The purpose of this book was to show the complacent southern kingdoms that they were wicked, god used a prophet zephaniah. The book begins with a declaration of the judgment that is coming on gods people and on gods enemies, but by the end of the book we see assurances of gods saving love that might seem to contradict his earlier declarations of judgment. Like other old testament prophets, zephaniah is a book rich in literary forms and features. Zephaniah means yahweh has hiddenprotected, or yahweh hides. Zephaniah summary we have detailed a brief summary of the book of zephaniah for bible study or sunday school lessons. The book consists of a series of independent sayings, many of which are rightly attributed to zephaniah, written probably about 640630 bc. See complete list of articles on home page lessons from the book of zephaniah by ken raggio. He is a god of love, but he is also a god of judgment. King 12 page article excellent the day of the lord in zephaniah by greg a. On bible gateway, you can enter book abbreviations into the search bar to save time when you search.
An argument of the book of zephaniah david malick, 06222004. Like nahum, the book of zephaniah proceeds in a 3 for justification of hab 3. Read zephaniah commentary using matthew henry commentary on the whole bible complete. High this article has been rated as highimportance on the projects importance scale. A literary look at zephaniah zephaniah is concerned with matters relative to the day of the lord as a time of judgment for sinful men and of purification for a redeemed people. The book of zephaniah is probably best known for being the least known book of the entire bible. Why study the books of lamentations, habakkuk, and zephaniah. The prophets activity, however, probably occurred during the early. Zephaniahs main theme is the coming of the day of the lord, when god will severely punish the nations, including apostate. Today, for the rocky creek bible reading plan sept nov 2019 we will be reading the book of zephaniah. Zephaniah and his contemporaries, jeremiah and habakkuk, were some of the prophets god used to pronounce this warning message. Book of zephaniah overview insight for living ministries. Yet before we get to that verse, the book, like many prophetic books, is full of alarming brokenness and impending judgement.
B this article has been rated as bclass on the projects quality scale. The book of zephaniah is a book of the bible and is thought to be written by zephaniah son of cushi son of gedaliah son of amariah son of hezekiah, in the days of king josiah son of amon of judah the book begins by telling of gods judgement on the kingdom of judah. Nevertheless, this is a great book with a significant. Chapter 1 judgment upon judah chapter 2 judgment upon the nations. Bible book list access the niv cultural backgrounds study bible notes when you upgrade to bible gateway plus. By this the godly harmony is shown in the prophecies of such different men who have lived at totally different times but who always presented the one goal of god. The book of zephaniah is narrative history and prophetic source of wisdom.
The little book of zephaniah will never take the place of john 3. Despite the fact that zephaniah warns judah of impending doom, the prophecy is dual, and the major fulfillment of his prophecy is yet future. The superscription of the book is lengthier than most and contains two features. Top 5 commentaries on the book of zephaniah ligonier ministries.
Zephaniahs message of judgment and encouragement contains three major. The book begins by telling of gods judgement on the kingdom of judah. You can find the best commentary on zephaniah for you using the tools on the right side. The book that changed my life as a young, angry black man in the 1980s, it was a revelation to find a dead white poet that made sense to me by benjamin zephaniah. A summary, synopsis or recap is a shortened version of the original. King 12 page articleexcellent the day of the lord in zephaniah by greg a.
Yet the unity of the message and flow of the entire book, plus ancient belief in its unity, have convinced most conservative scholars to regard zephaniah as the product of one writer. Among the minor prophets, we are certainly much more familiar with jonah and hosea. Book of zephaniah, the ninth of 12 old testament books that bear the names of the minor prophets, collected in one book, the twelve, in the jewish canon. Please participate by editing this article, and help us assess and improve articles to good and 1. Zephaniah calls the nation to repentance and warns foreign nations to repent as well. Who is zephaniah and why is he important in the bible. On that day you shall not be put to shame because of the deeds by which you have rebelled against me. Interesting facts about zephaniah barnes bible charts meaning. King word document excellent the remnant in zephaniah 1994 greg a. Book of zephaniah, the ninth of 12 old testament books that bear the names of the minor prophets, collected in. Title as with each of the 12 minor prophets, the prophecy bears the name of its author, which is generally thought to mean the lord hides cf. Zephaniah was one of the twelve minor prophets of the ot. The words of zephaniah contain one of my favorite bible verses.
When god had a message for the people, he spoke through the prophets. The superscription of the book of zephaniah attributes its authorship to zephaniah son of cushi son of gedaliah son of amariah son of hezekiah, in the days of king josiah son of amon of judah 1. We can begin to pinpoint exactly when zephaniah prophesied by accounting for a few details in the text. Zephaniah, book of this old testament book summarizes in its three chapters much of the prophetic teaching on the nature of true religion. The ideas most emphasized are the providential control of the nations of the world, the necessity of purity and justice as opposed to the prevalent corruption and injustice of the day, and the refining value of judgment. Search with bible book abbreviations bible gateway. All that is known of zephaniah comes from the text. Zephaniahs preaching condemned the hopeless corruption found in judean society.
