the priest 2Ki 25:18; Jer 29:29; 52:24
Zephaniah (Heb. Tsephanyâh, “Yahweh has hidden”, “Yahweh has protected” or “whom Yahweh has hidden”; also appears on ancient Heb. jar handles and seals). 1. Son of Maaseiah and 2nd priest under the high priest Seraiah during Zedekiah’s reign (2Ki 25:18; Jer 52:24). He carried the messages exchanged between the king and the prophet Jeremiah (Jer 21:1; 37:3). He once received a letter from Shemaiah, a false prophet living in Babylon, in which he suggested that Jeremiah be punished for discouraging the people (29:24-29). When the Babylonians took Jerusalem, Zephaniah, along with other Jewish leaders, was transferred to Riblah in Syria, where Nebuchadnezzar ordered their execution (2Ki 25:18-21). 2. Kohathite Levite, son of Tahath (1Ch 6:36-38). 3. Prophet who lived in the days of King Josiah and author of the book Zephaniah. He appears to have come from a distinguished family that could trace his genealogy back to King Hezekiah; hence, of royal blood (Zeph. 1:1), with which commentators generally agree. A prince of royal caste could more easily and effectively denounce the sins of the nobility and princes (1:8). Although Zephaniah has left us the brief prophecy of him, he gives us no further information about himself other than the one he appears in v 1; and we know nothing of his life, since he is not mentioned at all in the rest of the Bible. 4. Father of Josiah. In his house the prophet Zechariah was instructed to make certain commemorative crowns (Zec 6:9-14). Zephaniah, Book of. Ninth of the so-called Minor Prophets, or “the Twelve,” as they are known according to Jewish classification. I. Author. The title of the book bears the name of its author (Zeph. 1:1). See Zephaniah 3. II. Setting. The prophet dates the prophecy of him to the reign of Josiah, King of Judah (c. 640-c. 609 BC). Since he predicts the fall of Assyria and the destruction of Nineveh (2:13) -events that occurred in the latter part of the s. 7th a. C.-, apparently his ministry developed during the 1st part of Josiah’s reign. Perhaps he was a contemporary of Habakkuk; if so, he would have taken part in the great reform movement that occurred in that period. III. Contents. Zephaniah presents as “the great day of the Lord” the terrible punishments that would befall Jerusalem and Judah and that would culminate in the Babylonian captivity, which, according to him, was “near and very near” (1:14). He predicted that during the kingdom’s repeated invasions the whole land would be consumed (v 2) because God would stretch out his hand over the land to eliminate all idol worshipers (vs. 4-6), and that he would punish “princes and sons of the king” and to “lords of robbery and deceit” (vs. 8, 9), and to those who said “in their hearts: The Lord will do neither good nor evil” (v. 12). Therefore, the prophet admonishes “the humble of the earth” who were among the people to repent and seek “righteousness” and “meekness”, so that they may be “kept in the day of the Lord’s anger” (2:3 ). He then turns his gaze from him to the neighboring nations of Palestine, who “because of their pride” rose up “against the people of the LORD of hosts” (v 10). They too will suffer; the same will happen to Ethiopia and Assyria (vv. 12-15). Zephaniah then utters a spirited woe! on the leaders of Jerusalem, because they have betrayed their sacred vows and do not want to receive correction (3:1-4), but he promises them that if they wait for him, he will gather all the nations to pour out his “anger” on them, so that by the “fire” of his “zeal” may the “whole earth be consumed” (v. 8). Then all men will call on “the name of the Lord” and serve him “with one consent” (v. 9); “the remnant of Israel” that survives will not do “injustice” or tell “lies” (v. 13), nor will they “never again” see “evil” (v. 15). The prophet closes his prophecy with a dazzling picture of the prosperity that genuine reformation will bring (vs 16-20-, see CBA 4: 1083). To understand why Israel failed to fulfill this destiny after the captivity, and the meaning of these prophecies, see Chosen People; Prophet (II).
Source: Evangelical Bible Dictionary
Yahweh protects. The ninth of the so-called Minor Prophets, author of the book of the same name. According to 1, 1, this prophet exercised his ministry in the time of Josiah, king of Judah, 640-609 BC, and everything indicates that he did so before the religious reform carried out by this sovereign, which was supported by another prophet, Jeremiah.
In the first part of the book S. attacks the foreign customs adopted by Judah, the worship of foreign gods and their violent conduct. S. predicts a judgment, a day of Yahweh, so he asks for repentance to appease the wrath of God. In the second part, he also predicts the destruction of the enemy nations, for having mistreated Judah, Philistia, Moab, Ammon, Ethiopia, Assur. In the third part, he condemns Jerusalem’s conduct, and announces her destruction if not corrected. Finally, the promises, the nations will be converted, the remnant of the righteous of Judah will be saved and will once again be renowned among the peoples of the earth.
The prophet S. is quoted only once in the NT in Mt 13, 41. His passage on the Day of Yahweh, 1, 14-18, inspired, in the Middle Ages, the Christian hymn Dies iræ, dies illæ, “Day of anger, that day† .
