7<\/strong>. Hold thy peace Lord God<\/em> ] lit. the Lord Jehovah<\/em>. The divine name Jehovah was not pronounced in the synagogue reading, the word Lord (A.V. in that case Lord) being substituted for it; but when the actual word Lord ( Adonai<\/em>) stood beside Jehovah then the reader substituted God (A.V. God) for Jehovah. The prophet vividly realises the presence of Jehovah. He is present in the Day of the Lord which is at hand. And before His presence the prophet exclaims to men, Hush!<\/em> Hab 2:20<\/span>, Zec 2:13<\/span>. The “day of the Lord” is not merely some great calamity or judgment which the prophet feels to be impending, it is always Jehovah’s manifestation of Himself in fulness, and the judgment is the final and universal one. The coming of “the day of the Lord” was an ancient idea of the prophets (Hos 4:3<\/span>; Isa 2:12<\/span> ff.) and even of the people (Amo 5:18<\/span>); it was a belief older than any written prophecy, as the passage in Amos shews, and later prophets (Isa 13:6<\/span> ff.; Zep 1:7<\/span> ff.; Joe 1:15<\/span>; Joe 2:1<\/span>) only amplify the details of the idea. The presentiment of its nearness<\/em>, however, was often awakened in the prophet’s mind by severe visitations of providence (Joel), or by great convulsions among the nations (Isaiah 13<\/span>; Zephaniah 1<\/span>). Jehovah was so visibly present in these events that the presentiment could not be repressed that they were the tokens and heralds of His final manifestation of Himself, when His glory would be revealed and all flesh should see it together. Of course the prophet’s presentiment was not realised, the impending judgment passed over, and the day of the Lord was delayed. But this fact should not lead us to suppose that the prophets call any great visitation of God by the name of “the day of the Lord.”<\/p>\n prepared a sacrifice<\/em> ] The sacrifice, which is Israel, is slain, and the guests who are to eat of the sacrificial meal are invited. The destruction of Israel is so certain that it is conceived as already accomplished.<\/p>\n He hath bid his guests<\/em> ] lit. he hath consecrated<\/em> (sanctified) them that are bidden<\/em> (1Sa 9:13<\/span>). Those bidden are the foes who shall devour Israel. In ancient times slaughter of animals even for food was a kind of sacrificial act, as the blood and part of the flesh were offered to God, and only those who were clean could partake of the sacrificial meal (1Sa 20:26<\/span>); hence some consecration or preparation on the part of the guests was necessary, such as washing the clothes, in order to “sanctify” themselves. The Lord has sanctified His guests who are to eat His sacrifice (Isa 13:3<\/span>). Comp. the same idea Isa 34:6<\/span>; Jer 46:10<\/span>; Eze 39:17<\/span>, though in Ezek. the guests bidden to the Lord’s sacrifice are the birds of every sort and the beasts of the field. There is a certain inconsistency in the figure: of course the foes are those who slay Israel, the sacrifice, but the figure represents Jehovah as slaying and preparing the sacrifice, which the guests consume. The metaphor shews that some particular assailant of Israel is in the prophet’s view, just as in Isa 13:3<\/span>. See Introduction<\/em>, 1.<\/p>\n Hold thy peace at the presence of the Lord God – <\/B>(Literally, Hush, in awe from the face of God.) In the presence of God, even the righteous say from their inmost heart, I am vile, what shall I answer Thee? I will lay mine hand upon my mouth Job 40:4<\/span>. Now mine eye seeth Thee, wherefore I abhor myself, and repent in dust and ashes Job 42:5-6<\/span>. Enter not into judgment with Thy servant, O Lord, for in Thy sight shall no man living be justified Psa 143:2<\/span>. How much more must the man without the wedding garment be speechless Mat 22:11-12<\/span>, and every false plea, with which he deceived himself, melt away before the Face of God! The voice of Gods Judgment echoes in every heart, we indeed justly Luk 23:41<\/span>.<\/P> For the Day of the Lord is at hand – <\/B>Zephaniah, as is his custom, grounds this summons, which he had renewed from Habakkuk, to hushed silence before God, on Joels prophetic warning , to show that it was not yet exhausted. A day of the Lord, of which Joel warned, had come and was gone; but it was only the herald of many such days; judgments in time, heralds and earnests, and, in their degree, pictures of the last which shall end time.