The book of Zephaniah, the Old Testament prophet Zephaniah.
We have been spending a number of weeks in this little book.
This whole book is written as a poem or as a song.
What we're going to do this evening is I'll read all of chapter 3 again,
but then we'll focus on words from verse 11 to verse 15.
So Zephaniah chapter 3.
Woe to the city of oppressors, rebellious and defiled.
She obeys no one.
She accepts no correction.
She does not trust in the Lord.
She does not draw near to her God.
Her officials are roaring lions.
Her rulers are evening wolves who leave nothing for the morning.
Her prophets are arrogant.
They are treacherous men.
Her priests profane the sanctuary and do violence to the law.
The Lord within her is righteous.
He does no wrong.
Morning by morning, he dispenses his justice.
And every new day, he does not fail.
Yet the unrighteous know no shame.
I have cut off nations.
Their strongholds are demolished.
I have left their streets deserted with no one passing through.
Their cities are destroyed.
No one will be left.
No one at all.
I said to the city,
Surely you will fear me and accept correction.
Then her dwelling would not be cut off,
nor all my punishments come upon her.
But they were still eager to act corruptly in all they did.
Therefore, wait for me, declares the Lord.
For the day I will stand up to testify.
I have decided to assemble the nations,
to gather the kingdoms,
and to pour out my wrath on them,
all my fierce anger.
The whole world will be consumed by the fire of my jealous anger.
Then will I purify the lips of the peoples,
that all of them may call on the name of the Lord,
and serve him shoulder to shoulder.
From beyond the rivers of Cush,
my worshippers,
my scattered people,
will bring me offerings.
On that day you will not be put to shame,
for all the wrongs you have done to me.
Because I will remove from this city,
those who rejoice in their pride.
Never again will you be haughty on my holy hill.
But I will leave within you the meek and humble,
who trust in the name of the Lord.
The remnant of Israel will do no wrong.
They will speak no lies,
nor will deceit be found in their mouths.
They will eat and lie down,
and no one will make them afraid.
Sing, O daughter of Zion.
Shout aloud, O Israel.
Be glad and rejoice with all your heart,
O daughter of Jerusalem.
The Lord has taken away your punishment.
He has turned back your enemy.
The Lord, the King of Israel, is with you.
Never again will you fear any harm.
On that day they will say to Jerusalem,
Do not fear, O Zion.
Do not let your hands hang limp.
The Lord, your God, is with you.
He is mighty to save.
He will take great delight in you.
He will quiet you with his love.
He will rejoice over you with singing.
The sorrows for the appointed feasts
I will remove from you.
They are a burden and a reproach to you.
At that time I will deal with all who oppressed you.
I will rescue the lame
and gather those who have been scattered.
I will give them praise and honor
in every land where they were put to shame.
At that time I will gather you.
At that time I will bring you home.
I will give you honor and praise
among all the peoples of the earth
when I restore your fortunes
before your very eyes,
says the Lord.
Amen.
Once again at the book of Zephaniah.
Zephaniah's closing words
are about fortunes being restored.
So what I want to think about this evening
is the promise of God
to the city of Jerusalem
of a change in fortunes
that would come for them
because of the grace of God.
And to think how in the gospel of Jesus
they were promised
that same change of fortune.
But let's begin here.
Let's begin with two cities under siege.
The first one,
Stalingrad in Russia
during the Second World War.
So in 1942,
Stalingrad had already
been under German attack
for over a year.
So they were surrounded on all sides
by the German army
trying to make a march east.
And the people within the city of Stalingrad,
they were starving.
The bombs were falling regularly.
This was a suffering people.
But then in the summer of 1942,
the conductor of the Stalingrad Orchestra
decided that what was left of the orchestra
that hadn't been killed and fighting to date
would perform a new symphony
composed by Shostakovich.
And so this battered and starving city
and musicians that could hardly draw enough puff
to get their instruments working
worked together for a number of months
until the 9th of August
when they were due to perform this new symphony.
So to make sure that there was peace
for the performance,
Russian planes flew over the city
bombing the German areas around the city.
And so they were free as a city
to listen to this new symphony.
It was a hugely significant moment for them
in their effort to endure.
For 18 months,
they would still have to hang on
until the Soviet army en masse would come
and give them deliverance.
But the city recognized
in the music of Shostakovich
and in the production of that symphony,
that's a hard word to say, hope,
the city endured
because in part of this music
that spoke courage into their bones.
There's another city under siege
in Zephaniah 3.
And that's Jerusalem,
the city of God,
under siege
because of the judgment of God.
That they had so often turned their back on God,
turning towards other gods
that God had sent the nations.
He's promising He's going to send the nations
to surround,
to bring judgment on them.
So Jerusalem here in chapter 3
is a city under siege.
