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ZEALOT; ZEALOTS

zel'-ut, zel'-uts: Simon, one of the apostles, was called "the Zealot" Zelotes from zeloo "to rival," "emulate," "be jealous," "admire," "desire greatly," Lk 6:15; Acts 1:13, the King James Version "Zelotes"). In Mt 10:4 and Mk 3:18 he is called "the Cananean" (so the Revised Version (British and American) correctly; not "the Canaanite," as the King James Version says, following inferior manuscripts), ho Kananaios. From the time of the Maccabees there existed among the Jews a party who professed great zeal for the observance of the "law." According to Josephus (BJ, IV, iii, 9; v, 1; VII, viii, 1) they resorted to violence and assassination in their hatred of the foreigner, being at many points similar to the Chinese Boxers. It is not improbable that the "Assassins" (see ASSASSINS ) of Acts 21:38 were identical, or at least closely associated, with this body of "Zealots," to which we must conclude that Simon had belonged before he became one of the Twelve.

See, further, SIMON THE ZEALOT.

William Arthur Heidel


ZEBADIAH

zeb-a-di'-a ((1) zebhadhyaha, (2) zebhadhyah, "Yah has bestowed"; the form (1) is the Hebrew name in (1), (a), (b), (2), below; the form (2) in the rest. Some manuscripts have Zechariah in (1), (a), (b), (3)).

Compare ZABDI ;ZABDIEL :

(1) Levites: (a) a Korahite doorkeeper of David's reign (1 Ch 26:2); (b) one of the Levites sent by King Jehoshaphat to teach the Torah in Judah (2 Ch 17:8).

(2) Son of Ishmael (2 Ch 19:11); "ruler of the house of Judah in all the king's (Jehoshaphat's) matters," i.e. judge in civil cases, the "controversies" of 2 Ch 19:8.

(3) Benjamites, perhaps descended from Ehud (see Curtis, Chron., 158 ff): (a) In 1 Ch 8:15; (b) in 8:17, where the name may be a dittography from 8:15.

(4) A Benjamite recruit of David at Ziklag (1 Ch 12:7 (Hebrew verse 8)).

(5) One of David's army officers, son and successor of Asahel (1 Ch 27:7).

(6) One of those who returned from Babylon to Jerusalem with Ezra (Ezr 8:8) = "Zaraias" of 1 Esdras 8:34.

(7) One of those who had married foreign wives (Ezr 10:20) = "Zabdeus" of 1 Esdras 9:21.

David Francis Roberts


ZEBAH AND ZALMUNNA

ze'-ba (zebhach, "victim"), zal-mun'-a (tsalmunna`, "protection refused"): Two Midianite kings or chiefs whom Gideon slew (Jdg 8:4-21; Ps 83:11 (Hebrew text, verse 12)). The name zebhach (Zebee) is very much like that of ze'ebh (Zeb, "Zeeb" in the Septuagint). Moore (Judgess, 220) says that tsalmunna` is probably "a genuine Midianite name"; Noldeke conjectured that it contains that of a deity (ts(a)lm), and a compound form tslmshzbh, is found in an inscription from Teima, a place East of the Midianite capital (Corpus Inscriptionum Semiticarum, II, cxiii f).

The narrative of Jdg 8:4-21 is not to be connected with that of 8:1-3. Budde (Kurzer Hand-Comm. z. Altes Testament, XXII) would join 8:4 to 6:34; Moore (ICC) following Budde's earlier work (1890) would connect it with a part of 7:22b, describing the direction of the flight, while Nowack (Hand-Komm.) regards the battle of 8:11 as the same as that of 7:11 if; he then takes the latter part of 8:11 to refer to the place of the camp at night. There are many difficulties in forming a natural connection for the verses. It may be noted that in 8:18 f Gideon is not "the least in my father's house," as he represents himself to be in 6:15.

The whole section tells of a daring raid made by Gideon upon the Midianites. Some of his own kin had been slain by Midianite hordes at Ophrah (Jdg 8:18 f), and, stirred by this, Gideon went in hot pursuit with 300 men (Jdg 8:4). He requested provisions for his men from the people of Succoth and Penuel, but was refused this. He then went on and caught the Midianites unawares at Karkor (Jdg 8:10) and captured their two chiefs. He then had his revenge on the two towns, and returned probably to his home with the two notable prisoners. These he determined to slay to avenge the death of his own kinsmen, and called upon his eldest son to perform this solemn public duty that he owed to the dead. His son, apparently only a boy, hesitated, and he did the deed himself. W. R. Smith (Lectures on the Religion of the Semites, 2nd edition, 417, note) compares with this call to Gideon's son the choice of young men or lads as sacrificers in Ex 24:5, and says that the Saracens also charged lads with the execution of their captives.

The narrative reminds one of David's romantic life in 1 Sam 25; 27; 30. It is throughout a characteristic picture of the life of the early Hebrews in Palestine, for whom it was a sacred duty to avenge the dead. It affords a splendid illustration of what is meant by the spirit of Yahweh coming upon, or rather "clothing itself with" (Revised Version margin) Gideon (Jdg 6:34); compare also Saul's call to action (1 Sam 11:1-11), and also Jdg 19 f.

David Francis Roberts


ZEBAIM

ze-be'-im.

See POCHERETH-HAZZEBAIM .


ZEBEDEE

zeb'-e-de (zibhdi, "the gift of God"; Zebedaios): The father of the apostles James and John (Mk 1:19) and a fisherman on the Sea of Galilee (Mk 1:20), the husband of Salome (Mt 27:56; compare Mk 16:1).

See JAMES ;SALOME .


ZEBIDAH

ze-bi'-da, zeb'-i-da (zebhudhah, Qere, whence the King James Version "Zebudah," whereas the Kethibh is zebhidhah; the Qere means "bestowed" and is the feminine of Zabud): Daughter of Pedaiah of Rumah, and mother of King Jehoiakim of Judah (2 Ki 23:36). The Septuagint's Codex Vaticanus has, however, Iella thugater Edeil ek Krouma, Codex Alexandrinus Eieldaph th. Eieddila ek Rhuma. In 2 Ch 36:5 Massoretic Text lacks these names, but the Septuagint Codex Vaticanus has Zechora th. Nereiou ek Rhama; here the name of the king's mother = Hebrew zekhurah, due to a confusion of the Hebrew letter kaph (k) with the Hebrew letter beth (b), and the Hebrew letter resh (r) with the Hebrew letter daleth (d), and thus we find support for the Qere, zebhudhah ("Zebudah," in 2 Ki 23:36 the King James Version). Lucian has confused the names here with those of 2 Ki 24:18, and has as there, "Amital, the daughter of Jeremiah of Libnah."

David Francis Roberts


ZEBINA

ze-bi'-na (zebhina', "bought"): One of those who had married foreign wives (Ezr 10:43); the name is not in 1 Esdras 9:35, and is omitted by the Septuagint's Codex Alexandrinus in Ezra.


ZEBOIIM

ze-boi'-im (tsebhoyim; the Septuagint uniformly Sebo(e)im; the King James Version, Zeboim): One of the cities in the Vale of Siddim, destroyed with Sodom and Gomorrah. It is always mentioned next to Admah (Gen 10:19; 14:2,8; Dt 29:23; Hos 11:8). It is not to be confounded with Zeboim mentioned in 1 Sam 13:18 and Neh 11:34. The site has not been positively identified, but must be determined by the general questions connected with the Vale of Siddim.

See SIDDIM ,VALE OF .


