Commentary on Habakkuk Zephaniah Haggai Zechariah and Malachi John Calvin (continued)
Zephaniah 2
Zephaniah 2:1, 2
1. Gather yourselves together, yea, gather together, O nation not desired;
1. Colligite vos, et colligite gens non amabilis;
2. Before the decree bring forth, before the day pass as the chaff, before the fierce anger of the Lord come upon you, before the day of the Lord's anger come upon you.
2. Antequam pariat decretum, sicut stipula transibit die, antequam veniat super eos furor irae Iehovae, antequam veniat super eos dies irae Iehovae.
The Prophet, after having spoken of God's wrath, and shown how terrible it would be, and also how near, now exhorts the Jews to repentance, and thus mitigates the severity of his former doctrine, provided their minds were teachable. We hence learn that God fulminates in his word against men, that he may withhold his hand from them. The more severe, then, God is, when he chastises us and makes known our sins, and sets before us his wrath, the more clearly he testifies how precious and dear to him is our salvation; for when he sees us rushing headlong, as it were, into ruin, he calls us back by threatening and chastisements. Whenever, then, God condemns us by his word, let us know that he will be propitious to us, if, touched with true repentance, we flee to his mercy; for to effect this is the design of all his reproofs and threatening.
There follows then a seasonable exhortation, after the Prophet had spoken of the dreadfulness of God's vengeance. Gather yourselves, he says, gather, ye nation not worthy of being loved. Others read---Search among yourselves, search; and interpreters differ as to the root of the verb; some derive it from {,}קששkoshesh, and others from {,}קושkush; while some deduce the verb from the noun {}קשkosh, which signifies chaff or stubble. But however this may be, I consider the real meaning of the Prophet to be---Gather yourselves, gather; for this is what grammatical construction requires. I do not see why they who read search yourselves, depart