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| == Fausset's Bible Dictionary <ref name="term_38106" /> ==
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| <p> ("Jehovah hath hidden") ( Psalms 27:5; Psalms 83:3). < /p> < p> '''1.''' Ninth of the minor prophets; "in the days of Josiah," between 642 and 611 [[ B.C.]] "Son of Cushi, the son of Gedaliah, the son of Amariah, the son of Hizkiah. " The specification of his father, grandfather, and great grandfather, implies he was sprung from men of note. The omission of the designation "king," or "king of Judah," is against the notion that the "Hizkiah" means king [[Hezekiah]] ( compare Proverbs 25:1 ; Isaiah 38:9). He prophesied in the former part of Josiah 's reign. In Zephaniah 2:13-15 he foretells Nineveh's fall ( 625 [[B. C.) ,]] therefore his prophesying was before 625 [[B. C. ;]] and in Zephaniah 1 :4-6 threatens "cutting off" to "the remnant of Baal" and "the name of the (See [[ Chemarims]] with the priests "; see Hosea 10:5 margin, "and them that worship the host of heaven upon the housetops, and them that worship and that swear by the Lord, and that swear by Malcham." </p> <p> [[ Fulfilled]] by [[Josiah]] ( 2 Kings 23:4-5). Josiah's reformation was begun in the 12th year of his reign, and was completed in the 18th. Zephaniah in denouncing the different forms of idolatry paved the way for Josiah's work, and probably cooperated with the king from the 12th to the 18th year. [[ Jewish]] tradition says that Zephaniah had as his colleagues Jeremiah, labouring in the thoroughfares and market places, and [[Huldah]] the prophetess in the college in Jerusalem. His position among the prophets, and his quotations from Joel, Amos, and Isaiah, indicate the correctness of the date assigned to him in Zephaniah 1: 1. </p> <p> In Zephaniah 1:8, [["I]] will punish the king's children" must refer to coming judgments on the foreseen idolatries of the younger members of the royal family ( Jeremiah 22: 19; Jeremiah 39: 6; 2 Kings 23: 31- 32-36-37; 2 Chronicles 36: 5- 6; 2 Kings 20: 18) . Not only the masses, but even princes, should not escape the penalty of idolatry. "The remnant of Baal" ( Zephaniah 1: 4) implies that Josiah's reformation was already begun but not completed. </p> <p> '''2.''' "The second priest" or sagan , next to the high priest. Son of Maaseiah. Sent by [[Zedekiah]] to consult Jeremiah ( Jeremiah 21: 1). Succeeded to [[ Jehoiada]] who was in exile. [[Appealed]] to by [[Shemaiah]] in a letter from [[Babylon]] to punish Jeremiah with imprisonment and the stocks for declaring the captivity would be long ( Jeremiah 29: 25- 26; Jeremiah 29: 29). Zephaniah read the letter to Jeremiah. This fact and Shemaiah's upbraiding Zephaniah for want of zeal against Jeremiah imply that Zephaniah was less prejudiced against Jeremiah than the others. This was the reason for the king's choosing him as messenger to the prophet ( Jeremiah 37: 3). [[ Slain]] by [[Nebuchadnezzar]] as an accomplice in Zedekiah's rebellion ( Jeremiah 52: 24; Jeremiah 52:27). Jeremiah 52:3. Father of [[ Hen]] or Josiah ( Zechariah 6:14). Zechariah 6: 4. Ancestor of Samuel and Heman; a [[Kohathite]] [[Levite]] ( 1 Chronicles 6: 36) , called [[Uriel]] 1 Chronicles 6:24. </p> | | Zephaniah <ref name="term_54898" /> |
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| | <p> < strong> [[Zephaniah]] < /strong> is the title of the 9th section of the [[ Hebrew]] collection of prophetic literature, entitled ‘The Twelve Prophets, ’ which was probably compiled in the 3rd cent. b. c. (see Micah [Book of]). Like other sections of this work, it contains both earlier and later materials, though these cannot always be separated from one another with certainty. In the main the Book of Zephaniah consists of a prophecy of judgment delivered by Zephaniah about b.c. 627. </p> <p> <strong> 1. The prophet </strong> . According to the title of the book ( Zephaniah 1:1 ), Zephaniah prophesied in the reign of [[Josiah ]] ( b. c. 639 608). Since the allusions in ch. 1 point to the continuance unchecked of false worships such as those of ‘the host of heaven’ which had prevailed in Judah under the previous kings [[ Manasseh]] and Amon, we may infer that Zephaniah prophesied in the earlier part of Josiah’s reign, before the [[ Reformation]] of the year 621, which enforced the laws of Deuteronomy. Two further inferences with regard to Zephaniah are justifiable if, as is probable, the great-great-grandfather