ZEBOIM

ze-bo'-im ((1) tsebho`im; Seboeim (Neh 11:34); (2) ge ha-tsebho`im; Gai ten Samein (1 Sam 13:18)):

(1) A Benjamite town mentioned as between HADID (which see) and NEBALLAT (which see), and therefore in the maritime plain near Lydda; the site is lost (Neh 11:34). (2) The Valley of Zeboim, "the valley of hyenas," one of three companies of the Philistines left their camp at Michmash and "turned the way of the border that looketh down upon the valley of Zeboim toward the wilderness" (1 Sam 13:18). There are several valleys with names derived from the hyena, so common in these parts. There is a small branch valley called Shakked dab`a, "ravine of the hyenas," North of the Wady kelt (Grove), a, Wady abu dab`a, "valley of the father of hyenas, which joins the Wady kelt from the South (Marti), and a large and well-known Wady dab`a, "valley of hyenas," which runs parallel with the Wady kelt, some 3 miles farther South, and ends at the Dead Sea. The first of these, which apparently leads to Mukhmas itself, seems the most probable. See Conder's Handbook, 241.

E. W. G. Masterman


ZEBUDAH

ze-bu'-da.

See ZEBIDAH .


ZEBUL

ze'-bul (zebhul, perhaps "exalted"; Zeboul): In Jdg 9:26 ff. He is called in 9:30 sar ha-`ir, "the ruler of the city," a phrase translated "the governor of the city" in 1 Ki 22:26 = 2 Ch 18:25; 2 Ki 23:8; 2 Ch 34:8; he was "commandant of the town" of Shechem. In Jdg 9:28 he is referred to as the paqidh, "officer," or, more correctly, "deputy" of Abimelech. This verse is a little difficult, but if we read "served" for "serve ye," it becomes fairly clear in meaning. With Moore (Judges, 255 ff) we may translate it thus: "Who is Abimelech? and who is Shechem, that we should serve him (i.e. Abimelech)? Did not the son of Jerubbaal and Zebul his deputy (formerly) serve the people of Qamor (the father of Shechem)? Why then should we serve him (Abimelech)?" This is also the way Budde (Kurzer Hand-Comm. z. Altes Testament, 75) takes the verse. And further in Jdg 9:29 for "and he said" many read with the Septuagint "then would I say."

The position of Zebul is here that of a deputy to Abimelech, who lived in Arumah (Jdg 9:41). When Gaal came to Shechem, a newcomer with a band of men, he seized the opportunity at a vintage feast to attack Abimelech and express a desire to lead a revolt against him (Jdg 9:26-29). Zebul heard these words and reported the matter to his master, vising him to make s sudden rush upon the city (Jdg 9:30-33). This Abimelech does, and Gaal, on noticing the troops, tells Zebul, who turns upon him and bids him make good his bragging words. Gaal is thus forced to go out and fight Abimelech, and is defeated (Jdg 9:34-40).

If this be the correct interpretation of the narrative so far, it is fairly simple and clear. Some, however, maintain that the words of Gaal about Zebul in Jdg 9:28 are meant as an insult to the governor of the city; this is the view of Wellbausch (Compos., 353 f, note) and Nowack (Handkomm.; compare also his Archdologie, I, 304, 308, for the meaning of sar). Zebul is, according to them, head of the Shechemite community, and Wellhausen and Kittel (History of Hebrew, II, 85) believe him to have had something to do with the revolt of 9:23-25. For the latter view there is no proof; possibly Zebul was the head of the community of Shechem, but as he was a subject of Abimelech, who was the king or prince of Shechem, there could not be much sting in calling him the" deputy" of his master.

The questions that arise from Jdg 9:41 ff need only be referred to here. Many critics have seen in 9:22-45 more than one source. Moore groups the verses thus: (1) 9:22-23,25,42 ff as due to the Elohist (E), with 9:24 from RJE; (2) 9:26-41 due to J. It is doubtful if the division is as clear as this. There seem however to be parallels: (1) The plans of Abimelech in 9:34-40 are very similar to those in 9:42 ff. (2) Jdg 9:41b seems to give in short what we find related in 9:34-40. (3) Septuagint in 9:31 has suggested to many that we should read there, "and he sent messengers unto Abimelech in Arumah," instead of reading "craftily." We would thus have a parallel to 9:41a. It may be suggested therefore that if the account be double (and it is strange that Abimelech should again attack the city by almost the same methods as before, when the revolters had been already got rid of), the narratives would be in this order:

Introductory, Jdg 9:23-25; then 9:26-29,30 common to both, and so possibly part of 9:31 and 32 f. Then we have two accounts of the event: (a) 9:31 (part),34-40; (b) 9:41-45, followed by 9:46 ff.

David Francis Roberts


ZEBULONITE

zeb`-u-lon-it.

See ZEBULUNITES .


ZEBULUN

zeb'-u-lun (zebhulun, also written zebuwlun and zebuluwn; the first form occurs only in Jdg 1:30; the other two are frequent, and are used interchangeably; Zaboulon): In Gen 30:20 Leah exclaims, "God hath endowed me with a good dowry," which suggests a derivation of Zebulun from zabhadh, "to bestow," the (d) being replaced by (l). Again she says, "Now will my husband dwell with me (or "honor me"): and she called his name Zebulun"; the derivation being from zabhal, "to exalt" or "honor" (OHL, under the word).

Zebulun was the 10th son of Jacob, the 6th borne to him by Leah in Paddan-aram. Nothing is known of this patriarch's life, save in so far as it coincides with that of his brethren. Targum Pseudo-Jonathan says that he first of the five brethren was presented to Pharaoh by Joseph, when Israel and his house arrived in Egypt (Gen 47:2). Three sons, Sered, Elon and Jahleel, were born to him in Canaan, and these became the ancestors of the three main divisions of the tribe (Gen 46:14).

The position of the tribe of Zebulun in the wilderness was with the standard of the camp of Judah on the east side of the tabernacle (Nu 2:7). This camp moved foremost on the march (Nu 2:9). At the first census Zebulun numbered 57,400 men of war (Nu 1:30), the prince of the tribe being Eliab, son of Helon (Nu 1:9). At the second census the men of war numbered 60,500 (Nu 26:27); see, however, NUMBERS. Among the spies Zebulun was represented by Gaddiel son of Sodi (Nu 13:10). To assist in the division of the land Elizaphan son of Parnach was chosen (Nu 34:25). At Shechem Zebulun, the descendants of Leah's youngest son, stood along with Reuben, whose disgrace carried with it that of his tribe, and the descendants of the sons of the handmaids, over against the other six, who traced their descent to Rachel and Leah (Dt 27:13). At the second division of territory the lot of Zebulun came up third, and assigned to him a beautifully diversified stretch of country in the North. The area of his possession is in general clear enough, but it is impossible to define the boundaries exactly (Josh 19:10-16). It "marched" with Naphtali on the East and Southeast, and with Asher on the West and Northwest. The line ran northward from Mt. Tabor, keeping on the heights West of the Sea of Galilee, on to Kerr `Anan (Hannathon). It turned westward along the base of the mountain, and reached the border of Asher, probably by the vale of `Abilin. It then proceeded southward to the Kishon opposite Tell Kaimun (Jokneam). As the plain belonged to Issachar, the south border would skirt its northern edge, terminating again at Tabor, probably near Deburiyeh (Daberath), which belonged to Issachar (Josh 21:28).

The details given are confusing. It is to be observed that this does not bring Zebulun into touch with the sea, and so is in apparent contradiction with Gen 49:13, and also with Josephus (Ant., V, i, 22; BJ, III, iii, 1), who says the lot of Zebulun included the land which "lay as far as the Lake of Gennesareth, and that which belonged to Carmel and the sea." Perhaps, however, the limits changed from time to time. So far as the words in Gen 49:13 are concerned, Delitzsch thinks they do not necessarily imply actual contact with the sea; but only that his position should enable him to profit by maritime trade. This it certainly did; the great caravan route, via maris, passing through his territory. Thus he could "suck the treasures of the sea." See also TABOR ,MOUNT . Within the boundaries thus roughly indicated were all varieties of mountain and plain, rough upland country. shady wood and fruitful valley. What is said of the territory of Naphtali applies generally to this. Olive groves and vineyards are plentiful. Good harvests are gathered on the sunny slopes, and on the rich levels of the Plain of Asochis (el-BaTTauf).

