Zephaniah chapter three. Just before we begin reading,
we'll come back to the passage in a moment or two. Just before
we begin reading, I want to reflect upon some of the things that
we have heard and we know about. And I'm not, I guess, teaching
you anything new here in the context of our opening, our introduction
in way of a summary. I just wanted to mention that
in order to, as it were, set the scene a little bit to remind
us of the fact that when the New Testament began, when the
Lord Jesus Christ came into the world, when we read about the
incarnation, we read about the Lord's birth and the beginning
of his ministry, those years later he began his ministry at
the age of 30, His ministry was only three years, so although
we spend so much time thinking about the words and the works
of the Lord Jesus Christ, three brief years was all that it took
for the Lord to reveal himself as who he was and for man to kill him, for
man to slay him. That's all it took, just three
years. And that wasn't in the day when there was all the skills
that people have of information and planning and sorting out
and execution. It just took three years and
they were able to be rid of the Lord. The Apostle John tells
us in John chapter one and verse 11, that when the Lord Jesus
Christ came, he came to his own and his own received him not. He came to his own. And that
reference there is to the fact that the Lord Jesus Christ came
to the people of Israel. He came to the Jews. The Jews
had had committed to them. We read it a couple of weeks
ago, the oracles of God. In our study in the book of Romans,
we have come to that point where the question was asked, is there
any advantage in being a Jew? Was there any advantage in being
circumcised? Was there any advantage in having
this covenant? revealed to us, having God speak
to us? Was there any advantage in that
if we're all sinners under the gaze of a holy God? And you'll
remember that we read together how that the Jews were being
judged by the standard of God's holy law and they were found
wanting. And the Gentiles who had not the law, they were judged
according to the light that they had been given, and they too
were found wanting. So therefore, all were guilty
before God, whether they had had the greater revelation or
the lesser revelation. None could live up to the standard
that they had been given. And when the Lord Jesus Christ,
our Savior, our blessed Savior, that One who had been foretold
as the Messiah of God, the great Deliverer of His people, when
He came to the Jewish people, They would not, in the main,
have him. They would not hear him. They
would not have anything to do with him. The Jews, having been
blessed as they were, amongst the nations by the Lord Jesus
Christ, by special choice, by special blessings, by the giving
and granting of the prophets to them, nevertheless wanted
nothing to do with the Lord. And I'm sure we're well aware
of the narrative that we have in the Gospels as to how he began
his ministry, The ministry grew, the miracles that he performed,
the teaching that he gave, and the animosity that was built
up in the part of the Jews against him. You remember one of the
chief leaders of the Jews right early in the Lord's ministry,
Nicodemus. came to the Lord Jesus Christ.
He had to come by night. Why was that? Maybe it was because
that was the only time that he could get to the Lord. Or maybe
it was because he didn't want to be seen coming to the Lord. But he said to the Lord, we know
that you've been sent by God. We know that. Now we've, we,
we, your ministry hasn't gone unnoticed. We're aware of what's
happening here and we know that you've been sent by God because
no man could do the miracles that you do except the Lord be
with him. The hypocrisy of these people.
They knew that he had come from God and yet within a very short
period of time they were scheming as to how they would be able
to take his life. And so the Lord was rejected. They received him not, not his
words, not his works, not his witness. They rejected his warnings. They scorned his wisdom. Oh,
if they had but listened, if they had been able to give ear.
And then they condemned him to death. And I doubt that there
could have been a more emphatic rejection than that. None of
us like to feel rejection. I don't know whether any of you
have been, I don't know, a door-to-door salesman at any time in your
life, or had to go and do selling. It is one of the hardest things
to be rejected. When you speak to someone, when
you make a presentation, when you put out your case, well,
that's hard enough. The rejection that the Lord has
had was the most serious and intense that we could ever imagine. But of course, we also know that
while he was rejected, that rejection itself had long been anticipated. Because when we look back in
the Old Testament scriptures, we find a strand of teaching,
a strand of revelation, which shows that the prophets of old
foretold that Christ would come, the Messiah would come. And there
was this messianic expectation, there was this anticipation on
the part of the Jews that soon their Messiah was coming. It's
just that when he did come, he wasn't the Messiah that they
expected. And they wouldn't have that.