of Zephaniah was <em> king </em> [[ Hezekiah]] (1:1. cf. <em> Expositor </em> , 1900 (July), pp. 76 80): (1) Zephaniah was of royal descent; (2) like Jeremiah ( Jeremiah 1: 6 ), Zephaniah when he began to prophesy was a young man say of some 25 years. </p> <p> <strong> 2. The book </strong> . The Book of Zephaniah ought not to be read as a continuous whole. Ch. 3 is separated from chs. 1, 2 by a very marked break. Chs. 1 and 2 form not improbably a single prophecy, which, however, appears to have been more or less amplified by subsequent editors; certainly in some places, especially at the beginning of ch. 2, it has been rendered obscure by textual corruption. In its present form this prophecy predicts as near at hand a judgment that is to involve the whole world ( Zephaniah 1: 2 f.; also Zephaniah 1: 18 , if ‘land’ should rather be translated ‘earth’); and it describes in detail how it will affect Judah ( Zephaniah 1: 4- 17 (18)), [[Philistia]] ( Zephaniah 2: 4- 7 ), [[Moab]] and [[Ammon]] ( Zephaniah 2: 8-10 ), [[Ethiopia]] ( Zephaniah 2:12 ) and [[Assyria]] ( Zephaniah 2: 14-15 ). The ground of judgment in the case of Judah is found in the prevalence of false worship ( Zephaniah 1: 4-5 ), of foreign fashions ( Zephaniah 1:8 f. ) and disregard of [[ Jahweh]] ( Zephaniah 1:12 ); in the case of Moab and Ammon, in the contemptuous taunts with which they had upbraided Judah ( Zephaniah 2: 8- 10 ) (such taunts as, according to Ezekiel [ Ezekiel 25: 1-11 ], these peoples hurled at the [[Jews]] after the Fall of [[Jerusalem]] in 586 b.c. ); in the case of Assyria, in her presumptuous arrogance and self-confidence ( Zephaniah 2: 15 ). According to the general opinion, Zephaniah, like Jeremiah, who was prophesying at the same time, expected the <strong> [[ Scythians]] </strong> to be the instruments of this judgment: for at about this time hordes of these barbarians were pouring into Asia. According to Marti, Zephaniah’s original prophecy confined itself to a prediction of a destructive invasion by the Scythians, who, coming from the north, would first sweep through Judah, then southwards through Philistia to Ethiopia in the extreme south, and then, turning backwards, would overwhelm the [[ Assyrian]] empire. The references to Moab and Ammon, and the touches which universalize the judgment, must in this case owe their insertion into Zephaniah’s prophecy to later editors. Many also think that the promises in chs. 1, 2 (see chiefly Zephaniah 2: 3; Zephaniah 2: 7 ) are later than Zephaniah. </p> <p> Ch. 3 contains (1) a description of the sins of Jerusalem ( Zephaniah 3:1-7 ); this may be a second denunciation of Zephaniah’s, parallel to ch. 1 and particularizing rather different sins, or a prophetic description of Jerusalem at a later date; (2) a description of a universal judgment from which only the godly remnant of Judah will escape ( Zephaniah 3:8; Zephaniah 3:11-13; cf. Zephaniah 2:3 ); (3) a description of the glory of the Jews after Jahweh has delivered them from captivity ( Zephaniah 3: 14- 20 ). All of ch. 3 may be of post-exilic origin, and the third section can scarcely be pre-exilic. Inserted in the midst of the second section are two verses ( Zephaniah 3: 9-10 ) which, like Zephaniah 2: 11 , predict that Jahweh will be universally worshipped; these also are probably of post- exilic origin. </p> <p> It seems clear that Zephaniah , like the prophets of the 8th cent. and his own contemporary, Jeremiah, was, primarily, a prophet of judgment to come upon his own people. In this respect he differed from two prophets of the same generation Nahum and Habakkuk, both of whom, however, probably prophesied < em> after < /em> the Reformation of Josiah. Nahum is entirely concerned with judgment on Assyria; Habakkuk is perplexed by what to Zephaniah might have appeared the fulfilment of his prophecy the present troubles of Judah. Zephaniah marks no new departure in prophetic activity or thought, but by his moral earnestness, and his insistence on the need for single- hearted devotion to the demands of Jahweh for righteousness, he performed for his own generation the service rendered a century earlier by Isaiah, whose influence on his thought and teaching is obvious ( cf. particularly Zephaniah 1: 14- 17 with Isaiah 2: 12 ff.). </p> <p> Owing more especially to textual corruption, parts of the book, even in the [[Rv]] [Note: Revised Version.] , are unintelligible: see Driver, < em> Minor [[Prophets]] </ em> , vol. ii. ( Century Bible) ; [[G.]] [[A.]] Smith, < em> Book of the Twelve Prophets < /em> , vol. ii. pp. 35 74 (containing a translation from a critically emended text); see also [[A. ]] [[B.]] Davidson’s [[Commentary]] on the [[Av]] [Note: Authorized Version.] in the <em> [[Cambridge]] Bible </em> . </p> <p> [[G. ]] [[B.]] Gray. </p> |
