I AM or "I am"

The Judean prophet Zephaniah -- a contemporary of Jeremiah -- prophesied during the reign of King Josiah (640-609 BC). This was a time of dramatic swings in God's chosen people's faithfulness to the covenant. Recall that Josiah instituted sweeping reforms late in his reign which ushered in a temporary period of covenant renewal for Judah and Jerusalem. This was also the time when the Assyrian empire was still in its ascendancy, though they would soon be crushed by the even more ruthless Babylonians in about 612 BC. The prophet foretells the destruction of Ninevah, the Assyrian capitol, in Zephaniah 2:13-15 and uses a striking phrase to describe the boastful city. "This is the exultant city that lived securely, that said in her heart, 'I am, and there is no one else.'" Here is the ultimate expression of the sovereign self -- "I am, and there is no one else." Me, the measure of all things.

This is a deliberate inversion and perversion of God's self-disclosure throughout Scripture. "I AM WHO I AM" he spoke in response to Moses. (Exodus 3:13-14) "I am the LORD; that is my name; my glory I give to no other..." (Isaiah 42:8) "Truly, truly, I say to you, before Abraham was, I am." (John 8:58) The Psalmist is still right: "The fool says in his heart, 'There is no God.'" Perhaps not by denying deity outright, but by fashioning a god that works for me. "I am, and there is no one else." The "no one else" begins with God but usually doesn't end there. It's no coincidence that when Israel's prophets denounced idolatry they were often denouncing widespread social injustice in the very next breath. The message seems to be that the sovereign self which has no room for God, soon has no room for his neighbor either.