These are the parts and themes of S.: I. The day of Yahweh in Judah, 1, 2 to 2, 3. II. Against the nations, 2, 4-15. III. Against Jerusalem, 3, 1-8. IV. Promises, 3, 9-20. Sun, star, and the moon are the major stars; he s it is the great star and the moon, the small one, created and placed in the firmament by God to separate the day from the night, Gn 1, 14-16. Ancient peoples considered the stars to be supernatural powers and deified them, which does not occur in this biblical text, in which they are given the character of beings created by God to fulfill a task, Ba 6, 59 and 66; therefore, different from it, simple sources of light that illuminate the earth and serve to measure time, to fix the calendar. As a creature of God, she is in his hands, she controls him, Jb 9, 7; Ps 19 (18), 5; 147 (146-147), 4; Isa 40, 26; Ba 3, 34. Being a creature of God and being prohibited in the Law, Dt 4, 19; 17, 3; the Israelites fell into idolatry, Jr 8, 2; at the time of Manasseh, king of Judah, this cult of the s. it was very popular, 2 Kings 21, 3-5; King Josías made a religious reform and suppressed the cult of the s., 2 R 25, 5.
The growth of plants depends on its action Dt 33, 14; 2 S 23, 4; Jb 8, 16; also its intense heat withers the vegetation, dries the earth, exhausts the human being, Si 43, 3-4; Jon 4, 8; Mt 13, 16; Jas 1, 11.
In a figurative sense and in comparisons, the image of the s is widely used. Deborah in his canticle to Yahweh says: † œAnd those who love you like the sun when it rises in all its brilliance!†, Jc 5, 31. The s. when he goes out he proclaims the admirable works of God, Si 43,1-5; Ps 19 (18), 2-7; God makes it come out over the bad and the good, Mt 5, 45. Everything in the world is vanity, everything remains the same: “The s. and the s. it is put; he runs to his place and there he comes out again †, Qo 1, 5; that is, †œThere is nothing new under the s.† Qo 1, 9; what happens under the s. it is vanity; no profit is made under the s., Qo 1, 14; 2, 11. In the prophets, in general, the day of Yahweh, the day of punishment for infidelity, will be of darkness, “the sun will be darkened”, Is 13, 10; he s it will set at noon, Am 8, 9; he s it will be put for the corrupt prophets, Mi 3, 6; the righteous will triumph on the day of Yahweh, in the final judgment, for them “the s. of justice† , Ml 3, 19. The groom compares the beloved with a s. resplendent, Ct 6, 10. In the praise of the high priest Simon II, Sirácida says that “it is like the s. that shines in the temple of the Most High† , Si 50, 7. Wisdom is more beautiful than the s., Wis 7, 29.
The eyes of the Lord observe everything, they penetrate the most hidden, “they are ten thousand times brighter than the s.”, Si 23, 19. The beauty of the good woman is like the s. coming out of the heights, Si 26, 16. Sopratos, son of Pyrrhus, Christian Berea, from the group accompanying the apostle Paul on his third missionary journey to Macedonia, Acts 20, 4.
Digital Bible Dictionary, Grupo C Service & Design Ltda., Colombia, 2003
Source: Digital Bible Dictionary
(Heb., tsephanyah, hidden from the Lord).
1. An ancestor of Samuel (1Ch 6:36).
2. The author of the book of Zephaniah. He most likely was related to the kings of Judah (Zep 1:1). His main work seems to have taken place early in Josiah’s reign, like those of his contemporaries Nahum and Habakkuk, and before Jeremiah’s major prophecies, his other contemporary.
3. A priest whom Zedekiah sent to question Jeremiah (2Ki 25:18-21; Jer 21:1). The Babylonian captain of the guard took him to Riblah where Nebuchadnezzar had him executed.
4. The father of a Josiah in the days of Darius whom God sent to the prophet Zechariah with a message of comfort and encouragement (Zec 6:9-15).
Source: Hispanic World Bible Dictionary
(Jahveh hides, protects).
Prophet in the Southern Kingdom of Judah at the time of King Josiah. He predicted in the Book of him the judgment of God on Judah: (1 and 3), on the Philistines, Moab, Ammon, Ethiopia and Assyria: (So.2); and the restoration of Jerusalem: (So,3:9).
2- Priest, Jer 29:25, Jer 37:3.
3- Ancestor of Samuel, 1Ch 6:36.
4- Father of Josías III, Zec 6:10.
Christian Bible Dictionary
Dr. J. Dominguez
http://bible.com/dictionary/
Source: Christian Bible Dictionary
(Jehovah has treasured up). Prophet who lived and prophesied in Jerusalem. He was † œson of Cushi †, and his descent is given for four generations until linking him with the king † ¢ Hezekiah. He prophesied † œin the days of Josiah son of Amon, king of Judah † (640-609 BC), to whom he was a relative. He was a contemporary of † ¢ Jeremiah and † ¢ Habakkuk. One of the books of the Bible is named after him. †¢Zephaniah, Book of.
Source: Christian Bible Dictionary
tip, BIOG SACE PROF HOMB HOAT
vet, (Heb. “Sephania”: “Jehovah has hidden, protected”). (a) A Kohathite Levite, from the house of Izhar (1 Chron. 6:36, 38). (b) Priest son of Maaseiah. One of those who conveyed messages from Zedekiah to Jeremiah (Jer. 21:1; 37:3). Zephaniah showed Jeremiah the letters of Shemaiah, a false prophet residing in Babylon, endeavoring to procure Jeremiah’s punishment, because Jeremiah recommended submission to the Chaldeans (Jer. 29:2-32). Zephaniah, in charge of the Temple guard, was second in eminence after the high priest Seraiah. Zephaniah was executed at Riblah after the fall of Jerusalem (2 Kings 25:18-21; Jer. 52:24-27). (c) An Israelite whose son, named Josiah, lived at the time of Zerubbabel and the…