Preserved

This week's sabbath reading is titled Noach, or the name "Noah" to us. Noach in English means "rest, resting place, quiet". If we look at the individual Hebrew letters of the word and name Noach, which are nun and cheth, we will see an additional meaning : "the Son, the Heir to the throne, separates and protects in an inner chamber". These letters can also mean at the same time : "the faithful seed or offspring that are separated from, divided from, and protected". The story of Noah is well known. Children's stories and toys tell the story of Noah and the Ark. However, we can be sure that there are deep things to learn in this account in scripture. In fact, the warning that Noah brought to the world as he built the ark, according to God's specific instructions, is still crying out a warning for us today. Jesus told us that the account of Noah, the ark, and the flood that brought destruction to the earth will again have meaning in end time events, and the return of the Son of Man (Mt. 24:36-39). The Apostle Peter also referred to the flood of Noah, and its relationship to end time beliefs, unbeliefs and deception: "Scoffers will come in the last days...saying, 'Where is the promise of His coming? For since the fathers fell asleep, all things continue as they were from the beginning of creation.' For this they willfully forget: that by the word of God the heavens were of old, and the earth standing out of water and in the water, by which the world that then existed perished, being flooded with water." (2 Peter 3:3-6). This past event of the flood is to remind us that as others scoff, God will do what He needs to do to establish justice and righteousness, and to preserve His remnant of people. Not only that, but Peter also wrote that the same word that ultimately preserved the heavens and earth then, is still active, and has caused the heavens and earth to reserve fire "until the day of judgment and perdition of ungodly men." (v. 7). Peter tells us that as much as the flood was an act of judgment, as the coming fire will be, he also tells us here that the flood was an act of preservation for a remnant. It is through this obedience to God's instructions for preservation, which was the ark, that Noah became listed as one of our fathers of faith, and an heir of righteousness by faith (Heb. 11:7). This sabbath reading, Noach, deals with God's merciful preservation out of evil, violence, ungodliness and calamity, one man, his family, and some from all of the animals that breath. We will see other examples of this from this sabbath's reading as well. In our first sabbath portion out of Genesis 6, we find out that the men of the earth had become filled with wickedness, evil, violence and corruption (sahat - corrupt, destroy, destroyer, waster, ruin, decay, be rotted, pervert). Because of their evil, the decay of rotting death had entered living man and, consequently, creation (Gen. 6:5, 11-12). Romans 6:23 says that the wages of sin is death - even a living death, a living corruption. However, also according to Romans 6:23, there is a remedy to this living death, which is the gift (charisma/charizomai/charis/chairo - a gift, a favor one receives without any merit of his own, divine grace, faith, knowledge, holiness, virtue/give freely, bestow, to preserve a person in trouble, to pardon, rescue, forgive/grace, good will, loving-kindness, gift of grace/to rejoice, be glad, be well, thrive) of God, which is in Jesus Christ. We can't buy or earn this gift. It is freely bestowed by God for the asking, and even before we have the good sense to ask for it, so we can't even take the credit for having good sense! Anyone who has had the awesome experience of receiving the grace gift of the salvation of God has experienced this. It as a gift - you can't "earn" it, "deserve" it, or "buy/barter" it from God. It can't be done. The gift is given in Gen. 6: "But Noah found grace in the eyes of the LORD...Noah was a just (sadiq/sadaq - righteous, just as a judge or king is just, justified, to make one righteous, to speak truth) man, perfect (tamim/tamam - without blemish, without spot, complete, finished, shutting up, in accord with truth) in his generations. Noah walked with God." (v. 8-9). This gift of grace is not a one-time event. The gift continues to operate in us, making changes in our minds and hearts. The loving gift of grace will break our stony hearts, and build a new heart in us, if we will allow it to do so, leading and prompting us to righteous acts inspired by the Holy Spirit, and the Word of God. The gift of grace is a life-changer, and a life-definer. Just ask Noah. As Noah received the gift of grace from God, he was given the qualities of justness and perfection. As we can see, both of these qualities are connected with the speaking of and agreement with truth. Jesus said that the truth of the Word of God sanctifies us and sets us free (Jn. 17:17, Jn. 8:31-32). Believers are to walk in truth (Ps. 86:11, 2 Jn. 3-4, 3 Jn. 1-4). The truth is a Person, Jesus (Jn. 1:16-17, Jn. 14:6-7, Rev. 19:11). There may be many who make claims to truth, but there is only one who IS Truth. God connected Noah to this Person of Truth, Jesus, but how? In the verse above, we see the phrase "Noah walked with God". God, in this case is Elohim here in this verse. However, in the Hebrew writing of this phrase, something additional is connected to the word "Elohim". Two Hebrew letters, Aleph and Tav, are joined to "Elohim". In Rev. 22:13, Jesus says, "I am the Alpha and the Omega, the Beginning and the End, the First and the Last." "Alpha" and "Omega" are the first and last letters of the Greek alphabet. The Hebrew equivalent of first and last letters, which is what Jesus would have used, is "the Aleph" and "the Tav". Besides this example in Gen. 6, there are many other places in scripture where the "Aleph-Tav" is connected to significant words and phrases, but their presence does not get translated into English. In this case, Noah has been given the gift of grace from