| == Bridgeway Bible Dictionary <ref name="term_19177" /> ==
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| <p> So far as we know, Zephaniah was the first prophet to appear in Judah since Isaiah and Micah, whose work had come to an end seventy years earlier. His preaching marked the beginning of a new era of prophetic activity in Judah, but it was an era that was to end in the destruction of Jerusalem . Among the prophets who followed him were Jeremiah, Nahum and Habakkuk. </p> <p> '''Background to the book''' </p> <p> For much of the seventy years before Zephaniah , the wicked [[Manasseh]] had reigned. After his reign the spiritual condition of Judah was worse than that for which God had destroyed the [[Canaanites]] in the time of Joshua. The destruction of Judah appeared to be inevitable ( 2 Kings 21: 1- 16). </p> <p> The new era was marked not only by the preaching of Zephaniah, but also by the religious reforms of the new king, Josiah (who had come to the throne in 640 [[Bc).]] It seems that Zephaniah and Josiah were related ( Zephaniah 1: 1) . Josiah’s reforms, which lasted many years, were aimed at removing idolatry and restoring the true worship of God in Jerusalem. (For details of the reforms see 2 Kings 22: 3-20; 2 Kings 23:1- 25; 2 Chronicles 34; 2 Chronicles 35. ) </p> <p> Zephaniah saw that the improvements in the external forms of religion, though commendable, were no substitute for true reform in heart and life. The wrong attitudes promoted by Manasseh were so deeply rooted that Josiah’s reforms could not remove them ( 2 Kings 23:26-27). As Zephaniah announced God’s judgment on the nation, he urged people to repent of their wrongdoing and come to a true knowledge of God. < /p> < p> '''Contents of the book''' </p> <p> The preaching of Zephaniah was concerned largely with the certainty of God’s judgment on sinners. The violence, cheating and false religion of Manasseh’s time were still widespread in [[Jerusalem]] (1:1- 18). But there was hope for those who humbly turned from their sin to the Lord ( 2: 1- 3). Examples from the surrounding nations impressed upon the people that evildoers could not escape God’s judgment (2: 4-15). Jerusalem’s sin guaranteed a terrible judgment for the city (3:1-8), though when all the sinners had been destroyed, those who had truly repented would enjoy God’s blessing (3: 9-20). < /p> | | == References == |
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| == Smith's Bible Dictionary <ref name="term_75642" /> ==
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| <p> '''Zephani'ah. ''' ''( hidden by Jehovah) .'' < /p> < p> 1. The ninth, in order, of the twelve minor prophets. His pedigree is traced to his fourth ancestor, Hezekiah, Zephaniah 1:1, supposed to be the celebrated king of that name. The chief characteristics of this book are the unity and harmony of the composition, the grace, energy and dignity of its style, and the rapid and effective alternations of threats and promises. </p> <p> The general tone of the last portion is '''Messianic''' , but without any specific reference to the person of our Lord. The date of the book is given in the inscription - viz, the reign of Josiah, from 642 to 611 [[B .C.]] It is most probable, moreover, that the prophecy was delivered before the eighteenth year of Josiah. </p> <p> 2. The son of Maaseiah, Jeremiah 21:1, and '''sagan''' or second priest in the reign of Zedekiah. [[(B.C.]] 588). He succeeded Jehoida, Jeremiah 29:25-26, and was probably a ruler of the Temple, whose office it was, among others, to punish pretenders to the gift of prophecy. Jeremiah 29:29 On the capture of Jerusalem, he was taken and slain at Riblah. Jeremiah 52:24; Jeremiah 52:27; 2 Kings 25:18; 2 Kings 25:21. </p> <p> 3. Father of '''Josiah, 2''' , Zechariah 6:10, and of Hen, according to the reading of the received text of Zechariah 6:14. </p> | |
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| == American Tract Society Bible Dictionary <ref name="term_17548" /> ==
