Zephaniah began
his prophesy with his lineage and quickly began to pronounce the
Lord's judgment upon “all the land”. Both men and animals
were to be “utterly consumed” and
were to be “cut off” within their habitation. In chapter
one and verse four of his prophesy, Zephaniah continued to share the
Lord's judgment as he included, Judah, Jerusalem, Baal and the
Chemarims in his words where we read:
I will
also stretch out my hand upon Judah, and upon all the inhabitants of
Jerusalem; and I will cut off the remnant of Baal from this place,
and the name
of the Chemarims with the priests;
The
verse begins, “I will also stretch out my hand upon
Judah, and upon all the inhabitants of Jerusalem;”
Zephaniah declared, “I will also stretch out”
which is all one Hebrew word, “natah” which means “extend,
spread out, pitch, incline, bend and bow” “my hand”
which is like the “hand of a
man and refers to strength and power” “upon Judah”
which means “praised” and was “the kingdom comprised of the
tribes of Judah and Benjamin which occupied the southern part of
Canaan after the nation split upon the death of Solomon” “and
upon all the inhabitants”
which is one Hebrew word “yashab” which means “those who dwell,
remain, sit, abide and live” “of Jerusalem”
which means “teaching of peace” and was “the chief city of
Palestine and capital of the united kingdom and the nation of Judah
after the split”.
The
verse goes on to say, “and I will cut
off the remnant of Baal from this place, and
the name of the Chemarims with the priests;
Zephaniah continued, “and I will cut
off” or
“cut down and out, eliminate and kill” “the
remnant” which
means “rest, residue and remainder” “of
Baal”
whose name means “lord” and was the “supreme male divinity of
the Phoenicians or Canaanites” “from
this place”
which referred to “the standing place, station, post and office”
“and the name”
or “reputation, fame and glory” “of
the Chemerims”
which were “idolatrous priests” “with
the priests”
or “principal officers and chief rulers”. Not only was the Lord
going to “cut off”
the inhabitants of the land, but also the religious authorities who
ruled over the spiritual things within Judah and Jerusalem.
When
we consider how thorough the Lord was in His pronouncement of
judgment upon the people of Judah, we notice that not even the clergy
were exempt. The corruption within the then known “church” or
“synagogue” was so vast that not even those who were to be
respected were immune. None of the “inhabitants”
were going to escape, and particularly those who worshipped the idol
of Baal and were his priests were going to face judgment. Let us be
aware as we study Zephaniah's words, when the judgment of the Lord
falls, it is complete, and though many may have thought themselves in
“good shape”, none of them actually were. May the Lord help us to
examine our own lives in light of His word, and be sure to align
ourselves with the all encompassing grace of our Lord Jesus Christ
when we do.
Next
time we will see more what the Lord will “cut off”,
so read ahead, and we shall join together then.
Until
tomorrow…there is more…
Look
for the daily devotional book “Equipped for Battle – From
Generation to Generation”, the marriage book “So, You Want to Be
Married”, and the new devotional “One Year in the Sermon on the
Mount” in all major bookstore sites, http://www.amazon.com
; http://www.barnesandnobles.com
; download to e-books, and find it locally at
http://www.mrzlc.com/bookstore.
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