God, and caused him to walk with God Aleph-Tav that will separate him, and rescue him and his household, as well as representatives from the animal kingdom, from the coming disaster. God told Noah: "Make yourself an ark of gopherwood; make rooms in the ark, and cover it inside (bayit/bana - house, shelter, family, descendants, temple, palace) and outside ( hus- outward, whatever is without, to sever or separate by a wall) with pitch (kapar - atonement, reconcile, purge, forgive, cleanse, merciful, to cover, pardon)." (Gen. 6:14). Noah was to "flood-proof" the ark with mercy, forgiveness, cleansing, reconciliation and atonement. We also know that the kapar atonement of scripture is the blood of sacrifice, the Blood of the Lamb, Christ (1 Jn. 2:1-2, Heb. 9:11-14). There is another interesting reference to Jesus Christ in the account of Noah as God commanded Noah to build a window into the top of the ark, and a door into the side (Gen. 6:16). "Window" is the word sohar/sahar meaning "noon, nonday, suddenly, unexpectedly as an attack upon an enemy/to press out oil, to glisten, to shine, come forth, reveal oneself, light, splendor". We have a verse in 2 Thessalonians 2:8, which refers to the destruction of the lawless one, or antichrist: "And then the lawless one will be revealed, whom the Lord will consume with the breath of His mouth and destroy with the brightness of His coming." The word for "door" used above is the Hebrew word petah/patah, which means "door, gate, open, loose, grave, break forth, appear, open wide". We know that Jesus called Himself "the Door", and He broke open the grave for us all (see Jn. 10:7-10, Mt. 27:51-53, Mt. 28:2-6). There are many more details in the account of Noah that we could look at, but we will end this section from Genesis 6 with the promise of God to Noah: "And behold, I Myself am bringing floodwaters on the earth...everything that is on the earth shall die. But I will establish My covenant with you; and you shall go into the ark- you, your sons, your wife, and your sons' wives with you." (Gen. 6:17-18). Another example of preservation out of destruction from this week's sabbath reading titled Noach, or "Rest", is from Isaiah 54. God in His anger had turned His back on His people, Israel, like a wife rejected by her husband, like a woman made barren of children: "For a mere moment I have forsaken you, but with great mercies I will gather you. With a little wrath I hid My face from you for a moment; But with everlasting kindness I will have mercy on you, says the LORD your Redeemer. For this is like the waters of Noah to Me; for as I have sworn that the waters of Noah would no longer cover the earth, so have I sworn that I would not be angry with you, nor rebuke you...My kindness shall not depart from you, nor shall My covenant of peace be removed." (Isa. 54:1-10, excerpt). Under the same promise that God made to Noah, He would extend His undeserved mercy and kindness again to this remnant of Noah's descendants who had turned from Him. As we see these mercies of God once again extended here to Israel to serve as an example for us, it should cause our own hearts to soften with love and repentance towards Him as well. In Jeremiah 31, another portion from this week's sabbath reading, Israel had rebelled against God, had broken their covenant with Him, and brought destruction to their doors, as Jeremiah had prophesied would happen. However, Jeremiah also then brought this promise of undeserved mercy from the LORD: "Behold the days are coming, says the LORD, when I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel and with the house of Judah...But...after those days...I will put My law in their minds, and write it on their hearts; and I will be their God, and they shall be My people...For I will forgive their iniquity, and their sin I will remember no more." (Jer. 31:31-34). His people brought destruction on their own heads, but the LORD, as with Noah, would extend His gift of grace, change His people in their minds and hearts into righteousness, and forgive their sins. Again, a remnant shall be preserved by grace. In another sabbath reading portion, God's people have become corrupt, they have not trusted in, nor drawn near to the LORD. Because of this, the LORD will gather the nations. His wrath and fiery destruction will be poured out over all the earth. However, God will preserve a remnant, and restore "a pure language...and they shall trust in the name of the LORD. The remnant of Israel shall do no unrighteousness and speak no lies, nor shall a deceitful tongue be found in their mouth...Be glad and rejoice with all your heart...The LORD has taken away your judgments, He has cast out your enemy. The King of Israel, the LORD, is in your midst; You shall see disaster no more." (Zeph. 3:8-15). The undeserved grace, mercy, and kindness of God seems to be the recurring theme through this week's sabbath readings. There is a place of rest in the LORD, His ark of Christ, like the one He established with Noah, if we will abide in it as Noah did. God remembers His floodwaters, and has not forgotten that place where His people are preserved by His grace. There is no other place nor means by which we may be preserved. (Acts 4:10-12). If you would like to learn more about being preserved by grace, you can pray with me: "LORD Jesus, the Father gave His grace to us through You, and as You preserved Noah and his household, and even the animals of the earth, You desire to preserve me. I want to walk with You, Aleph Tav-Elohim, as Noah walked with You, and You called him just and perfect, speaking and in accord with truth. Fill me with Your Holy Spirit, as the dove returned to the ark with an olive leaf to give Noah sure knowledge and comfort that the waters had indeed receded for him. Father, Son, and Holy Spirit were with Noah, and also, I ask, be with me and my household always. I don't wish to search for my place of rest anywhere else but in You, and in your gift of grace. I ask these things in Your holy name. AMEN."

