1:11 Howl, ye inhabitants of {g} Maktesh, for all the merchant people are cut down; all they that bear silver are cut off.(g) This is meant of the street of the merchants which was lower than the rest of the place around it. read more
ZEPHANIAH DIVINE DEVASTATION AND PROMISE Little is known of the personal history of Zephaniah beyond the two facts in the first verse of his prophecy, the first bearing on his ancestry and the second on the period of his ministry. About fifty years have elapsed since Nahum, and Hezekiah has been succeeded by three of his descendants (see 2 Kings 20-21). Manasseh and Amon were idolatrous and wicked, but Josiah now upon the throne, is righteous and God-fearing. The story of his reign is in the... read more
The Candle of the Lord Zephaniah 1-3 "The word of the Lord which came unto Zephaniah" ( Zep 1:1 ). Observe that the prophets never professed to tell what word of the Lord came to anybody else. That is the vital point; that is the point which we have all forgotten. Read the introductions which the men themselves wrote: where do they find their texts? In the mouth of the Lord. When does any prophet arise to say, "I am going to preach to you to-day from the words of some other prophet?"... read more
O "Hold thy peace at the presence of the Lord GOD: for the day of the LORD is at hand: for the LORD hath prepared a sacrifice, he hath bid his guests. (8) And it shall come to pass in the day of the LORD'S sacrifice, that I will punish the princes, and the king's children, and all such as are clothed with strange apparel. (9) In the same day also will I punish all those that leap on the threshold, which fill their masters' houses with violence and deceit. (10) And it shall come to pass in that... read more
The Morter: ( Maktesh ) a valley in or near Jerusalem. (Challoner) --- All the people shall suffer in the city. (Sanctius) (Tirinus) --- Mactes was rendered famous by Samson, (Judges xv. 19.) and was in or near the country of the Philistines, who seem to be designated. The original is variously interpreted. (Calmet) --- Septuagint, "of the city cut in pieces, because all the people resemble Chanaan." (Haydock) Chanaan. So he calls the Jews, from their following the wicked ways of the... read more
7-13 God's day is at hand; the punishment of presumptuous sinners is a sacrifice to the justice of God. The Jewish royal family shall be reckoned with for their pride and vanity; and those that leap on the threshold, invading their neighbours' rights, and seizing their possessions. The trading people and the rich merchants are called to account. Secure and careless people are reckoned with. They are secure and easy; they say in their heart, the Lord will not do good, neither will he do evil;... read more
The Extent of the Judgment v. 11. Howl, ye inhabitants of Maktesh, meaning the mortar, a small section of Jerusalem, so called because it presented a depression or hollow, for all the merchant people are cut down, entirely destroyed; all they that bear silver, the traders laden with silver, who occupied that part of the lower city, are cut off. v. 12. And it shall come to pass at that time that I will search Jerusalem with candles, investigating even the dark and hidden corners, so that not... read more
THE DAY OF JUDGMENTZephaniah 1:1 to Zephaniah 2:3[The Universality of the Judgment (Zephaniah 1:2-3): it will destroy all the Idolaters in Judah and Jerusalem (Zephaniah 1:4-7): it will fall upon Sinners of every Rank (Zephaniah 1:8-13): it will burst irresistibly upon all the Inhabitants of the Earth (Zephaniah 1:14-18): a Call to Conversion (Zephaniah 2:1-3).—C. E.]1 The word of Jehovah, which was communicated to Zephaniah, the son of Cushi, the son of Gedaliah, the son of Amariah, the son of... read more
“The Great Day of the Lord” Zephaniah 1:1-18 Zephaniah means hidden of the Lord. He lived in Josiah’s reign, and cooperated with that king in his efforts to put down idolatry. His prophecy deals with the sins that were rife in Judah and the fearful retribution that would be inflicted through the Chaldeans. Approaching destruction , Zephaniah 1:2-6 . The Chemarim, r.v., were idolatrous priests dressed in black garments. Malcam is Milcom or Moloch. Notice the successive classes of those who... read more
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Arno Gaebelein's Annotated Bible - Zephaniah 1:1-18
Analysis and Annotations CHAPTER 1 The Day of the Lord, the Day of Judgment 1. The judgment of all the world (Zephaniah 1:1-3 ) 2. The judgment will destroy the evildoers in Judah (Zephaniah 1:4-13 ) 3. The day of the Lord (Zephaniah 1:14-18 ) Zephaniah 1:1-3 . The first verse is the superscription, and tells us, as pointed out in the introduction, of the connection of Zephaniah and the date of his prophecy. Then comes the announcement of the judgment. It is to consume all things from... read more