True and False Worship in the Prophecy of Zephaniah

Abstract

In the prophecy of Zephaniah, the fate of Judah and that of foreign nations in the purposes of God are intertwined, both in regard to judgement and salvation. Judah needs to learn from God’s dealings with the nations. God’s verdict and judgement on the nations (1.14–18; 2.4–15) are lessons for sinful Jerusalem, which is under the same threat (2.1–3; 3.1–8). Likewise, but more positively, and this is the focus of the present article, cultic unfaithfulness in contemporary Judah (1.4–6) is set in contrast to the prospect of future cultic devotion to Yhwh by the nations of the world (2.11b; 3.9–10). The prediction of God’s favourable dealings with the nations of the world is a salutary lesson to the Judahites and should motivate them to reform the cult and faithfully serve Yhwh.

The prophecy of Zephaniah is positioned at an important juncture in the structure of the Book of the Twelve as a canonical unit. According to Paul House, Zephaniah provides ‘a bridge between the sin, punishment, and restoration sections of the Twelve’. ¹ The cosmic breadth of the devastation pictured in Zephaniah (e.g. 1.2–3, 18; 3.8) makes it a fitting climax to the first nine prophecies of the Twelve that focus on judgement, and Zephaniah provides the most extensive treatment of the day of the Lord in the Twelve. The prophecy also introduces the restoration focus of Haggai-Zechariah-Malachi, with Zeph. 3.11–20 containing God’s promise to bring his people back from exile and restore the fortunes of Zion (3.20: ‘At that time I will bring you home’). ² In its final form, Zephaniah also looks forward to a more positive future for the nations (2.11; 3.9–10), a hope that anticipates what is found in Zech. 2.11 (MT 2.15), 8.20–23, 14.16–21 and Mal. 1.11, 14. ³ On that basis, the position of Zephaniah at this seam may be deemed appropriate, for the prophecy looks both backward and forward. I am not arguing that the prophecy has been redactionally shaped for this position, ⁴ but only that its shape and contents suit its position in the order of the twelve prophetic booklets. At such a juncture in the Twelve it is appropriate to have a prophecy that intimates both judgement and salvation for both Judah and the nations. ⁵

As observed by Daniel Timmer, ‘The theme of the non-Israelite nations in Zephaniah is more complex than in most other books of the Twelve’, ⁶ for in this prophecy, the fate of the Judahites and foreign nations is intricately intertwined. ⁷ The only hope for Judah, if it is to escape the day of God’s wrath described in chapter 1, is to turn to God in humility and righteousness (2.1–3). ⁸ God’s verdict and judgement on the nations (2.4–15) is a lesson for sinful Jerusalem, which is also under threat (3.1–8). ⁹ What God did to other nations (3.6) should motivate his own people to ‘accept correction’ (3.7). ¹⁰ In a second ‘woe’ oracle (cf. 2.5), Jerusalem is called ‘the oppressing city’ (3.1), and so she will share the same fate as other nations, but the warning is given rhetorical force by the fact that it is not at first obvious that the unnamed city in 3.1 (‘the oppressing city’) that is the object of condemnation has switched from Nineveh to Jerusalem. The identity of the city only becomes apparent in 3.2b (‘She does not trust in the Lord, she does not draw near to her God’). ¹¹ The Jerusalemites were supposed to have learned from God’s harsh dealings with foreign nations, with 3.6 (‘I have cut off [הכרתי‎] nations’) alluding to the judgments threatened in 2.4–15. ¹²

There is, however, another way in which the Judahites were meant to have derived instruction from God’s dealings with the nations, and this has not received the same scholarly attention. In this article, I will seek to demonstrate that present cultic unfaithfulness in Judah (1.4–6) is set in contrast to the prospect of future cultic devotion to Yhwh by the nations (2.11b; 3.9–10). The prediction of God’s favourable dealings with the nations of the world is a salutary lesson to the Judahites and should motivate them to reform the cult and faithfully serve Yhwh. ¹³