Hearing

       "I can't hear You!"

A host on a national talk show came to the conclusion that a public figure who had recently said that he both talked to God and heard from Him, must be suffering from mental illness, including the hearing of voices.
This host later apologized for the comment, saying that she was taught to be "tolerant" of others' faith, and she had failed to remember this.
Many people, including those who attend church or temple, would say that they also have never experienced hearing from God, and don't understand it, nor relate to it. They might even go so far as to hold the same derogatory opinion concerning it as the talk show host.
However, for as long as man has been on the earth, God has spoken to him. God has eyes, ears, and mouth, and uses all of those things. He specifically contrasted Himself with the idols that men make with their hands:
"They have mouths, but they do not speak;
Eyes they have but they do not see;
They have ears, but they do not hear;
Noses they have, but they do not smell."   Ps. 115:5-6
God created by speaking (Gen. 1). God then spoke to Adam, and even Adam's murderous son, Cain (Gen. 3, 4). Not only did He speak, but He listened to their responses, and had dialogues with them. He spoke to each generation that followed. During Jesus' ministry, God spoke audibly to the disciples on occasion. As Jesus was baptized, and the Holy Spirit descended upon Him, God spoke:
"And suddenly a voice came from heaven, saying, "This is My beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased."   Mt. 3:17 (Lk. 3:22)
As Jesus was transfigured on the mount, with His disciples as witnesses, God spoke:
"And a cloud came and overshadowed them; and a voice came out of the cloud, saying, "This is My beloved Son. Hear Him!"   Mk. 9:7 (Lk. 9:34-35)
John's Gospel describes Jesus as being the spoken Word, or *Logos in Greek (Jn. 1:1-3), that created all that was created by the Godhead.
As Jesus was praying and giving His last instructions to His disciples before He was arrested and crucified, He told them that He was sending the Holy Spirit, who would speak:
"However, when He, the Spirit of truth has come, He will guide you into all truth; for He will not speak on His own authority, but whatever He hears He will speak; and He will tell you things to come...He will teach you all things, and bring to your remembrance all things that I said to you."   Jn. 16:13, 14:26
The Holy Spirit both hears, and speaks, according to the above verses, He has direct contact and communication with, and from within, the believer. This is a provision that Jesus left for His followers, and expected them to experience: "He dwells with you, and will be in you." (Jn. 14:17). The Spirit, like Jesus, cannot be separated from God. If you have heard from Him, you have heard from the Son, and from our Father, God.
Jesus also warns that there will be those who do not hear the Holy Spirit:
"....the Spirit of truth, whom the world cannot receive, because it neither sees Him, nor knows Him..."  Jn. 14:17
However, when we seek Christ, when we desire to follow Him, He will indeed send His Holy Spirit to us:
"And I will pray the Father, and He will give you another Helper (Comforter), that He may abide with you forever-..."  Jn. 14:16
It is not the case that God does not speak, but it is often the case that we refuse to hear. Does your earthly father speak? So does your heavenly Father! Perhaps we indeed hear, but we refuse to accept or heed Him, because His Word goes against our own desires. There are many references in scripture to man refusing to hear or heed what God is saying:
"Thus says the LORD of hosts...To whom shall I speak and give warning that they may hear? Indeed their ear is uncircumcised, and they cannot give heed. Behold, the word of the LORD is a reproach to them; They have no delight in it."   Jer. 6:10
"But they did not obey nor incline their ear, but made their neck stiff, that they might not hear nor receive instruction."   Jer. 17:23
"But they refused to heed, shrugged their shoulders, and stopped their ears so that they could not hear."   Zech. 7:11
"For the hearts of this people have grown dull. Their ears are hard of hearing, and their eyes they have closed, lest they should see with their eyes, and hear with their ears, lest they should understand with their hearts and turn, so that I should heal them." 
                                                                               Acts 28:27, Mt. 13:15, Isa. 6:9-10
"...according to their own desires...they will turn their ears away from the truth..." 
                                                                                                2 Tim. 4:3-4
It is not God who does not speak, but we who refuse to hear.
To that talk show host, and others of her same opinion: apologizing to a man is not the solution. A far greater, wiser, and richer solution is to seek God's voice for yourself. There is a prayer below that will, I believe, help to begin your journey**. Find out what wonders, what truth, what love, what tender caring, you have been missing!