Elon the Zebulunite was the only leader given by the tribe to Israel of whom we have any record (Jdg 12:11 f); but the people were brave and skillful in war, furnishing, according to the Song of Deborah, "(them) that handle the marshal's staff" (Jdg 5:14). The tribe sent 50,000 single-hearted warriors, capable and well equipped, to David at Hebron (1 Ch 12:33). From their rich land they brought stores of provisions (1 Ch 12:40). Over Zebulun in David's time was Ishmaiah, son of Obadiah (1 Ch 27:19). Although they had fallen away, Hezekiah proved that many of them were capable of warm response to the appeal of religious duty and privilege (2 Ch 30:10 f,18 ff). They are not named, but it is probable that Zebulun suffered along with Naphtali in the invasion of Tiglath-pileser (2 Ki 15:29). In later days the men from these breezy uplands lent strength and enterprise to the Jewish armies. Jotapata (Tell Jifat), the scene of Josephus' heroic defense, was in Zebulun. So was Sepphoris (Seffuriyeh), which was for a time the capital of Galilee (Ant., XVIII, ii, 1; BJ, VII; III, ii, 4). Nazareth, the home of our Saviour's boyhood, is sheltered among its lower hills.

W. Ewing


ZEBULUNITES

zeb'-u-lun-its (hazebhuloni; Zaboulon): Members of the tribe of Zebulun (Nu 26:27; Jdg 12:11 f).


ZECHARIAH (1)

zek-a-ri'-a (zekharyahu, or zekharyah; the Septuagint Zacharia(s)): A very common name in the Old Testament. The form, especially the longer form, of the name would suggest for its meaning, "Yah remembers" or "Yah is renowned," and the name was doubtless understood in this sense in later times. But the analogies with ZACCUR, ZECHER, ZICHRI (which see), etc., make some original ethnic derivation probable.

(1) King of Israel, son of Jeroboam II (the King James Version "Zachariah"). See the next article.

(2) The grandfather of King Hezekiah, through Hezekiah's mother Abi (2 Ki 18:2, the King James Version "Zachariah" parallel 2 Ch 29:1).

(3) A contemporary of Isaiah, taken by Isaiah as a trustworthy witness in the matter of the sign Maher-shalal-hash-baz (Isa 8:1). As his father's name was Jeberechiah, some support seems to be offered to theories of those who would make him the author of certain portions of Zechariah.

See ZECHARIAH ,BOOK OF .

(4) A Reubenite of the time of Israel's captivity (1 Ch 5:7).

(5) A Benjamite, living in Gideon (1 Ch 9:37; called "Zecher" in 8:31). He was the brother of Kish and hence, the uncle of Saul.

(6) A Manassite of Gilead, at the time of David (1 Ch 27:21).

(7) The third son of Jehoshaphat (2 Ch 21:2). He was slain by Jehoram (2 Ch 21:4).

(8) A "prince" who Jehoshaphat sent to "teach" in the cities of Judah (2 Ch 17:7). As this "teaching" was in connection with the establishing of the Law, Zechariah was primarily a judge.

(9) A prophet who was influential in the early days of Uzziah (2 Ch 26:5). He is characterized as ha-mebh in bire'oth (beyir'ath(?)) ha-elohim, which phrase is usually understood to mean that he had instructed (Revised Version margin) the king in the fear of God. As long as he lived the king profited by his instruction and advice.

The following eight are all Levites:

(10) A doorkeeper at the time of David, who was made a singer "of the second degree" (1 Ch 15:18; the text is confused). He was a player on a "psaltery" (1 Ch 15:20) and took part in the thanksgiving when the Ark was brought to Jerusalem (1 Ch 16:5).

(11) A son of Isshiah (1 Ch 24:25).

(12) A son of Meshelemiah, a "porter of the door of the tent of meeting" at the time of David (1 Ch 9:21; 26:2,14). In 1 Ch 26:14 called "a discreet counselor."

(13) A son of Hosah, a Merarite, also at David's time (1 Ch 26:11).

(14) The father of the prophet, JAHAZIEL (which see) (2 Ch 20:14).

(15) A son of Asaph, who assisted in the purification of the Temple at the time of Hezekiah (2 Ch 29:13).

(16) A Kohathite, who assisted in the repair of the Temple at the time of Josiah (2 Ch 34:12).

(17) A son of Jonathan, an Asaphite, one of the musicians at the dedication of the wall at the time of Nehemiah (Neh 12:35).

The following are all priests:

(18) A trumpeter at the time of David (1 Ch 15:24).

(19) A son of Jehoiada, at the time of Joash. He rebuked the people publicly for their apostasy, and was stoned by them, Joash consenting to their act (2 Ch 24:20-22). As 2 Chronicles is the last book in the Hebrew Old Testament, Zechariah was regarded as the last of the Old Testament martyrs, and hence, is coupled with Abel (the first martyr) in Mt 23:35 parallel Lk 11:51. The words "son of Barachiah" in Matthew are due to confusing this Zechariah with the prophet.

See ZACHARIAH .

(20) One of the "rulers of the house of God" at the time of Josiah (2 Ch 35:8).

(21) A son of Pashhur, 242 of whose descendants as "chiefs of fathers' houses" dwelt in Jerusalem at the time of Nehemiah (Neh 11:13).

(22) A trumpeter at the dedication of the wall at the time of Nehemiah (Neh 12:41).

(23) The prophet (Ezr 5:1; 6:14; Neh 12:16; Zec 1:1,7; 7:1,8; 1 Esdras 6:1; 7:3).

See ZECHARIAH ,BOOK OF .

The following are all returned exiles or are mentioned only as ancestors of such:

(24) A son of Parosh (Ezr 8:3; 1 Esdras 8:30 has "Zacharias" here and elsewhere).

(25) A son of Bebai (Ezr 8:11; 1 Esdras 8:37)

(26) One of the "chief men" dispatched by Ezra to bring priests from Casiphia (Ezr 8:16; 1 Esdras 8:44). Doubtless the same as (24) or (25), above.

(27) One of the persons who stood by Ezra at the reading of the Law (Neh 8:4; 1 Esdras 9:44); almost certainly identical with (26).

(28) A son of Elam, who had taken a foreign wife (Ezr 10:26; 1 Esdras 9:27).

(29) A son of Amariah, a Judahite, the ancestor of certain persons dwelling in Jerusalem (Neh 11:4).

(30) A son of "the Shilonite," the ancestor of certain persons dwelling in Jerusalem (Neh 11:5).

Burton Scott Easton


ZECHARIAH (2)

(zekharyah, zekharydhu, "Yah has remembered" (2 Ki 14:29; 15:8-12); Zacharias, the King James Version Zachariah): Son of Jeroboam II, and 14th king of Israel. He was the 4th of the line of Jehu, and reigned six months. Zechariah succeeded to a splendid inheritance, as he was king, not only of the ten tribes of Israel, but of the Syrian state of Damascus, which his father had subdued. In the unusual wealth and dignity of this position lay his peril. Also there were two dark shadows falling across his path, though both probably unseen by him. One was the promise to Jehu, as the reward of his destroying the worship of Baal in Israel, that his sons should sit on the throne of Israel to the 4th generation (2 Ki 10:30; 15:12). Zechariah was Jehu's great-great-grandson. The other was the word of Amos to the priest of Bethel: "Then said the Lord. ... I will rise against the house of Jeroboam with the sword" (Am 7:8,9).

The only brief notice of Zechariah personal to himself is that he gave his support to the worship of the calves, since Jeroboam I established the religion of the state. He hardly had time, however, to identify himself with this or any institution before he was publicly assassinated by Shallum, the son of Jabesh (he "smote him before the people"). The prophet Hosea was then alive, and there is probably allusion to this crime when, addressing Ephraim, he says: "Where is thy king, that he may save thee in all thy cities?. ... I have given thee a king in mine anger, and have taken him away in my wrath" (Hos 13:10,11; compare 1:4).

