The Day of the LORD: Hope for all Creation
July 7, 2013 | Anita Retzlaff | Zephaniah 1:14-18

Grace and peace to you from God the Father of our Lord and Saviour Jesus the Christ. The God of the Bible has quite a reputation for violence. There are some of us here today who were raised in communities that feared a judgment day, who grew up hearing about the wrath of God and a vengeance that scared the living daylights out of tenderhearted children and adults alike. The end of the world was always the greatest threat! It could be upon us at any time, suddenly and without warning and in the fiery cataclysm that was to destroy all of humankind this moment of judgment would separate the bad people from the good people – and you were never sure which you were. Many have lived in fear of an angry YHWH God.

The excerpt from Zephaniah that is printed in the bulletin could be used to support such a view of God. The day of the LORD is a concept, a description that doomsday predictors love to use.  If we were to interpret literally the content of the Book of Zephaniah in today’s thinking, the LORD our God could be brought up on charges of uttering threats, promoting terrorism, or would at the very least benefit from a course in Anger Management. Stop for a moment and consider how absurd that is; the God who creates galaxies, breathes life into the dust so that humanity might prosper; the Divine One - a cosmic abuser and hater of creation? The God of Israel waiting for just that moment when we least expect it? Fires of perdition sweeping over the face of the earth as the mouth of hell opens to swallow up those who have not been good enough? We have misunderstood something about the intent of scripture and the ancient commentary about the heart of God when we buy into this kind of rhetoric. Actually I think this is idolatry of a high order: worshipping a God who scares creation into submission. This is a tool of human control not an indicator of Divine intent.

In fact this kind of fear-mongering is a great distraction from what is really going on. It is not God seeking to punish humanity in the most horrendous ways conceivable but rather a humanity bent on self-destructive acts of horror against its own tribes that in its self-centeredness has slipped from the embrace of God and honoured not its Creator but its own desire for power and dominance. To the laziness and selfishness of this practice of humanity the prophets of YHWH God speak out in a dark and violent rage. So may I remind you, now, that the conclusion of the Book of Zephaniah is about hope and mercy. Once the prophet has vented his spleen on behalf of God Almighty the stirring of the Spirit of Creation seeks to undo the violence and pain of exile and reestablish a wholesome relationship with all of creation.

Of course there is judgment in the Bible just as there is judgment every day of our lives. Our actions have consequences.  We are people connected in community and these days interconnected globally. What we do affects others and if our actions are destructive they have implications.  There is a ripple effect. The book of Zephaniah is a commentary on the ways in which God’s people have gone wrong. So the violence against Israel does not come out of the blue. There is history here!  The Israelites have not been faithful to God over many years. In fact, they have fallen so far away from their relationship to the Creator that they do not consider God at all. They ignore God.  Through the mouths of the Old Testament prophets we hear that this is not acceptable and that someday this blatant disregard will result in devastating consequences. In the mouths of the prophets God’s anger has built to a point where it is about to spill over into a massive housecleaning blitz.  Zephaniah describes it as a clean sweep. The people of God’s choosing have been repeatedly warned about the outcome of their indifference, their superiority complex and corruption.  Prophetic interpretation will have it that Israel’s exile to Babylon is God’s judgment and justice: Israel’s moral and relational failures will be addressed by Assyria.  The army is at the gates. This is the nature of prophetic speech in Ancient Near Eastern lingo. Let us hear about this great day of the LORD.

(READ Zephaniah – Chapter 1 – Alan Reese and Allan Klassen)

Even though Zephaniah declares within this poetic diatribe that God will make a full and terrible end of all the inhabitants of the earth – it doesn’t happen. Not all are wiped out, not by any means. Even the prophet’s name “Zephaniah” means God protects, hides or treasures.  Zephaniah is the embodiment of God’s grace; the promise that tomorrow will come and many of the faithful will see it. However, corrupt religious and political leaders have faced judgment, the temple is obliterated and the people taken captive: wiped away.  The Assyrian army has destroyed the power of the idolatrous priests, corrupt officials and king’s sons. So recognize that this is a purge, the cleaning up of a mess, it is not the end of the world for everyone.

However, interestingly everyone becomes subject to this housecleaning: everyone including the foreign nations surrounding Israel.  Chapter 2 takes aim at the sins of other countries. All nations of the world are considered to be under God’s care and judgment and so Zephaniah includes the nations in this purge.  It means that all people are connected and that God cares enough to include “enemies” in this day of the LORD. And what’s the big deal?  Since all people of the world are linked together, all of humanity comes under God’s judgment and so too, all humanity is welcome to God’s salvation. That is a radical invitation! Zephaniah calls everyone to repentance.

(READ Zephaniah – Chapter 2 – Allan and Alan)

Through the bleakness of this scathing indictment on the sins of the human race the plea is heard: “Seek the LORD, all you humble of the land.”  Judgment and grace come together and for everyone.  With a simple call to repentance a new future suddenly appears. Can we imagine this possibility in our current global system of stress and unrest? I just read one example this week of the distortion of God’s intent that left me stunned.  Liberty University, the world’s largest Christian university in Lynchburg Virginia is training pilots to fly armed drones – for Christ.  Drones are unmanned aircraft that are flown remotely and besides surveillance missions are used increasingly to drop bombs in places thousands of miles away. A Christian pilot and graduate of this university who has since left the military made these comments: “I’ve thought about this a lot, how we’re supposed to be forgiving and yet fight wars against enemies… I just want to bring justice. You’re supposed to be forgiving, but you’re supposed to do your job. I’m not going over there [Afghanistan] holding a grudge against Osama bin Laden.  All the people we’re killing, you know, I’d like them to be saved….I have no problem taking another person’s life…if it would promote peace and liberty and the interest of the country we’re in.  I have no problem giving my life for it.  I’d end up going to heaven, so it doesn’t really bother me.” (Sojourners, July 2013, pp. 18-19)   I suppose it is my particular stripe of Christianity that would have me say that this type of activity in the name of Christ is a distortion of the Divine Intent. We are one humanity: interconnected and responsible to each other.  How can we bring God’s peace by remotely dropping bombs in the name of Christ?  This same soldier admitted that he would not want to have remote controlled drones patrolling American skies. (p. 19) 

We are interconnected as a human race; we are God’s creation – North America, Afghanistan, Libya, Egypt, Turkey, Tibet, Peru. All of humanity is invited to envision a future together.  The final chapter of Zephaniah actually extends a call to all nations to gather and bring offerings – a vision of universal salvation – that peaceable kingdom.  I know there are all kinds of problems around the notion of all people being saved and I won’t address that here.  However, it is a profoundly inspiring hope to imagine that out from the destruction of the great day of the LORD comes a vision for all people living at peace together: hope for all creation.  From outrage to outreach; this is the culmination of Zephaniah’s prophecy and it is amazing!

(READ – Chapter 3 – Alan and Allan)

God rejoices when we are free, not just Christian people but all of earth’s sojourners.  God’s anger, expressed through the prophets, isn’t unjustified when we consider the ways in which we human beings make life unbearable for each other.  There are always consequences, good and bad, in how we live together whether in families or communities or nations.  Turning toward God and finding in our Creator the means toward peace, reconciliation and redemption is a choice and a calling.  Others will observe and experience – judge, if you will – to what ends we have directed this God-given choice. Remember the promise of Zephaniah:  “The LORD your God is in your midst…he will rejoice over you with gladness and renew you in his love.” (3:17)  AMEN