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Hid in the Day of LORD's Anger

By Chris McCann
June 30, 2019

Zephaniah 2:1 Gather yourselves together, yea, gather together, O nation not desired;

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.

3 Seek ye the LORD, all ye meek of the earth, which have wrought his judgment; seek righteousness, seek meekness: it may be ye shall be hid in the day of the LORD'S anger.

It's obvious that the "day of LORD's anger" is a reference to Judgment Day. But what does it mean to be "hid" in that day?

We can discover what God means by searching the Scriptures for a Biblical definition of being hid. We find a helpful verse in:

Colossians 3:3 For ye are dead, and your life is hid with Christ in God.

In Colossians 3:3, we find that salvation is defined as having our life "hid with Christ in God.”

This means that a Biblical definition for the word hid back in Zephaniah 2:3 involves being saved. If by God's mercy He has saved us, then our life is hidden-with Christ in God. And we are protected from the fierce anger of the Lord as He pours it out in the Day of Judgment.

This Biblical understanding of the word "hid" also helps us to understand some other interesting verses in the Bible:

Isaiah 26:20 Come, my people, enter thou into thy chambers, and shut thy doors about thee: hide thyself as it were for a little moment, until the indignation be overpast.

21 For, behold, the LORD cometh out of his place to punish the inhabitants of the earth for their iniquity: the earth also shall disclose her blood, and shall no more cover her slain.

In this passage, God moves Isaiah the prophet to declare that the people of God are to enter into chambers, shut the doors about them, and to "hide" themselves UNTIL "the indignation be overpast". The word indignation has to do with anger. Obviously, since the next verse in Isaiah (v.21) tells us that God is punishing the inhabitants of the earth-we know for certain that the final judgment of mankind is in view. But that's what makes verse 20's statement so odd, why is there a need for God's elect people to be hidden (in salvation) until the outpouring of God's wrath has been completed?

By God's grace, we now know the answer, there is a need to be hidden in Christ (through salvation) throughout the prolonged spiritual judgment that has come upon the world. Any person, who was not hidden (in Christ) before the “day” has come will be unprotected by the extreme heat and unable to endure the elongated and awful Day of the Lord:

Isaiah 4:5 And the LORD will create upon every dwelling place of mount Zion, and upon her assemblies, a cloud and smoke by day, and the shining of a flaming fire by night: for upon all the glory shall  be a defence.

6 And there shall be a tabernacle for a shadow in the daytime from the heat, and for a place of refuge, and for a covert from storm and from rain.

The verses in Isaiah 4 are referring to the “feast of the Bible” that God has arranged to take place during the time of the judgments on the church and the world. Residing in the booth will protect as a refuge or hiding place from the terrible elements unleashed in that evil day. It means that God’s elect will find refuge and be hidden in the Word of God which is the same thing as finding refuge and being hidden with Christ in God (salvation). Any not truly saved will come out from under the booth (the Bible’s truth) and perish by the heat of the wrath of God.