There has long been difficulty with the chronology of this period. Archbishop Ussher assumed an interregnum of 11 years between the death of Jeroboam II and Zechariah's accession. This is accepted as probable by a recent writer, who sees "at least 10 years of incessant conflict between rival claimants to the throne on Jeroboam's death" (see article "Zechariah" inHDB ,IV ). It seems more likely that there is error in certain of the synchronisms. The year of Zechariah's accession was probably 759 BC (some put it later), and the 6 months of his reign, with that given to Shallum, may be included in the 10 years of Menahem, who followed them (2 Ki 15:17).

See CHRONOLOGY OF THE OLD TESTAMENT .

W. Shaw Caldecott


ZECHARIAH, BOOK OF

1. The Prophet

2. His Times and Mission

3. Contents and Analysis

4. The Critical Question Involved

5. The Unity of the Book

6. Conclusion

LITERATURE

Few books of the Old Testament are as difficult of interpretation as the Book of Zechariah; no other book is as Messianic. Jewish expositors like Abarbanel and Jarchi, and Christian expositors such as Jerome, are forced to concede that they have failed "to find their hands" in the exposition of it, and that in their investigations they passed from one labyrinth to another, and from one cloud into another, until they lost themselves in trying to discover the prophet's meaning. The scope of Zechariah's vision and the profundity of his thought are almost without a parallel. In the present writer's judgment, his book is the most Messianic, the most truly apocalyptic and eschatological, of all the writings of the Old Testament.

1. The Prophet:

Zechariah was the son of Berechiah, and the grandson of Iddo (Zec 1:1,7). The same Iddo seems to be mentioned among the priests who returned from exile under Zerubbabel and Joshua in the year 536 BC (Neh 12:4; Ezr 2:2). If so, Zechariah was a priest as well as a prophet, and presumably a young man when he began to preach. Tradition, on the contrary, declares that he was well advanced in years. He apparently survived Haggai, his contemporary (Ezr 5:1; 6:14). He was a poet as well as a prophet. Nothing is known of his end. The Targum says he died a martyr.

2. His Times and Mission:

The earliest date in his book is the 2nd year (520 BC) of the reign of Darius Hystaspis, and the latest, the 4th year of the same king's reign (Zec 1:1,7; 7:1). Though these are the only dates given in his writings, it is possible of course that he may have continued active for several additional years. Otherwise, he preached barely two years. The conditions under which he labored were similar to those in Haggai's times. Indeed, Haggai had begun to preach just two months before Zechariah was called. At that time there were upheavals and commotions in different parts of the Persian empire, especially in the Northeast Jeremiah's prophecies regarding the domination of Babylon for 70 years had been fulfilled (Jer 15:11; 29:10). The returned captives were becoming disheartened and depressed because Yahweh had not made it possible to restore Zion and rebuild the temple. The foundations of the latter had been already laid, but as yet there was no superstructure (Ezr 3:8-10; Zec 1:16). The altar of burnt offering was set up upon its old site, but as yet there were no priests worthy to officiate in the ritual of sacrifice (Ezr 3:2,3; Zec 3:3). The people had fallen into apathy, and needed to be aroused to their opportunity. Haggai had given them real initiative, for within 24 days after he began to preach the people began to work (Hag 1:1,15). It was left for Zechariah to bring the task of temple-building to completion. This Zechariah did successfully; this, indeed, was his primary mission and work.

3. Contents and Analysis:

The prophecies of Zechariah naturally fall into two parts, chapters 1 through 8 and 9 through 14, both of which begin with the present and look forward into the distant future. (1) Zechariah 1 through 8, consisting of three distinct messages delivered on three different occasions: (a) Zec 1:1-6, an introduction, delivered in the 8th month of the 2nd year of Darius Hystaspis (520 BC). These words, having been spoken three months before the prophecies which follow, are obviously a general introduction. They are decidely spiritual and strike the keynote of the entire collection. In them the prophet issues one of the strongest and most intensely spiritual calls to repentance to be found in the Old Testament. (b) Zec 1:7 through 6:15, a series of eight night visions, followed by a coronation scene, all delivered on the 24th day of the 11th month of the same 2nd year of Darius (520 BC), or exactly two months after the corner stone of the temple had been laid (Hag 2:18; Zec 1:7). These visions were intended to encourage the people to rebuild God's house. They are eight in number, and teach severally the following lessons:

(i) The vision of the horses (Zec 1:7-17), teaching God's special care for and interest in his people: "My house shall be built" (Zec 1:16). (ii) The four horns and four smiths (Zec 1:18-21), teaching that Israel's foes have finally been destroyed; in fact that they have destroyed themselves. There is no longer, therefore, any opposition to building God's house. (iii) The man with a measuring line (Zechariah 2), teaching that God will re-people, protect and dwell in Jerusalem as soon as the sacred edifice has been built. The city itself will expand till it becomes a great metropolis without walls; Yahweh will be a wall of fire round about it. (iv) Joshua, the high priest, clad in filthy garments, and bearing the sins both of himself and the people (Zechariah 3); but cleansed, continued and made typical of the Messiah-Branch to come. (v) The candelabrum and the two olive trees (Zechariah 4), teaching that the visible must give place to the spiritual, and that, through "the two sons of oil," Zerubbabel the layman, and Joshua the priest (Zec 4:14), the light of God's church will continue to burn with ever-flaming brightness. For it is "not by might" but by Yahweh's Spirit, i.e. by divine life and animation, by divine vigor and vivacity, by divine disposition and courage, by divine executive ability and technical skill, that God's house shall be built and supplied with spiritual life (Zec 4:6). (vi) The flying roll (Zec 5:1-4), teaching that when the temple is built and God's law is taught the land shall be purified from outward wickedness. (vii) The Ephah (Zec 5:5-11); wickedness personified is borne away back to the land of Shinar, teaching that when the temple is rebuilt wickedness shall be actually removed from the land. (viii) The four chariots (Zec 6:1-8), teaching that God's protecting providence will be over His sanctuary, and that His people, purified from sin, shall rest secure in Him. These eight visions are followed by a coronation scene, in which Joshua the high priest is crowned and made typical of the Messiah-Priest-King, whose name is Branch (Zec 6:9-15). (c) Zechariah 7; 8, Zechariah's answer to the Bethel deputation concerning fasting; delivered on the 4th day of the 9th month of the 4th year of Darius (518 BC). The Jews had been accustomed to fast on the anniversaries of the following four great outstanding events in the history of their capital: (i) when Nebuchadnezzar took Jerusalem, in the 4th month (Jer 52:6); (ii) when the Temple was burned in the 5th month (Jer 52:12); (iii) when Gedaliah was murdered in the 7th month (Jer 41:2); and (iv) when the siege of Jerusalem was begun in the 10th month (2 Ki 25:1).

There are four sections to the prophet's answer divided by the slightly varying formula, "The word of Yahweh came unto me" (Zec 7:4,8; 8:1,18) and teaching: (a) Fasting affects only yourselves; God requires obedience (Zec 7:4-7). (b) Look at the lesson from your fathers; they forsook justice and compassion and God punished them (Zec 7:8-14). (c) Yahweh is now waiting to return to Jerusalem to save His people in truth and holiness. In the future, instead of a curse God will send blessing, instead of evil, good (Zec 8:1-17). (d) In fact, your fasts shall be changed into festivals, and many nations shall in that day seek Yahweh of hosts in Jerusalem (Zec 8:18-23).

(2) Zechariah 9 through 14, consisting of two oracles, without dates; (a) Zechariah 9 through 11, an oracle of promise to the new theocracy. This section contains promises of a land in which to dwell, a return from exile, victory over a hostile world-power, temporal blessings and national strength, closing, with a parable of judgment brought on by Israel's rejection of Yahweh as their shepherd; thus Judah and Ephraim restored, united and made victorious over their enemies, are promised a land and a king (Zec 9); Israel shall be saved and strengthened (Zec 10); Israel shall be punished for rejecting the shepherding care of Yahweh (Zec 11); (b) Zechariah 12 through 14, an oracle describing the victories of the new theocracy, and the coming day of Yahweh. This section is strongly eschatological, presenting three distinct apocalyptic pictures: thus how Jerusalem shall be besieged by her enemies, but saved by Yahweh (Zec 12); how a remnant of Israel purified and refined shall be saved (Zec 13); closing with a grand apocalyptic vision of judgment and redemption--the nations streaming up to Jerusalem to keep the joyous Feast of Tabernacles, and everything in that day becoming holy to Yahweh.

