Zephaniah 1:7, 12-18 (NRSV)
Read Zephaniah 1:7, 12-18 on biblegateway.com
Verse 7Be silent before the Lord God! For the day of the Lord is at hand; the Lord has prepared a sacrifice, he has consecrated his guests. Verse 12At that time I will search Jerusalem with lamps, and I will punish the people who rest complacently on their dregs, those who say in their hearts, "The Lord will not do good, nor will he do harm." Verse 13Their wealth shall be plundered, and their houses laid waste. Though they build houses, they shall not inhabit them; though they plant vineyards, they shall not drink wine from them.
Verse 14The great day of the Lord is near, near and hastening fast; the sound of the day of the Lord is bitter, the warrior cries aloud there. Verse 15That day will be a day of wrath, a day of distress and anguish, a day of ruin and devastation, a day of darkness and gloom, a day of clouds and thick darkness, Verse 16a day of trumpet blast and battle cry against the fortified cities and against the lofty battlements. Verse 17I will bring such distress upon people that they shall walk like the blind; because they have sinned against the Lord, their blood shall be poured out like dust, and their flesh like dung. Verse 18Neither their silver nor their gold will be able to save them on the day of the Lord's wrath; in the fire of his passion the whole earth shall be consumed; for a full, a terrible end he will make of all the inhabitants of the earth.
Devotion
It is an interesting thing that if you take a flashlight and you shine it in the brightness of day it displays little impact. If you take that flashlight and shine it into the darkness of night it will have a huge impact. The financial news that has pervaded our lives has been bleak. Pension funds and stock portfolios have declined significantly. We are in the midst of a gloomy global financial adjustment. Where is the good news?
You are the good news. You are God’s flashlight. You are the baptized child of God sent to shine the light of Christ into the world’s darkness. The light of Christ shines through the darkness and is brighter than the concerns of the world.
May the light of Christ shine through us this day.
Prayer
O brighter than that glorious morn
Shall this fair morning be,
When Christ, our King, in beauty comes,
And we His face shall see
Amen. (The King Shall Come When Morning Dawns)