Our living Father speaks to us.

* "Logos": http://biblehub.com/greek/3056.htm

"Word of God Speak"
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=W8cJQMU9Q-U

** "Lord Jesus, You are the living Word of God. I want to find out about You, and I would like to hear Your voice in my life. I ask that You send the Holy Spirit, the Spirit of truth to teach me, and tell me those things that You and my heavenly Father have to say to me. Circumcise my ears, that they are not dull of hearing, and my heart so it is not dull of receiving. Set Your name upon me so that the only voice that has power in my life is Yours.
I believe that You have heard my prayer, and that I will hear You. With thanks and praise, AMEN."

Shield

At a certain point in Abram's life, the LORD came to him in a vision. Before this point, Abram had heard the voice of the LORD, but this is one occasion when he sees Him:
"After these things, the word (dabar) of the LORD came (root: to bend, to turn aside, to lodge, to desire, to wait for longingly) to Abram in a vision saying, "Do not be afraid, Abram. I am your shield, your exceedingly great reward."   Gen. 15:1
This vision came to Abram after he had freed the captives from the heathen kings, and had given a tithe of all to Melchizedek, king of "peace", priest of the God Most High (Gen. 14:18-20).
The Word, who had been waiting longingly, desiring to lodge, bent down, and appeared to Abram, and described Himself as Abram's shield (defend, cover, surround, also including the concept of a prince or ruler as protector) and his "exceedingly" (abundance to a great degree, showing magnitude of force and might) "great" (become great, numerous, multiply, increase) "reward" (wages, passage money, prepare a banquet, make a feast, prepare a building for a banquet, entertain as a guest).
This is the first mention in scripture of the Lord as a shield. Because of the words spoken to Abram in this vision, and for other reasons that we will see below, I believe Abram saw a vision of Jesus. In this post, however, I would like to look more closely at the idea of the LORD as a shield.
In the last words of Moses to the children of Israel before he dies, he proclaims:
Happy are you, O Israel!
Who is like you, a people saved by the LORD,
The shield of your help
And the sword of your majesty!
Your enemies shall submit to you,
And you shall tread down their high places,"     Deut. 33:29
Because the LORD is the shield and sword of Israel, Israel is happy and victorious over enemies.
When David was delivered from all of his enemies, and from Saul, he declared:
"...the God of my strength, in whom I will trust;
My shield and the horn of my salvation,...
My Savior, You save me from violence...
You have also given me the shield of Your salvation;
Your gentleness has made me great.
You enlarged my path under me..."     2 Sam. 22:3, 36-37
The LORD as shield also has other qualities:
"For You, O LORD, will bless the righteous;
With favor, You will compass (surround, encircle with protection as with a crown, crown-bestower) him as with a shield."    David in Ps. 5:12
In shielding us, the LORD wraps Himself around us, like the encircling of a crown upon our heads. The encircling actually crowns us.
Not only is the LORD the shield of an individual, as David declared, and of a nation, as Moses declared, but He is the shield of the whole earth:
"God reigns over the nations;
God sits on His holy throne...
For the shields of the earth belong to God;
He is greatly exalted."   Ps. 47:8-9
The tone of the above psalm is great exultation:
Oh, clap your hands all you peoples!
Shout to God with the voice of triumph!
For the LORD Most High is awesome;
He is a great King over all the earth..."  (v. 1-2)
Moses declared that Israel was to be happy because God is their shield and sword. This psalm above commands all peoples to clap their hands and shout in joy and triumph over the God who owns the shields of the earth.
Why is it so important for God's people to know, and to clamorously celebrate His shielding of us, our nation, and the whole earth? It is because His shielding can be removed.
The Song of Deborah celebrates the LORD's great deliverance of Israel. In her song, however, she reminds Israel of its former condition:
"They chose new gods;
Then there was war in the gates;
Not a shield or spear was seen among forty thousand in Israel."   Judges 5:8
As Israel turned from God, and celebrating Him, they lost their protection, and became victims of war and violence. War came to the very gates of their fortified cities. Their own defenses accomplished nothing. They had lost the Great Shield of Israel.
As King Saul turned away from God, and from celebrating Him, his shield became useless as if it had never been anointed. David proclaimed that all of Judah ("Praised", root-to confess or laud, give thanks, to cast down, to shoot arrows) should teach their children The Song of the Bow, which was recorded in the Book of Jasher (see Josh. 10:13 , recording the miraculous event when the sun was caused to stand still, so Israel could defeat its enemies).
David goes on to say:
"O mountains of Gilboa ("bubbling fountains"),
Let there be no dew nor rain upon you,
Nor fields of offerings.
For the shield of the mighty is cast away (rejected as loathsome, defiled, abhorred) there!
The shield of Saul not anointed with oil (as if he had never been anointed)."   2 Sam. 1:21
Not only was Saul destroyed at Gilboa, but the land suffered by being dried up at a place that should have been filled with bubbling springs.
Saul turned to fear and pride instead of God, but David remained steadfast. Even as David had his lowest moment, fleeing from his own son who had plotted against him, he cried out:
"LORD, how they have increased who troubled me!
Many are they who rise up against me.
Many are they who say of me,
"There is no help for him in God." Selah.
But, You, O LORD, are a shield for me (around me),
My glory and the One who lifts up my head."   Ps. 3:1-3
In the New Testament, the apostle Paul reminds us to put on the whole armor of God, and above all, taking the shield of faith, with which we will be able to quench all the fiery darts of the wicked one (Eph. 6:16). As we have seen above, that shield is a Person, and He is to be lifted up with great, effusive, thundering praise!