Cultic Unfaithfulness in Judah (Zeph. 1.4–6)

When the prophecy opens, Yhwh speaks of a universal judgement, involving the world’s return to a lifeless state, the way it was before he created the fish, birds, animals and humans (1.2–3). ¹⁴ The unit is demarcated by the inclusio of the phrase ‘from the face of the earth’ and the repeated speech attribution at the end of verse 3 (‘says the Lord’) (cf. 1.2b). ¹⁵ After the depiction of a cosmic judgement, the prophet turns to the condemnation of false worship in Judah (1.4–6), and specifically as practised by ‘the inhabitants of Jerusalem’ (1.4; cf. Jer. 35.17). This presents Jerusalem as the epicentre of the global judgement (cf. 1.18b), with the link to what precedes forged by repetition of the verb כרת‎ (‘to cut off’) in verse 4, picking up its use in verse 3, in which the object of the verb is also humans (‘I will cut off humankind [האדם‎]’). ¹⁶ The identity of ‘this place’ (המקום הזה‎) in verse 4b is most probably Jerusalem (cf. Jer. 19.3–7, 12), ¹⁷ and may possibly be narrowed down to the temple in Jerusalem, given the cultic focus of 1.4–6 (cf. Deut. 12.3; 26.9; Jer. 7.3; Hag. 2.9). ¹⁸ However, the preceding mention of ‘the inhabitants of Jerusalem’ and the follow-up reference to ‘roofs’ favours Jerusalem in general as the ‘place’ in mind, or even the land in its entirety, given the mention of ‘Judah’ (1.4a). ¹⁹ There is similar ambiguity in some uses of the word ‘place’ in the prophecy of Jeremiah. The phrase ‘from this place’ (מן־המקום הזה‎) is commonly removed as a gloss, in an effort to balance the two versets of 1.4b (e.g. Elliger, editor BHS), but this argument does not mandate its removal, ²⁰ so that 1.4a can be read as reflecting the kind of Deuteronomic theology found in Jeremiah (cf. Jer. 7.3, 6, 7, 20, 14.13, 16.2, 3, 9, 19; 24.5; 28.3). What is more, the word ‘place’ (מקום‎) is a significant link between 1.4–6 and Zeph. 2.11 (see another such link below).

The first crime of Judah exposed and condemned in the prophecy is that of false worship, namely cultic failures (1.4–6), with the verses specifying the various categories of idolaters who will be ‘cut off’ (והכרתי‎) by Yhwh. A series of direct objects of the verb ‘to cut off’ (כרת‎) occurs, with each of these direct objects preceded by the marker of the definite direct object (את‎), specifying a group of persons cut off and also supplying a reason for the ‘cutting off’. In each case, the reason is illegitimate cultic actions. ²¹ There are two mentions of ‘bowing down’ (המשׁתחוים‎) in 1.5, ²² and this root is picked up and reused in application to nations in 2.11. Rooftops were used as a sacred space (1.5), where sacrifices were offered, ²³ and mention of this location is especially apposite for the worship of astral deities (cf. 2 Kgs 23.4, 5). The pairing of the words ‘remnant … name’ (שׁאר … שׁם‎) in Zeph. 1.4b (cf. Isa. 14.22; 2 Sam. 14.7) signifies the total destruction of the paraphernalia of the baal cult and its illegitimate ‘priests’ (כמרים‎) (a word found elsewhere only in Hos. 10.5; 2 Kgs 23.5). The meaning of מלכם‎, vocalised in the MT as ‘their king’ (1.5b; cf. MT Jer. 49.1, 3), is variously understood (Milcom, Molech or Baal), ²⁴ but it is plain that the target of the criticism is a syncretistic cult, in which God’s people have stopped worshipping Yhwh exclusively. ²⁵ As remarked on by Smith, 1.6 goes beyond the divided loyalty condemned in 1.5 and describes actual apostasy (cf. 1.12). ²⁶ For the regular use of the verb בקשׁ‎ (Piel ‘to seek’) (1.6b) in the sense of cultic approach to God, see Hos. 5.6, 15; 7.10 (cf. Deut. 4.29; Pss. 24.6; 27.8; Amos 5.4–6), though the reappearance of the motif of seeking the Lord in 2.3 has a moral orientation. Likewise, the verb דרשׁ‎ (‘to inquire’) appears frequently in cultic contexts in reference to oracular inquiry (e.g. Gen. 25.22; Exod. 18.25; 1 Kgs 22.8). ²⁷ The focus, therefore, in Zeph. 1.4–6 is on deviant practices in the Judahite cult, and significant vocabulary in these verses (place, bowing down) will be picked up in 2.11 when the subject becomes future cultic reformation among the nations of the world.

