The Gate of God
“For at that time I will change the speech of the peoples to a pure speech, that all of them may call upon the name of the LORD and serve him with one accord.” Zephaniah 3:9 ESV
Pure Speech – In order to understand what the prophet is saying, we need some Babylonian background. The Hebrew word safa’ is typically used as a description of the organ of speech. Thus, it is translated as “lips” several times. It is also used as a substitute for the result of using lips, that is, for the idea of speech or language. This connection is found in Genesis 11:1 (“the whole earth had one safa’ – language”). The story of Babel is the story of the confusion of languages where the name of the city (Babel) may be derived from the Hebrew balal (“to confuse”). Babylon is the Greek equivalent of this Hebrew term. The tower of Babel was the human attempt to construct a gateway for the gods and give humans access to the heavens at the same time.
Zephaniah is undoubtedly recalling the confusion of languages in the Genesis account. That confusion was the direct result of human hubris found in the declaration that the men of this city could build a tower where the gods would meet them. Now Zephaniah tells his audience that the day is coming when God will remove the confusion of Babel and return the earth to one language of worship. The Hebrew phrase “a pure speech” is safa’ berura’, “cleansed or purified language or speech.” What would this mean to Zephaniah’s audience? The rabbis tell us this means at the end of the age God will restore Hebrew as the one language of human worship and service. What else could it mean when this restoration is the means by which men “call upon the name YHWH and serve him”? Is there any way that Zephaniah’s audience would have thought, “Oh, yes, at the end of the age we will all speak English (or German or Tagalog)?” If people at the end of the age are going to call on the Name YHWH (in Hebrew!), then what else could Zephaniah mean? Zephaniah’s implication is that Babel will be undone. The hubris of Man will be removed. Everyone will speak the language of the Tanakh.
But notice how the NASB avoids this implication. It translates this verse, “For then I will give to the peoples purified lips.” Any reference to a common language of worship is removed. The idea that the Jewish language, Hebrew, will be universal disappears. Now God only provides “purified lips.” NIV and NLT make similar alterations. You might look at the Jewish Orthodox Bible to see the striking difference. Once again the translators opted for an anti-Semitic rendition of a Jewish prophet.
There are two implications for us. First, you don’t need to learn Hebrew now. If you are alive at the end of the age, God will provide you with this new tongue. How nice! Secondly, and not so facetiously, the prophet tells us that at the end we will serve and worship God with an Hebraic tongue. That should encourage us to seek out this linguistic understanding now – and put to rest the nonsense that the Church replaces Israel at the end of the age. At the end it will be back to the beginning.
Topical Index: pure language, safa’ berura’, Babel, balal, Zephaniah 3:9
The source of purified speech is a purified heart. “What’s in the well, comes up in the bucket!”
The words of my mouth have their beginning in the meditations of my heart.
Let’s go the source: the very heart of the matter. It is the human heart. It is the mind that matters.
Is your heart right with God? ~ As a man thinks in his heart, so is he ~ What do you think about all the time? What is the Source of every good and perfect gift? Is life a gift? If so, “who” gives us life? Who gives unto us, – what is the Source?- of life itself? Our breath, our brain, our blood, our breathing? Friend,- it is the LORD!”
In the beginning.. and unto the ending- “it’s God!” May we say (together) with a purified (pure) heart, “blessed is the Name of the LORD?”
If our hearts or minds or lips are defiled and are impure and are “weighed in the balances and found wanting,” if we know we have sinned, and are defiled in the sight of God, and we know we are surrounded by a great “cloud of witnesses” that will testify, “He is guilty!”- is there forgiveness or a cleansing or a covering to be found -anywhere?
What can “wash away” my sins? (….)
What can make me “whole” again? (….)
Oh, PRECIOUS is the flow- that makes me “white as snow!”
No other Fount I know..
Nothing but (….).