Praise our Father, Who is a shield around us, our nation, and the whole earth.

"Thou, O LORD"
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_aYRfUmGpmo

FakeNews

During the last few months, we have heard a great deal about "fake news". False news stories are planted on the internet, and are spread from there. Sometimes, these fake news items even end up on mainstream news outlets.
It used to be that the six o'clock news was a "must see" in this country, and we all relied upon, and took for granted, that our newsmen, and eventually newswomen, would bring us the truth about current events. Anchorman Walter Cronkite was known as "the most trusted man in America". These perceptions may or may not have been accurate, but this is what we often thought. If it was on the news, it must be the truth, because reporters were supposed to investigate fully before reporting. Eventually, we became aware that not all reporters and news organizations were unbiased, or careful and thorough.
Now, it seems, for various reasons, people are creating false news stories, and spreading them by whatever means are available to them.. The confusion that these false reports can cause can be devastating. Once the lie is out there, it seems to take on a life of its own.
How can people make wise choices for themselves, and their nation, if they don't know if what they are reading or hearing is the truth or a lie? Will we believe everything, or will we believe nothing? Both options are deadly. We live in a time when we almost expect a lie, even from national leaders, and we have become de-sensitized to it. However, God is aware of the danger of the lie:
"These six things the LORD hates, yes, seven are an abomination to Him:
A proud look, a lying tongue... a false witness who speaks lies..."   Prov. 6:16-19
Of all evil, why is lying considered especially hateful to God? We will see later.
While lies have always been with us, even from Genesis, it seems that they have a new force and power behind them. Jesus called the devil "the father of lies":
"You are of your father, the devil, and the desires of your father, you want to do. He was a murderer from the beginning, and does not stand in the truth, because there is no truth in him. When he speaks a lie, he speaks from his own resources, for he is a liar, and the father of it."   Jn. 8:44
Jesus went on to condemn His listeners that day for rejecting what He was telling them, simply because He was telling truth. They preferred the lie. Who were these people that preferred lies, and were of their father, the devil? They were all identified as those who believed in Jesus! (Jn. 8:31).
The Father, and His Son are of Light and Truth, and His Son was manifested to destroy the works of the devil (1 Jn. 3:8), including lies. We, the followers of Christ, should not prefer lies, even if the truth does not please us.
God identified the overtaking power of lies among His people, Israel:
"For her rich men are full of violence,
Her inhabitants have spoken lies,
And their tongue is deceitful in their mouth."     Micah 6:12
God exposed this pervasive climate of lies as an unclean spirit, even in prophets of Israel at the time:
"...I will also cause the prophets and the unclean spirit to depart from the land. It shall come to pass that if anyone still prophesies, then his father and mother who begot him will say to him, "You shall not live, because you have spoken lies in the name of the LORD..."  
                                                                           Zech. 13:2-3
Idolatry among God's own people opened the door for the unclean lying spirit (v. 2). Additionally, pride and haughtiness in God's people are connected to the lies and deceit that filled the land (Zeph. 3:11-13).
Are we in the Church exempt from this condition? No:
"...who suppress the truth in unrighteousness...although they knew God, they did not glorify Him as God, nor were thankful,...therefore God also gave them up to uncleanness...who exchanged the truth of God for the lie, and worshipped and served the creature, rather than the Creator, Who is blessed forever. Amen."   Rom. 1:18, 21-25
Idolatry and an unclean spirit are again connected in the above Scriptures to lies. When we spend more time and money being concerned about, desiring and attaining created things rather than the Creator, we are idolaters.
Idolatry also involves the envy of others, or what others have. Self-seeking (also identified as strife) is also idolatry, and results in an atmosphere where lies pervade:
"But if you have bitter envy and self-seeking (strife) in your hearts, do not boast and lie against the truth. This wisdom does not descend from above, but is earthly, sensual, demonic. For where envy and self-seeking exist, confusion and every evil thing are there."                                                                      Ja. 3:14-16
If we say we have fellowship with the Father and the Son, but we fellowship and walk instead with darkness, we lie, and do not practice truth (1 Jn. 1:3, 6). If we fellowship with darkness, we fellowship with lies. We are not just telling lies, but we have become a lie.
Why should we, the Church, be especially concerned with the spreading spirit of lies in the world today? Besides its reflection of our own personal sin and flaws, out of this widespread lying spirit arises the antichrist, according to Scripture. Antichrist is birthed out of, and inhabits this spirit (1 Jn. 2:18-22). He comes with unrighteous deception among those who perish because they did not receive the love of the truth (2 Thess. 2:10-11). The fact that lies have overtaken us today should be a loud warning siren in our ears.
At this time, under God's eyes, we are called to be part of Zion, a city of light, a sign post, a way marker, a monument, a guiding pillar, pointing to the way of truth, showing for all to see the difference between the truth and the lie.
As John wrote:
"Little children, it is the last hour..."  1 Jn. 2:18

Our Father hates the lying spirit, which has no part of Him.

"The Voice of Truth"
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VaVg0cWkgAw

"Lead Us to Truth" (flash mob-eastern Europe)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OprsvFGUbrU

Zephaniah

The Book of Zephaniah opens with terrible pronouncements of judgment by the LORD. It seems that all creation is being wiped out, all life swept off of the earth. The Book closes with great outpourings of God's love and comfort, even rejoicing. What could this be about?
When I read this Book, I see the hijacking of creation, and the rescue of it.
In the first verse, we are introduced to Zephaniah, and his previous generations. All of the names listed here are very interesting in the Hebrew meanings:
Zephaniah- "Jehovah has treasured",  treasure meaning: hide, store up, treasure, hide from discovery, protect, esteem, secret place.
This directs me to the thought that there is something valuable here hidden in the secret place of God, that we can search out, which I am eager to do.
Cushi- "black", associated with Ethiopia
Gedaliah- "Jehovah is Great" 
Amariah- "Yah (the LORD) has promised, Yah speaks"
Hezekiah- "Jehovah is my strength"