4. The Critical Question Involved:

There are two opposing schools of criticism in regard to the origin of Zechariah 9 through 14; one holds what is known as the pre-exilic hypothesis, according to which chapters 9 through 14 were written before the downfall of Jerusalem; more specifically, that Zechariah 9 through 11 and 13:7-9 spring from the 8th century BC, having been composed perhaps by Zechariah, the son of Jeberechiah mentioned in Isa 8:2; whereas Zechariah 12 through 14, except 13:7-9, were composed by some unknown contemporary of Jeremiah in the 7th century BC. On the other hand, there are also those who advocate a late post-Zecharian origin for chapters 9 through 14, somewhere about the 3rd century BC. The latter hypothesis is today the more popular. Over against these the traditional view, of course, is that Zechariah, near the close of the 6th century, wrote the entire book ascribed to him. Only chapters 9 through 14 are in dispute. No one doubts the genuineness of Zechariah 1 through 8.

The following are the main arguments of those who advocate a pre-exilic origin for these oracles: (1) Zec 11:8, "And I cut off the three shepherds in one month." These "three shepherds" are identified with certain kings who reigned but a short time each in the Northern Kingdom; for example, Zechariah, Shallum and Menahem (2 Ki 15:8-14). But the difficulty with this argument is that they were not cut off "in one month"; Menahem, on the contrary, reigned 10 years in Samaria (2 Ki 15:17). (2) Zec 12:11-14, which speaks of "a great mourning in Jerusalem, as the mourning of Hadadrimmon in the valley of Megiddon," is claimed to fix the date of Zechariah 12 through 14. Josiah fell in the valley of Megiddo (2 Ki 23:29; 2 Ch 35:22). But surely the mourning of Judah for Josiah might have been remembered for a century, from 609 BC till 518 BC. (3) Zec 14:5, referring to the "earthquake" in the days of Uzziah, is another passage fastened upon to prove the preexilic origin of these prophecies. But the earthquake which is here alluded to took place at least a century and a half before the date assigned for the composition of Zechariah 14. And surely if an earthquake can be alluded to by an author 150 years after it occurs, Zechariah, who lived less than a century later, might have alluded to it also. (4) A much stronger argument in favor of a pre-exilic origin of these prophecies is the names given to theocracy, e.g. "Ephraim" and "Jerusalem" (Zec 9:10), "Judah" and "Ephraim" (Zec 9:13), "house of Judah" and "house of Joseph" (Zec 10:6), "Judah and Israel" (Zec 11:14), implying that the kingdoms of Israel and Judah are still standing. But subsequent to the captivity the Jews ever regarded themselves as representatives of the 12 tribes, as is obvious from their offering 12 sacrifices (Ezr 6:17; 8:35). Moreover, old names such as "Israel" and "Judah" long survived (compare Jer 31:27-31; Zec 8:13). (5) Zec 14:10, which defines the area occupied by Judah as extending "from Geba to Rimmon," which corresponds, it is alleged, with the conditions which prevailed just prior to the captivity. But it satisfies equally well the conditions after the exile in Zechariah's own time. (6) Again, it is argued that the national sins, the prevailing sins, idolatry, teraphim and false prophecy (Zec 10:2; 13:2-6), are those of pre-exilic times. But the same sins persisted in the post-exilic congregation (Neh 6:7-14; Mal 2:11; 3:5), and there is no special emphasis laid upon them here. (7) Finally, it is argued that the enemies of Israel mentioned in Zechariah 9 through 14 are those of pre-exilic times, Assyria and Egypt (10:10,11), Syria, Phoenicia and Philistia (9:1-7). But forms of expression are slow in changing: the name "Assyrians" occurs in Lam 5:6, and "Assyria" is employed instead of "Persia" in Ezr 6:22. Jeremiah prophesied against Damascus and Hamath long after their loss of independence (49:23-27). After the exile, the Philistines resisted Israel's return (Neh 4:7,8). In short all these nations were Israel's hereditary foes, and, therefore, judgments pronounced against them were always in place. Furthermore, it may be said in general that there are reasons for thinking that, in both halves of the Book of Zechariah, the exile is represented as an event of the past, and that the restoration from exile both of Ephraim and Judah, though incomplete, has already begun. This is unquestionably true of Zechariah 1 through 8 (1:12; 2:6-12; 6:10; 7:5; 8:7,8). The exile is treated as a fact. It is almost equally true of Zechariah 9 through 14 (compare 9:8,11; 10:6,8-10). Moreover, it may with justice be claimed that the alleged authors of chapters 9 through 14 dissociate themselves from any definitely named person or any specific event known to be pre-exilic. God alone is described as Ruler of His people. The only king mentioned is the Messiah-King (9:9,10; 14:9). The "house of David" mentioned in 12:7-12; 13:1, is never described as in possession of the throne. It is David's "house," and not any earthly ruler in it, of which the prophet speaks. Further, there are passages, indeed, in chapters 9 through 14 which, if pre-exilic in origin, would have been obscure and even misleading to a people confronted by the catastrophes of 722 and 586 BC. No specific enemy is alluded to. No definite army is named as approaching. Instead of Assyria, Javan is painted as the opposing enemy of theocracy (9:13), and even she is not yet raised up or even threatening. On the other hand, in Zechariah 12 through 14, it is not the Chaldeans under Nebuchadnezzar, but "all nations," who are described as coming up against Jerusalem (12:2,3; 14:2). Moreover, victory and not defeat is promised (9:8,14,16; 12:4,7,8). The preexilic prophets Amos, Hosea and Jeremiah held out no such hopes. These oracles, however, promise even temporal prosperity and abundance (9:17; 10:1,8,12; 12:8; 14:2,14); and they exhort the people to rejoice rather than to fear (9:9; 10:7); while in 14:16-19 all nations are represented as going up to Jerusalem to keep the Feast of Tabernacles, which was the most joyous feast of the Hebrew calendar. All this is quite the opposite of what the pre-exilic prophets (who are known to have been pre-exilic) actually prophesied. In Zec 9 through 14, there is sounded forth not one clear note of alarm or warning; judgment rather gives place to hope, warning to encouragement, threatening to joy and gladness, all of which is most inconsistent with the idea that these chapters are of preexilic origin. On the other hand, their are perfectly consistent with the conditions and promises of post-exilic times.

