Paraphrase of the Hard Texts of Scripture, Scripture 32
ZEPHANIAH.
CAP. I.
I Will utterly waste and consume all things from off this land of Judea,2 I will utterly consume all things from off the land, saith the Lord. which hath so grievously provoked me, saith the Lord;
And I will destroy those abhominable Idols which have beene stumbling blocks to their followers; together with their Idolatrous clients.3 And the stumbling blockes with the wicked.
I will cut off those that remaine of the worshipers of Baal, from this place;4 And I will cut off the remnant of Baal from this place, and the name of the Chemarins with the Priests. and the name of those Idolatrous Priests of his, together with those corrupt ministers of my sanctuary.
And those that build altars on the roofes of their houses to the hosts of heaven, &c.5 And them that worship the host of heaven:
Do thou with an awfull feare, & silence,7 Hold thy peace at the presence of the Lord God: for the day of the Lord is at hand, for the Lord hath prepared a sacrifice, hee hath bin his guests. make account to see the execution of these judgements, from the Lord; for the day thereof is nigh at hand; the Lord hath made preparation to a very great slaughter, which he shortly intendeth.
So also verse 8.
In that day will I punish those, which violently breake into the houses of their peaceable neighbours,9 In the same day also will I punish all those that leape on the threshold, which fill their masters houses with violence and deceit. and take away their goods forceably, filling their masters houses, with treasures gotten by rapine and fraude.
There shall be a generall lamentation and shrieking in all the street, of Jerusalem,10 And it shall come to passe in that day, saith the Lord, that there shall bee the noyse of a cry from the fish gate, and an howling from the second, and a great crashing frō the hills. from the fish gates which is in the upper part of the cities to the lowermost gate, thereof; and great noyses of the falling of houses, & out-cryes of men, from the hills, in the remotest parts of Jerusalem.
Howle ye inhabitants of the hollow valley of Cedron,11 Howle yee inhabitants of Maktesh, for all the merchant people are cut downe: all they that beare silver, are cut off. for all the merchants which dwelt in those parts are cut off; all those rich men which had wont to drive a great trade with their silver, are now perished, and gone.
And it shall come to passe in that day,12 And it shall come to passe at that time, that I will search Ierusalem with candles, and punish the men that are setled on their lees, that say in their heart, the Lord will not do good, neither will he doe evill. that I will make a curious search, in Jerusalem, and will leave no corner thereof unsought for the fetching out, and punishing of those soule, and secure offenders, which have hardned themselves with resolutions of wickednesse; and have determinately setled themselves to live in their knowne sinnes, and say in their hearts; Tush, it is all one whether wee doe good, or evill, the Lord will not regard it, whethersoever we doe.
14 The great day of the Lord is neere.The great day of Gods revenge upon Jerusalem is neare at hand, &c.
So also verse 15. and 16.
CAP. II.
2 Before the decree bring forth, before the day passe as the chaffe.BEfore the command of God bring forth all this heavy judgement upon you; before the day of your captivity come upon you; which is comming upon you with such speed, and violence, as the chaffe is driven with a strong winde,3 Seeke yee the Lord, all ye meeke of the earth which have wrought his judgement, seeke righteousnesse seeke meeknesse: it may be ye shall be hid in the day of the Lords anger. &c.
Pray to the Lord, O all ye that are well disposed, & cōscionable upon earth, ye which have indevoured to doe that which is just and right before him; goe ye on still to approve your selves to him in your holy carriage, and good affections, it may be, that God will be pleased to deliver you from the common judgement.
4 For Gaza shall be forsaken, and Ashkelon, a desolation, they shall drive out Ashdod at the noone day, and Ekron shall bee rooted up.For ye shall see the hand of God (by way of fore-warning) upon all those cities, that belong to the Philistims, upon Gaza, and Ashkelon, and Ashdod and Ekron; all these shall be destroyed, and rooted up openly before your eyes.
5 Woe unto the inhabitants of the Sea coast, the nation of the Cherethites, the word of the Lord is against you, O Canaan, the land of the Philistims.Woe to the inhabitants of the coast of the Mediterranean Sea; even to the Cherethites, that dwell there; the word of the Lord threatens speedy destruction against thee, O thou region of Canaan, which art possessed by the Philistims, &c.
6 And the Sea coast shall be dwellings and cottages for shepheards, and folds for flocks:And those Sea coasts shall bee left desolate, and unpeopled; onelyonly there shall be some solitary cottages for shepheards, and folds for flocks, along those shores.
7 And the coast shall be for the remnant of the houses of Iudah, they shall feed thereupon, in the houses of Ashkelon shall they lie downe in the evening, for the Lord their God shall visite them and turne away their captivity.And afterward, this whole tract shall be repossessed by those of the house of Judah; they shall bee settled in this country; and after their captivity is past, (as it were in the latter end of the day) they shall be the owners of the land and cities of the Philistims; for the Lord their God shall in mercy remember them, and returne them from their captivity.
For he will destroy all the Idolls of the earth,11 For he will famish all the gods of the earth, &c. and famish all those false deities, in withdrawing from them the offerings, and gifts of their deluded followers, &c.
And not only Moab and Ammon,12 Ye Ethiopians also, ye shall be slaine by my sword. but ye Ethiopians also, shall be slaine (at my appointment) by the sword of Nebuchadnezzar.
So also verse 13.
