The Pulpit Commentary — Zephaniah — Section 63

which could not. leave a bone of their prey till tht'l morning, but must devour it ere the night passed (Hab. i. 8; Jor. v. 6; Ezek. xxii. 27). II. 'fHE AGGR~VATION AND HEINOUSNESS OF HER BINS. 1. Against Divine grace. She had been gmlty of all the foregoing wickednessos, though Jehovah bad been in the midst of her. That he chose at the first t-0 establish his presence iu her was a favour- a speci~I favour; that he remained in her after she had become rebellious, polluted, and oppressive, was more than a special favour-was an exceeding great mercy. 2. Against Divine example. In all Jehovah's dealings with her he had shown himself" riahteous," even proved that he would not and could not do iniquity; neverthel!ss, sh;had not followed in Jehovah's steps, but had turned aside into crooked paths and uncleiin we.ye. 3. Against Divine instruction. Jehovah bad brought his judgment to light every mornmg by causing his Law to be proclaimed to the nation daily by the prophets. Yet ~he had rebelled age.inst the light and done the works of darkness. 4. Against Divine warnings. She bad seen Jehornh cutting off the nations around, throwincr down their battlements, and rendering them desolate, "making their streets wnste," itc. (ver. 6); and ~till she b~ clo~ her ears 9:~inst the warnings these providential judgments gave. 5. Against Divine e,:r;pectation. Jehovah had hoped she would fear him and receive tbe instruction and correction he had intended for her; but she had not done so. Rather she had risen early and. corrupted herself, thereby proving herself one of the unjust who know no shame. III. THE RECOMPENSE AND REWARD OF HEB BINS. 1. A severe penalty. Woe; and the cutting off of her dwelling. Unless she repented and turned from her evil ways, she would be overwhelmed with the righteous indignation of God, and her place as a nation wiped out-an impressive symbol of the doom threatened against unbelieving and unrepentant sinners under the gospel. 2. A contingent penalty. If she feared Jehovah and accepted correction, her dwelling should not be cut off, and the via.ls of woe should not be outpoured upon her (Jer. xviii. 7). So are God's threatenings again,;t sinners contingent on their continued impenitence. But this presupposed, it becomes: 3. A certain penalty. Nothing could avert the woe and the cutting off in Jerusalem's case but repentance and reformation, neither of which she showed; and so when within less th.a.n a century it became apparent that there was no remedy, the sluice-gates of wrath were opened, and she was cut off without compassion (2 Chron. x.xxvi. 16, 17). So will it be with those under the gospel, who, being often reproved, yet harden tbeir necks-they shall be utterly destroyed, and that without remedy (Prov. :nix. 1). Learn: L The danger of sin. 2. The certainty of judgment.-T. W. Ver. 5.-The shamelessness of sin. L A DEMONS'l'BABLE FACT. 1. Asserted by Scripture. In addition to the statement of the text, that "the unjust knoweth no shame,'' may be cited other declarations to the same effect from both the Old (Jer. iii. 3; vi. 15; viii. 12) and the New (Eph. iv. 19 ; Phil. iii. 19) Testaments. 2. Proved by experiemxJ. Besides the individuals to whom the above passages allude, persons are often met with in actual life who not only seem, but so fa.r as can be discovered from their behaviour actually are, insensible t-0 shame. II. A. PSYCHOLOGICAL ENIG.MA. 1. Shame the fruit of sin. Exemplified in the case of A.dam and Eve (Gen. ii. 25; iii. 7). Shame is the outward sign of the soul's inward consciousness of guilt. 2. Sin the death of shame. If shame does not lead to repentance, and so to the destruction of sin, sin will soon assert its supremacy over i;hame and lead to its extinction. llL A. BIG1'"'1FICANT PHENOMENON. Teaching: 1. The possibility of complete spiritual deteriv,·ation. When a soul can no longer feel ashamed on account of sin, when its moral perceptions have become darkened, and its conscience is deadened, the process of spiritual or religious degeneration has reached its lowest _point. The soul is pra.cti~a.lly dead in trespasses and in sins. It bas become essentially and permanently unjust. 2. The impom'bility of flltimate redemption. The_ s~ul th_at can~ot ~lu~h is ~t least periloW1ly near the condition of those of whom 1t 1s written, ' It 1s 1mposs1ble to renew them again unto repentance" (Heb. vi. 6).-'l'. W. Vere. 8-13.-The gracious acts of Je!tovah; or, Israel's glorious future. I. Tum Oil. JU. 1-20.) THE BOOK OF ZEPHANIAH. 61