The king of Judah (praise) during this time is Josiah, "Whom Yah Heals", also meaning foundation, buttress, support, column, who is the son of Amon, "Architect, master, skilled workman, support, confirmation, faithful, pillar". Both names here take us to the beginning, the foundation, the support. To me this is the Creator, and His Son.
In the second verse, the word of the LORD to Zephaniah is that He will utterly consume everything from the face of the land. The phrase "utterly consume" can mean to remove, to perish, to destroy. However, the phrase can also mean "collect, gather, receive, gather in (as a harvest), bring up the rear, rearguard, to assemble, gather and take away, to be gathered to one's fathers, to make an end, to snatch away, to recover another from leprosy."
From these things, I see that some are gathered in for perishing, and some are gathered in for rescue:
"Let both (wheat and tares) grow together until the harvest: and in the time of the harvest I will say to the reapers, "Gather ye together first the tares, and bind them in bundles to burn them: but gather the wheat into My barn."   Mt. 13:30
So the phrase "utterly consume" used by the LORD is not limited to the idea of destroying, but involves much more than that.
In verse 3, while forms of life described as man and animals, are being "utterly consumed", so are "stumbling blocks" and the "wicked". "Stumbling block" refers to the stumbling block of idols, to bring decay and ruin. They cause people to stumble, bring injury or ruin to, to make feeble, to make weak, to bereave. The "wicked" are criminal, hostile to God, guilty of sin, condemned, vexed, to cause or declare wrong, violate, disturb.
The people mentioned in chapter one are the inhabitants who worship idols, and the counterfeit god, Ba'al, even Milcom, who is Molech, the god who demands child sacrifice by burning.
The LORD will punish those who are supposed to be the children of the king (King), but they wear the strange (foreign) apparel- adulterous, calamity, disaster, misfortune, disguise, dissemble, feign. From God's perspective, they don't belong to Him at all. They "leap over the threshold (serpent, snake)" of the master's house and fill that house with violence and lies (Zeph. 1:9). They should be serving the Master, and were born and purposed to serve Him, but instead, have chosen to be vessels of evil, wreaking havoc in the Master's house.
This is the condition of some today who consider themselves to be the people of God- would God recognize them as His own?

In Chapter 2, who are the ones told to "gather" together that they might be "hidden" before this terrible day of the LORD? Those who seek Him, who are meek, who seek righteousness and humility (v. 1-3):
"Blessed are the meek, for they shall inherit the earth."  Mt. 5:5
"LORD, Thou hast heard the desire of the humble: Thou wilt prepare their heart, Thou wilt cause Thine ear to hear: to judge the fatherless and the oppressed, that the man of the earth may no more oppress."   Ps. 10:17
"For thus saith the high and lofty One that inhabiteth eternity, whose name is Holy; I dwell in the high and holy place, with him also that is of a contrite and humble spirit, to revive the spirit of the humble, and to revive the heart of the contrite ones."  Isa. 57:15
"Whoever therefore shall humble himself as this little child, the same is greatest in the kingdom of heaven."  Mt. 18:4
It becomes evident that the qualities of humility and the seeking of righteousness are important considerations at this time of the gathering in. Do we humble ourselves under God, or do we exalt ourselves under the ways of evil? Are we real (wheat) or are we counterfeits (tares) like the serpents in strange apparel that leap across the threshold of the Master's house?
