He Will Rejoice Over You – Zephaniah, Scott Wesley Brown and David Hampton

What’s it like to preach utter destruction to a wayward people, and then follow that up with a promise that divine redemption is also coming? This 7th Century B.C. prophet named Zephaniah warned those who would listen, including probably the highest authorities of his land, while also reassuring them that “He Will Rejoice Over You” – with singing. (See the 18th Century image of the prophet here [a Russian Orthodox icon, in the Kizhi Monastery in Karelia, Russia]). Could it be those last two words of the verse (Zephaniah 3:17) especially captured the attention of two songwriters – Scott Wesely Brown and David Hampton, two guys who obviously loved music themselves -- some 27 centuries later? Listen for God to sing, that’s quite a thing to say! Zephaniah must have felt this was a great way to conclude what he had to say, after beginning his message to his hearers with the opposite. Is the roller-coaster of human experience different today? We might surmise that Scott and David didn’t think so when they reprised in 1996 what Zephaniah said so long ago.

Zephaniah travelled in pretty elevated circles and had a pedigree that seemed to match his environment; so, did that give him some special license to deliver a message from God? Zephaniah was the great-great grandson of King Hezekiah (715-686 B.C), one of the very best kings of Judah following the split of the kingdom some two or three centuries earlier (around 930 B.C.), and this prophet does seem to hint at this by mentioning his bloodlines in the first few words of his message. It also had to be a source of encouragement to Zephaniah that another good king, Josiah (640-609 B.C.), had ascended to Judah’s throne, and at such a young age (eight years old, 2 Kings 22:1) seemed impressionable and eventually willing to redirect the kingdom toward the true God once again. Perhaps Josiah’s father and grandfather (Amon and Manasseh) had strayed too far even for a grandson to respect what evil they had done – worshipping idols of the surrounding nations, an utter abomination to the real God. Could one say that Josiah’s mother, Jedidah, might also have coaxed him in this direction? But, at first Zephaniah had to issue a severe forecast – that God’s judgement would crush not only Judah and Jerusalem, but the surrounding peoples in Philistia, Moab, Ammon, Ethiopia, Assyria, and Nineveh. Repent. That was a directive that Josiah evidently heeded by 621 B.C., finding in his 18th year of rule the Book of the Law, and subsequently renewing the covenant and doing what he could to eliminate the influence of foreign gods in the land (2 Kings 22 and 23). Zephaniah’s words must have resounded in Josiah’s ears --- destruction if you don’t set things on a renewed trajectory toward God (the first 2.5 chapters of his three-chapter message), and God’s vision of a people who have sought Him once again and are being blessed (Zephaniah 3:9-20). Perhaps 3:17 is perhaps the most personal and tender of what God says to them through the prophet – all contained in the few words of ‘He Will Rejoice Over You’.   

Zephaniah, and Scott Brown and David Hampton must have all felt the same thing, even if they were more than two-dozen centuries apart. God wants to embrace his people, inside ‘His (great) love’ and because of His ‘great delight’ in us when we cling to Him only. If you can imagine feeling safe and calm, cared for, possessing an utter sense of protection and belonging, then you have experienced what Zephaniah could foresee. Then you might also hear the Great One singing, something that sounds like a lullaby and a celebration all at once – rejoicing at a Divine level. What’s ‘His voice’ sound like? Almost unimaginable, don’t you think? What if we could engage all of the senses He’s given us to discover Him today? Can you ponder for a moment touching, smelling, and tasting (Psalm 34:8) Him, in addition to hearing and seeing Him? Someday, you and I will get to use all of ourselves to experience Him.  

See NIV Study Bible introduction to the book of Zephaniah for background on the primary author-poet. Also see here for information on the prophet-poet: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Zephaniah

See here some information about one of the 20^th Century author-songwriters: Scott Wesley Brown - Wikipedia

See the official website of one of the 20^th Century songwriters here: Professional Addiction Recovery Coach | Brentwood |David Hampton (davidhamptoncprc.com)

Listen to a rendition of the song here:  Bing Videos

 

See here for information on the image of Zephaniah: https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Zephaniah.jpg This work is in the public domain in its country of origin and other countries and areas where the copyright term is the author's life plus 70 years or fewer. {{PD-US}} – US work that is in the public domain in the US for an unspecified reason, but presumably because it was published in the US before 1929.

