14 Sing aloud, O daughter of Zion; shout, O Israel! Rejoice and exult with all your heart, O daughter of Jerusalem! 15 The Lord has taken away the judgments against you; he has cleared away your enemies. The King of Israel, the Lord, is in your midst; you shall never again fear evil. 16 On that day it shall be said to Jerusalem: “Fear not, O Zion; let not your hands grow weak. 17 The Lord your God is in your midst, a mighty one who will save;  he will rejoice over you with gladness; he will quiet you by his love; he will exult over you with loud singing. 
18 I will gather those of you who mourn for the festival, so that you will no longer suffer reproach  

19 Behold, at that time I will deal with all your oppressors. And I will save the lame and gather the outcast, and I will change their shame into praise and renown in all the earth. 20 At that time I will bring you in, at the time when I gather you together; for I will make you renowned and praised among all the peoples of the earth, when I restore your fortunes before your eyes,” says the Lord.  

1) Who is the “daughter of Zion”?
The daughter of Zion is not a person, but rather a people. “Zion” referred to “Jerusalem” and the daughter of Zion referenced the nation of Israel. In this passage, Zephaniah, the prophet to the nation, is talking to the Israel, calling them to rejoice for the day of restoration is coming! 

2) Why is Israel rejoicing?
The book of Zephaniah follows a pattern like most prophets in Scripture as Zephaniah warns of impending judgement for sinfulness, but also provides hope of coming restoration for God’s chosen people. In this case, Israel is rejoicing because “on that day”, the day of the Lord, God will gather the broken and enslaved people. He will restore them to their fortunes. Zephaniah is beckoning them to hope and rejoicing because the Good Shepherd will rescue His sheep and fight for them, restoring the nation and people to something better than they had before. 

3) The phrase “at that time” is used several times throughout the passage. What” time” is the writer referring to?
In context, it is important to remember the message had two meanings. One, the restoration and rescue of the nation of Israel from Babylonian captivity. There would be a time that God would restore His people and set them free from the 70 long years of enslavement. Secondly, a coming time, in the eternal future, where all of humanity would be set free. More than any other book in the Old Testament, Zephaniah mentions “the day of the Lord”. 

4) What promises of God do we see in this passage?
Zephaniah mentions several promises throughout this passage. The first promise is that of relenting judgement which meant their enemies, the Babylonians, would let them go and they would be free from exile. The second promise is one of hope that there is no one and no thing to fear because of the Mighty Warrior God who is fighting for them, loving them, and quieting their souls. The third promise is one of restoration where God gathers His people: the lame, the sick, the outcast and renews their strengths and their fortunes.

1) Who is the “daughter of Zion”?
We can see from this passage, and the whole of the Old Testament, that God knows His people and chose His people. The Old Testament is the story of God’s people; this is our history as His followers. When we are reading the Old Testament and we see “daughter of Zion”, recall God’s faithfulness, God’s promises, and God’s desire to fight for us and love us well. His desire to restore us and shepherd us until the day He returns. 

2) Why is Israel rejoicing?
We can rejoice because we know the rest of the story that Israel did not know. They did not have Scripture and the indwelling of the Holy Spirit, yet the prophet Zephaniah calls them to rejoice because he trusted what God had told him. He trusted the message of truth that God would save His people from captivity, gather them, and restore them. We are offered the same message today through the Gospel. It’s God’s good news that Jesus has come, making a way for the lost to be found, for the depleted and brokenhearted to be restored, and for hopeless, wayward sheep to be given a path that leads to eternal life. This path is the way of salvation that God provided through the sacrifice of His Son, Jesus, as He gave up His life for ours. Christ Jesus, fully God and fully man, took on our punishment, rightfully intended for us, and gave us His own righteousness that we may be made right with God.   

3) The phrase “at that time” is used several times throughout the passage. What “time” is the writer referring to?
The phrase “at this time” is the ever-present tension that exists in Scripture. The time line of restoration that we are restored now, but we will be fully restored upon Christ’s return one day. God doesn’t work on human constraints and human timelines. God works in His perfect time and His perfect way. We can trust that God is faithful to His promises because we have read the story of Scripture, we have seen His hand in those around us, and we have watched our own lives unfold in shelter of the Almighty. The “day of the Lord” is still coming, will you be called His own on that day? 

4) What promises of God do we see in this passage?
This passage is a history lesson for us in the 21st century in two ways. One, we know that Israel was released from captivity, but two, we also know why they were there: their arrogant, sinful actions and attitudes towards a Holy God. The hearts of God’s chosen people had turned cold and aloof, no longer desiring their first love, no longer worshipping the one True God. They were combative and whinny, desiring their own way rather than allowing themselves to be led by the Shepherd who loved them. Our history lesson is to trust His ways and His promises, but to learn from the nation of Israel so as not repeat the same mistakes. 

Share your thoughts from today’s Journey Study!
Can we pray for you?
Sign up to receive every Journey Study!
Join the friends at the GT Facebook Community!

We love getting help while we study and www.studylight.org is one of many excellent resources.  Just type in the verse you’re looking at and Boom! It’s right in front of you in English and Hebrew (Old Testament) or Greek (New Testament), which are the original languages the Bible was written in.

Want to know more about a specific word in a verse? Click on “Strong’s Interlinear Bible” then click the word you’d like to study. Find super awesome stuff like “origin”, “definition”, and even all the different ways that single word has been translated into English! If you want to be geeky, you can even click the word and hear its original pronunciation – That Is Awesome!

Want to get more background on a word or phrasing or passage? Click “Study Tools”, then pick a few commentaries to read their scholarly approach, keeping in mind that just because a commentary says it, doesn’t mean it’s true. (just like the internet :-))

Finding the original meaning is a huge deal when we study Scripture and can make all the difference in our understanding as we apply God’s truths to our everyday lives.

In our modern-day relationships, we want people to understand our original intention as we communicate; how much more so between God and humanity?!

Here’s a little bit more on why we take Digging Deeper so seriously.

Embracing God’s fullness in our lives is rooted in scripture and memorizing His word is vital to our continued growth and depth with Jesus.
Download this week’s verse and make it your phone’s lockscreen!
Tap and hold on your mobile device to save.

Looking for other journeys from this theme?
See all past studies in Shepherd!