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| <p> 1. [[A]] Kohathite, in the seventh generation from Levi, 1 Chronicles 6:36 . </p> <p> 2. [[A]] priest, high in the sacred order, during the troublous times of king Zedekiah, who often communicated with Jeremiah by his agency. He was among the captives slain by the king of Babylon at Riblah, 2 Kings 25:18-21 Jeremiah 21:1 29:25,29 37:3 52:24-27 . </p> <p> 3. The ninth in order of the minor prophets, of the tribe of [[Simeon.]] He prophesied in the early part of king Josiah's reign, before the reforms of that good king were instituted, 2 Chronicles 34:3 Zephaniah 1:4-5 . </p> <p> This would fix his date about 630 [[B.]] [[C.,]] and the destruction of Nineveh, foretold in Zephaniah 2:13 , occurred in 625 [[B.]] [[C.]] His prophecy contains two oracles, in three chapters, directed against idolaters in Judah, against surrounding idolatrous nations, and against wicked rulers, priests, and prophets. It closes with cheering promises of gospel blessings. His style and manner are like those of Jeremiah, during whose early years they were contemporary. His subsequent history is unknown. </p>
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| == Hastings' Dictionary of the Bible <ref name="term_54892" /> ==
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| <p> <strong> [[Zephaniah]] </strong> . <strong> 1 </strong> . The prophet (see next art.). <strong> 2 </strong> . [[A]] Kohathite ( 1 Chronicles 6:36 ). <strong> 3 </strong> . Son of [[Maaseiah]] the priest in Jerusalem in the time of Zekediah the king and Jeremiah the prophet ( Jeremiah 21:1; Jeremiah 29:25; Jeremiah 29:29; Jeremiah 37:3 ). As next in rank to Seraiah, grandson of [[Hilkiah]] ( 1 Chronicles 6:14 ), Zeph. is called <em> second priest </em> ( 2 Kings 25:18 ). On the occasion of the final overthrow of Jerusalem he was put to death at [[Riblah]] ( Jeremiah 52:24 ff.). <strong> 4 </strong> . The father of one Josiah in Babylon ( Zechariah 6:10; Zechariah 6:14 ). </p>
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| == Holman Bible Dictionary <ref name="term_44618" /> ==
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| <p> 2. [[Priest]] whom King Zedekiah sent asking Jeremiah to pray for the nation threatened by [[Nebuchadrezzar]] of Babylon ( Jeremiah 21:1-7; Jeremiah 37:3 ). He reported false prophecy from Babylon to Jeremiah ( Jeremiah 29:24-32 ). When Jerusalem fell, the priest was executed ( Jeremiah 52:24-27 ). </p> <p> 3. Father of Josiah and Hen ( Zechariah 6:10 ,Zechariah 6:10, 6:14 ), possibly identical with 2. above. 4. [[A]] Levite ( 1 Chronicles 6:36 ), perhaps the same as Uriel ( 1 Chronicles 6:24 ). </p> <p> Paul [[L.]] Redditt </p>
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| == Morrish Bible Dictionary <ref name="term_69470" /> ==
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| <p> 1. Son of Maaseiah and 'second' priest in the reign of Zedekiah; he was carried captive to Nebuchadnezzar and slain at Riblah. 2 Kings 25:18; Jeremiah 21:1; Jeremiah 29:25,29; Jeremiah 37:3; Jeremiah 52:24 . </p> <p> 2. Son of Tahath, a Kohathite. 1 Chronicles 6:36,37 . </p> <p> 3. Son of Cushi, and one of the 'minor prophets.' Zephaniah 1:1 . </p> <p> 4. Father of Josiah and of Hen. Zechariah 6:10,14 . </p>
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| == Watson's Biblical & Theological Dictionary <ref name="term_81637" /> ==
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| <p> was the son of Cushi, and was probably of a noble family of the tribe of Simeon. He prophesied in the reign of Josiah, about [[B.C.]] 630. He denounces the judgments of God against the idolatry and sins of his countrymen, and exhorts them to repentance; he predicts the punishment of the Philistines, Moabites, Ammonites, and Ethiopians, and foretels the destruction of Nineveh; he again inveighs against the corruptions of Jerusalem, and with his threats mixes promises of future favour and prosperity to his people; whose recall from their dispersion shall glorify the name of God throughout the world. The style of Zephaniah is poetical; but it is not distinguished by any peculiar elegance or beauty, though generally animated and impressive. </p>
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| == Easton's Bible Dictionary <ref name="term_34102" /> ==
