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January—Rest Refresh
“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.”
Zephaniah. 3:17 (NIV)
This beautiful verse comes in a prophecy from God through the prophet Zephaniah. In reading the preceding chapters and the background of the time in which this passage was penned, I found some amazing information.
King Josiah decided to purge the temple of the pagan tools of worship and get back to the worship of the One True God. Hilkiah had discovered the scrolls that told the people NOT to follow the deities of the land surrounding their land He gave them.
Zephaniah tells of the actions God will take to make His people come back to Him. And then, his focus changes to the city of Zion. We know it as Jerusalem, the City of David.
He tells the people of Zion (Jerusalem) that God is with them. He doesn’t say ‘maybe’, or Í think.’
He finishes this thought with “he is mighty to save” How many times have we found ourselves in predicaments that we couldn’t get out of by ourselves and had to call on Jesus, the only one who can save us?
I love this next part. He will take great delight in you, sometimes, people need to know someone cares about them. Here Zephaniah tells His children of Zion that God really cares about them.
Also, He will quiet you with his love, I have had times when I wanted to speak out and make my opinion on a subject known. But I don’t always find myself opening my mouth and speaking my mind. As I study these words, I realize I am supposed to allow God to speak, not me. If I look at this from my point of view, it is not always easy to do. Since I came to this understanding, I find I am more peaceful and happier.
And, He will rejoice over you with singing.” God rejoicing over His people gives me peace. In past generations, mothers of young children usually sang to their babies to comfort them or to get them to relax and drift off into sleep.
May we all find rest and refreshing in the arms of God.
Hi Cecelia! I love the image of mother's singing their children to sleep. And to think that this is what God wants to do for us? Beautiful!
ReplyDeleteI was in a bible study last year, and we studied the prophets. Knowing the background of the prophesies and passages really did help to put the information in perspective. Thanks for giving us that info here too,
Ceil
Thank you, Ceil. I have learned so much about the Old Testament times through reading the backgrounds of the passages God gives me to share. Blessings to you and yours.
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