<\/P> Dionysius: All time is Gods, since He Alone is the Lord of time; yet that is specially said to be His time when He doth anything special. Whence He saith, My time is not yet come Joh 7:6<\/span>; whereas all time is His. The Day of the Lord is, in the first instance, Jerome: the day of captivity and vengeance on the sinful people, as a forerunner of the Day of Judgment, or the day of death to each, for this too is near, since, compared to eternity, all the time of this world is brief.<\/P> For the Lord hath prepared a sacrifice – <\/B>God had rejected sacrifices, offered amid unrepented sin; they were an abomination to Him Isa 1:11-15<\/span>. When man will not repent and offer himself as a living sacrifice, holy and acceptable to God Rom 12:1<\/span>, God, at last, rejects all other outward oblations, and the sinner himself is the sacrifice and victim of his own sins. The image was probably suggested by Isaiahs words, The Lord hath a sacrifice in Bozrah, and a great slaughter in the land of Idumea Isa 34:6<\/span>; and Jeremiah subsequently uses it of the overthrow of Pharaoh at the Euphrates, This is the day of the Lord of Hosts; that He may avenge Him of His adversaries, for the Lord God hath a sacrifice in the north country by the river Euphrates Jer 46:10<\/span>. The Lord hath made all things for Himself, yea even the wicked for the day of evil Pro 16:4<\/span>. All must honor God, either fulfilling the will of God and the end of their own being and of His love for them, by obeying that loving will with their own freewill, or, if they repudiate it to the end, by suffering it.<\/P> He hath bid His guests – <\/B>(Literally, sanctified) God had before, by Isaiah, called the pagan whom He employed to punish Babylon, My sanctified ones Isa 13:3<\/span>. Zephaniah, by giving the title to Gods instruments against Judah, declares that themselves, having become in deeds like the pagan, were as pagan to Him. The instruments of His displeasure, not they, were so far his chosen, His called. Jeremiah repeats the saying, Thus saith the Lord against the house of the king of Judah;…I have sanctified against thee destroyers, a man and his weapons Jer 22:6-7<\/span>. That is, so far, a holy war in the purpose of God, which fulfills His will; from where Nebuchadnezzar was His servant Jer 25:9<\/span>, avenging His wrongs . Cyril: To be sanctified, here denotes not the laying aside of iniquity, nor the participation of the Holy Spirit, but, as it were, to be foreordained and chosen to the fulfillment of this end. That is in a manner hallowed, which is employed by God for a holy end, though the instrument, its purposes, its aims, its passions, be in themselves unholy. There is an awe about the scourges of God. As with the lightning and the tornado, there is a certain presence of God with them, in that through them His Righteousness is seen; although they themselves have as little of God as the wind and storm which fulfill His word. Those who were once admitted to make offerings to God make themselves sacrifices to His wrath; these, still pagan and ungodly and in all besides reprobate, are His priests, because in this, although without their will, they do His will.<\/P> <\/p>\n Zep 1:7-18<\/span><\/p>\n The day of the Lord is at hand.<\/em><\/p>\n<\/p>\n The day of war, the day of horrors<\/strong><\/p>\n The war day is represented here–<\/p>\n 1. <\/strong>Sacrifice of life. Among several classes.<\/p>\n (1)<\/strong> Royalty.<\/p>\n (2)<\/strong> Nobility.<\/p>\n (3)<\/strong> Traders.<\/p>\n (4)<\/strong> The masses.<\/p>\n 2. <\/strong>Sacrifice of property.<\/p>\n 1. <\/strong>That all who perish in war righteously deserve their fate.<\/p>\n 2. <\/strong>That warriors, in executing the Divine justice, demonstrate the enormity of the evil requiring punishment.<\/p>\n 3. <\/strong>War, as an officer of Divine justice, reveals the amazing freedom allowed to the sinner in this world, and Gods controlling power over hostile forces. (Homilist.