The Placement of Zephaniah 2.11

The presence of ‘day of the Lord’ language in Zephaniah is used by some scholars to suggest a late date for the prophecy or redactional levels within the prophecy (e.g. 1.7, 14), ²⁸ but such moves are not absolutely necessary, given the pervasive day of the Lord theme throughout the Book of the Twelve. As in Joel 2.2 and Amos 5.18–20, the focus in Zephaniah is on this dark day as one of judgement on God’s own people (1.7–2.3, esp. 1.15), with this section unified by repeated use of the key word ‘day’ (יום‎). Zephaniah calls on the people to ‘seek the Lord’, with the hope that they ‘may be hidden on the day of the wrath of the Lord’ (2.3). The material that follows is connected by the conjunction כי‎ (2.4a ‘for’), ²⁹ the motivation for repentance being the certainty of universal judgement. The nations will be judged, both near-neighbours to the east and west (Philistia, Moab and Ammon) and more distant peoples to the south and north (Cushites, Assyria) (2.4–15). ³⁰ The schematic nature of the list of foreign nations alluding to the four compass points makes it plain that the peoples referred to are being used to represent all the nations of the world, especially when the more general contents of 2.11 are noted.

Zephaniah 2.11 is positioned in the middle of oracles against the nations, after the units concerning Philistia (2.4–7) and Moab and Ammon, who are paired together (2.8–10), and before the sayings directed at Cush (2.12) and Assyria (2.13–15). However, the generalised nature of the contents of 2/11 (‘all the gods of the earth … all the isles [איי‎] of the nations’) causes it to stand out in its context, ³¹ and in that sense, Ehud Ben Zvi is correct in saying, ‘Zeph 2.11 is only loosely connected to both the preceding and the following units.’ ³² On that basis, many commentators view 2.11 as a post-exilic addition to the prophecy, ³³ but whether this is the case, several things indicate its suitability to its present position in the final form of the text. The third masculine plural pronominal suffix in the prepositional phrase in the first line of the verse, ‘[The Lord will be terrible] against them (עליהם‎)’, joins 2.11 to what precedes, ³⁴ but the contents of the verse go far beyond specific actions by Yhwh against the Moabites and the Ammonites (and maybe also the Philistines), ³⁵ though these nations must be the antecedent to which the pronominal suffix refers. However, if the conjunction כי‎ in the second line of 2.11 is read as asseverative in force (RSV ‘yea, he will famish all the gods of the earth’), the prediction of a wider judgement on the nations can be interpreted as building on and broadening the more specific indictments that precede. The כי‎ of 2.11a matches the כי‎ of verse 10b, ³⁶ and this is another link between the verses. The first use of the particle כי‎ is causal in force, though this does not require that the second use has the same sense. The emphatic adverbial particle גם‎ in 2.12 (‘You also, O Ethiopians shall be slain by the sword’) is viewed by Ben Zvi as a mere stylistic device inserted to facilitate some kind of continuity in a composite text and, therefore, does not point to any essential relationship between 2.11 and what follows. ³⁷ However, after allusion to ‘the earth … the nations’ (2.11), the transition in 2.12 to distant people groups is not at all jarring, ³⁸ for the mention of Cush and Assyria supports the global orientation of the statements in 2.11. ³⁹ In other words, 2.11 has been placed with some care, and its position can be viewed as strategic, making it the structural centre of the unit indicting foreign nations, ⁴⁰ and the motive may be that the distinctive content of the verse is thereby highlighted.