Whom Shall I Fear (God of Angel Armies)--Chris Tomlin, Ed Cash, Scott Cash

 

Does a sleepless, middle-of-the-night prayer of desperation sound familiar to you? Have you ever looked with your bleary eyes out of a bedroom window, seen the moon (perhaps one that looked like this), and wondered if the Creator of the universe was really listening, that He might not intervene to rescue you? Chris Tomlin and his two friends, Ed Cash and Scott Cash, would raise their hands and say ‘yes’; but, they’d also follow up that first answer with their own question: “Whom Shall I Fear?” After all, once you have discovered that He’s the “God of Angel Armies”, any fear only threatens a person whose vision is restricted to the typical physical-visual evidence. Is a challenging present or an uncertain future your enemy, or is the One who holds both those time periods – and you and me, by the way – in His hands, greater than that which makes you so anxious? Turn that dim moon into bright sunlight, these song composers advise.

 

Chris Tomlin relates the story of ‘Whom Shall I Fear?’ in a video discussion (see the New Song Café link below), and in a Worship Leader article; it was a prayer of an urgent moment, around 2013. Chris says his friend Ed Cash called him in the dead of night, with a request that only a close friend can make of another at that hour: ‘I need prayer’, he uttered, or probably more accurately, he and his wife needed Chris’ prayer on their behalf. Lots of anxiety had backed up on them, making rest impossible. So, what do musicians do in such a circumstance? They pick up their guitars and start talking to the One above as their fingers wander over the strings. Neither Chris nor Ed understand how the chorus tune thus emerged – it just did. They remember that it was also true that a story of an ancient prophet named Elisha had given them much-needed strength as they considered the situation. This prophet reassured his servant (2 Kings 6) that his fear was because he couldn’t see what was really going on. An enemy, perceptible to everyone who looked about themselves using the normal visual spectrum, had them surrounded. But, Elisha prayed his own prayer, asking God to open the eyes of the servant so that he’d see the Lord’s army of horses and chariots of fire, poised for battle in the hills. Elisha utters two other prayers in the succeeding episode, which the Lord also answers to provide protection and victory. But, it’s really the first of Elisha’s three prayers that Tomlin and the Cashes use to great effect. See that angel army, and be confident that He’s not content to stand by and watch His people suffer. Chris says fear is really the enemy (a la what a president once said), and not what the people of God are about. Instead, people of faith in Him should speak hope to a world filled with worry – about the future, unsteady finances and relationships, emotional and physical maladies, and really everything. So, take a page out of Elisha’s playbook – pray to Him for true sight.

 

Has it ever occurred to believers that even Jesus was not immune to the effects of worry? In the garden, anticipating what was to come, Jesus prayed and sweat poured off of Him like never before (Luke 22:41-43). But, He didn’t remain in that state…He prayed, as every account of that time tells us (Matthew, Mark, and John also). And, from that point on, after praying three times, his demeanor was one of stoic resolve, even while knowing what was coming.  And, an intervening angel strengthened Him (Luke 22:43); a short time later, He said many more could have come if He’d needed them (vv.52-54). Another episode versus the devil likewise showed Jesus could count on angels, if necessary (Matthew 4:11). Jesus had contact with His Father. And, you and I have contacted Him. Is this equation too hard to follow, to see where it leads? How’s your eyesight now?