Men like to make God in their own image. And if he doesn't
live up to what their expectations are, they'll put him away. What
hypocrisy is that? What pomposity to say that if
God is not the kind of God that we conceive of in our minds,
in our hearts, then we're having nothing to do with Him. foolish
men that we are, foolish women that we are. We need to be humbled
before the greatness and the glory and the majesty of God
and believe whatever he says, whatever he does, whatever he
reveals of himself. This strand of teaching showed
that there would be a rejection of the Lord Jesus Christ, but
that that rejection in itself would open another door, and
that there would be a door opened to the Gentiles. that the gospel
of the Lord Jesus Christ, having been rejected in the main, not
entirely because there were always a remnant that were maintained
amongst the Jews, a witness of true believers, spiritual men
and women amongst the Jews as well, and we can see them in
the Old Testament scriptures and we can see them at the time
of Christ, People like Simeon who were waiting on the coming
of the Lord. People like Anna who hoped and
treasured the prospect of the Lord's coming. And they were
faithful to the word of God. But in a minority, very few. Just keep your finger in the
space at Zephaniah and turn with me please to Isaiah. Just to,
until I show you this. Isaiah and 49. 49 in verse 1. I just want to read a few verses
from Isaiah 49 in verse 1. Whenever you encounter the word
isles in scripture, generally it's talking about the Gentiles,
not because the words sound the same, but because the isles were
what you had to travel to. You had to get in a boat and
go to the isles and the Jews thought of anybody that was beyond
their own borders as living somewhere out to sea and therefore this
phrase, the Isles, generally means those people beyond the
borders of Israel and therefore those who were Gentiles. Listen,
O Isles, unto me, and hearken ye people from far. The Lord
hath called me from the womb. From the bowels of my mother
hath he made mention of my name. So see even what's happening
here. Here is a message that's going to the Gentiles in Isaiah,
way back in the Old Testament. Listen, O Isles, unto me. This
is messianic, but it's a message that is going beyond the borders
of Israel to the Gentiles. And he hath made my mouth like
a sharp sword. In the shadow of his hand hath
he hid me, and made me a polished shaft. In his quiver hath he
hid me, and said unto me, Thou art my servant, O Israel, in
whom I will be glorified. That's one of the occasions when
the name Israel is actually taken by the Lord Jesus Christ himself. He is the one that's being spoken
of here, and he takes the name Israel. You'll see later on that
he also takes the name Jacob. Thou art my servant, O Israel,
in whom I will be glorified. Then I said, I have labored in
vain, I have spent my strength for naught and in vain, yet surely
my judgment is with the Lord and my work with my God. And now saith the Lord that formed
me from the womb to be his servant, to bring Jacob again to him.
