s Good News of forgiveness, life, and salvation are pardoned, brought from the realm of darkness to the kingdom of light, and declared God’s precious children. We are warned not to walk away from receiving and believing these gifts, lest we come under God’s judgment. Those who reject the Lord’s Good News of forgiveness, life, and salvation remain under His condemnation until they repent. Those who refuse to repent will face the final judgment of hell on the last day.

The “day of the Lord” is Jesus’ conception and birth as God and man. The shepherds were told, “Unto you is born this day in the city of David a Savior, who is Christ the Lord.” Joseph was directed to name Him Jesus, because “He will save His people from their sins.”

The focus of all of these “days of the Lord” are brought together by a particular event—well, two events constituting a three-day time period. of time. Let us consider them as one event, because they belong together. I’m talking about the death and resurrection of Jesus. God’s day of judgment poured out upon Him on the cross. Jesus took our sin and our shame, so that you and I won’t be put to shame. We can stand before the Lord’s presence here today and on the last day to come.

Only Christ’s death for our sins and His glorious resurrection explain the positively sharp change of language of Zephaniah from harsh condemnation to the overflowing joy of forgiveness and salvation.

Speaking of His children (including you) the Lord says, “they shall seek refuge in the name of the Lord… they shall do no injustice and speak no lies, nor shall there be found in their mouth a deceitful tongue. For they shall graze and lie down, and none shall make them afraid.” A beautiful picture of the Good Shepherd with His sheep! It continues… “Sing aloud, O daughter of Zion; shout, O Israel! Rejoice and exult with all your heart, O daughter of Jerusalem!” The Lord calls you and your brothers and sisters in Christ to rejoice and praise, no longer under God’s wrath.

The true King of Israel, the Lord Jesus, is in our midst. So, why do we fear evil? That’s silly! We don’t have to do that! Praise the Lord!

But listen to this beautiful statement. We tend to think of our rejoicing in the Lord as part of our praise, but Zephaniah proclaims that the Lord rejoices “over you with gladness.” We are His joy. That’s why Jesus died for us. We haven’t earned it. We haven’t deserved it. And yet, the Lord rejoices over His people.

There’s so much more here! “The Lord exults over you with loud singing.” Usually, Scripture calls on us to sing to the Lord. But here Zephaniah describes salvation with such joy, that the Lord Himself exults over us with singing, while we exult over Him with singing. We sing back and forth to each other. Amazing stuff!

There’s more incredible news. Do you ever feel like partying when you are in a time of grief and mourning? Probably not. Yet, the Lord is going to gather those of you who mourn for a festival. I assume it’s the marriage supper of the Lamb in His kingdom. The great heavenly banquet promised to His people all throughout Scripture.

The Lord promises to deal with all our oppressors: sin, death, hell, the devil, the world, and even our sinful natures. The Lord will deliver us from them all. Those who are lame are made to walk. Those who are outcasts are received into God’s family. Those who have been made to feel ashamed will be honored. The Lord will restore the fortunes of His children. He remembers your sins no more and gives you eternal life for the sake of His Son, who has claimed you as His own by His blood.

Zephaniah came at us with the terrifying force of God’s Law, so that having heard, received, and believed God’s warning of judgment he may leave us with the amazing Good News of salvation in Jesus. Amen.