<\/em>)<\/p>\n Verse 7. Hold thy peace at the presence of the Lords God<\/B><\/I>] has<\/I>, the same as hush, hist<\/I>, among us. Remonstrances are now<\/I> useless. You had time to acquaint yourselves with God; you would not: you cry now in vain; destruction is at the door.<\/P> <\/P> The Lord hath prepared a sacrifice<\/B><\/I>] A slaughter of the people.<\/P> <\/P> He hath bid his guests<\/B><\/I>] The Babylonians, to whom he has given a commission to destroy you. In all festivals sacrifices,<\/P> 1. The victims were offered to God, and their blood poured out before the altar.<\/P> 2. The people who were invited feasted upon the sacrifice. See on Isa 34:6<\/span>.<\/P> <\/p>\n Hold thy peace; <\/B>thou that murmurest in discontent, or disputest out of frowardness against God, his worship, and his government, that thinkest of him but little better than of Baal or Malcham, cease all thy quarrels and dispute, stand in awe. <\/P> At the presence of the Lord God; <\/B>who is almighty, omniscient, who ruleth and will avenge. <\/P> The day of the Lord; <\/B>a day of vengeance from the Lord. The Lord hath prepared a sacrifice; the wicked among the Jews, whom he will sacrifice by the Chaldeans sword. <\/P> He hath bid his guests; <\/B>summoned in beasts of the field and fowls of the air, to eat the flesh and drink the blood of slain Jews, whom the Babylonians slew. <\/P> <\/p>\n 7. Hold thy peace at the presence ofthe Lord<\/B> (Hab 2:20<\/span>). Letthe earth<\/I> be silent at His approach [MAURER].Or, “Thou whosoever hast been wont to speak against God, as ifHe had no care about earthly affairs, cease thy murmurs andself-justifications; submit thyself to God, and repent in time”[CALVIN]. <\/P> Lord . . . prepared asacrifice<\/B>namely, a slaughter of the guilty Jews, the victimsdue to His justice (Isa 34:6<\/span>;Jer 46:10<\/span>; Eze 39:17<\/span>).<\/P> bid his guests<\/B>literally,”sanctified His called ones” (compare Isa13:3<\/span>). It enhances the bitterness of the judgment that theheathen Chaldeans should be sanctified,<\/I> or consecrated as itwere, by God as His priests, and be called<\/I> to eat the flesh ofthe elect people; as on feast days the priests used to feast amongthemselves on the remains of the sacrifices [CALVIN].English Version<\/I> takes it not of the priests,<\/I> but theguests bidden,<\/I> who also had to “sanctify” or purifythemselves before coming to the sacrificial feast (1Sa 9:13<\/span>;1Sa 9:22<\/span>; 1Sa 16:5<\/span>).Nebuchadnezzar was bidden<\/I> to come to take vengeance on guiltyJerusalem (Jer 25:9<\/span>).<\/P><\/p>\n Hold thy peace at the presence of the Lord God<\/strong>,…. When he comes forth, and appears in the way of his judgments, do not dispute the point with him, or pretend to offer reasons against his proceedings, or in order to disprove the justice of them; stand in awe and reverence of him, who is the Lord God omniscient and omnipotent, holy, just, and true; humble yourselves under his mighty hand; be still, and know that he is God; and let not one murmuring and repining word come out of your mouth. The Targum is,<\/p>\n “let all the wicked of the earth perish from before the Lord God:”<\/p>\n for the day of the Lord [is] at hand<\/strong>; the time of his vengeance on the Jewish nation for their sins, which he had fixed in his mind, and had given notice of by his prophets: this began to take place at Josiah’s death, after which the Jews enjoyed little peace and prosperity; and his successor reigned but three months, was deposed by the king of Egypt, and carried thither captive, and there died; and Jehoiakim, that succeeded him, in the fourth year of his reign was carried captive into Babylon, or died by the way thither; so that this day might well be said to be at hand:<\/p>\n for the Lord hath prepared a sacrifice<\/strong>: his people the Jews, who were to fall a victim to his vengeance, and a sacrifice to his justice, to atone in some measure for the injury done to it by their sins; thus they that had offered sacrifice to idols, and neglected the sacrifices of the Lord, and especially the great sacrifice of Christ typified by them, the only proper atoning one, should themselves become a sacrifice to the just resentment