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| <li> The father of Josiah, the priest who dwelt in Jerusalem when [[Darius]] issued the decree that the temple should be rebuilt ( Zechariah 6:10 ). <div> <p> '''Copyright Statement''' These dictionary topics are from [[M.G.]] Easton [[M.A.,]] [[D.D.,]] Illustrated Bible Dictionary, Third Edition, published by [[Thomas]] Nelson, 1897. Public Domain. </p> <p> '''Bibliography Information''' Easton, Matthew George. Entry for 'Zephaniah'. Easton's Bible Dictionary. https://www.studylight.org/dictionaries/eng/ebd/z/zephaniah.html. 1897. </p> </div> </li>
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| == People's Dictionary of the Bible <ref name="term_70959" /> ==
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| <p> [[Zephaniah]] (''zĕph'a-nî'ah'' ), ''Jehovah hides.'' 1. One of the minor prophets, in the days of Josiah. His prophecy was uttered about b.c. 620 to 609. The description of the judgment in ch. 1:14, 15, "The great day of [[Jehovah]] is near" (in the Latin version ''Dies iræ, dies illa'' ), has furnished the basis for the sublime hymn of the Middle Ages, the ''Dies Iræ'' ascribed to Thomas a Celano, and often translated. There are four persons of this name mentioned in the Bible. </p>
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| == Hawker's Poor Man's Concordance And Dictionary <ref name="term_48939" /> ==
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| <p> An eminent prophet, though his writings are small. His name is a compound, from Tzaphan, secret—and Jah, the Lord. And very suited was this name to the prophet; for much of the Lord Jesus is in his prophecy, when opened and explained by God the [[Holy]] Ghost. Hence, that Scripture, "the secret of the Lord is with them that fear him, and he will shew them his covenant." ( Psalms 25:14) </p>
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| == Kitto's Popular Cyclopedia of Biblial Literature <ref name="term_16982" /> ==
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| <p> Zephani´ah, the ninth in order of the Minor Prophets. The name seems to have been a common one among the Jews. [[Contrary]] to usual custom, the pedigree of the prophet is traced back for four generations—'the son of Cushi, the son of Gedaliah, the son of Amariah, the son of Hizkiah,' As there was at least another Zephaniah, a conspicuous personage at the time of the captivity, the parentage of the prophet may have been recounted so minutely to prevent any reader from confounding the two individuals. The so-called [[Epiphanius]] asserts that Zephaniah was of the tribe of Simeon, of the hill Sarabatha. The existence of the prophet is known only from his oracles, and these have no biographical sketches; so that our knowledge of this man of God comprises only the fact and the results of his inspiration. It may be safely inferred, however, that he labored with Josiah in the pious work of reestablishing the worship of Jehovah in the land. </p> <p> It is recorded (Zephaniah 1) that the word of the Lord came to him 'in the days of Josiah, the son of Amon, King of Judah.' We have reason for supposing that he flourished during the earlier portion of Josiah's reign. In the second chapter () he foretells the doom of Nineveh, and the fall of that ancient city happened about the eighteenth year of Josiah. In the commencement of his oracles also, he denounces various forms of idolatry, and specially the remnant of Baal. The reformation of Josiah began in the twelfth, and was completed in the eighteenth year of his reign. So thorough was his extirpation of the idolatrous rites and hierarchy which defiled his kingdom, that he burnt down the groves, dismissed the priesthood, threw down the altars, and made dust of the images of Baalim. Zephaniah must have prophesied prior to this religious revolution, while some remains of [[Baal]] were yet secreted in the land, or between the twelfth and eighteenth years of the royal reformer. So Hitzig and Movers place him; while Eichhorn, Bertholdt, and Jaeger incline to give him a somewhat later date. At all events, he flourished between the years [[B.C.]] 642and [[B.C.]] 611; and the portion of his prophecy which refers to the destruction of the [[Assyrian]] [[Empire]] must have been delivered prior to the year [[B.C.]] 625, the year in which [[Nineveh]] fell. The publication of these oracles was, therefore, contemporary with a portion of those of Jeremiah, for the word of the Lord came to him in the thirteenth year of the reign of Josiah. Indeed, the Jewish tradition is, that Zephaniah had for his colleagues Jeremiah and the prophetess Huldah, the