~ And the blood of Jesus (who is the) Anointed One, cleanses us from all sin ~
A “Biblical question,” from Titus 2:14:
~ Who gave Himself for us to redeem us from all wickedness and to purify for Himself a people that are His very own, eager to do what is good? ~
One man’s answer: “It is our LORD, our Savior and our Redeemer.” It is the Lamb of God who takes away the sins of the world.
The Word of God simply states: ~ Blessed are the pure in heart, for they will see God ~ (Matthew 5:8)
Who are these who are “pure in heart?”
SOS
~ He has shown you, O (mortal) man, what is good. And what does the LORD require of you? To act justly and to love mercy and to walk humbly with your God ~ (Micah 6.8)
How are we able to even know what is good other than the very life of our Messiah, (the incarnate Word of God) who went about “doing good?”
There is a”life-message” for all of us (both Jew and Gentile) here.. it is nota message of division, but one of reconciliation, for ~ if any man, (any man orwoman, or Jew or Gentile) be *in Christ*, he (or she) is a new creation. (2 Corinthians5.17)
According to your first birth – are you Jewish? Wonderful. According to your first birth, are you a Gentile? Wonderful. For any man, every man, all men -everywhere “must be born from above.”
~ God was in Christ reconciling the world unto Himself.~ Yes, God “SO” loved the world..
And how does “any man” know this? Say, – whose words are these anyway? – “It is written.”
What is written? -Words? Yes, words. This is how “any man” communicates a message. When we were “littles” we used to utters ome type of mumbling, babbling outcry and point our stubby little fingers, but then one glorious day, we learned how to say, “McDonalds” and then we could put away our hands, look out the window of the car as we drove by, and were able to communicate a verbal message to our parental units, by using words.
Where does it hurt, little Johnny? “Right here, momma.” The problem has now been isolated to a particular area and help is on it’s way. It was our LORD Yeshua, (Jesus who is the Christ to us Gentiles), Christ, who Himself is the Living Word of God who said, ~ the words that I speak unto you.. – they are spirit and they are life ~ (John 10.10)
~ Your word have I hid in my heart, that Imight not sin against You ~ (Psalm 119.11)
“It is written”What is written? words. But whose words are these anyway? Not mine. These words, life-giving, life-imparting,”words of life” have been here far before I ever got here and will remain long after I’m gone.
~ The grass withers andthe flowers fall, but the word of our God endures forever ~ (Isaiah 40.8)
The grass withers. Iagree. With my own eye, I’ve seen it wither.
The flowers fall. It is very sad when they do, as I love their fragile beauty. But sooner or later, (hopefully later!), they too will fade, falter, fail and fall. As will “all flesh,” whether Jewish or Gentile,whether plumber, painter, pirate, poet, (or even parrot!).
But there is one thing,that will remain and endure and abide forever, and this one thing should forever be our focus, our authority, and our instruction for daily living, our sure foundation and our high tower, a solid rock to build a life (any life)upon and that one thing is the word of the LORD.
~ How can a young man keephis way pure? ~
By guarding it according to Your word ~ (Psalm119.9)
May none of us ever be tempted, tested and tried as our LORD was, (by the Tempter himself).
But thanks be to God, hasatan was ignominiously defeated by the second Adam. He was dethrowned by a Man! Not once,not twice, but three times, (not including the final Victory *at Calvary*!) by these three words which were spoken by an “adam,” and may again be spoken again by any man. (Are we listening?)
“It is written.”
May I? May I practice? “It is written.”
Yeshua haMashiach, the very Son of God was also the very son of man. There never was any like Him, as He was the only begotten of the Father, full of grace and truth, but we must remember, our LORD defeated hasatan, our Adversary, Mr. Twister- the father of all liars, – as a man.
It was a man, the second Adam, who defeated public Enemy#1. And Christ, our Savior, Redeemer and LORD did it as any man may, – showing us, revealing to us, teaching us by Example, for He is our “how to,” He is–The Way.
