Zephaniah’s Song: Finding Joy in Anticipation and Transformation
by Pastor Sean Amato
Zephaniah 3:14-20, New Revised Standard Version
14 Sing aloud, O daughter Zion; shout, O Israel! Rejoice and exult with all your heart, O daughter Jerusalem! 15 The Lord has taken away the judgements against you, he has turned away your enemies. The king of Israel, the Lord, is in your midst; you shall fear disaster no more. 16 On that day it shall be said to Jerusalem: Do not fear, O Zion; do not let your hands grow weak. 17 The Lord, your God, is in your midst, a warrior who gives victory; he will rejoice over you with gladness, he will renew you in his love; he will exult over you with loud singing 18 as on a day of festival. I will remove disaster from you, so that you will not bear reproach for it. 19 I will deal with all your oppressors at that time. And I will save the lame and gather the outcast, and I will change their shame into praise and renown in all the earth. 20 At that time I will bring you home, at the time when I gather you; for I will make you renowned and praised among all the peoples of the earth, when I restore your fortunes before your eyes, says the Lord.
Zephaniah prophesied about the “Day of the Lord” – a day on which God would emerge amidst humanity, dissolving differences between groups, uniting the people in loving care of one another again, removing the distractions that prevented people from seeing each other not as enemies, not as competitors, but as friends and family under God. Zephaniah saw this day coming, knew this day would come after society’s reckoning, and instead of prophesying only about reckoning, only about change, Zephaniah preached joy.
Joy, amidst trouble; joy, joy to be held even when we don’t exactly know what’s next. Joy, to sustain us, joy in accordance with what God has given us – joy, once we find our way to God once again. Zephaniah prophesied safety amidst war, protection from disaster, societal rejuvenation, Jerusalem’s rebirth on this Earth – and surrounding us all, throughout us all, a joyous song. Not just a joyous song that we might sing, no, but a joyous song – an exultation, a celebration – from God, down upon us. Shame will turn to praise, loneliness to community, silence to singing – but only if we allow ourselves to trust in what comes next, to live out God in our community, to treat ourselves well, to take part in the work and know that it is good.
We live in a world of distraction and doubt… but we’re still called, patiently and beautifully, to God’s grace and love. Still called to anticipate what comes next – and in this Advent season, that means the birth of the Christ Child, the fulfillment of God’s promise to be with us in the flesh. But to do that, we need to knock down some walls – to shatter some ceilings.
We are called to make changes – to stop the comparison game thrust upon us by society, to cease basing our happiness on the unhappiness of others, to dismantle the tall walls we’ve built and to turn them into great tables where we can sit and rest together. To do as Zephaniah says, and allow ourselves to bask in the small joys instead of always seeking the perfect ones. To wait, mindfully, patiently, dutifully, and yet still keep our hands moving and our souls engaged, to rest in life’s little joys with an eye on what’s next.
On the Day of the Lord, Zephaniah promises that if we have the eyes to see, if we can keep ourselves from trembling, from backbiting, from poisoning our own well, God will restore our fortunes before us. We will not only experience joy but embody it, as God sings down upon us.