Though Israel be not gathered, yet shall I be glorious in the
eyes of the Lord, and my God shall be my strength. And he
said, it is a light thing that thou shouldst be my servant to
raise up the tribes of Jacob and to restore the preserved
of Israel. I will also give thee for a light
to the Gentiles, that thou mayest be my salvation unto the end
of the earth. Thus saith the Lord, the Redeemer
of Israel, and his Holy One, to him whom man despiseth, to
him whom the nation abhorreth, to a servant of rulers, kings
shall see and arise, princes also shall worship, because of
the Lord that is faithful, and the Holy One of Israel, and he
shall choose thee. So here's a reference in Isaiah
to the fact that there was going to be a carrying of this messianic
gospel out from beyond the Jews. And when the Jews rejected the
Lord when he came, we find that this is a fulfillment of what
had long ago been promised. Moses as well had written of
this same thing. He writes in Deuteronomy 32 and
21, they have moved me to jealousy with that which is not God. God's
speaking about the Jews here. They have moved me to jealousy
with that which is not God. They have provoked me to anger
with their vanities, and I will move them to jealousy with those
which are not a people, I will provoke them to anger with a
foolish nation." And this again is messianic, it's speaking about
a gospel, a time when the gospel would go out to a foolish nation,
a nation that was ignorant, a nation that had no knowledge of spiritual
things, gospel things, holy things. Not a nation of a nation-state,
but a people, a people that had never been a people, but who
would be made a people, who would be made the people of God. And then we find that the apostles
describe this as well, and in 1 Peter 2, verse 10, Peter says, which in time past
were not a people, speaking to those who were the scattered
pilgrims and strangers. They were not a people, but are
now the people of God, which had not obtained mercy, but now
have obtained mercy. So this was the transition. This
was the period. At the coming of the Lord, having
been rejected of his own, his message then was sent to the
ends of the earth. Go ye into all the world and
preach the gospel. And this was the fulfillment
of these Old Testament prophecies, and it was understood by the
apostles. Okay, let's go to Zephaniah 3. because here we have another
representation of this unfolding plan. And it's a plan of the
grace and salvation of God for his people, his chosen people.
Yes, a remnant amongst the Jews, but the people of all the nations
of the world, a people that had never been a people before, but
who would be called in as the people of God. And the prophet
first depicts the awful state of Jerusalem and the Jews at
the time of the Lord Jesus Christ, the time of Christ's coming.
So we're going to read Zephaniah chapter 3 and verse 1 and this
is talking about the people of the Jews at the time of the comings
of Christ. the time when the Lord Jesus
Christ came. Woe to her that is filthy and polluted to the
oppressing city. Speaking of Jerusalem, speaking
of the Jewish nation. She obeyed not the voice. She
received not correction. She trusted not in the Lord. She drew not near to her God. Her princes within her are roaring
lions. Her judges are evening wolves. There's a lovely phrase, an evening
wolf. They gnaw not the bones till
the morrow. Her prophets are light and treacherous
persons. Her priests have polluted the
sanctuary. They have done violence to the
law. The just Lord is in the midst thereof. He will not do
iniquity. Every morning doth he bring his
judgment to light. He faileth not, but the unjust
knoweth no shame. I have cut off the nations, their
towers are desolate, I made their streets waste, that none passeth
by, their cities are destroyed, so that there is no man, that
there is none inhabitant. I said, surely thou wilt fear
me, thou wilt receive instruction, so their dwelling should not
be cut off, howsoever I punish them, but they rose early and
corrupted all their doings. So the Lord shows here through
his prophet that there is a judgment coming against the Jews. And
of course, we find that that took place. They got rid of the
Lord. They thought after three years
of his ministry and within a few years after that, the nation
of Israel was brought to an abrupt end by the military power of
the Romans. And the nation was completely
broken up at that time. Then the prophet promises that
there will nevertheless be a deliverance, there will nevertheless be a
salvation, a deliverance of Zion, a picture of the church and the
gathering in of the people of God from amongst the Gentiles
or amongst the nations. So the gospel, although it had
been rejected by the Jews, was not lost. It was going to have
an even greater, an even bigger impact and effect. These people
that he's speaking of now in the following verses, interestingly
enough, you'll find that the names that they are called echo
the names that were given to the Jews in the Old Testament. So we find he speaks of a spiritual
people but identifies them with the Old Testament names. So we
begin at verse 8. Therefore wait ye upon me, saith
the Lord, until the day that I rise up to the prey For my
determination is to gather the nations, that I may assemble
the kingdoms, to pour upon them mine indignation, even all my
fierce anger. For all the earth shall be devoured
with the fire of my jealousy. For then will I turn to the people
a pure language, that they may all call upon the name of the
Lord, to serve him with one consent. From beyond the rivers of Ethiopia,
my suppliants, even the daughter of my dispersed, shall bring
mine offering. In that day shalt thou not be