According to this chapter, on that day, the following will be dealt with by the Creator:
Gaza- strong, greedy, harsh, fierce
Ashkelon- : "Fire of Infamy: I shall be weighed"
Ashdod- powerful, spoiler, robber, to destroy, to violently despoil
Ekron-"turn up by the roots", eradicate, exterminate
Cherithites- executioners, cut off, cut down
Canaan- to bring low, to subdue, to humiliate, to vanquish
Philistines- sojourners, immigrants, to roll in ashes, to mourn. The Philistines were descendants of Mizraim, which is Egypt- besiege, siege works, siege enclosure, beset, assault, adversary, bind, distress, show hostility. They were originally from Caphtor: a crown, a circlet at the top of a column, a circlet of adornment on the golden candlestick.
So the Philistines are from  those who had been meant to rule, and adorn the golden candlestick of light, but became an adversary, an oppressor, an assaulter who beseiges.
In these names above, the LORD is dealing against some of the most ancient, darkest, most evil destroyers of man.
The LORD goes on to condemn Moab and Ammon in Ch. 2, likening them to Sodom and Gomorrah. Moab and Ammon were children produced from the incest of Lot and his daughters. While Lot had been delivered miraculously by the angels of God from the destruction of Sodom (Burning) and Gomorrah (A ruined heap, to treat tyrannically, to treat as a slave, to bind for merchandise), he entered right back into them spiritually with the incestuous acts with his daughters. What he produced became enemies of the people of God.
The LORD also condemns and judges Assyria and Nineveh, the capital city of Assyria. Assyria represents that which has been "blessed, prospered, advanced and progressed". It's city, Nineveh, was founded in antiquity by Ninus, its builder. Ninus was said to be the son of Bel (Ba'al). It is a spiritual counterfeit to the city whose builder is God, and comes down from heaven adorned as a bride for the Son (Heb. 11:10, Rev. 21:2). Why would the LORD have anything against this prosperous city and nation? It is because they represent the attitude that they are responsible for their own success, and they have no need of God:
"This is the rejoicing city that dwelt securely, that said in her heart, "I am it, and there is none besides me". How has she become a desolation..."    Zeph. 2:15
We can look back to an ancient city in the plain of Shinar, as they built and built in order to make a name for themselves, set up a defense against the will of God,  and to worship the stars, and the false gods of the earth (Gen. 11:1-9).
The earth, and all of creation upon it, are held captive by these evils described above, killing and destroying the life that YHWH spoke and breathed, and sustains in existence. However, God will not leave this so. The LORD, YHWH (Creator, Behold! Redeemer, Behold!) will not cede His sustaining place over creation to anyone, or anything:
The earth is the LORD's and all its fullness, the world and those who dwell therein."
                                                                                Ps. 24:1, 1 Cor. 10:26
"The heavens are Yours, the earth also is Yours; the world and all its fullness, You have founded them."             Ps. 89:11
"In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was in the beginning with God. All things were made through Him, and without Him nothing was made that was made. In Him was life, and the life was the light of men.  Jn. 1:1-4