The Nations Will Worship Yhwh on Foreign Soil (Zeph. 2.11)

Though the phrase ‘all the gods of the earth’ in 2.11a does not occur elsewhere, comparable phrases conveying a similar meaning occur in Pss. 95.3, 96.4 and 97.9, in a context that emphasises Yhwh’s universal kingship. ⁴¹ In addition, again as noted by Ben Zvi, the theme of all the peoples accepting Yhwh and bowing to Yhwh found in Zeph 2.11 is present in the same enthronement psalms (e.g. Ps. 96.7–10; 97.6–7), so that the prophet at this point may be dependent on psalmic exemplars. Whatever the exact meaning of the Qal perfect verb ‘to famish’ (רזה‎)–a verb form found only here–in God’s threat against false gods, the sentiment of God’s action against the peoples and their gods finds a parallel in Exod. 12.12 (‘and on all the gods of Egypt I will execute judgements’). The Hebrew root is attested elsewhere as a Niphal (‘to be weak’); see Num. 13.2; Isa. 10.16; 17.4; 24.16; Ezek. 24.20; Mic. 6.10 and Ps. 106.15. Some modify the verb to a Piel imperfect (e.g. BHS) or perfect (BDB 931); ⁴² however, retention of the root and its MT form (Qal with a transitive meaning) is favoured by the term ארזה‎ (‘cedar-beams’) in 2.14, which, suggests Christensen, was chosen for reasons of alliteration. ⁴³ Drawing on the background of idolatrous rites in Egypt and Mesopotamia in which idols were presented with food, Rudman suggests that the claim that Yhwh will ‘famish’ the gods ‘probably refers to the withdrawal of the daily meals allocated to the cult images’, ⁴⁴ as worshippers desert their former gods and begin to worship Yhwh. The reference of ‘all the isles (איי‎) of the nations’ may be to Mediterranean coastlands and finds a parallel in Isa. 20.6; 23.2, 6; 40.15, 41.1, 5, 42.4, 10, 49.1 and 51.5. ⁴⁵ It is a way of denoting a global perspective (see, e.g., the parallel found in Isa. 41.5: ‘The coastlands…the ends of the earth’).

Zephaniah 2.11b makes clear that the ultimate purpose of God is not just the judgement of other nations but that they will acknowledge and worship him. What is depicted is the worship of Yhwh on foreign soil (‘each in its place [ממקומו‎]’), in distinction to pilgrimage to and worship in Jerusalem, ⁴⁶ and the thought finds a parallel in Malachi. ⁴⁷ The phrase ‘in every place (מקום‎)’ in Mal. 1.11 can have the sense of cultic place or sanctuary (e.g. Deut. 12.5; 15.20; 16.15–16), ⁴⁸ but it need not have such a restricted meaning in either Mal. 1.11 or Zeph. 2.11 (cf. 1.4), but probably means in each land where a nation dwells. ⁴⁹ The most natural meaning of the prepositional phrase ‘among the nations’ in Mal. 1.11 is that foreign people groups are in view (cf. Mal. 3.12: ‘all nations’), not God’s scattered (Jewish) people among the nations. ⁵⁰ According to Pieter Verhoef, the two passages that he views as closest in thought to Mal. 1.11 (the worship of Yhwh by non-Israelites on foreign soil) refer to the end-time (Isa. 19.18–25; Zeph. 2.11), ⁵¹ which strongly implies that Mal. 1.11 also offers an eschatological prospect rather than depicting present practice. ⁵² Likewise, the response of the sailors and Ninevites in the story of Jonah presages the end-time conversion of the nations. ⁵³ This prospect is also anticipated in the eschatology of Zephaniah, which depicts the worship of Yhwh by foreigners on foreign soil (2.11b; perhaps also 3.9), ⁵⁴ along with the more common picture of the pilgrimage of nations to Zion (3.10; cf. e.g. Zech. 14.16). ⁵⁵