ashamed for all thy doings wherein thou hast transgressed against
me. For then I will take away out of the midst of thee them
that rejoice in thy pride, and thou shalt no more be haughty
because of my holy mountain. I will also leave in the midst
of thee an afflicted and poor people, and they shall trust
in the name of the Lord. The remnant of Israel shall not
do iniquity nor speak lies, neither shall a deceitful tongue be found
in their mouth, for they shall feed and lie down, and none shall
make them afraid. Sing, O daughter of Zion. Shout,
O Israel. Be glad and rejoice with all
the heart, O daughter of Jerusalem. These names aren't applying to
the Old Testament people. These names are applying to the
elect that hear the gospel and are drawn in through the preaching
of the gospel. The Lord hath taken away thy
judgments. He hath cast out thine enemy,
the King of Israel. Even the Lord is in the midst
of thee. Thou shalt not see evil any more. In that day it shall be said
to Jerusalem, fear thou not, and to Zion, let not thine hands
be slack. The Lord thy God in the midst
of thee is mighty, he will save, he will rejoice over thee with
joy, he will rest in his love, he will joy over thee with singing. I will gather them that are sorrowful
for the solemn assembly, who are of thee, to whom the reproach
of it was a burden. Behold, at that time I will undo
all that afflict thee, and I will save her that halteth and gather
her that was driven out, and I will get them praise and fame
in every land where they have been put to shame. At that time
will I bring you again, even in the time that I gather you,
for I will make you a name and a praise among all people of
the earth when I turn back your captivity before your eyes, saith
the Lord. Again, not the Old Testament
people, not the Old Testament Jews, but those who were in covenant
with God, with Christ, that chosen, that elect people that would
be gathered by the gospel. And this reference that we have
to seeing these things in our present day tense is justified
because we see throughout this passage, we've read it, verse
11, verse 16, verse 20, references to that day, that day when God
is going to accomplish these things, the day of salvation,
the day of grace, the day when forgiveness will be granted and
shame will be lifted. Though there was every reason
for that shame to be there, a justification had been granted and there would
be a blessedness bestowed. Here were a people that were
not a people, now bound together from all the nations of the earth,
gathered through the preaching of the gospel to be Christ's
church and to be Christ's bride. Now what I'm going to do for
the next few minutes, and then we'll be finished, I'm going
to take three names that are given to these people in this
passage, and I'm going to show you something which I think is
very interesting. Because when you take these names
that are given to these people, They look quite contrary. They
look quite puzzling. They're an enigma. You look at
them and you think to yourself, how can these things be speaking
of the same people? So let me show you some interesting
things. Here's the first characteristic
of these people. People that were no nation made
a nation, who were no people made into a people, who were
a foolish nation and now are God's own people revealed. Here's
the first thing that's said of them. Zephaniah 3 verse 12. They are afflicted and poor. afflicted and poor. I will also
leave in the midst of thee an afflicted and poor people, and
they shall trust in the name of the Lord. I think that's an
amazing verse. I think that's a verse that all
of us should know. And if you make it a practice
to underline your Bible, and I do with my Bible, so I would
encourage you to do it. I think it's a useful activity
to do. I think that's a verse that you
should underline and remember because the Lord is here saying
that there will be amongst his people over all time an afflicted
and a poor people. Now the people of God are an
afflicted people, that's what that's saying. It's saying that
the people of God will know trouble. The people of God will have trouble.
God is promising that he's going to afflict us. He's promising
that there will be an affliction and a poverty which attaches
to us because we are his people. And whether you look at the Old
Testament from Joseph through to the new, Joanna, whether you
look at Job or John, whether you look at the Lord Jesus Christ
himself, it has been the experience of people of faith, spiritual
people, that they have been afflicted. The world never made the church
wealthy, peaceful, or prosperous. unless it was a false church. No individual is excused within
the true church of the Lord Jesus Christ. And scriptural examples
abound. We're hard pressed to where we
find anyone who didn't suffer who was a true believer in the
Lord Jesus Christ. We spent a little bit of time
thinking recently about the Shunammite lady, granted a child, given
a child and then that child taken away as an infant. What a hardship
that must have been for that lady. What an affliction that
must have been for that woman and her family. And yet we know
personally Numerous people who have gone through similar and
the same afflictions of having to deal with such sorrow, having
to deal with such problems in their life's experience. And
that's what the Lord says. He says, I'm going to leave amongst
you an afflicted and a poor people. Bodily illnesses, criticism,
harassment, Whether it's in our family, from those that aren't
believers, whether it's in the workplace, whether it's in the
trials that we face just making our way through life. But even
more than that, there are spiritual afflictions which come upon us.
