“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.”
– Zephaniah 3:17
Is that not an awesome verse, an awesome picture of God in the middle of His people, promising to restore them? Listen to those words. “The Lord your God is in your midst.” And obviously there’s a specific context here in Zephaniah that God is speaking to His people in. At the same time, these are truths that we see all over the New Testament that God speaks over His people who are in Jesus, His sons and daughters. The Lord your God is in your midst. Jesus made clear, “I will be with you always. You will never be alone. I will be with you, a mighty one who will save, the one who is with you today.”
Zephaniah 3:17 Reminds Us God is with His People Always
Just let this soak in. Wherever you’re sitting, driving, walking, running, whatever you’re doing right now, you are in Jesus. The Lord your God is in your midst. He is with you. He is a mighty one who will save you, not just in the future, but today. He is your savior and He is mighty, and He will rejoice over you with gladness. What a picture of God as our Father, His love for us, His love for you. Would you just feel this right now, that God, the holy God of the universe, look out in creation today? Just think about the one who spoke and it all came into being, and He rejoices over you with gladness. His child, He quiets you by His love.
Oh, amidst the restlessness of your heart, amidst the anxiousness of your mind, be quieted in this moment. Rest in His love. He loves you. He’s holding you in His hand. He will exult over you with loud singing, not just singing. And that in and of itself is quite the picture. God exulting over you, His people, with singing. God is singing over us, with joy over us, with gladness over us, but it’s loud singing. It’s divinely loud singing. Part of me wants to just shout into this microphone. Oh God, this is breathtaking.
Zephaniah 3:17 Leads Us to Praise God for Being with Us Always
Let’s pray for every one of us listening to this word right now and that we would feel the wonder of these words in your Word. And we just say, we praise you God right now for being in our midst, for being with us amidst all the things we are walking through, every one of us, and all the places where we are, all the challenges we’re facing, we’re so thankful. Even in this moment, you’re reminding us we are not alone, and that you are a mighty one who saves us, who delivers us, and not just saves us, but you rejoice over us with gladness. God, who are we? We don’t deserve this. We praise you, Jesus, for making this possible for us. All of these things only possible in you.
So clinging to you as sons and daughters of God, we pray that you would quiet us with your love right now. God, I pray for restless, anxious hearts and minds, you would quiet them with your love right now, all day long when they’re tempted to be anxious or to worry, to despair, that you would remind them that you love them, and you are exulting over them with loud singing. Oh God, we praise you for this reality in our lives and we want everybody to know this. We want everybody to know you like this. Help us to share the gospel with somebody today around us.
Praying for the Gujar Hindu People
God, we pray for people around the world who don’t know this, for the Gujar Hindu people of India, and hundreds of thousands of them who live here in the United States where I am. Oh God, we pray for the spread of this good news of the mighty one who will save to the Gujar, that they might be quieted by your love and saved by your might. God, we pray for the spread of the gospel to the Gujar people of India and others who are scattered in many other countries. God, we praise you for Zephaniah 3:17 and we pray you’d help us to live and light of this reality today. In Jesus’ name we pray. Amen.
FAQs
Conclusion. Zephaniah 3:17 encapsulates the idea that God's presence, love, and joy are unwavering. It offers solace and hope to those who turn to it for inspiration. In this verse, God promises to no longer rebuke us, but instead rejoice over us with singing.
What is the meaning of Zephaniah 3 verse 17? ›
Zephaniah 3:17 reminds us that the Lord rejoices over His people with gladness and joy. The Lord your God is in your midst, a mighty one who will save. He will rejoice over you with gladness. This is how God speaks to his people. He says, “I will rejoice over you with gladness.
What does the book of Zephaniah teach us today? ›
By studying the book of Zephaniah, students can learn that they do not need to follow the sinful customs of the societies in which they live and that they can seek the Lord regardless of what others around them choose to do.
What does it mean that God delights in us? ›
Our identity is rooted in God and what He says of us. He doesn't grade our performance. His grace looks beyond our efforts, failures, as well as successes. God's delight in us is anchored not in what we do but in who we are as His children.