The prospect of the peoples ‘bowing down’ to Yhwh in 2.11 is to be read with 1.4–6, for the prediction that the nations will ‘bow down’ (וישׁתחוו‎) recalls the condemnation of the Judahites in 1.5, where the same Hebrew root is used (twice). The use of the word ‘place’ (מקום‎) in relation to the location of acts of worship is another significant link between 1.4–6 and 2.11. Both passages denounce foreign gods, such that the sin of the Judahites in 1.4–6 replicates that of her neighbours (cf. 2.11a), and, as noted by House, this idea is repeated when the cities of Nineveh and Jerusalem are compared and condemned (2.13–3.5). ⁵⁶ As in Malachi 1, so also in Zephaniah, the implied logic is that the picture of future true worship by foreign nations (2.11b) shows how inappropriate Judah’s present cultic failings are. Zechariah provides a glimpse of the future in the plan of God for the nations, the implication being that present cultic unfaithfulness in Judah does not align with that divine purpose, such that a reformation of Judahite cultic practice is in order.

A Parallel in Zephaniah 3.9

Another reference to the theme of foreign peoples turning to Yhwh and worshipping him in an acceptable way is found in Zeph 3.9. ⁵⁷ Here, the image used is that of a future purifying of the lips of foreigners by God, so they can call on the Lord with ‘pure speech’ (שׂפה ברורה‎). Many scholars find allusions to the story of Babel (Gen. 11.1–9); ⁵⁸ however, nothing is said about a reversion to one language (שׂפה אחת‎), though Zeph. 3.9 does envisage humanity united in the worship of Yhwh. In seeking to interpret this verse in its Zecharian context, given that 2.11 comes immediately after the oracle against Moab and Ammon, wherein the sin of these two peoples is their scoffing at God’s people (2.8, 10), ⁵⁹ a possible interpretation of the change in speech forecast in 3.9 is that foreigners will stop reviling God’s people. More likely, 3.9 means that the nations will swear allegiance to him as the true God (cf. Isa. 19.18). ⁶⁰ In addition, again using what is featured elsewhere in the prophecy of Zephaniah as a prompt, the idea may be that the converted nations will stop swearing by false gods (Zeph. 1.5; cf. Ps. 16.4; Hos. 2.17 [MT 19]). ⁶¹

As noted by House, ‘[u]ntil this point only 2.11 gives any indication that God cares for Judah’s enemies.’ ⁶² The wording found in 3.9 is that of ‘peoples’ (עמים‎), not the more common term ‘nations’ (cf., e.g. 2.11 גוים 3.8 הגוים‎). These are synonyms in the prophetic books (e.g. Isa. 43.9: ‘Let all the nations gather together, and let the peoples assemble’), but the appellation ‘peoples’ is sometimes used when a more favourable attitude is taken toward foreigners (e.g. Deut. 4.6: ‘in the sight of the peoples’; Isa. 2.3: ‘and many peoples shall come’), though this is by no means always the case. A number of scholars suggest that עמים‎ be emended to עמי‎ (‘my people’); ⁶³ however, 3.9 is joined to the previous verse by ‘yea, at that time’ (כי אז‎ RSV) and is best understood as continuing (though modifying) the theme of the fate of foreigners in 3.8b. ⁶⁴ As expressed by Nogalski, ‘3:9–10 interprets the judgment of 3.8b not as total annihilation, but as a judgment that will purify the nations, enabling those worshiping Yhwh among the nations to bring their offering to Jerusalem.’ ⁶⁵ Just as God’s act of judging other nations (3.6) should lead his own people to ‘accept correction’ (3.7), the prospect of Yahwistic worship by a remnant of the judged nations sets an example for Judah to emulate, ⁶⁶ with the hope that a reformed nation of Judah will have a place in this new world order. ⁶⁷

