Zechariah, Haggai, Zephaniah
image courtesy of johnnyberg at stock.xchng
I hate punishing my kids. Every time I have to take away a toy, revoke tv time, or worst of all spank either one of my boys, I die a little. But, as I frequently remind them, I have to punish them for bad behavior because I love them. And whenever the punishment is done, especially the spankings, I always hug my boys and remind them how much I love them, how much I hate punishing them, and I do my best to quiet their tears and crying with my love.
We’ve been reading some difficult passage over the last 18 days or so. We’ve read over and over again about all the terrible things that were coming to Israel, Judah, and other nations because of their wickedness. Today we got to see a ray of hope in the midst of all the calamity. Not that we haven’t seen hope in the words of the prophets so far, but two passages in particular seemed quite hopeful and reassuring.
One passage is all of Haggai. Yes, there is some naming of sin and resulting curses from God, but there is also a call to action. The people are back in the land, and they can finally rebuild the Temple of the Lord! Just as God promised, He has brought them back into the land which He gave to their forefathers all those generations ago. Haggai spurs the people on to build the Temple, and they do just that. God also promises that a greater glory will fill the Temple in the future than was ever known in the past. Ultimately, this would be fulfilled when Christ Himself was present in the Temple as a child (see Luke 2:21-52).
The other passage is Zephaniah 3:14-20. Here, God promises restoration after the destruction that is about to come to Jerusalem. God tells the people to sing joyfully because He has taken away their punishment and will deal with those who oppressed them. Verse 17 is amazing
The LORD your God is with you,
He is mighty to save.
He will take great delight in you,
He will quiet you with his love,
He will rejoice over you with singing.
Do you hear the tenderness of God here? Do you hear the love, compassion, and passion God has for His people? As we discussed before, God does not delight in punishing His people, just as no father delights in punishing his children. He punishes for the good of His people, but He is quick to restore, forgive, and quiet them with His love.
Let’s not scorn the correction of God. Let’s remember that on the other side of God’s punishment is God’s restoration, forgiveness, and intense love. Let’s always cling to that ray of hope in the midst of whatever trial or hardship we might be going through.
Words of Reason 