Until now we have heard more than once the calls addressed to sinners to repent and change their ways. But now a different prophetic call is heard: "examine yourselves," and these words are worth pondering.

Those who prefer to act rather than reflect must find such words unfamiliar. But it turns out that one's actions must be analyzed, conclusions drawn from them, and results summed up. This means that we must look closely into our inner world, provided only that this immersion in ourselves does not become an end in itself, but a path toward gaining openness before the Lord. For no one except Him is able to heal our soul in its fullness.

It is entirely natural that the call to examine ourselves is followed by the call "seek the Lord." These two appeals are closely connected: a true vision of our actions should show what exactly we need to open before God in repentance. But a question arises: why are the humble, not the sinners, called here to seek the Lord? Why should they seek Him if they already fulfill His laws? It must be because those who have taken a step toward the Lord must go further and further, with every new step entering more deeply into the truth He reveals before us. Centuries will pass, and it will be said: "to the one who has, more will be given; and from the one who does not have, even what he has will be taken away" (Mark 4:25).

Destruction threatens the pagan neighbors of the Israelites not because they belong to other peoples, but because, having chosen paganism, they themselves have chosen the path of death. For them too repentance and conversion are possible, but for now they are walking another path.

The Day of the Lord, the day when the Lord would come to His land, to His people, was expected in Israel as a day of triumph over the nations, the day when Israel would reign over all peoples. But the prophets bring a completely different vision of this day: the people of God have sunk into sins; God's holiness and human sin are incompatible; therefore the Day of the Lord is darkness, not light, not a triumph but the Day of wrath, Dies irae. It is worth remembering the famous Requiems of Mozart and Verdi. And no human attempts to fulfill the law will save anyone on that day.

Is there any possibility of salvation? There is, the prophet Zephaniah answers. Seek the Lord, not His law, but Him Himself. Seek righteousness: not the righteousness of human deeds, but the righteousness of God, proceeding from Him Himself. Seek humble wisdom, and this is a remarkable word, paradoxically joining humility and wisdom in itself. It can be understood as "humble wisdom," that is, wisdom that is not proud, not puffed up, but aware of its limits and open to the voice of God's Wisdom. And it can be understood as "wise humility," that is, not humility at any cost, not "abasement worse than pride," but an openness to His world guided by God, growth in relationships of love for God and people.

Where is this day, in the past or in the future? Neither there nor there; it is in the present. For the Lord has come into this world and remains in it until His final victory, and we live in this day, and Zephaniah's words are addressed directly to us.

National conceit probably arose as soon as the building of the Tower of Babel was left unfinished, and it has never disappeared since. This form of pride and self-exaltation becomes especially acute now during football World Cups. Yet the prophet Zephaniah names several peoples who boasted of their strength in his day, and where are they now? They are gone and have been for many centuries. Conceit does not save; it walls people off from God, and then the Day of the Lord, the day of wrath, comes. But salvation is possible on that day as well; it is given to those who are humble or at least seek humility. We must not confuse humility with despondency, joylessness, or dejection. Humility is the opposite of pride: it is openness to God and joyful acceptance of His will.