And so the question then is,
where will hope for this city come from?
That hope won't come from a symphony,
but it will come from the song of the gospel.
What we'll see this evening
is that hope is promised,
deliverance is promised
from outside of themselves.
A hope that will make them sing
because they are being reminded
of the gospel of God with us.
Every Christmas we remind ourselves
of one of the titles of Jesus,
that He is Emmanuel,
God with us.
Well, that same promise is given
to the city of Jerusalem.
It's the same promise given to each one of us
in the gospel,
that in Jesus we can know God with us
in our lives,
even when we perhaps feel like
we are under siege,
under attack,
experiencing all kinds of suffering.
But before we get there,
let's remind ourselves
from the beginning of chapter 3,
why is Jerusalem facing
this promised judgment?
So quick recap,
it's been a few weeks
since we've been in Zephaniah.
The day of the Lord
is a major theme in this book.
The day of the Lord,
God's people presumed
it would mean salvation for them,
but they're being warned
against complacency.
They're being told
because of their rebellion,
the day of the Lord
will bring judgment.
Judgment, chapter 1,
judgment for Judah.
And then in chapter 2,
there's a break
and they're told of judgment
on the surrounding nations.
But then in chapter 3,
focus returns to God's city,
to Jerusalem,
and they're told judgment
will fall on them.
The day of the Lord
in the first eight verses
will come as judgment.
So let's think about
why that's the case.
Look at the first two verses.
There is an announcement
of woe on this city
for a number of reasons.
We see them as lawbreakers.
We see them as rebels.
We see them as defiled
and religiously unclean before God.
We see them in verse 2
as disobedient towards God,
untrusting of God.
We see them deliberately
walking away from God
instead of drawing near.
In verses 3 to 5,
there is a contrast
presented for us.
In verse 5,
we're introduced to the Lord
within the city,
the Lord with them,
who is righteous,
who performs in ways
that are just
and who seeks righteousness.
So you've got the righteous Lord,
but then all around that,
you have the unrighteous leaders
of the people,
whether that's the officials
of verse 3,
whether that's the prophets
and the priests
of verse 4,
whether it's the religious
or political and moral
and social leaders,
all of them
are acting in ways
that are unrighteous.
That's why judgment will come.
In verses 6 and 7,
Zephaniah is sent
to remind them
of what God has been doing
in the surrounding area.
God has begun
to bring about judgment
on the surrounding nations.
And that was intended
to be a wake-up call.
Verse 7,
I said to the city,
surely you will fear me
and accept correction,
having cut off nations
in verse 6.
But they don't.
They don't hear those warnings.
They don't respond
to the judgment of God.
They remain complacent.
That they'll be okay
because they're part of Israel.
So that in verse 8,
they're told to wait
for the Lord.
God's judgment would come.
God within the city
will now be God against the city
because of their rebellion.
What has Jerusalem got to do
with you and me?
Well, here in this book,
we have God,
the Creator King,
saying,
I am the Lord with you.
And this same God
who says,
I am the Lord with you,
is the same God
who sends Jesus
to be our Emmanuel.
The same Jesus
who is sent to be
our suffering servant.
But just as the people
in Zephaniah's day,
so by nature,
we say to God,
we don't want you
and we don't want
your salvation.
We want to go our own way,
make our own choices.
That just as in Zephaniah's day,
they are not alone
in establishing idols
for themselves.
placing someone
or something higher
than God
in terms of significance
and worship.
All of us stand
in covenant relationship
with God,
but all of us,
because of our disobedience,
have broken that covenant
just as they did.
And in our daily decisions,
just as in Zephaniah's day,
all too often,
we are rejecting
God as king
and as Lord
because we would have
that place instead.
So one of the things
that the Old Testament
prophets do for us,
and Zephaniah certainly
does this for us,
is it reminds us,
they remind us
of the heart of sin.
They remind us of the sin
in our human hearts.
J.C. Ryle,
a Bible teacher
from a previous generation
said,
a right knowledge of sin
lies at the root
of all saving Christianity.
When we lose sight
of our sin
and rebellion
against God,
when sin is something
that's treated
as no big deal,
when we look at ourselves
as fundamentally good
and right,
and surely,
just by virtue
of being people,
we're in a good relationship
with God,
then the message
of the Bible,
it doesn't come to us
with any urgency.
The message
that Jesus died
for sinners
makes no sense
if we don't understand
ourselves to be
in that place.
It was John Newton
who famously sang
about amazing grace,
but we will only sing
that from our hearts
when we understand
it saves a wretch
like me.
And so,
the message
against Jerusalem
is a message
that we need
to pay attention to
because it reveals
the sin
that lies within.
But then,
the wonderful message
of Zephaniah
also speaks
so much gospel hope
to us.