of God; this he had prepared in his mind, determined should be done, and would bring about in his providence; see<\/p>\n Isa 34:6<\/span>:<\/p>\n he hath bid his guests<\/strong>: or “called ones” o; the Chaldeans, whom he invited and called to this sacrifice and feast: or whom he “prepared”, or “sanctified” p; he prepared them in his purpose and providence; he set them apart for this service, and called them to it; to be the sacrificers of this people, and to feast upon them; to spoil them of their goods and riches, and enjoy them. These guests may also design, as Kimchi observes, the fowls of the heaven, and the beasts of the field, invited to feast upon the slain; see Eze 39:17<\/span>.<\/p>\n o “vocatos suos”, Pagninus, Montanus, Cocceius, Burkius; “invitatos suos”, Vatablus, Tigurine verson, Junius Tremellius, Piscator, Drusius. p “praeparavit”, Vatablus, Junius Tremellius, Piscator so Ben Melech “sanctificavit”, V. L. Montanus, Cocceius, Burkius.<\/p>\n This judgment will speedily come. Zep 1:7<\/span>. “Be silent before the Lord Jehovah! For the day of Jehovah is near, for Jehovah has prepared a slaying of sacrifice, He has consecrated His called.” <\/em> The command, “Be silent before the Lord,” which is formed after Hab 2:20<\/span>, and with which the prophet summons to humble, silent submission to the judgment of God, serves to confirm the divine threat in Zep 1:2-6<\/span>. The reason for the commanding Hush! (keep silence) is given in the statement that the day of Jehovah is close at hand (compare Joe 1:15<\/span>), and that God has already appointed the executors of the judgment. The last two clauses of the verse are formed from reminiscences taken from Isaiah. The description of the judgment as zebhach <\/em>, a sacrifice, is taken from Isa 34:6<\/span> (cf. Jer 46:10<\/span> and Eze 39:17<\/span>). The sacrifice which God has prepared is the Jewish nation; those who are invited to this sacrificial meal (“called,” 1Sa 9:13<\/span>) are not beasts and birds of prey, as in Eze 39:17<\/span>, but the nations which He has consecrated to war that they may consume Jacob (Jer 10:25<\/span>). The extraordinary use of the verb hiqdiish (consecrated) in this connection may be explained from Isa 13:3<\/span>, where the nations appointed to make war against Babel are called mequddashm <\/em>, the sanctified of Jehovah (cf. Jer 22:7<\/span>).<\/p>\n Judgment Predicted.<\/SPAN><\/SPAN><\/I><\/span><\/P> <\/TD> B. C.<\/SPAN><\/SPAN><\/SPAN><\/SPAN><\/SPAN> 612.<\/SPAN><\/SPAN><\/SPAN><\/SPAN><\/SPAN><\/FONT><\/P> <\/TD> <\/TR> <\/TABLE> 7 Hold thy peace at the presence of the Lord GOD<\/B>: for the day of the LORD<\/B> is<\/I> at hand: for the LORD<\/B> hath prepared a sacrifice, he hath bid his guests. 8 And it shall come to pass in the day of the LORD<\/B>‘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 day, saith the LORD<\/B>, that there shall be<\/I> the noise of a cry from the fish gate, and an howling from the second, and a great crashing from the hills. 11 Howl, ye inhabitants of Maktesh, for all the merchant people are cut down; all they that bear silver are cut off. 12 And it shall come to pass at that time, that<\/I> I will search Jerusalem with candles, and punish the men that are settled on their lees: that say in their heart, The LORD<\/B> will not do good, neither will he do evil. 13 Therefore their goods shall become a booty, and their houses a desolation: they shall also build houses, but not inhabit them;<\/I> and they shall plant vineyards, but not drink the wine thereof.<\/P> Notice is here given to Judah and Jerusalem that God is coming forth against them, and will be with them shortly; his presence,<\/I> as a just avenger, his day,<\/I> the day of his judgment and his wrath, are not far off, v.<\/I><\/span> 7<\/span>. Those that improve not the presence of God with them as a Father, but sin away that presence, may expect his presence with them as a Judge, to call them to an account for the contempt put upon his grace. The day of the Lord<\/I> will come. Men have their day now, when they take a liberty to do what they please; but God’s day is at hand;<\/I> it is here called his sacrifice,<\/I> a sacrifice of his preparing, for the punishing of presumptuous sinners is a sacrifice to the justice of God, some reparation to his injured honour. Those that brought their offerings to other gods were themselves justly made victims to the true God. On a day of sacrifice great slaughter was made; so shall there be in Jerusalem; men shall be killed up as fast as lambs for the altar, with as little regret, with as much pleasure: The slain of the Lord shall be many.