The prophet zephaniah was evidently a person of considerable social standing in judah and was probably related to the royal line. Nahum, 2 kings, 2 chronicles, zephaniah, jeremiah, psalms josiah repents, other kings choose poorly. Zephaniah commentary matthew henry commentary on the. The prophetic books of the old testament are in the bible to say the same thing to us over and over. Book of zephaniah simple english wikipedia, the free. The first verse of the book of zephaniah makes him a contemporary of josiah, king of judah reigned c. The zephaniah platt papers 17451846 are organized into four series. The author announces to judah gods approaching judgment. The book of zephaniah was written during the reign of king josiah, likely in the early part of his reign, between 635 and 625 bc. This prophetic concept refers to any intervention of god in. Study the bible online using commentary on zephaniah and more.
This summary of the book of zephaniah provides information about the title, author s, date of writing, chronology, theme, theology, outline, a brief overview, and the chapters of the book of zephaniah. Jonah, joel, amos, hosea, isaiah and micah had already prophesied and died. Full of drama, tension, emotions and suspense, benjamin zephaniah brings to his fifth book so far. Described as the day of the lord, the day of judgment is pictured as a time of darkness, of anguish and distress, of destruction and plunder of cities, and. Zephaniah has another cycle of denunciation against judah 3. His word came in visions, oracles, dreams, parables, and the like. The edenpromise bible council presents council, edenpromise bible, conroy pastor, rev peteredmund thomas on. The book tells us that zephaniah prophesied during the reign of josiah, the king of judah from 640 to 609 bc zephaniah 1. Chisholm wrote in the hymn great is thy faithfulness. Three times god says i will sweep away in chapter 1 verses 1 and 2. The historical testimony of the prophet zephaniah jstor. Benjamin zephaniahs 1998 poem carnival days is a lyrical love letter to the notting hill carnival, where we dance like true survivors we dance to the sounds of our dreams. Introduction286 the book of zephaniah is probably best known for being the least known book of the entire bible.
Zephaniah is the ninth of the minor prophets, the last 12 books of the old testament. It is a small book, nestled in the midst of the minor prophets, toward the end of the old testament. May 06, 2020 zephaniah, israelite prophet, said to be the author of one of the shorter old testament prophetical books, who proclaimed the approaching divine judgment. Dec 28, 2016 zephaniah has another cycle of denunciation against judah 3. Consideration of the contents and historical background of the book in this article will serve to highlight the prophets enduring message. The book of the prophet zephaniah indicates that he ministered during the reign of josiah 640609, the. Many books have more than one accepted abbreviation. The little prophecy of zephaniah presents the dark side of the love of god. Zephaniah intro to zephaniah biblica the international bible. Zephaniah the clarion call zephaniah was a greatgreatgrandson of king hezekiah of judah, who lived in the days of king josiah, the last righteous king of judah. The book is concerned throughout with the day of the lord.
The book of zephaniah shows extremely many similarities with other prophetic books of the ot. Its language is vigorous and picturesque, and betrays an acquaintance with the earlier prophets. Zephaniah foresees the joyful return from captivity in due time. The voice of judgment is softened by gospel promises. The book of zephaniah is a book of the bible and is thought to be written by zephaniah son of cushi son of gedaliah son of amariah son of hezekiah, in the days of king josiah son of amon of judah. Thus the period from 640 to 622 is the likely time for the giving of the prophecy. This article is within the scope of wikiproject religious texts, a joint subproject of wikiproject religion and wikiproject books, and a project to improve wikipedia s articles on religious textsrelated subjects. Zephaniah wrote it shortly before the fall of judah in the southern kingdom.
Zephaniah, also spelled sophonias, flourished 7th century bc, israelite prophet, said to be the author of one of the shorter old testament prophetical books, who proclaimed the approaching divine judgment. Family correspondence is primarily letters addressed to zephaniah platt from his children, one from his brother charles, and letters from prospective sonsinlaw and their fathers, john and. Nahum, 2 kings, 2 chronicles, zephaniah, jeremiah, psalms josiah repents, other kings. Family correspondence, correspondence, financial and legal papers, and land papers. You can follow the abbreviation with a chapter andor verse reference specified e. In hebrew the book is titled hynpx meaning yahweh hides perhaps reflecting the terror of the days of manasseh when zephaniah. The book of zephaniah center point bible institute. He lived in the reign of josiah 646609 bce and may have been descended from king hezekiah. King recommended the remnant in zephaniah 1995 greg a. Zephaniah commentary matthew henry commentary on the whole. The overwhelming message of lamentations, habakkuk, and zephaniah is strength for today and bright hope for tomorrow, as thomas o. Zephaniah opens with the rumblings of judgment, and you will not find judgment enunciated in any more harsh manner than it is in this book.
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