former fixing his sphere of labor in the thoroughfares and marketplaces, the latter exercising her honorable vocation in the college in Jerusalem. </p> <p> The book consists of only three chapters. In Zephaniah 1, the sins of the nation are severely reprimanded, and a day of fearful retribution is menaced. The circuit of reference is wider in Zephaniah 2, and the ungodly and persecuting states in the neighborhood of [[Judaea]] are also doomed; but in Zephaniah 3, while the prophet inveighs bitterly against Jerusalem and her magnates, he concludes with the cheering prospect of her ultimate settlement and blissful theocratic enjoyment. </p> <p> The style of this prophet has not the sustained majesty of Isaiah, or the sublime and original energy of Joel: it has no prominent feature of distinction; yet its delineations are graphic, and many of its touches are bold and striking. For example, in the first chapter the prophet groups together in his descriptions of the national idolatry several characteristic exhibitions of its forms and worship. The verses are not tame and prosaic portraiture, but form a series of vivid sketches. The poet seizes on the more strange peculiarities of the heathen worship—uttering denunciations on the remnant of Baal, the worshippers of Chemarim—the star-adorers, the devotees of Malcham, the fanatics who clad themselves in strange apparel, and those who in some superstitious mummery leaped upon the threshold. Not a few verses occur in the course of the prophecy which, in tone and dignity, are not unworthy to be associated with the more distinguished effusions of the [[Hebrew]] bards. The language is pure: it has not the classic ease and elegance of the earlier compositions, but it wants the degenerate feebleness and [[Aramaic]] corruption of the succeeding era. Zephaniah is not expressly quoted in the New Testament; but clauses and expressions occur which seem to have been formed from his prophecy (; , etc.). He was, in fine, as [[Cyril]] of [[Alexandria]] terms him, 'a true prophet, and filled with the Holy Ghost, and bringing his oracles from the mouth of God.' </p>
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| == Cyclopedia of Biblical, Theological and Ecclesiastical Literature <ref name="term_66752" /> ==
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| <p> (Heb. Tsephanyah', צְפִנְיָה [in the prolonged form ''Tsephanya'hu,'' </p> <p> צְפִנְיָהוּ, 2 Kings 25:18], ''hidden of Jehovah;'' Sept. Σοφονίας v.r. [in 1 Chronicles] Σαφανίας, Vulg. ''Sophonias'' )'','' the name of four Hebrews. </p> <p> '''1.''' [[A]] Kohathite Levite, son of [[Tahath]] and father of Azariah, in the ancestry of the prophet Samuel (q.v.) and of [[Heman]] ( 1 Chronicles 6:36 [Heb. 21]); the same elsewhere (Heb. 21:24 [9]) called [[Uriel]] (See [[Uriel]]) (q.v.) the father of Uzziah. </p> <p> '''2.''' [[A]] prophet of whom we have no information beyond what his book furnishes. In this ( Zephaniah 1:1) he is said to have been "the son of Cushi, the son of Gedaliah, the son of Amariah, the son of Hizkiah," which last is usually regarded as the same with king Hezekiah. If so, he lived [[B.C.]] cir. 620. With this agrees the date, of his prophecy there given; namely, in the reign of Josiah. We do not elsewhere, however, read of an such son of Hezekiah as Amariah, and, so far as he record and probability go, Manasseh was his only son. (See [[Book Of Zephaniah]]). </p> <p> '''3.''' The son of Maaseiah ( Jeremiah 21:1) and ''sagan,'' or second priest, in the reign of Zedekiah. He succeeded Jehoiada ( Jeremiah 29:29; Jeremiah 25:26), and was probably a ruler of the Temple, whose office it was, among others, to punish pretenders to the gift of prophecy. In this capacity, he was appealed to by Shenaiah the Nehelamite, in a letter from Babylon, to punish Jeremiah ( Jeremiah 29:29). Twice was he sent from Zedekiah to inquire of Jeremiah the issue of the siege of the city by the Chaldaeans ( Jeremiah 21:1), and to implore him to intercede for the people ( Jeremiah 37:3). On the capture of Jerusalem by Nebuzaradan, he was taken with [[Seraiah]] the high-priest and others, and slain at Riblah. ( Jeremiah 52:24; Jeremiah 52:27; 2 Kings 25:18; 2 Kings 25:21). [[B.C.]] 588. </p> <p> '''4.''' Father of Josiah 2 ( Zechariah 6:10), and of Hen, according to the reading of the received text of Zechariah 6:14 as given in the [[A.]] [[V.]] [[B.C.]] ante 519. (See [[Josiah]]). </p>