<\/I> On a day of sacrifice great feasts were made upon the sacrifices; so the inhabitants of Judah and Jerusalem shall be feasted upon by their enemies the Chaldeans; these are the guests God has prepared and invited to come and glut themselves–their revenge with slaughter and their covetousness with plunder. Now observe,<\/P> I. Who those are that are marked to be sacrificed, that shall be visited and punished in this day of reckoning, and what it is they shall be called to an account for. 1. The royal family, because of the dignity of their place, shall be first reckoned with for their pride, and vanity, and affectation (v.<\/I><\/span> 8<\/span>): I will punish the princes, and the king’s children,<\/I> who think themselves accountable to God, and that, high as they are, he is above them. They shall be punished, and all such as, like them, are clothed with strange apparel,<\/I> such as, in contempt of their own country (where, probably, it was the custom to go in a very plain dress, as became the seed of Jacob that plain man<\/I>), affected to appear in the fashion of other nations and introduced their modes in apparel, studying to resemble those from whom God had appointed them, even in their clothes, industriously to distinguish themselves. The princes and the king’s children<\/I> scorned to wear any home-made stuffs, though God had provided them fine linen<\/I> and silks<\/I> (Ezek. xvi. 10<\/span>), but they must send abroad to strange countries for their clothes, which would not please unless they were far-fetched and dear-bought; and even those of inferior rank affected to imitate the princes and the king’s children. Pride in apparel is displeasing to God, and a symptom of the degeneracy of a people. 2. The noblemen, and their stewards and servants, come next to be reckoned with (v.<\/I><\/span> 9<\/span>): In the same day will I punish those that leap on the threshold,<\/I> a phrase, no doubt, well understood then, and which probably signified the invading of their neighbour’s rights. Entering their houses by force and violence, and seizing their possessions, they leap on the threshold,<\/I> as much as to say that the house is their own and they will keep their hold of it; and, accordingly, they make all in it their own that they can lay their hands on, and so fill their masters’ houses<\/I> with goods gotten by violence and deceit<\/I> and with all the guilt thereby contracted. Nor shall it suffice them to say that the ill-gotten gains were not for themselves but for their masters, and that what they did was by their order; for the obligations we lie under to keep God’s commandments are prior and superior to the obligations we lie under to serve the interests of any master on earth. 3. The trading people, and the rich merchants, are next called to account. Iniquity is found in their end of the town, among the inhabitants of Maktesh,<\/I> a low part of Jerusalem, deep like a mortar (for so the word signifies); the goldsmiths<\/I> lived there (Neh. iii. 32<\/span>) and the merchants; and they are now cut down<\/I> (they are broken, and have shut up their shops, and become bankrupts); nay, All those that bear silver are cut off,<\/I> in the first place, by the invaders, for the sake of the silver they carry, which is so far from being a protection to them that it will expose and betray them. The conquerors aimed at the wealthy men, and carried them off first, while the poor of the land escaped.<\/I> Or it may be meant of a general decay of trade, which was a preface and introduction to the general destruction of the land. It is the token of a declining state when great dealers are cut down, and great bankers are cut off and become bankrupts, who cannot fall alone, but with themselves ruin many. 4. All the secure and careless people, the sons of pleasure, that live a loose idle life, are next reckoned with (v.