Trials that the world doesn't know anything about. Temptation
that the child of God has to experience and endure. attacks
by the devil that come against us, spiritual weakness that we
feel in our souls, spiritual coldness that afflicts us. And
we wish it wasn't there, but we can't seem to improve our
situation. Times when the Lord seems to
turn his face from us and we go through deep valleys and we
go through trials of loneliness and trials of abandonment. These
are spiritual afflictions that come upon the people of God that
the world has no knowledge of. And poverty, the Lord speaks
about it in the Sermon of the Mount, when he speaks about those
who are poor in spirit, those who are lonely in this world,
those who are broken-hearted, those who carry with them a sense
of their own sin and unworthiness. It generates humility and it
generates contrition. But they become sensible of their
spiritual poverty and they go through life like beggars because
that's what they are, spiritual beggars. And they know that if
they're going to have anything at all, it will only be by God's
grace and by God's mercy. Always seeking after true riches. becoming careless of the things
of this world because they aspire to a better place and a better
experience of Christ. That's one characteristic of
these people. They're afflicted and they're
poor. Here's another characteristic
in verse 13. Here is a people that don't do
any iniquity. is another amazing statement,
is it not? So here's verses 12, 13, that
we've got these two things set, juxtaposed, as it were, together,
set side by side. The remnant of Israel, we're
told, shall not do iniquity. nor speak lies, neither shall
a deceitful tongue be found in their mouth, for they shall feed
and lie down and none shall make them afraid. So here's the people
that it is said of they won't do any iniquity. Now perhaps
you could say to me this evening, I know something of that affliction
and that poverty that you were speaking about a few minutes
ago. But what is this talk of sinlessness? What is this talk
of no iniquity and no lies? Are people that don't do anything
wrong? Well, let me just be clear. We shall commit sin until we
lay these bodies down. These bodies are made of flesh
and flesh has no good thing in it. And that means that this
flesh, this body is going to be at war with our soul and our
spirit until the day of our death. But what the Lord is saying here
is that these same people that are so aware of the afflictions
and poverty that they have in their lives, see that affliction
in their flesh. And yet they have been made anew. They've been changed. They've
been altered in their souls. And we are told that here is
a people that the Lord regards them as clean. The Lord says,
you're pure. The Lord says, in my eyes, you're
perfect and holy. And there's no iniquity in you. Our bodies are fleshy and full
of sin, but our souls are pure, clean and forgiven. Not only
that, the Word of God tells us expressly, no sin will ever be
imputed to those who trust in the Lord Jesus Christ. The Lord
Jesus Christ has taken our sin. He died on the cross and took
our sin. The sins that we have committed,
the sins of tomorrow, have all been laid upon the Lord Jesus
Christ and He has carried them away and He has paid that price.
