The Pulpit Commentary — Zephaniah — Section 12

be traced to custom. The power of he.bit is very strong. Men became confirmed in their we.ye (Jcr. xiii. 23). II. 'J.'HEY WHO CHERISH THIB SPIRIT RUN THF. RISK 011' INCURRING INFINITE LOSS, Loss may be incurred unintentionally e.nd through indifference e.n<l neglect. you neglect to insure your property, and perchance e. fire breaks out and destroys it, and you find yourself thrown back for yee.rs to come; or you neglect your health anci fail to heed the first symptoms of disease, and it may end in the disease gaining too firm a holci for it ever to be eradicated; and RO spiritual and eternal honour may be forfeited, not wilfully, but through indifference and unconcern. III. liENOE 'l'HE BUPREMI!: VALUE OJ.I' THE PRESENT TIME WITH ITS OPPORTUNITIES. Our great dramatist has it- .. There is e. tide in the affairs of men, Which, taken at the flood, leads on to fortune· Omitted, all the voyage of their life Is bound in shallows e.nd in miseries." And it is so that there is a tide in the spiritual affairs of men, Human feelings, senti- ments, desires, ebb and flow like the sea; and there are seasons in which this tide sets towards pidy; and such a season, if only improved, "is the accepted time," " the day of salvation." Use it, and it shall not be said that you belong to those "that have not sought the Lord," etc. ( ver. 16). Vere. 7-18.-" The day of the Lord.n The reader of this brief book of Scripture, forming his conclusions from this opening chapter exclusively, is likely to get a very false impression respecting the spirit and views of the writer. The chapter deals entirely with sin and its punishment, and, taken alone and apart, conveys undoubtedly a very strong conviction as to the terribleness and severity of God. The seer seems to linger in thought upon the coming ju<lgments, and to reiterate these in every possible form, and even to exult in the retributicns which should at length fall upon the sinful nation. His" song" appears to be altogether" of judgment." That we may rightly estimate, however, his spirit and teaching, we should remember: 1. That the great and solemn fact of Divine retribution for sin ought not to be ignored. Whatever theory may be held respecting the doom and destiny of the impenitent, the fact remains stamped on every page of the volume of revelation, in Old and New Testament alike, that sin shall result in chastisement, that man shall reap as be sows. The prophet in this respect is in perfect agreement with all the Bible writers. 2. That the prevailing corruption of his times necessitated a strong insistance, on the part of the prophets, upon the approaching judgments on account of national transgression; and this also was in harmony with the character of the dispensation. 3. That whilst sternly declaring the Divine punishment to fall upon the nation because of its sinfulness. Zephaniah also, as he proceeded, dwelt very frequently upon the Divine intention to purify through chastisement, and pointed out the gracious purpose of the Most High by means of coming tribulations to sanctify and save. His "song" was "of mercy " as well as "of judgment." Here, ·however (vers. 7-18), he dwells specially upon the Divine judgments, and points to "the great and notable day of the Lord," " the day of vengeance of our God." These judgments he sets forth- I. IN STRIKING SYMBOL. (Ver. 7.) Sacrifice was well understood in Jerusalem. Offerings were offered on Jewish altars to the true God, and, when the people had become corrupt, also to Baal. Jehovah now declared by his holy prophet that the people, having proved faithless, 8hould themselves be sacrificed; they should be the victims, and the heathen who should effect their overthrow would, in so doing, be consecrated to his service. This symbol is used also in the same sense by other prophets (Ise.. xxxiv, 6; Jer. xlvi. 10; Ezek. xxxix. 17), II. IN VIVID DESCRIPTION, (Vers. 10--13.) The prophet witnesses in imagination, and describes with realistic power, the coming siege e.nd destruction of the city by the Chaldeans. He sees "the fish gate" (ver. 10), the weakest part, assaulted, and hears e. loud cry (ver. 10), telling that :t has fallen, and that the invaders have gained admission; whilst "the sound of wailing " coming from the inhabitants of the lower part of the city (" tho secoi;.d," ver, 10) inlimutes the.t, having ga:.i:.ed an entrance, the 10 THE BOOK OF ZEPHANIAH. [orr. I. 1-18.