<\/I><\/span> 12<\/span>); they come from all parts of the country, to take up their quarters in the head-quarters of the kingdom, where they take private lodgings, and indulge themselves in ease and luxury; but God will find them out, and punish them: At that time I will search Jerusalem with candles,<\/I> to discover them, that they may be brought out to condign punishment. This intimates that they conceal themselves, as being either ashamed of the sin or afraid of the punishment of it; when the judgments of God are abroad they hope to escape by absconding and getting out of the way, but God will search Jerusalem,<\/I> as search is made for a malefactor in disguise, that is harboured by his accomplices. God’s hand will find out all his enemies,<\/I> wherever they lie hid, and will punish not only the secret idolaters, but the secret epicures and profane; and those are the persons that are here described, and marks are given by which they will be discovered when strict search is made for them. (1.) Their dispositions are sensual: They are settled on their lees,<\/I> intoxicated with their pleasures, strengthening themselves in their wealth and wickedness; they are secure and easy, and, because they have had no changes, they fear none, as Moab, Jer. xlviii. 11<\/span>. They have not been emptied from vessel to vessel.<\/I> They fill themselves with wine and strong drink,<\/I> and banish all thought, saying, To-morrow shall be as this day,<\/I> Isa. lvi. 12<\/I><\/span>. Their being settled on their lees<\/I> signifies the same with being enclosed in their own fat,<\/I> Ps. xvii. 10<\/I><\/span>. (2.) Their notions are atheistical. They could not live such loose lives but that they say in their heart, The Lord will not do good, neither will he do evil;<\/I> that is, He will do nothing.<\/I> They deny his providential government of the world: “What good and evil there is in the world comes by the wheel of fortune, and not by the disposal of a wise and supreme director.” They deny his moral government, and his dispensing rewards and punishments: “The Lord will not do good<\/I> to those that serve him, nor do evil<\/I> to those that rebel against him; and therefore there is nothing got by religion, nor lost by sin.” This was the effect of their sensuality; if they were not drowned in sense, they could not be thus senseless, nor could they be so stupid if they had not stupefied themselves with the love of pleasure. It was also the cause of their sensuality; men would not make a god of their belly if they had not at first become so vain, so vile, in their imaginations, as to think the God that made them altogether such a one as themselves.<\/I> But God will punish them; their end is destruction,<\/I> Phil. iii. 19<\/I><\/span>.<\/P> II. What the destruction will be with which God will punish these sinners, and what course he will take with them. 1. He will silence them (v.<\/I><\/span> 7<\/span>): Hold thy peace at the presence of the Lord.<\/I> He will force them to hold their peace, will strike them dumb with horror and amazement. They shall be speechless. All the excuses of their sin, and exceptions against the sentence, will be overruled, and they shall not have a word to say for themselves. 2. He will sacrifice<\/I> them, for it is the day of the Lord’s sacrifice<\/I> (v.<\/I><\/span> 8<\/span>); he will give them into the hands of their enemies, and glorify himself thereby. 3. He will fill both city and country with lamentation (v.<\/I><\/span> 10<\/span>): In that day there shall be a noise of a cry from the fish-gate,<\/I> so called because near either to the fish-ponds or to the fish-market. It belonged to the city of David (2Ch 33:14<\/span>; Neh 3:3<\/span>); perhaps the same with that which is called the first gate<\/I> (Zech. xiv. 10<\/span>), and, if so, it will explain what follows here, And a howling from the second,<\/I> that is, the second gate, which was next to that fish-gate.<\/I> The alarm shall go round the walls of Jerusalem from gate to gate; and there shall be a great crashing from the hills,<\/I> a mighty noise from the mountains round about Jerusalem, from the acclamations of the victorious invaders, or from the lamentations of the timorous invaded, or from both. The inhabitants of the city, even of the closest safest part of the city, shall howl<\/I> (v.