What is Zephaniah main message? ›
The central theme of the book of Zephaniah is the Day of the Lord. ' Zephaniah elucidates two major aspects of this central theme, judgment and restoration, and in both of these aspects Zephaniah evinces many parallels to the books of the eighth-century prophets.
What are the promises found in Zephaniah 3:17? ›
he will rest in his love; continue in his love, without any variation or change; nothing shall separate from it; it shall always remain the same; he will take up his contentment and satisfaction in it; he will solace himself with it; it will be a pleasing thing to him to love his people, and to show it to them; he will ...
How does God rejoice over us? ›
Zephaniah is clear in his message to Jerusalem: “The Lord your God” takes great delight in you, so much so that He “rejoice[s] over you with singing” (3:17). Although this message speaks directly to Jerusalem, it's likely God sings over us—those who have received Jesus as Savior—too!
Why is the book of Zephaniah so important? ›
Why is Zephaniah so important? This book mentions the day of the Lord more than does any other book in the Old Testament, clarifying the picture of Judah's fall to Babylon and the eventual judgment and restoration of all humanity in the future.
Who is Jesus in the book of Zephaniah? ›
Jesus is revealed in Zephaniah as the Restorer of the Remnant. MESSAGE BIBLE INTRODUCTION: We humans keep looking for a religion that will give us access to God without having to bother with people…
What is Zephaniah short summary? ›
Zephaniah would declare to the people that the day of the Lord was near. In this context, this meant the coming judgment through Nebuchadnezzar and the kingdom of Babylon. Even so, the impending struggles of Israel would be overcome later, by the future salvation of the Lord for His people.
It's our hearts that really concern God, and faith in Him (trust, reliance) is what He is searching the heart for. A person whose actions are not right but who trusts the Lord is more pleasing to God than an individual who is doing the right things but has no faith in God.
What happens when God delights in you? ›
Joshua said, "If the Lord delight in us, then he will bring us into this land, and give it to us" (Numbers 14:8). In other words: "Because he delights in us, the land is as good as ours already."
Is God pleased with us? ›
With respect to believers' position in Christ, God's pleasure is assured. But in relation to our performance, God disapproves of sin but approves of obedience that He energizes in us. If we wonder why God was pleased to rescue us despite our grievous sin and faults, it was so that He might be glorified and enjoyed.
What positive message does the book of Zephaniah end with? ›
Zephaniah 3:9-20: Hope for the Nations and Jerusalem
, that he would find a way to bless the nations and Jerusalem as well. ). The closing poem ends with powerful images of God gathering up into his family the outcast, the poor, and the broken, exalting them into a place of honor.
Who is Zephaniah speaking to? ›
Zephaniah warns Israel and the surrounding nations that the Day of the Lord is near. God will judge the nations with a burning fire as he purifies them from sin, evil, and violence.
What was Zephaniah famous for? ›
Introduction. The British writer Benjamin Zephaniah was known for his poetry as well as novels, plays, and other works. The type of poetry he wrote is called “dub poetry,” which means it is poetry that is performed—the words are recited over the beat of reggae music.
What does the daughters of Zion mean? ›
Quick Reference. Biblical phrase: 'Daughter of Zion' generally refers to Jerusalem or the Jewish people, as, for example, in, 'Rejoice greatly, O daughter of Zion … lo, your king comes to you' (Zech 9. 9). [...] From: Daughters of Zion in The Concise Oxford Dictionary of World Religions »
What does it mean he will be quiet in his love? ›
“He will quiet you with his love.” That really spoke to me. His love takes delight in us, and that settles us, offering a sense of peace. The underlying message for me was that God loves us just as we are. I love the thought that He takes undeserved delight in us. We do not have to do anything to earn it.
What does it mean joy unspeakable and full of glory? ›
Saving faith in Christ brings with it a joy which can't be expressed. Words can't contain it. It's a joy full of glory, reflecting our future with Christ in the moment in front of us. Again we see that the choice to rejoice, even the middle of our trials, is an act of faith.
What is speaking corruptly towards others? ›
The word corrupt denotes rotten communication which tears others down (insults, name-calling, sarcasm, making fun, cursing, slander, flattery, gossip). Edifying speech builds others and lifts them up (encouragement, kindness, the Word, compliments).