 

See the following site, which indicates the three songwriters: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Whom_Shall_I_Fear_(God_of_Angel_Armies)

 

See the site here for details on song’s development: https://www.songfacts.com/facts/chris-tomlin/whom-shall-i-fear-god-of-angel-armies

 

See here a video (New Song Café) in which one of the songwriters explains the song story: https://www.worshiptogether.com/songs/whom-shall-i-fear-chris-tomlin/

Magnificat – Mary

 

Other teenagers have authored songs, but this one and its various circumstances would be unique. And, the divine subject of Mary’s poetry – “Magnificat”, meaning ‘Glorious’ in Latin -- has had such everlasting significance, that His import cannot be overstated. Did her words begin to form from the moment she was visited by the angel, and then grow as certainly as did the holy child inside her when she visited her relative Elizabeth and received still more inspiration from this encounter (shown here in this masterpiece artwork of Raphael from the early 16^th Century)? Did the miraculous babes from the seemingly barren wombs of Elizabeth and Hannah, a centuries-old character who would likewise sing a song about her child (1 Samuel 2:1-10), further swell Mary’s heart? The divine nature and the mission of this unborn child, and the details of His conception reverberate forever, right into eternity.

 

You could say that Mary had experienced all three characters of the Triune God at once when the ‘God-with-us’ – Immanuel (Isaiah 7:14) – came into her to prepare for entry into the human world. It’s something we can ask her in eternity: ‘Did the interaction you had with the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit make your poetic words – the Magnificat -- flow so especially well on that occasion?’ Gabriel’s message from the Father (Luke 1:26-38) might have been electric, all on its own, and yet within a short time, the Holy Spirit overshadowed and conceived in her the Son. And, an angel also appeared to Joseph, to reassure him that this awkward situation for Mary and himself was a divinely inspired one, so ‘take Mary home as your wife.’ Do you really think that Joseph would have kept this bit of news to himself, or would he have shared it with his betrothed, to substantiate his decision to do the culturally unthinkable – take a pregnant single teenage girl as his wife? Can you hear the conversation between this couple, when Joseph says ‘Mary, wait’ll you hear about the dream I had!’ (Matthew 1:20-21) ‘Joseph, honey, I know all about it! He told me the baby will be King, forever, following in your family’s line of David!’ (Luke 1: 32-33) Is it too tame to speculate that these two were dumbfounded? Mary might have also considered other supposedly infertile women in her history, including Sarah (Genesis 21: 1-2); Rebekah (Gen. 25:21); Rachel (Gen. 30:22-23); Samson’s mother (Judges 13:2-24); Hannah (1 Samuel 1:2-20); the Shunammite woman (2 Kings 4:8-37); and of course, Elizabeth (Luke 1). What a club, that Mary had just joined! And yet, the child she would bear was holy, unlike all the others. He would be God (Matt. 1:23; Luke 1:32,35). That proclamation from the angels needs no further elaboration. Astonished? Excited? No adjectives suffice to describe how this young girl felt, so maybe the song she wrote was her way of telling family and friends her rationale for proceeding in a situation that, by all outward appearances, was pretty untenable.

 

For three months, Mary stayed with Elizabeth (Luke 1:56), perhaps the first person to hear Mary’s exaltation to God. While Zechariah’s tongue was stilled until Elizabeth’s child was born (Luke 1:64), Mary’s and Elizabeth’s tongues were excited to tell the startling news of God’s impending arrival. Mary’s voice and her complex feelings cannot be adequately described; perhaps hearing her multifaceted outpouring, her contact with God so personally, is what one musical composer has reasoned should be the response to more closely mimic all that Mary must have been feeling. Randy Gill’s Magnificat round has some of Mary’s feelings emerging bit-by-bit, so that one can sense -- just a little bit, but certainly not completely – what it must have been like for Mary to express what was going on inside, as her spirit cohabitated with this holy unborn God. Miracles are enough to strike anyone dumb (like Zechariah). Blessed be Mary that she was a servant and a poetess, but not silent!  

 

 

See photos here of the Visitation:  https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Visitaci%C3%B3n_de_Rafael.jpg (Rafael in 16^th Century)

https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:DARET_Jacques_Visitation.jpg

 

Hear the Magnificat, as arranged by Randy Gill, here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6F33Y7OgXzM