The other hypothesis remaining to be discussed is that known as the post-Zecharian. This may be said to represent the prevailing critical view at the present time. But it, like the pre-exilic hypothesis, is based upon a too literalistic and mechanical view of prophecy. Those, like Stade, Wellhausen, Kuenen, Marti, Kautzsch, Cornill, Cheyne, Driver, Kuiper, Echardt and Mitchell, who advocate this view, employ the same critical methods as those whose views we have just discussed, but arrive at diametrically opposite conclusions. Indeed, no two critics agree as to the historical circumstances which produced these oracles. Most are of the opinion, however, that these chapters were composed during the Greek period, i.e. after 333 BC. In examining the arguments urged by the representatives of this school special caution is needed in distinguishing between the grounds advanced in support of a post-exilic and those which argue a post-Zecharian date. The former we may for the most part accept, as Zechariah was himself a post-exilic prophet; the latter we must first examine. In favor of a very late or Grecian origin for Zechariah 9 through 14, the chief and all-important passage, and the one upon which more emphasis is placed than upon all others together, is 9:13, "For I have bent Judah for me, I have filled the bow with Ephraim; and I will stir up thy sons, O Zion, against thy sons, O Greece, and will make thee as the sword of a mighty man." Kuiper in summing up throws the whole weight of his argument in favor of a Greek date on this verse. Wellhausen makes it decide the date of these prophecies; while Stade declares that the announcement of the "sons of Javan" is alone sufficient to prove that these prophecies are after 333 BC. Two things are especially emphasized by critics in connection with this important passage: (1) that the sons of Javan are the world-power of the author's day, namely, the Greek-Maccabean world-power; and (2) that they are the enemies of Zion. But in opposition to these claims it should be observed (1) that the sons of Javan are but one of several world-powers within the range of the prophet's horizon (Zec 9:1-7, Syria, Phoenicia, Philistia; 12:2 f; 14:2 f, all nations; and 10:10,11, Assyria and Egypt); and (2) that the Greeks under Alexander were not the enemies of Zion, and did not fight against the Jews, but against the Persians. Assuming the genuineness of the passage (Zec 9:13), the following considerations point to the Persian period as its probable historical background: (a) The prophecy would be vague and meaningless if uttered after the invasion of Alexander. (b) The passage does not describe a victory for the sons of Javan, but rather a defeat. (c) It is introduced by an appeal to those still in exile to return, which would have been quite meaningless after Alexander's conquest. (d) In short, Zec 9:13-17, as a whole, is not a picture of actual war, but rather an apocalyptic vision of the struggle of Israel with the world-power of the West, hence, its indefiniteness and figurative language.

Furthermore, it must not be forgotten that in Zechariah's own day the Greeks were rapidly becoming a menacing world-power. In the first 3 years (521-519 BC) of Darius' reign, 12 different revolts took place, principally in the North and East But, in 518, Darius was compelled to move westward at the head of his royal armies; Darius' visit to Egypt in 517 BC was cut short by the disturbances of the Greeks (compare Wiedemann, Gesch., 236). In the year 516 BC the Greeks of the Hellespont and Bosporus, with the island of Samos, were made to submit to Pets rule. The next year (515 BC), Darius led an expedition against the Scythians across the Danube, the failure of which encouraged the Ionians subsequently to revolt. In 500 BC the great Ionian revolt actually took place. In 499 BC Sardis, the most important stronghold for Persia in Asia Minor, was burned by the Athenians. In 490 BC Marathon was fought and Persia was conquered. In 480 BC Xerxes was defeated at Salamis. But it is unnecessary to sketch the rise of Jayan further. Enough has been related to show that already in the reign of Darius Hystaspis--in whose reign Zechariah is known to have lived and prophesied--the sons of Greece were a rising world-power, and a threatening world-power. This is all really that is required by the passage. The sons of Jayan were but one of Israel's enemies in Zechariah's day; but they were of such importance that victory over them carried with it momentous Messianic interests. The language of chapter 9 is vague, and, in our judgment, too vague and too indefinite to have been uttered after Marathon (490 BC), or even after the burning of Sardis (500 BC); for, in that case, the author would have been influenced more by Greece and less by the movements and commotions of the nations.

Other arguments advanced by the post-Zecharian school are: (1) Zec 14:9, "And Yahweh shall be King over all the earth: in that day shall Yahweh be one, and his name one." To Stade this passage contains a polemic against the conditions in Greek times when all gods were conceived of as only different representations of one and the same god. But, on the contrary, the post-exilic congregation was as truly a theocracy in the days of Darius Hystaspis as in the period subsequent to Alexander's conquest. The Jewish colony of the Restoration was a religious sect, not a political organization. Zechariah often pictures the close relation of Yahweh to His people (2:10-13; 8:3,13), and the author of chapters 9 through 14 describes similar conditions. The "yearning for a fuller theocracy," which Cheyne (Bampton Lectures, 120) discovers in Zec 9-14, is thoroughly consistent with the yearning of a struggling congregation in a land of forsaken idols shortly after the return from exile. (2) Zec 12:2b, interpreted to mean that "Judah also, forced by the enemy, shall be in the siege against Jerusalem," is a proof, it is alleged, that the children of the Diaspora had served as soldiers. The verse, accordingly, is said to be a description of the hostile relations which actually existed between Jerusalem and Judah in the beginning of the Maccabean struggle. The validity of these claims, however, is vitiated by a correct exegesis of the passage in hand. The text is apparently corrupt. In order to obtain a subject for "shall be," the preposition before Judah had better be stricken out, as in the Targum. The passage then translated reads, "And Judah also shall be in the siege against Jerusalem." But this is ambiguous. It may mean that Judah shall fight against Jerusalem, or it may mean that Judah, too, shall be besieged. The latter is obviously the true meaning of the passage, as Zec 12:7 indicates. For, as one nation might besiege Jerusalem (a city), so all nations, coming up are practically going to besiege Judah. The Septuagint favors this interpretation; likewise the Coptic version; and Zec 14:14. Wellhausen frankly concedes that "no characteristic of the prophecy under discussion in reality agrees with the conditions of the Maccabean time. The Maccabees were not the Jews of the lowland, and they did not join themselves with the heathen out of hatred to the city of Jerusalem, in order finally to fall treacherously upon their companions in war. There is not the slightest hint in our passage of religious persecution; that alone decides, and hence, the most important sign of Maccabean times is wanting." (3) Zec 10:10,11, which mentions "Egypt" and "Assyria" (and which, strange to say, is also one of the strongest proofs in support of the preexilic hypothesis), is singularly enough interpreted to refer respectively to the Ptolemies of Egypt and the Seleucids of Syria. But this is quite impossible, and especially so in view of the prominence which is given to Egypt in 14:19, which points to Persian rather than Greek conditions; for then Egypt, in consequence of her perpetual efforts to throw off the Persian yoke, was naturally brought under the observation of the Jews in Palestine, who repeatedly beheld the Persian armies passing on their way to the valley of the Nile.

(4) Still another argument advanced in favor of a late post-Zecharian date for these oracles is that from language and style: Aramaisms, scriptio plena, the preponderance of the shorter form of the personal pronoun "I," the Hebrew ending on, the frequent use of the nota accusativi, especially with suffixes, the omission of the article, the use of the infinitive absolute, and the clumsy diction and weary repetition of these prophecies are pointed to as evidence of their origin in Grecian times. But in opposition to these claims, it may be remarked in general that their force is greatly weakened by two considerations: (a) the fact that the author of Zechariah 9 through 14 depends so largely on older prophecies for his thoughts, and consequently more or less for his language; and (b) the fact that these prophecies are so very brief. There is no mode of reasoning so treacherous as that from language and style. (For the technical discussion of this point, see the present writer's The Prophecies of Zechariah, 54-59.)

5. The Unity of the Book:

Among the further objections made to the genuineness of Zechariah 9 through 14, and consequently to the unity of the book, the following are the chief: (1) There are no "visions" in these oracles as in Zechariah 1 through 6. But there are none either in Zechariah 7; 8, and yet these latter are not denied to Zechariah. As a matter of fact, however, visions do actually occur in chapters 9 through 14, only of a historico-parabolic (11:4-17) and eschatological character (9:13-17; chapters 12; 14). (2) There are "no dates," as in Zec 1:1,7; 7:1. But dates are seldom attached to "oracles" (Isa 13:1; 15:1; Nah 1:1; Hab 1:1; Mal 1:1). There is but one instance in the entire Old Testament (Isa 14:28 margin); whereas "visions" are frequently dated. (3) There is "no Satan." But Satan is never mentioned elsewhere in any prophetic book of the Old Testament. (4) There is "no interpreting angel" in Zechariah 9 through 14. But "oracles" need no interpreting angel. On the other hand, "the Angel of Yahweh" is mentioned in both parts (3:1 ff; 12:8), a fact which is far more noteworthy. (5) Proper names are wanting in Zechariah 9 through 14, e.g. Zerubbabel and Joshua. But neither do these names occur in chapters 7; 8. (6) The sins alluded to are different, e.g. theft and false swearing in Zec 5:3,1; while in 10:2 seeking teraphim and in 13:2 ff false prophecy are named. But these sins may have existed side by side. What is far more noteworthy, in both parts the prophet declares that all these evils shall be taken away and removed out of the land (3:9; 5:9-11; 13:1,2). (7) The Messianic pictures are different, e.g. in Zechariah 1 through 8 the Messiah is spoken of as Branch-Priest (3:8,9; 6:12,13); whereas in chapters 9 through 14, as King, (9:9,10). But in 6:13 it is expressly stated that the Branch-Priest "shall sit and rule upon his throne." Of far greater moment is the picture of the nations coming to Zion to worship Yahweh. This remarkable picture recurs in all the different sections of the book (6:12,13,15; 8:20-23; 12:6; 14:16-19).