<\/I><\/span> 11<\/span>), so clamorous shall the grief be. 4. They shall be stripped of all they have; it shall be a prey to the enemy (v.<\/I><\/span> 13<\/span>): Their household goods,<\/I> and shop-goods,<\/I> shall become a booty,<\/I> and a rich booty they shall be; their houses shall be<\/I> levelled with the ground and be a desolation;<\/I> those of them that have built<\/I> new houses shall not inherit them,<\/I> but the invaders shall get and keep possession of them. And the vineyards<\/I> they have planted they shall not drink the wine of,<\/I> but, instead of having it for the relief of their friends that faint among them, they shall part with it for the animating of their foes that fight against them, Deut. xxviii. 30<\/span>.<\/P> <\/p>\n The Prophet confirms here what he has previously taught, when he bids all to be silent before God; for this mode of speaking is the same as though he had said, that he did not terrify the Jews in vain, but seriously set before them God’s judgment, which they would find by experience to be even more than terrible. He also records some of their sins, that the Jews might know that he did not threaten them for nothing, but that there were just causes why God declared that he would punish them. This is the substance of the whole. <\/p>\n Let us first see what the Prophet means by the word, silence. Something has been said of this on the second chapter of Habakkuk. We said then that by silence is meant submission; and to make the thing more clear, we said that we were to notice the contrast between the silence to which men calmly submit, and the contumacy, which is ever clamorous: for when men seek to be wise of themselves, and acquiesce not in God’s word, it is then said, that they are not silent, for they refuse to give a hearing to his word; and when men give loose reins to their own will, they observe no bounds. Until God then obtains authority in the world, all places are full of clamor, and the whole life of men is in a state of confusion, for they run to and fro in their wanderings; and there is no restraint where God is not heard. It is for the same reason that the Prophet now demands silence: but the expression is accommodated to the subject which he handles. To be silent at the presence of God, it is true, is to submit to God’s authority; but the connection is to be considered; for Zephaniah saw then that God’s judgment was despised and regarded as nothing; and he intimates here that God had so spoken, that the execution was nigh at hand. Hence he says, Be silent, (73) that is, Know ye, that I have not spoken merely for the purpose of terrifying you; but as God is prepared to execute vengeance, of this he now reminds you, that if there be any hope of repentance, ye may in time seek to return into favor with him; if not, that ye may be without excuse. <\/p>\n We now then understand why the Prophet bids them to be silent before the Lord Jehovah: and the context is a confirmation of the same view; for the reason is added, Because the day of Jehovah is nigh. For profane men ever promise to themselves some respite, and think that they gain much by delay: the Prophet, on the contrary, does now expose to scorn this self-security, and says, that the day of Jehovah was nigh at hand. It is then the same thing as though he had said, that his judgment ought to have been quickly anticipated, and even with fear and trembling. <\/p>\n He afterwards employs a metaphor to set forth what he taught,—that God had prepared a sacrifice, yea, that he had already appointed and set apart his guests. By the word, sacrifice, the Prophet reminded them, that the punishment of which he had spoken would be just, and that the glory of God would thereby shine forth. We indeed know how ready the world is to make complaints; when it is pressed by God’s hand, it expostulates on account of too much rigor; and many in an open manner give utterance to their blasphemies. As then they own not God’s justice in his punishment, the Prophet calls it a sacrifice; and sacrifices, we know, are evidences of divine worship, and he who offers a sacrifice to God, owns him to be just. So also by this kind of speaking Zephaniah intimates that God would not act a cruel part in cutting off the city Jerusalem and its inhabitants; for this would be a sacrifice, according to the language often employed by the Prophets, and especially by Isaiah, who says of Bozrah, ‘A sacrifice is prepared in Bozrah,’ Isa 34:6<\/span>\ud83d\ude09 and who says also of Jerusalem itself, ‘Oh! Ariel! Ariel!’ Isa 29:1<\/span>, where Jerusalem itself is represented as the altar; as though he had said, In all the streets, in the open places, there shall be altars to me; for I will collect together great masses of men, whom I shall slay as a sacrifice to me. For all who were not willing to render worship to God, and who did not freely offer themselves as spiritual victims to him, were to be drawn to the slaughter, and were at the same time called sacrifices. So the executions on the gallows, when the wicked suffer, may be said to be sacrifices to God: for the Lord arms the magistrate with the sword to restrain wickedness, that the wicked may not have such liberty as to banish all equity from the world. The cities also, which, being forcibly taken, are subject to a slaughter, and the fields, where armies are slain, become altars, for God makes the rebellious a sacrifice, because they refuse willingly to offer themselves. <\/p>\n So also in this place the Prophet says, Jehovah has prepared for himself a sacrifice, —Where? At Jerusalem, through the whole city, as it has appeared from the quotation from Isaiah; for as they had not rightly sacrificed to God on Mount Sion, but vitiated his whole worship, God himself declares, that he would become a priest, that he might slay, as he thought right, those beasts, who had obstinately refused his yoke: And he has prepared his guests. But I cannot finish today. <\/p>\n (73) The word is [ הט ], and is evidently an interjection enjoining silence, Hush! or, Silence! <\/p>\n 7. Silence at the presence of the Lord Jehovah! For nigh is the day of Jehovah, For prepared hath Jehovah a sacrifice, Selected hath he his guests! <\/p>\n The passage is remarkably forcible and striking. Jehovah was coming, and everything was prepared, and all were to be silent. And then follows what is no less striking and expressive,— <\/p>\n 8. And it shall be in the day of Jehovah’s sacrifice, That I will visit the princes and the king’s sons, And all who wear foreign apparel. 9. I will also visit, in that day, Every one who leaps on the threshold, Who fill the house of their master By plunder and by fraud. <\/p>\n There is in the last line a metonymy; the act is put for what was acquired by it: they filled the house of their master by spoils gained by plunder or violence, and by fraud or cheating.— Ed. <\/p>\n CRITICAL NOTES.]<\/strong> <\/p>\n Zep. 1:7<\/span><\/strong>.] Judgment speedily comes. Hold<\/strong>] A summons to silent submission (Hab. 2:20<\/span>); the reason given, the day near. Sacrifice<\/strong>] of victims of justice (Isa. 34:6<\/span>; Jer. 46:10<\/span>); nations consecrated to war, that they may consume Jacob (Jer. 10:25<\/span>) [Keil<\/em>]. Fuente: The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges<\/b><\/i><\/h4>\n
Fuente: Albert Barnes’ Notes on the Bible<\/b><\/i><\/h4>\n
I. <\/strong>As a day of enormous sacrifice.<\/p>\n
II. <\/strong>As a day of Divine retribution. All the horrors of war are here represented as judgments from the Almighty. In using war as a punishment for sin it may be observed–<\/p>\nFuente: Biblical Illustrator Edited by Joseph S. Exell<\/b><\/i><\/h4>\n
Fuente: Adam Clarke’s Commentary and Critical Notes on the Bible<\/b><\/i><\/h4>\n
Fuente: English Annotations on the Holy Bible by Matthew Poole<\/b><\/i><\/h4>\n
Fuente: Jamieson, Fausset and Brown’s Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible <\/b><\/i><\/h4>\n
Fuente: John Gill’s Exposition of the Entire Bible<\/b><\/i><\/h4>\n
Fuente: Keil & Delitzsch Commentary on the Old Testament<\/b><\/i><\/h4>\n
Fuente: Matthew Henry’s Whole Bible Commentary<\/b><\/i><\/h4>\n
Fuente: Calvin’s Complete Commentary<\/b><\/i><\/h4>\n