The peoples will worship (עבד‎) God ‘in one accord’ (RSV שׁכם אחד‎), literally ‘with one shoulder’ (accusative case expressing manner). ⁶⁸ The wording is different in Isa. 11.4, wherein another word for ‘shoulder’ is used (כתף‎), but Rashi interprets בכתף‎ in Isa. 11.4 as also meaning ‘in one accord’ (which GKC §93hh supports), and the context provided by the rest of Zeph. 3.9 (‘all of them’ [כלם‎]) is further support for the verse having all the nations in view. ⁶⁹ The picture, as in 2.11b, is of the universal worship of Yhwh, ⁷⁰ and significantly, 3.9, like 2.11, is followed by a verse that cites ‘Cush’ (3.10), with this country selected because it was viewed as the southern edge of the known world (Gen. 2.13; Esth. 1.1; 8.9; Isa. 11.11). ⁷¹ Cush is used to exemplify the reversal that God will work among all the nations of the world, which transition in 3.8–9 from being objects of his judgement to joining in his true worship (the same transition depicted in Zeph. 2.11).

Like 2.11, the devotion of the nations described in 3.9 may take place in their homelands, but if 3.10 is understood to refer foreigners bringing tribute, the picture in that verse accords with the more common image of the nations making pilgrimage to Zion in a distant ideal future. ⁷² The verse recalls crucial features of the oracle about Ethiopia in Isaiah 18 and about Egypt in Isaiah 19, including the expression ‘from beyond the rivers of Cush’ (מעבר נהרי־כושׁ‎) (18.1) and the description of foreigners as those who ‘bring gifts’ (יובל־שׁי‎) to Yhwh (18.7). ⁷³ Additionally, as in Zeph. 3.9–10, in Isa. 19.21, the Egyptians ‘will worship (ועבדו‎) with sacrifice and offering (ומנחה‎)’. ⁷⁴ As remarked by Otto Steck, there is reference to the root עתר‎ in 19.22 (Niphal perfect) (RSV ‘he will heed their supplications’), and the links favour the view that Zeph. 3.10 is speaking about the actions of foreigners in supplicating God (‘my supplicants’ [עתרי‎]). ⁷⁵ Shortly after, Israelites are addressed as ‘daughter (בת‎) of Zion’ and ‘daughter of Jerusalem’ (3.14), but the enigmatic phrase ‘the daughter of my dispersed ones’ (בת־פוצי‎) (3.10) does not have to denote the same category of persons. ⁷⁶ It is possible, but not certain, that these similarly constructed phrases are juxtaposed to form a contrast, on the one hand denoting foreigners (3.10) and on the other Jerusalemites (3.14). ⁷⁷ In addition, if there is an allusion in 3.10 to the Babel story, wherein the nations are dispersed and the root פוץ‎ plays a central role (Gen. 11.4, 8, 9), there is no need to find a reference to scattered Judahites in Zeph. 3.10; ⁷⁸ rather, what is depicted is a reversal of the dispersion of the nations that took place at Babel, with the nations coming together in common worship of Yhwh.

Conclusions

The prophecy of Zephaniah describes the intertwining fates of Judah and the nations, all of which are under threat of judgement, but there is also the hope of cultic reformation in both Judah and foreign lands. This nuanced presentation is appropriate for a book that is placed at a central thematic juncture in the Book of the Twelve, between prophecies focused on judgement (Hosea-Zephaniah) and the three restoration prophets (Haggai-Zechariah-Malachi). God’s judgement of the nations (Zeph. 2.4–15) is a lesson for sinful Jerusalem, which is also under the same threat (3.1–8). God’s impending judgement of the nations is a warning to Judah, which is guilty of similar cultic crimes (1.4–6; cf. 2.11a). In addition, cultic unfaithfulness in present-day Judah (1.4–6) is contrasted with the prospect of future cultic devotion to Yhwh by the nations of the world (2.11b; 3.9–10). The prediction of God’s purgative punishment of the nations (3.8) followed by his acceptance of their worship (3.9–10) is a more favourable portrait of the nations. This is an instructive example to the Judahites and provides a more positive motivation for them to turn to Yhwh.