On the other hand, the following are some of the arguments which favor the genuineness of these disputed chapters: (1) The fundamental ideas of both parts are the same. By this we mean that the deeper we go the nearer we approach unity. As Dr. G.A. Smith argues against Graetz, who divides Hosea 1 through 3 from Hosea 4 through 14, "in both parts there are the same religious principles and the same urgent and jealous temper"; the same is equally true of Zec 1 through 8 and Zec 9 through 14. Certain similarities are especially noteworthy, e.g. (a) an unusually deep, spiritual tone pervades the entire book. The call to a true repentance, first sounded forth in the introduction (1:1-7), is developed more and more throughout the entire 14 chapters; thus, in the sanctifying of Joshua (Zec 3:4), in the message to Zerubbabel, "not by might, nor by power, but by my Spirit" (Zec 4:6), in the conditions of future blessing (Zec 6:15), in the answer to the Bethel deputation (Zec 7:5-9; 8:16 ff); and in Zechariah 9 through 14, in the consecration of the remnant of the Philistines (9:7), in the blessings to Ephraim (10:12), in the baptism of grace upon Jerusalem (12:10), in the fountain for sin (13:1), in the worship of Yahweh (13:9), in the living waters going forth from Jerusalem (14:8), and in the dedication of everything as holy unto the Lord (14:20,21). The tone which tempers these prophecies is an extraordinarily deep and spiritual one throughout. And this argument cannot be set aside by rejecting wholesale certain passages as later interpolations, as is done by Mitchell (ICC, 242-44). (b) There is a similar attitude of hope and expectation in both parts. This is especially important. For example, (i) the return of the whole nation is a prevailing idea of happiness in both parts (Zec 2:6,10; 8:7,8; 9:12; 10:6,7). (ii) The expectation that Jerusalem shall be inhabited (Zec 1:16,17; 2:4; 8:3,8; 12:6; 14:10,11), (iii) and that the temple shall be built and become the center of the nation's religious life (Zec 1:16,17; 3:7; 6:15; 7:2,3; 9:8; 14:20,21). (iv) Messianic hope is peculiarly strong in both (Zec 3:8,9; 6:12,13; 9:9,10; 11:12,13; 12:10; 13:1,7-9). (v) Peace and prosperity are expected (Zec 1:17; 3:10; 6:13; 8:12,19; 9:10,12-17; 10:1,7,8,10,12; 12:8; 14:11,16-19). (vi) The idea of God's providence as extending to the whole earth (Zec 1:14-17; 2:9,12; 4:10; 6:5; 9:1,8,14; 10:3,1,9,12; 12:2-4,8; 13:7; 14:3,9). Again, (c) the prophet's attitude toward Judah is the same in both parts. It is an attitude of supreme regard for Judah's interests, making them second only to the capital (Zec 2:2,4,16; 8:19; 1:12; 8:13,15; 12:2; 14:14; 10:3; 12:4,6,7; 14:21; 9:9,13; 10:6; 11:14; 14:5). The prophet's attitude toward the nations, the enemies of theocracy, is the same in both parts. The whole assembled world are the enemies of Israel. But though they have scattered Judah, Israel and Jerusalem (1:11), and are still coming up to besiege Jerusalem (12:2; 14:2), yet they shall be joined to the Lord in that day (2:11) and worship Yahweh like the Jews (8:20-23; 14:16-19). These are all striking instances of similarity in the fundamental ideas of the two parts of the book.

(2) There are peculiarities of thought common to both parts: e.g. (a) the habit of dwelling on the same thought (Zec 2:1,4,5,11; 6:12,13; 8:4,5; 8:21,22; 11:8; parallel 13:3; 14:5,16,18,19); (b) the habit of expanding one fundamental thought into a series of clauses (Zec 6:13; 9:5,7; 1:17; 3:8,9; 12:4); (c) the habit of referring to a thought already introduced: e.g. to the "Branch" (Zec 3:8; 6:12); "eyes" (Zec 3:9; 4:10); measuring "line" (Zec 1:16; 2:5,6); choosing Jerusalem (Zec 1:17; 2:12; 3:2); removing iniquity (Zec 3:9; 5:3 ff; 13:2); measurements (Zec 5:2; 14:10); colors of horses (Zec 1:8; 6:2,6); the idea of Israel as a "flock" (Zec 9:16; 10:2; 11:4 f; 13:7); idols (Zec 10:2; 13:2); shepherds (Zec 11:3 ff; 13:7); and of "all nations" (Zec 11:10; 12:3 ff; 14:2 ff); Mitchell in attempting to answer this argument has failed utterly to grasp the point (ICC, 243); (d) the use made of the cardinal number "two"; thus, two olive trees (Zec 4:3); two women (Zec 5:9); two mountains (Zec 6:1); two staves (Zec 11:7); two parts (Zec 14:2,4); with which compare Zec 6:13; 9:12; 14:8; (e) the resort in each part of the book to symbolic actions as a mode of instruction; e.g. the coronation scene in 6:9-15, and the breaking of the two staves in 11:4-14.

(3) Certain peculiarities of diction and style favor unity of authorship; e.g. the phrase "no man passed through nor returned" (Zec 7:14; 9:8) never occurs elsewhere in the Old Testament. The author's preference for and frequent use of vocatives (Zec 2:7,10; 3:2,8; 4:7; 9:9,13; 11:1,2; 13:7); and especially the frequent alternation of the scriptio plena and the scriprio defectiva orthography in the Hebrew (compare Zec 1:2,5 with 1:4,6 and 8:14; 2:11 with 5:7; 1:11 with 7:7; 9:5 with 10:5,11; and 10:4 with 9:9).

Accordingly, we conclude, (1) that Zechariah 9 through 14 are of post-exilic origin; (2) that they are not, however, late post-exilic; (3) that they had their origin in the period just before the completion of the temple, 516 BC, and (4) that they were probably composed by Zechariah himself.

6. Conclusion:

This conclusion is based upon the text taken as a whole, without an arbitrary dissection of the prophecies in the interests of a false theory. Mitchell (ICC, 258-59), after eliminating numerous individual passages, arrives at the conclusion that Zechariah 9 through 14 were written by four different writers; (1) Zec 9:1-10, soon after 333 BC; (2) Zec 9:11 through 11:3, about 247-222 BC; (3) Zec 11:4-17 and 13:7-9, between 217 and 204 BC; and (4) Zec 12:1 through 13:6 and chapter 14, about the same time. Tradition points to a saner and securer conclusion, that these oracles were written by Zechariah himself; which in turn is corroborated by internal evidence, as has been shown above. One wonders why these oracles, written so late in Israel's history, should have been appended by the collectors of the Canon to the genuine prophecies of Zechariah, if, as is alleged, that prophet had nothing whatever to do with them!

LITERATURE.