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| == International Standard Bible Encyclopedia <ref name="term_9593" /> ==
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| <p> ''''' zef ''''' - ''''' a ''''' - ''''' nı̄´a ''''' ( צפניה , <i> ''''' cephanyāh ''''' </i> , צפניהוּ , <i> ''''' cephanyāhū ''''' </i> , "Yah hath treasured"): </p> <p> (1) The prophet. See [[Zephaniah]] , Book Of . </p> <p> (2) [[A]] [[L]] evite or priest ( 1 Chronicles 6:36 (Hebrew 6:21)), called in some genealogies "Uriel" ( 1 Chronicles 6:24; 1 Chronicles 15:5 , 1 Chronicles 15:11 ). </p> <p> (3) [[Judean]] father or fathers of various contemporaries of Zechariah, the prophet ( Zechariah 6:10 , Zechariah 6:14 ). </p> <p> (4) [[A]] priest, the second in rank in the days of Jeremiah. He was a leader of the "patriotic" party which opposed Jeremiah. Nevertheless, he was sent to the prophet as a messenger of King Zedekiah when Nebuchadnezzar was about to attack the city ( Jeremiah 21:1 ) and at other crises ( Jeremiah 37:3; compare Jeremiah 29:25 , Jeremiah 29:29; 2 Kings 25:18 ). That he continued to adhere to the policy of resistance against [[Babylonian]] authority is indicated by the fact that he was among the leaders of [[Israel]] taken by [[Nebuzaradan]] before the king of Babylon, and killed at Riblah ( 2 Kings 25:18 parallel Jeremiah 52:24 ). </p>
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| == The Nuttall Encyclopedia <ref name="term_81720" /> ==
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| <p> [[A]] Hebrew prophet who prophesied in the interval between the decline and fall of Nineveh and the hostile advance of Babylon; forewarned the nation of the judgment of God impending over them for their ungodliness, and exhorted them to repentance as the only way of averting the inevitable doom, while he at the same time encouraged the faithful to persevere in their godly course with the assurance that the day of judgment would be succeeded by a day of glorious deliverance, that they would yet become "a name and a praise among the people of the earth." </p>
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| ==References == | |
| <references> | | <references> |
| | | <ref name="term_54898"> [https://bibleportal.com/dictionary/hastings-dictionary-of-the-bible/zephaniah+(1) Zephaniah from Hastings' Dictionary of the Bible]</ref> |
| <ref name="term_38106"> [https://bibleportal.com/dictionary/fausset-s-bible-dictionary/zephaniah Zephaniah from Fausset's Bible Dictionary]</ref> | |
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| <ref name="term_19177"> [https://bibleportal.com/dictionary/bridgeway-bible-dictionary/zephaniah Zephaniah from Bridgeway Bible Dictionary]</ref>
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| <ref name="term_75642"> [https://bibleportal.com/dictionary/smith-s-bible-dictionary/zephaniah Zephaniah from Smith's Bible Dictionary]</ref>
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| <ref name="term_17548"> [https://bibleportal.com/dictionary/american-tract-society-bible-dictionary/zephaniah Zephaniah from American Tract Society Bible Dictionary]</ref>
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Zephaniah [1]
Zephaniah is the title of the 9th section of the Hebrew collection of prophetic literature, entitled ‘The Twelve Prophets,’ which was probably compiled in the 3rd cent. b.c. (see Micah [Book of]). Like other sections of this work, it contains both earlier and later materials, though these cannot always be separated from one another with certainty. In the main the Book of Zephaniah consists of a prophecy of judgment delivered by Zephaniah about b.c. 627.
1. The prophet . According to the title of the book ( Zephaniah 1:1 ), Zephaniah prophesied in the reign of Josiah (b.c. 639 608). Since the allusions in ch. 1 point to the continuance unchecked of false worships such as those of ‘the host of heaven’ which had prevailed in Judah under the previous kings Manasseh and Amon, we may infer that Zephaniah prophesied in the earlier part of Josiah’s reign, before the Reformation of the year 621, which enforced the laws of Deuteronomy. Two further inferences with regard to Zephaniah are justifiable if, as is probable, the great-great-grandfather of Zephaniah was king Hezekiah (1:1. cf. Expositor , 1900 (July), pp. 76 80): (1) Zephaniah was of royal descent; (2) like Jeremiah ( Jeremiah 1:6 ), Zephaniah when he began to prophesy was a young man say of some 25 years.