Chapter three, the final chapter, brings us to two groups of people. Considering the conditions of man that the LORD has revealed above, and the evils that men have accepted and exalted over their lives, there are those who will receive His correction, and those who will not. Those are the two choices. If we think we do not need correction, or that correction is for other people, then we automatically fall into the group that will not receive correction, who will not humble themselves. This is how that group is described:
"Woe to her who is rebellious and polluted, to the oppressive city! She has not obeyed His voice, she has not received correction; she has not trusted in the LORD, she has not drawn near to her God....the unjust knows no shame...I said, "Surely, you will fear Me, you will receive instruction"- so that her dwelling would not be cut off, despite everything for which I punished her. But they rose early and corrupted all their deeds."   Zeph. 3:1-2, 5, 7)
The second group of people, those who will receive correction are described:
"In that day, you shall not be shamed for any of your deeds in which you transgress against Me;...I will leave in your midst a meek and humble people, and they shall trust in the name of the LORD.
Even the thought of receiving correction causes most of us to turn away from it. We will do great mental gymnastics to twist out of the responsibility or blame, and place it upon someone else. We feel angry and unfairly treated when correction comes our way. I can feel my neck stiffening, and my heart hardening at the idea of correction, and I can recall past corrections with the same resentment as I felt at the time. Though humility seems like a small thing, it would have been a balm to those feelings of anger and resentment. I can see my wrong that resulted in those corrections now, but it still rankles. I can attest that humility is not as easy as it sounds, and I can see why the LORD treasures it so much.
How do these people indicate that they have received His correction?:
"I will gather (this is the same word that is also interpreted as "consume" in Zeph. 1:2) those who sorrow over the appointed assembly, who are among you, to whom its reproach is a burden."
Those who will receive the correction of the LORD, have a feeling of sorrow at the sinful condition of the assembly, including themselves. The shame of the condition is a burden to their souls and spirits. Their hearts mourn for the assembly that is in this condition. God can work with that,  and He does. He removes the reproach from their hearts, as He also removes the judgment from them.
For this sorrow and heavy heart of repentance, God gives them joy:
"Sing, O daughter of Zion! Shout, O Israel!
Be glad and rejoice with all your heart,
O daughter of Jerusalem!
The LORD has taken away your judgments,
He has cast out your enemy.
The King of Israel, the LORD, is in your midst;
You shall see disaster no more...
The LORD your God in your midst,
the Mighty One will save;
He will rejoice over you with gladness,
He will quiet you with His love,
He will rejoice over you with singing."     Zeph. 3:14-15, 17

I think we can conclude that the Book of Zephaniah is not about the LORD destroying everything that moves. I think the "hidden treasure" here, that is revealed in Zephaniah's name, is a treasure to be found by those whose hearts are searching God. At the end of this search is the joy and beauty of His salvation and deliverance:
"Again, the kingdom of heaven is like treasure hidden in a field, which a man found and hid; and for joy over it, he goes and sells all that he has and buys that field."   Mt. 13:44
 However, we know the story does not end there. The search for His ways, the repentant heart, and the teachable spirit is still an ongoing part of our lives. This desire and repentance in heart is the thing that separates the wheat from the tares, and those who will receive correction from those who won't. It is not about seeking the city of the son of Bel, but about seeking the City of the Son of God. It is about coming out from under the names of Gaza, Ashkelon, Ashdod, and the like, and being gathered in under the name of the LORD.
The time of being "utterly consumed" is near, even upon us. Into which group do we desire to be gathered?

Our Father will gather us in.