Proclamation:
"The great day of The Lord is near ... That day will be a
day of wrath ... ‘I will bring such distress on all people that … have sinned
against The Lord’ … In the fire of His jealousy the whole earth will be consumed
…” Zephaniah 1:14-18 (NIV)
Explanation:
These words were written under the influence of The Holy Spirit
of God by the prophet Zephaniah warning the people that God is not pleased with
the behavior of mankind. This prophecy
was a warning of the imminent judgement of the tribe of Judah.
Application:
There are many Bible scholars who believe that this is also a
warning that applies to mankind today. "The Day of The Lord" is a day
of wrath, trouble, distress, devastation, destruction, darkness, gloominess,
clouds and thick darkness. (Zephaniah 1:15)
Most people do not like "hell fire and brimstone" preaching
but the lake of fire is mentioned in The Bible. "And whosoever was not
found written in the book of life was cast into the lake of fire." (Revelation
20:15) And, this earth will be
destroyed, many believe that this time it will be by fire. If this is to be the day that The Good Lord
will destroy the earth, believers need not worry because we will have been
caught up in the rapture beforehand. (1 Thessalonians 4:16-17) When we return with The Lord there will be a
new earth. The Bible says that there
will be "a new heaven and a new earth; for the first heaven and the first
earth were passed away ..." (Revelation 21:1) We are encouraged to get ourselves together
before that day comes. "Seek The
Lord, all you humble of the earth ... seek righteousness, seek humility; perhaps
you will be sheltered on the day of The Lord's anger." (Zephaniah 2:3)
