36 The Book of Zephaniah (Summarized)

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Storyline

	God will punish Judah and other nations on Judgement Day	1-2
	God will destroy many and force the remnant to worship	3

Zephaniah

1. BG | SAB | During the reign of Josiah as King of Judah, God spoke to Zephaniah. God will destroy men, animals, birds, and fish. God will punish the land of Judah for its idolatry and rejection of God. The Day of God is near. God has prepared a sacrifice and consecrated His invited. On God's day of sacrifice, He will punish the princes, the king's sons, those in foreign clothes, idolaters, merchants, and those who are complacent. Judah will be plundered and destroyed. God's day will be a day of gloomy wrath and death. God will quickly kill everybody on earth.

2. 
   BG | SAB | If the Israelites humble themselves, do what God commands, and seek righteousness, then maybe God will spare them on Judgement Day. Philistia will be destroyed, including Gaza, Achod, Ekron, and Canaan, and their lands will belong to the remnant of the Israelites. Because Moab and Ammon threatened and mocked the Israelites, God will destroy them and turn their land into salt pits and wastelands forever, which the remnant of the Israelites will own and plunder. Cush will also fall by the sword. God will destroy Assyria, turning Nineveh into a desolate, desert home for wild animals. Everyone will scoff at their fall.

3. BG | SAB | Woe to Jerusalem she ignores God's correction, her rulers are ravenous, her prophets are treacherous, her priests defile the Temple and twist the Law. God is in her (Jerusalem) giving righteous justice everyday, but He is ignored. God though that she would see how He dealt with other evil nations and thus fear God, but they ignore God's correction. Therefore, God will pour out His wrath on all nations, consuming them all to purify them, and make them all yield into worshiping God together. Even from far away people will come to worship God. At that time, God will have purged the sinful people from Israel, and so the punishment will end. The remnant left behind will do no wrong and will faithfully serve God as their king. God will take delight in the Israelites. He will remove their burdens, and give them praise and honor world-wide. Their fortunes will be restored.

Habakkuk | Zephaniah | Haggai