Remember that theme
towards the end
of chapter three
of fortunes
being restored.
Let's look together
at how these images
of transformation
are brought
from Zephaniah
to this people
standing under
God's judgment.
First of all,
shame
will be
removed.
Look at verse 11.
On that day,
you will not
be put to shame
for all the wrongs
you have done
to me.
For Jerusalem,
they had done
shameful things.
Chapter one
and chapter three
are a catalogue
of people
who should have
been following
God's way,
God's law,
mistreating others
and dishonoring God
in false worship.
They had done
shameful things
and because
of that,
they have brought
shame on themselves.
They have become
unclean,
defiled,
as we're told
in verse one.
Sin had polluted
them.
There is this
ugly stain
on the city
and there is
no soap
to deal with
that disgrace
that they possess
in and of
themselves.
So Zephaniah
has been sent
to show
them their shame,
to show
how they have
treated,
how they have
mistreated
God,
that they would
feel the sense
of that,
the weight
of that,
but also
then that they
would see
God's grace
as good news.
When these
city streets
would be washed
clean of shame,
when their
shameful past
would be
forgotten,
when this
God who
they have
dishonored
would be
willing to
associate
with them.
Look at the
end of verse
13,
or verse
13,
the remnant
of Israel
will do
no wrong,
they will
speak no
lies,
nor will
deceit be
found in
their mouths,
they will
eat and
lie down,
and no one
will make
them afraid.
That's a
picture of
God as
their shepherd,
God in
the midst
of them
to care
for them,
willing to
associate
with those
who will
humble
themselves,
who will
acknowledge
their shame,
and who will
trust once
again in the
Lord,
they will
find this
shepherd king
who would
honor them
and who
would care
for them.
And we
see these
values again
in the coming
of Jesus.
This gospel
of hope,
this good
news is
brought by
Jesus,
that instead
of shame,
we can
receive
honor.
Perhaps we
see it most
strikingly in
the conversation
that Jesus
has with a
Samaritan
woman in
John chapter
4.
This is a
lady who
lives with
very public
shame and
disgrace because
she has had
five husbands
and now she's
living with
somebody who
she's not
married to.
And in this
religious society
in which they
live, this
brought shame
and disgrace
on her.
But Jesus
comes and
Jesus is
willing to
associate with
her.
Jesus in
love talks
with her,
offers himself
as living
water,
lovingly
shows her
her sin
and her
shame so
that he
might bring
healing.
Shame
turns to
honor when
we encounter
the Lord
Jesus.
And that's
such a
powerful truth
of the
gospel because
shame can
be such a
heavy burden.
Many
psychologists
would reckon
that shame
is actually a
heavier thing
to deal
with than
guilt in
terms of
its
psychological
damage.
Shame can
crush us,
leaving us
feeling worthless,
unclean,
and dirty.
mercy.
But here
in Jesus
we can
find hope.
Here
through
Jesus
we can
sing as
those who
have found
honor to
replace
shame.
Because
Jesus
will come
into the
world in
order to
bear our
shame on
the cross.
Jesus
will take
on himself
the pollution
of sin
and he
will be
punished
for that.
He will
bear the
shame and
disgrace
so that we
might not.
Jesus
will face
the shame
of being
mocked
and rejected
so that you
and I
can be
welcomed.
Jesus
will pay
the ultimate
sacrifice
giving his
life for
us so
that we
might know
the honor
of being
children of
God.
In the
gospel we
discover that
Jesus secures
our honor
before God
because he
identifies with
us in our
sin and our
shame and he
gives us a
new identity
so that we
can live as
children of
God.
That Samaritan
woman who
had known
such disgrace
when she
met Jesus
as she
went back
to her
village and
she said
come see a
man who
told me
everything I
ever did.
Could this
be the
Christ?
Those awful
things of her
past that
has served to
condemn and
crush now
become pointers
to the good
news that
Jesus offers
to anyone
that is hope
beyond shame
in knowing
Jesus.
But there's
more gospel
hope, there's
more transformation
promised by
God through
Zephaniah here.
There is the
promise of
punishment that
will be removed.
Verse 14 and
15.
Sing, O
daughter of
Zion, shout
aloud, O
Israel.
Be glad and
rejoice with all
your heart, O
daughter of
Jerusalem, the
Lord has
taken away
your punishment.
Here is a
truth to
make our
hearts sing.
The Lord, the
personal covenant
God, the
God who has
entered into a
relationship with
his people, who
has always proved
faithful to his
people, offers
hope to those
who have been
faithless to
him.
there has
been rebellion
against the
king, as
we've seen all
through Zephaniah.
There has been
spiritual adultery
committed against
God, the
faithful husband,
as we've seen
through Zephaniah.