He, the second Adam, did what the first Adam failed to do: He remembered, and then He spoke.
Adam #1, either failed to remember (Yes, God did say that) or he did not remember the instructions of God, (the Torah of YHWH), “don’t eat the fruit,” and therefore failed to speak unto the deceitful serpent, (The right response should have been) “Yes, God did say..- don’t eat the fruit..”
What “poison”issued forth from the serpent’s mouth and implanted itself within the mind of Eve? It was the poison of doubt. Do we remember her words? ~ Hath God said?… ~ (Genesis 3.1)
Did God really say that? Surely not. No, not at all. God is only holding back something good from you, for in the day that you shall eat of it-you shall be “as gods,” knowing good and evil.
Slick salesmanship. And what a pretty (and deceptive) package!
Never (ever) doubt the goodness of God!
Adam, being derelict in his duty, either failed to remember, or he failed to speak, or both.
Christ, the second Adam, did not. He did what the first Adam should have done,remembered, recalled and recited the very words of God.
I wonder if we have remembered? (We all are such forgetful creatures!)
~ For the word of God is alive and active.Sharper than any double-edged sword, it penetrates even to dividing soul andspirit, joints and marrow; it judges the thoughts and attitudes of the heart ~ (Hebrews 4.12)
And again, ~ For the weapons of our warfare are not carnal, but mighty through God to the pulling down of strongholds; casting down imaginations, and every high thing that exalts itself against the knowledge of God, and bringing into captivity every thought to the obedience of Christ; (2 Corinthians 10.5)
Every thought? That’s a big order! But we serve a risen Savior and a mighty big God (El Elyon) and also as “it is written..” –
~ with God nothing shall be impossible ~ (Luke 1.37)
Empower us also to remember, and enable us, Our Father, to speak Your words. Amen.
Skip,
Is this whole idea tied to the “speaking in tongues” of Pentecost in any way?
I did not think of that connection. What did you have in mind?
“If you are alive at the end of the age, God will provide you with this new tongue.” This remark made me think of how Paul talks about tongues, as I understand it from reading my English version and from various denominational perspectives.
Mostly I have been left in confusion about what tongues is whether glossolalia or xenoglossia. I know that Paul spoke several languages, yet he speaks of talking in the tongue of angels. He also suggests that speaking in tongues is a sign of the indwelling of the Holy Spirit.
Another thought that I have had about the tongues issue and Pentecost, is that people HEARD the gospel in their own language, it doesn’t say (as far as I can tell, which admittedly isn’t as studied as it should be) that the speakers SPOKE in other languages.
I have looked up “tongues” here on your site and read through the selection of posts you have made mentioning tongues but haven’t found clarity on this issue yet.
Could the connection be that “tongues” and by that I mean glossolalia, is the new tongue that God provides in the last days (as surely we are in the last days) or is there evidence in scripture that the new tongue is really the original tongue, namely Hebrew?
Hi Jill,
Your 3rd paragraph resonates with me. I have heard first hand the speaking in tongues in “Full Gospel” meetings. And it was a rebuke from the Ruach. Anyone could hear from the tone of it though it might sound “gibberish” to some, but, it sounded so much like Hebrew! I wasn’t into Hebrew then, but that was such a beautiful language, like that of “angels”.
Then there was the interpretation, by another person.
Another incident- an American sister spoke in tongues, “nothing” happened. After the meeting, a Chinese lady came up to her, told her she spoke in her Chinese language with a message for her! Amazing!
First, you don’t need to learn Hebrew now.
Hmmm
Yesterday up in the Milpitas dog park with my dog Max it was a spectacularly beautiful day
Looking out over the Ed Levin lake with the beautiful mountains and blue sky in the background
There were just few people up there, among them a few women, their family, and dogs
And one them said something about speaking Hebrew to her friend as she looked at me
Seemed sort of coincidental
Could this be the ancient hebrew, the 3 dimensional language of God with pictographs for letters?