Even Niniveh, that mighty city,13 And he will stretch out his hand against the North, and destroy Assyria, and will make Niniveh a desolation, and drie like a wildernesse. shall be so desolated by the sword of the Babylonian, as that flocks shall lie downe in the midst of those, which were her streets; all the beasts of the countries round about may either passe or feed there; all the birds of solitarinesse, and desolation shall take up their lodgings, in the ruinous remainders of that goodly city; and the cedar-feelings thereof shall lie uncovered.
So verse 15.
CAP. III.
WOe to Jerusalem which is filthy,1 Woe to her that is filthy and polluted, to the oppressing citie. and polluted with abominable wickednesse; Woe to the cruell and oppressing city, Jerusalem.
Her Princes are fierce, and cruell, like roaring lyons;3 Her Princes within her are roaring Lyons, her Iudges are evening wolves they gnaw not the bones till the morrow. her judges are covetous, and greedy, like the hungry wolves, which range forth in the evening, which when they finde a prey, devoure it at once, and stay not to gnaw upon the bones, but swollow them downe hastily.
They have violently strained the law of God to their owne senses, and to the favour of their wicked practices.4 They have done violence to the law.
The holy and just God is in the midst of her;5 The just Lord is in the midst thereof, he will not doe iniquitie, every morning doth he bring his Iudgement to light, hee faileth not, but the unjust knoweth not shame. both to observe her carriage, and to instruct her in the waies of his lawes, and to punish her sinfull failings, and doth, and will proceed accordingly; he will not be unjust in the forbearing her; but doth every day shew some judgment, or other upon her wicked inhabitants; he faileth not, thus to correct, and warne her; but the unjust are not sensible of any shame, or danger that is towards them.
I have given them sufficient warning by those judgements,6 I have cut off the nations. which I have brought upon the nations about them, &c.
I said of thee, O Jerusalem▪ surely thou wilt be premonished by my judgements, to feare me:7 I said, surely thou wilt feare me, thou wilt receive instruction, so their dwelling should not be cut off, howsoever I punished them; but they rose early, and corrupted al their doings. Thou wilt receive good counsell, and instruction, that so I might turne away my threatned destruction from thee, howsoever I might afflict thee for a time; but they contrarily gave themselves to an eager, and wilfull pursuit of their sinnes, and have shamefully corrupted all their doings.
Therefore since both the nations, and ye, are so unreclaimably sinfull,8 Therefore waite yee upon me, saith the Lord, untill the day that I raise up to the pray; for my determination as to gather the nations that I may assemble the kingdomes, to powre upō them mine indignation, even all my fierce anger. make account of an heavie day; wherein I will rise up to execute my vengeance upon you, and them; for my determination is, to gather the nations, and assemble the kingdomes, that I may enwrappe them in one common destruction, &c.
9 For then will turne to the people a pure language, that they may all cal upon the name of the LordAfter which, I will restore peace to my people; and will so worke with them, that abandoning all false worship and Idolatry, they shall with pure hearts and lips confesse me their Lord Christ, &c.
10 From beyond the rivers of Ethiopia, my suppliants, even the daughter of my dispersed shal bring mine offering.From the remotest parts of the world shall suppliants be gathered into my Church; both Jewes and Gentiles shall bring offerings unto me; and subject themselves to my Gospell.
11 In that day shalt thou not be ashamed for all thy doings, wherein thou hast transgressed against me, for then I will take away out of the midst of thee them that rejoyce in thy pride, & thou shalt no more be hauty because of mine holy mountaine.In that day thou shalt have no cause to be ashamed of all thy former offences; wherein thou hast transgressed against me; since both I have fully forgiven them, and reformed them also; for then I will take away from thee that vaine pride and confidence, which too many of my people put in the holinesse of mount Zion, and the Temple there; as if that alone could secure them from all evills, and procure all blessings.
12 I will also leave in the midst of thee an afflicted and poore people and they shal trust in the name of the Lord.Rather, in the stead of these proud boasters, I will leave in the midst of thee, those meek, and humble soules which shall be vile in their owne eyes, and shall place all their trust in Christ their Saviour.
13 The remnant of Israel shall not doe iniquitie nor speake lies; neither shal a deceitfull tongue bee found in their mouth, for they shall feede, and lie downe, and none shall make them afraid.And those selected people, which shall give up their names to mee, in my Church shall make due conscience of their waies; not daring, either to doe wickedly, or speake deceitfully; for they shall be under the leading of a faithfull shepheard; under whose power and mercy they shall feed safely and quietly, and none shall make them afraid.
14 Sing O daughter of Zion.Sing praises therefore unto the Lord, O thou Church of the faithfull, &c.
15 The Lord hath taken away thy judgements, he hath cast out thine enemie, the King of Israel, even the Lord is in the midst of thee.The Lord hath removed away both thy sins, and his judgements, from thee; he hath subdued thy spirituall enemies under thee, &c. Thou shalt not have cause to feare any evill that may befall thee.
So also verse 16.17.
I will gather together, and comfort them that mourn after the solemne assemblies of Sion,18 I will gather them that are sorrowfull for the solemne assemblie, who are of thee, to whom the reproach of it was a burden. grieving at their withholding therefrom, by their forced captivity; who are a feeling part of thee my Church; to whom the reproach of their long restraint was a burden.
I will save the remnant of Israel that were maimed, and halting under too much oppression, &c.19 I will save her that halteth, &c.