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Deadly Sins?

by Lance Ponder⁽⁸⁵⁾
http://fkiprofessor.xanga.com

Defiance

Zeph 3:2 She listens to no voice; she accepts no correction. She does not trust in the Lord; she does not draw near to her God.

Powerful people tend to find themselves surrounded with “yes-men” – people who will say what they want to hear. Having grown accustomed to hear themselves parroted, they simply ignore any opposing voices. When someone does point out a problem they refuse to hear it. The ruling class led the lower classes into syncretistic worship for a variety of economic and political reasons. If they were drawing near to God, they would have been turning from idols and they would have been more interested in altruism.

Greed

Zeph 3:3 Her officials within her are roaring lions; her judges are evening wolves that leave nothing till the morning.

Lions and wolves are animals that prey on the weak, use stealth to obtain the best tactical position, intimidate and strike fear into victims, attack with viscous fury, and quickly and efficiently consume their prey. In this context there is nothing majestic or noble about the lions, let alone the wolves. In ancient Israeli society, the officials and the clergy were the same people. The law was religious and the lawyers were priests. Since idols were manufactured items, they were particularly important to the economy of a nation ruled by religious leaders. The priestly ruling class took advantage of the poor by directing them toward idols and making their fortunes in the sale of those idols to the very souls they were supposed to be protecting and serving. Their greed thoroughly corrupted and defiled them.

Profanity

Zeph 3:4 Her prophets are fickle, treacherous men; her priests profane what is holy; they do violence to the law.

James said, “Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of lights with whom there is no variation or shadow due to change.” (Jas 1:17). The bible was compiled over fifteen centuries by dozens of writers from kings to tent makers, some noble and some criminal, in various languages and literary styles. In spite of this incredible variety, the central figure – God as YHWH (Father) and Yeshua (Son, Jesus) – has a completely consistent and unchanging, unwavering character of holiness. Jesus had many harsh words for the religious leaders of his day. His criticisms were not directed toward their theology, but toward their personal integrity as men who claimed to represent God. The religious elite of Zephaniah’s day were also hypocrites. They used the Law to manipulate, disregarding all those inconvenient passages about idolatry and anything else that would work against them. By monopolizing access to the scriptures they were able to get away with profaning the Torah by compromising it according to their own fickle will. With hearts hardened and consciences seared, they were treacherous against God and men alike.

Unjustness

Zeph 3:5 The Lord within her is righteous; he does no injustice; every morning he shows forth his justice; each dawn he does not fail; but the unjust knows no shame.

The scriptures are filled with reminders of the righteousness, holiness, justice and faithfulness of God. As I write this I’m not sure if it is more profound to see that shamelessly unjust false priests flourished in a place where God was or to see that God dwelt in the midst of the shamelessly unjust. Either way, the Lord remained in the midst of His people even through their sin and impending punishment. Faithful is he who calls you, for he will do it (1 Th 5:24).

Article submitted Thursday, September 08, 2011 & read 144 times.

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