2. The book . The Book of Zephaniah ought not to be read as a continuous whole. Ch. 3 is separated from chs. 1, 2 by a very marked break. Chs. 1 and 2 form not improbably a single prophecy, which, however, appears to have been more or less amplified by subsequent editors; certainly in some places, especially at the beginning of ch. 2, it has been rendered obscure by textual corruption. In its present form this prophecy predicts as near at hand a judgment that is to involve the whole world ( Zephaniah 1:2 f.; also Zephaniah 1:18 , if ‘land’ should rather be translated ‘earth’); and it describes in detail how it will affect Judah ( Zephaniah 1:4-17 (18)), Philistia ( Zephaniah 2:4-7 ), Moab and Ammon ( Zephaniah 2:8-10 ), Ethiopia ( Zephaniah 2:12 ) and Assyria ( Zephaniah 2:14-15 ). The ground of judgment in the case of Judah is found in the prevalence of false worship ( Zephaniah 1:4-5 ), of foreign fashions ( Zephaniah 1:8 f.) and disregard of Jahweh ( Zephaniah 1:12 ); in the case of Moab and Ammon, in the contemptuous taunts with which they had upbraided Judah ( Zephaniah 2:8-10 ) (such taunts as, according to Ezekiel [ Ezekiel 25:1-11 ], these peoples hurled at the Jews after the Fall of Jerusalem in 586 b.c.); in the case of Assyria, in her presumptuous arrogance and self-confidence ( Zephaniah 2:15 ). According to the general opinion, Zephaniah, like Jeremiah, who was prophesying at the same time, expected the Scythians to be the instruments of this judgment: for at about this time hordes of these barbarians were pouring into Asia. According to Marti, Zephaniah’s original prophecy confined itself to a prediction of a destructive invasion by the Scythians, who, coming from the north, would first sweep through Judah, then southwards through Philistia to Ethiopia in the extreme south, and then, turning backwards, would overwhelm the Assyrian empire. The references to Moab and Ammon, and the touches which universalize the judgment, must in this case owe their insertion into Zephaniah’s prophecy to later editors. Many also think that the promises in chs. 1, 2 (see chiefly Zephaniah 2:3; Zephaniah 2:7 ) are later than Zephaniah.
Ch. 3 contains (1) a description of the sins of Jerusalem ( Zephaniah 3:1-7 ); this may be a second denunciation of Zephaniah’s, parallel to ch. 1 and particularizing rather different sins, or a prophetic description of Jerusalem at a later date; (2) a description of a universal judgment from which only the godly remnant of Judah will escape ( Zephaniah 3:8; Zephaniah 3:11-13; cf. Zephaniah 2:3 ); (3) a description of the glory of the Jews after Jahweh has delivered them from captivity ( Zephaniah 3:14-20 ). All of ch. 3 may be of post-exilic origin, and the third section can scarcely be pre-exilic. Inserted in the midst of the second section are two verses ( Zephaniah 3:9-10 ) which, like Zephaniah 2:11 , predict that Jahweh will be universally worshipped; these also are probably of post-exilic origin.
It seems clear that Zephaniah, like the prophets of the 8th cent. and his own contemporary, Jeremiah, was, primarily, a prophet of judgment to come upon his own people. In this respect he differed from two prophets of the same generation Nahum and Habakkuk, both of whom, however, probably prophesied after the Reformation of Josiah. Nahum is entirely concerned with judgment on Assyria; Habakkuk is perplexed by what to Zephaniah might have appeared the fulfilment of his prophecy the present troubles of Judah. Zephaniah marks no new departure in prophetic activity or thought, but by his moral earnestness, and his insistence on the need for single-hearted devotion to the demands of Jahweh for righteousness, he performed for his own generation the service rendered a century earlier by Isaiah, whose influence on his thought and teaching is obvious (cf. particularly Zephaniah 1:14-17 with Isaiah 2:12 ff.).
Owing more especially to textual corruption, parts of the book, even in the Rv [Note: Revised Version.] , are unintelligible: see Driver, Minor Prophets , vol. ii. (Century Bible); G. A. Smith, Book of the Twelve Prophets , vol. ii. pp. 35 74 (containing a translation from a critically emended text); see also A. B. Davidson’s Commentary on the Av [Note: Authorized Version.] in the Cambridge Bible .
G. B. Gray.
References
