Zephaniah

Zephaniah prophesied in Judah, probably early in Josiah's reign, before the religious reforms. The book is dominated by the image of the "day of the Lord", a reckoning described in cosmic terms that reaches both the neighboring nations and Jerusalem. The central accusation is complacency: people who say in their hearts "the Lord will not do good, neither will he do evil". But the end of the book surprises. After judgment comes one of the most affectionate promises in the Bible: God in the midst of his people, who "will rejoice over you with joy... he will rejoice over you with singing". The image of God singing over his people is unique in Scripture.