Mining the Minors: Zephaniah (3)

“In the hand of the Lord there is a cup with foaming wine, well mixed, and he pours out from it, and all the wicked of the earth shall drain it down to the dregs.”

There are banquets where we’d all appreciate a place at the table — the Marriage Supper of the Lamb, the Lord’s Supper. In scripture, there are also meals to which nobody in his right mind would want an invitation. Nobody covets a seat at the dinner served during the “day of the Lord”.

The quotation above is from Psalm 75, where drink is a metaphor for deeds that come back to haunt you, where wicked “guests” are glutted on the fruit of their own evil until they vomit.

It’s the feast as a metaphor for judgment, and it comes up repeatedly in the word of God.

Zephaniah 1:7-9 — The Feast as Judgment Metaphor

“Be silent before the Lord God! For the day of the Lord is near; the Lord has prepared a sacrifice and consecrated his guests. And on the day of the Lord’s sacrifice — ‘I will punish the officials and the king’s sons and all who array themselves in foreign attire. On that day I will punish everyone who leaps over the threshold, and those who fill their master’s house with violence and fraud.’ ”

“Prepared a Sacrifice”

Those who are unfamiliar with Old Testament sacrifices may picture an animal offered to God and wholly consumed by fire in the tabernacle or temple, or perhaps cooked on an altar and its meat later distributed among the priests. That was definitely the case with certain offerings. But many regular sacrifices under the Law of Moses and in the religions of other nations in the ancient Middle East were participatory, accompanied by meals-in-common and feasts for those attending. The word for sacrifice in this passage is also used concerning the dedication of Solomon’s temple, which involved hundreds of thousands of dedicated animals and seven full days of feasting by an entire nation. It also includes annual events like the Passover, which was a sacrifice celebrated in private homes. 1 Corinthians 10 even envisions a situation in which a pagan sacrifice has been offered, but the dinner guests have arrived unaware of where the meat on their plates has come from.

Sacrifice and Participation

So the language here may sound sacramental (and it is), but the word “guests” suggests feasting and participation in the sacrifice, with or without full understanding of the Host’s intentions. After all, who would show up to eat a sacrifice that turned out to be an act of judgment on the participants? The feast as a metaphor for judgment can also be found in Hosea, Jeremiah, Isaiah and even Revelation. Even the Lord’s Supper wrongly eaten may become an occasion for judgment, though that is not its intended purpose.

The word “guests” here means individuals singled out or called by name. The idea is that God fully knows those he judges. Their judgment is not a random act in which they are caught up by accident; they have earned an engraved invitation to this expression of his wrath. This concept is reinforced with the word “consecrated”, which means “set apart”. God separates out those whom he judges from the pack, and ensures they deserve what they receive.

The Objects of Wrath

The Lord goes on to name these objects of his anger that he has set apart for judgment. As usual, he begins with the leadership of his people: the officials, the king’s sons and so on. Arraying themselves “in foreign attire” is probably a nod to idolatrous worship, where Judah aped the practices of the nations while still taking the name of YHWH.

The reference to leaping over the threshold calls to mind the judgment of the Philistines when they captured the ark of the covenant from Israel in battle; in fact, the same word is used. 1 Samuel 5 tells the story of how the ark was set beside the idol of Dagon in Ashdod, and Dagon mysteriously fell facedown two nights in a row when nobody was looking. The second night, the head and hands of Dagon were cut off and lying on the threshold of his house. The writer of Samuel adds, “This is why the priests of Dagon and all who enter the house of Dagon do not tread on the threshold of Dagon in Ashdod to this day.” Superstition, and probably peer pressure, led them to jump over the threshold in order to worship a god who had proved incapable of defending himself.

The “threshold leapers” in Judah were likely mimicking the religious habits of the Philistines, which, when you think about the origin of that particular practice, is a pretty pathetic commentary.

The reference to “those who fill their master’s house with violence and fraud” might be to corrupt officials in the palace; however, the word for “master” here is also used of the Lord himself. It may be that this phrase too is intended to call to mind the corrupt Judean priesthood.

The Day of the Lord

This is the first time the expression “day of the Lord” occurs in Zephaniah. As will become abundantly clear from the verses that follow describing that “day” or period of time, it does not point to some era long in the future, but rather to judgment of Judah by Nebuchadnezzar II, possibly within Zephaniah’s own lifetime. So then, the expression “day of the Lord” is not limited to a single period in Israel’s history, though it is an important term for that nation.

Zephaniah 1:10-13 — Singling Out Objects of Wrath

“ ‘On that day,’ declares the Lord, ‘a cry will be heard from the Fish Gate, a wail from the Second Quarter, a loud crash from the hills. Wail, O inhabitants of the Mortar! For all the traders are no more; all who weigh out silver are cut off. At that time I will search Jerusalem with lamps, and I will punish the men who are complacent, those who say in their hearts, “The Lord will not do good, nor will he do ill.” Their goods shall be plundered, and their houses laid waste. Though they build houses, they shall not inhabit them; though they plant vineyards, they shall not drink wine from them.’ ”

Attempts to rip this passage out of context and interpret it with reference to the church, like this one by George McCurdy, are not only incoherent, but miss the primary meaning of the passage entirely. There are indeed negative lessons we can learn from Judah’s judgment, but the prophecy of Zephaniah was not primarily addressed to modern Gentile believers in Jesus Christ.

The specificity of the language should be our first clue. Verses 10-13 contain multiple references to well-known features of the city of Jerusalem. Good luck spiritualizing those intelligibly, let alone with actual authority.

Gates and Quarters

The Fish Gate is mentioned in Chronicles, and was on the north side of Jerusalem, perhaps indicating invasion from that direction. Manasseh fortified the wall around the Fish Gate a few years prior to Zephaniah’s prophecy, so a cry from the Fish Gate would be a sign of despair from the place where Jerusalem’s defenses should have been strongest. That gate would be rebuilt in the days of Nehemiah after Nebuchadnezzar destroyed the city. I doubt the reference has any great spiritual significance, but it is a strong indication the passage ought to be taken literally, as are mentions of the “Second Quarter” and “the Mortar”. These are actual place names in Jerusalem, and should point us away from figurative interpretations.

The next category of those singled out and identified by God for his judgment are the traders and moneychangers, “all who weigh out silver”. Again, greatest judgment is reserved for those most responsible for Judah’s descent into idolatry, injustice, exploitation and violence. The money men in Jerusalem were a big part of its oppressive culture.

The Less Obvious Offenders

But YHWH was not done with judgment of the most obvious offenders. The conduct of the king’s sons, leadership and merchants made it necessary to deal with them first, but God also looks on the heart. He says, “I will search Jerusalem with lamps”. The Lord intended to expose not only the outward corruption and rot, but the false thinking. He says, “I will punish the men who are complacent.” Complacency is an attitude of heart, not an easily identifiable sin. These real estate profiteers were closet uniformitarians. Despite all that the prophets had said to them over the years about God’s judgment, they believed tomorrow would be the same as today. If they gave thought to the Lord at all, it was to opine that YHWH would never act either for or against them. They thought of God as distant and uninterested, and could not conceive of him judging sin at all, let alone in their lifetimes.

This attitude is remarkably common among Christians today. They do not deny that God is a judge, and that God will one day judge the world. They just can’t believe it will ever happen in their lifetime, and they certainly wouldn’t change anything they are doing on account of that possibility.

Of such, God says, “Though they build houses, they shall not inhabit them; though they plant vineyards, they shall not drink wine from them.” Men and women who order their lives without reference to God cannot expect his blessing even if they make it a habit to take his personal name on their lips without irony.