Morally, we've
seen that rebellion
and unfaithfulness
in their lies,
in their
corruption, in
their exploitation,
in their pride,
in their greed.
Spiritually, we see
it in their false
worship, in their
mixed worship, in
their misplaced
trust, and in
their misplaced
love.
And yet,
although their
sins are many,
God's mercy is
more.
Maybe you know
the parable, the
story that Jesus
told.
He told the story
once of a king
who decided it was
time to settle up
with those who had
got in debt with
him.
And one man was
brought before the
king, and he had a
great mountain of
debt that he could
never pay off.
So he was unable to
pay it, and the king
said, well, because of
that, you need to go
to prison, you and
your family.
But then the man
falls on his face and
seeks mercy, and that
king instantly forgives
and cancels the debt.
Instead of punishment,
mercy.
How can anyone sing
like Zephaniah calls the
people of God to sing
when they've just been
told this catalog of
sin and disobedience that
means they are guilty
before God?
Well, Zephaniah
proclaims here that
there is a taking
away of punishment,
but it's with the
coming of Jesus that
that proclamation is
then explained to us.
How is this possible?
Well, guilt is removed
by sacrifice.
It's the picture that we
have in the Old
Testament.
But that was a pointer
to the coming of Jesus.
Jesus, who on the cross
will become that perfect
sacrifice to make
atonement for the sins
of his people, to take
on himself the punishment
that you and I deserve
so that we might be free.
One of the things that
Zephaniah shows us clearly
and the Bible teaches us
is that God is just.
God must deal with sin
in order for him to be
holy and good.
He cannot simply turn a
blind eye to sin.
He cannot sweep sin
under the rug.
But God is also
merciful and gracious.
And he has provided a way
of forgiveness through the
sending of his own son,
Jesus, to take sin
and its penalty.
And because Jesus has
fully satisfied God's
justice against our sin,
God can justly forgive
those who will trust in Jesus.
So Jesus becomes God with us
in order to be the Savior for us
so that we can sing,
so that we can sing of a
punishment that's been removed.
We can sing,
no condemnation,
now I dread,
because Jesus and all in him
is mine.
One last picture
of transformed fortunes.
Peace will be restored.
Verse 15,
the Lord has taken away
your punishment.
He has turned back
your enemy.
So remember that picture,
Jerusalem,
the city under siege
because of the judgment
of God.
Well, here is how it resolves.
The Lord will act
to deliver his people
from their enemies.
The Lord,
the King of Israel,
is with you.
Never again will you fear
any harm.
God is with his people
now to fight for them
and for their salvation.
We have this remarkable truth
side by side
that Jerusalem had chosen
to become God's enemy,
but God in his grace
chooses to be a savior
for his people.
God chooses to show grace,
grace that will bring them peace,
grace that will reconcile
them to God,
grace that will turn enemies
back into friends
once again.
made me think of Jesus
meeting with Saul
on the Damascus road.
Saul,
who was an extremely
religious man,
but Saul who had decided
that Jesus
was not telling the truth
about himself,
that he wasn't the son of God,
that Jesus and his church
should be destroyed.
Well,
Jesus comes
and seeks out
this enemy,
the risen Lord Jesus
comes to him
and confronts him
with his persecution
of the church,
converts him,
brings him into God's kingdom
and calls this enemy
into service
in this great act
of reconciliation
on the Damascus road.
And that's what God
through Jesus does
for anyone
who puts their trust
in him.
Instead of us
being at war
with God,
God establishes
peace
between us
and our God.
So that instead
of living with that
fear of judgment,
when we're trusting
in Jesus,
we can know
his welcome.
back in Stalingrad,
decades after
the siege had ended,
survivors would still
gather together
in different pockets
and they would listen
to that piece of music
from Shostakovich.
And by then,
it had been a reminder
of how that hope
that they had
back in 42
had then become
reality.
So that music
was a message
for them
of hope
becoming victory.
In verse 14,
we have the people
of God
called to sing.
What do we sing?
What do we need
to sing?
What we sing
is how we talk
to ourselves
so often.
Our greatest need
is to make
this wonderful gospel
the soundtrack
to our lives.
to sing,
to remind ourselves
of what Jesus
has done
for us.
That Jesus
has come
to turn our shame
to honor.
That Jesus
has come
to take
our punishment
so we might receive
his reward.
Jesus has come
to end
that warfare
with God
and to bring
us peace
through
his blood.
He has come
to be God
with us,
to be that
Savior
for us
so that we
might sing.
I wonder,
does the song
of the gospel
give us joy?
Does it give us
peace?
Does it help us
to remember
that honor
that we have
as the people
of God?
Jesus
is
to make
a
sense
of
sharing
with rith
Father
and
to be
,
to be
var
thi
is
for
the
st
to be