And so it can properly be said that though this people are poor
and afflicted, yet they have no sin in them. nor in their
souls, not in their spirits. If we have been justified by
Christ, then we are righteous in Him. And all the sins of all
the elect have been placed upon the Saviour, imputed to Him,
and He has borne them away. He made full satisfaction, he
paid every price, every debt was laid upon him from that people
and he carried it all away. Romans 8, 33 says, who shall
lay anything to the charge of God's elect? So we can make a
conclusion about this part of the feature of these people. We can conclude something about
that. We can conclude that they ought to be a happy people. They
ought to be a rejoicing people. So here is affliction and poverty. and yet reason for joy and happiness. The Lord's people will be eternally
happy. The Lord's people, despite being
poor and afflicted, nevertheless, they are a people to whom God
will never bring their sins before their faces again, not to their
heart, not to their condemnation, for he will remember them no
more. They are forgotten. And that's
not just pretend, that's not just make-believe. God doesn't
know about our sins. Though he is omniscient, though
he is omnipotent, though he knows all things and has all power,
he doesn't know that we are sinners. because he sees that sin as having
been put on Christ and he sees us as the people that are holy. Justified, accepted, reconciled,
secured, out from under the weight of wrath and condemnation because
we are in Christ. We enjoy much peace and comfort
now and we will enjoy eternal happiness hereafter because of
the state into which God has brought our souls. These are
two features of these people. Here's the third one, verse 14. The people of whom he speaks
are called to sing and shout, are called to rejoice in their
hearts. Now we don't sing and shout like
raving idiots. There's no place for that in
our assembly together, in our fellowship together. We're not
fools about these things. Here's still a people that are.
afflicted and impoverished, but a people who have a hope that
is glorious, who see the reality of what God has done and discern
in the work of the Lord Jesus Christ a blessedness beyond all
measure, beyond anything they could ever do or accomplish.
And that gives them a right to be happy and a right to shout
and sing. So how is that for a contradiction? How is that for a people that
go through this life weary under the weight of our flesh and our
unworthiness, and yet knowing in almost a sort of schizophrenic
way that at the same time God looks upon us and accepts us
as perfect in Christ. And that's a cause for joy. That's a cause for praise. Sing
and shout, rejoice with all your heart as a free man. and as a liberated woman. So Zephaniah 3.14 says, sing,
O daughter of Zion. Shout, O Israel. Be glad and
rejoice with all the heart, O daughter of Jerusalem. Why? Because we're the daughter of
a king. Because we are the children of a fortress. Because we are
heirs of this holy city. because we have a right to shout
and sing. Your judgment has gone. Your God is on his throne. Your King is in your midst. And the Lord Jesus Christ is
risen and is sovereign and is all-powerful. We praise and we
worship the Lord when we come together because we believe what
God has done. We believe that he has taken
away our sins and he has made our substitute, that surety who
has paid every price. And what the Lord Jesus Christ
has accomplished means that we are free and we are heirs together
with him of all spiritual blessings in heavenly places. So from the
spiritually poor and afflicted to the cleansed and rejoicing,
in one glorious panorama of spiritual revelation. What an amazing thing
the Lord has done for his people. We spoke about Nicodemus coming
to the Lord Jesus Christ at the beginning when we first talked
about the Lord being rejected by the Jews. When Nicodemus came
to Jesus, he said, When the Lord explained some of these things
to him, he said, how can these things be? How can these things
be? Well, they be because they're
spiritual things. they be because they have been
revealed to a spiritual people, to a people that have been born
again. And that's the crux of the matter. Those that have been born again,
those that have been born from on high, Jesus said to him, art
thou a master of Israel and knowest not these things? Verily, verily,
I say unto thee, we speak that we do know and testify that we
have seen, and ye receive not our witness. We have told you
earthly things and you believe not. How shall you believe if
I tell you of heavenly things? And that's what we do when we
come together on occasions like this. We share together in heavenly
things, transcendent things, things that reach down from on
high, reach down from the throne of God, reach down from the very
courts of heaven and touch our souls in the midst of this wicked
old world. and inspire us to praise and
to rejoice, even in the midst of our affliction and poverty,
and show us that while the trials of our flesh would always be
warring against that spirit which the Lord has implanted in us,
yet it is a defeated power, and the soul and the spirit will
be victorious in the end. And for that, we have a right
to shout and sing because we are the people of God's love
and grace and mercy. So there's something to think
about this evening. Three characteristics that are
given to us in three verses from this little prophet, Zephaniah,
right at the end of the Old Testament. Yes, we are an afflicted and
impoverished people. But we are a people in whom there
is no iniquity, because the Lord Jesus Christ has carried our
sin. And that gives us something to
praise Him and thank Him for. Amen.