(1) Those Who Defend the Unity of the Book:

C. H. H. Wright, Zechariah and His Prophecies (Bampton Lectures), London, 1879; G. L. Robinson, The Prophecies of Zechariah, with Special Reference to the Origin and Date of Chapters 9 through 14, Leipzig Dissertation, reprinted from American Journal of Semitic Languages and Literatures, XII, 1896; W.H. Lowe, Hebrew Student's Commentary on Zechariah, Hebrew and the Septuagint, London, 1882; O.J. Bredenkamp, Der Prophet Sach., Erklart, 1879; Marcus Dods, The Post-Exilian Prophets: Haggai, Zechariah, Malachi ("Handbook for Biblical Classes"), Edinburgh, 1879; E.B. Pusey, Minor Prophets, 1877; W. Drake, "Commentary on Zechariah" (Speaker's Commentary), 1876; T. W. Chambers, "The Book of Zechariah" (Lange's Bible Work), 1874; A. Van Hoonacker, in Revue Biblique, 1902, 161 ff; idem, Les douze petits prophetes, 1908; Wm. Moeller, article "Zechariah" in The Illustrated Bible Dictionary, edited by W.C. Piercy, 1908.

(2) Those Who Advocate a Preexilic Origin for Zechariah 9 through 14:

Hitzig-Steiner, Die zwolf kleinen Propheten, 1881; Samuel Davidson, An Introduction to the Old Testament, 1862-63; W. Pressel, Commentar zu den Schriften der Propheten Haggai, Sacharja und Maleachi, 1870; C. A. Bruston, Histoire critique de la litterature prophetique des Hebreux, 1881; Samuel Sharpe, History of the Hebrew Nation, Literature and Chronology, 1882; G. von Orelll, Das Buch Ezechiel u. die zwolf kleinen Propheten, 1888; Ferd. Montet, Etude critique sur la date assignable aux six derniers chapitres de Zac, 1882; H. L. Strack, Einleitung in das Altes Testament, 1895; F. W. Farrar, Minor Prophets, in "Men of the Bible" series.

(3) Those Who Advocate a Post-Zecharian Origin for Zecharaih 9 through 14:

B. Stade, "Deuterozacharja, eine krit. Studie," in ZATW, 1881-82; T. K. Cheyne, "The Date of Zec 9-14," in JQR, I, 1889; C. H. Cornill, Einleitung in das Altes Testament, 1891; S. R. Driver, Introduction to the Literature of the Old Testament, 1910; J. Wellhausen, Die kleinen Propheten ubersetzt, 1893; N. I. Rubinkam, The Second Part of the Book of Zechariah, 1892; Karl Marti, Der Prophet Sacharja, 1892; A. F. Kirkpatrick, Doctrine of the Prophets, 1892; R. Eckardt, "Der Sprachgebrauch von Zach 9 through 14," ZATW, 1893, 76-109; A. K. Kuiper, Zacharja 9 through 14; eine exegetischcritische Studie, 1894; J. W. Rothstein, Die Nachtgesichte des Sacharja, 1910; G.A. Smith in Expositor's Bible, 1896-97; S. R. Driver In the New Century Bible; H. G. Mitchell, ICC, 1912.

George L. Robinson


ZECHER

ze'-ker (zakher, pausal form for zekher, "memorial"; the King James Version Zacher): In 1 Ch 8:31 = "Zechariah" of 1 Ch 9:37.

See ZECHARIAH , (5).


ZECHRIAS

zek-ri'-as (Codex Vaticanus (Zechrias, A and Fritzsche, Ezerias; the King James Version Ezerias): An ancestor of Ezra (1 Esdras 8:1) = "Azariah" of Ezr 7:1.


ZEDAD

ze'-dad (tsedhadhah, only found with He locale; Samaritan tseradhah; Septuagint Saradak, Sadadak, Saddak): A town or district named in Nu 34:8; Ezek 47:15 as on the ideal northern boundary of Israel. The uncertainty of the reading has led to two different identifications being proposed. The form "Zerad" was accepted by yon Kasteren, and his identification was Khirbet Serada in the Merj `Ayun, West of the Hasbany branch of the Jordan and North of `Abil. This identification, however, would compel us to draw the ideal boundary along the Qasmiyeh valley and thence eastward to Hermon, and that is much too far South If with Dillmann, Wetzstein, Muehlau and others we read "Zedad," then it is clearly identical with Sadad, a village on the road between Ribleh and Qaryetain. It has been objected that Sadad is too far to the East; but here, as in the tribal boundaries also, the references are rather to the district or lands possessed than to their central town or village.

W. M. Christie


ZEDECHIAS

zed-e-ki'-as: 1 Esdras 1:46 the King James Version = the Revised Version (British and American) "Sedekias."


ZEDEKIAH (1)

zed-e-ki'-a (tsidhqiyahu, tsidhqiyah, "Yah my righteousness"; Sedekia, Sedekias):

(1) The son of Chenaanah (1 Ki 22:11,24; 2 Ch 18:10,23). Zedekiah was apparently the leader and spokesman of the 400 prophets attached to the court in Samaria whom Ahab summoned in response to Jehoshaphat's request that a prophet of Yahweh should be consulted concerning the projected campaign against Ramoth-gilead. In order the better to impress his audience Zedekiah produced iron horns, and said to Ahab, "With these shalt thou push the Syrians, until they be consumed." He also endeavored to weaken the influence of Micaiah ben Imlah upon the kings by asking ironically, "Which way went the Spirit of Yahweh from me to speak unto thee?"

In Josephus (Ant., VIII, xv, 4) there is an interesting rearrangement and embellishment of the Biblical narrative. There Zedekiah is represented as arguing that since Micaiah contradicts Elijah's prediction as to the place of Ahab's death, he must be regarded as a false prophet. Then, smiting his opponent, he prayed that if he were in the wrong his right hand might forthwith be withered. Ahab, seeing that no harm befell the hand that had smitten Micaiah, was convinced; whereupon Zedekiah completed his triumph by the incident of the horns mentioned above.

(2) The son of Maaseiah (Jer 29:21-23). A false prophet who, in association with another, Ahab by name, prophesied among the exiles in Babylon, and foretold an early return from captivity. Jeremiah sternly denounced them, not only for their false and reckless predictions, but also for their foul and adulterous lives, and declared that their fate at the hands of Nebuchadnezzar should become proverbial in Israel.

(3) The son of Hananiah (Jer 36:12). One of the princes of Judah before whom Jeremiah's roll was read in the 5th year of Jehoiakim.

(4) One of the officials who sealed the renewed covenant (Neh 10:1, the King James Version "Zid-kijah"). The fact that his name is coupled with Nehemiah's suggests that he was a person of importance. But nothing further is known of him.

(5) The last king of Judah (see following article).

John A. Lees


ZEDEKIAH (2)

(tsidhqiyahu, "Yah my righteousness"; name changed from Mattaniah (mattanyah, "gift of Yah"; Sedekias):

I. SOURCES FOR HIS REGION AND TIME

1. Annalistic

2. Prophetic

II. THE ADMINISTRATION OF THE LAST KING OF JUDAH

1. The Situation

2. The Parvenu Temper

3. Inconsistencies

4. Character of the King

5. His Fate

6. Doom of the Nation

The last king of Judah, uncle and successor of Jehoiachin; reigned 11 years, from 597 to 586, and was carried captive to Babylon.

I. Sources for His Reign and Time.

1. Annalistic:

Neither of the accounts in 2 Ki 24:18 through 25:7 and 2 Ch 36:11-21 refers, as is the usual custom, to state annals; these ran out with the reign of Jehoiakim. The history in 2 Kings is purely scribal and historianic in tone; 2 Chronicles, especially as it goes on to the captivity, is more fervid and homiletic. Both have a common prophetic origin; and indeed Jeremiah 52, which is put as an appendix to the book of his prophecy, tells the story of the reign and subsequent events, much as does 2 Kings, but in somewhat fuller detail.

2. Prophetic:

Two prophets are watching with keen eyes the progress of this reign, both with the poignant sense that the end of the Judean state is imminent: Jeremiah in Jerusalem and Ezekiel, one of the captives in the deportation with Jehoiachin, in Babylon. Dates are supplied with the prophecies of both: Jeremiah's numbered from the beginning of the reign and not consecutive; Ezekiel's numbered from the beginning of the first captivity, and so coinciding with Jeremiah's. From these dated prophecies the principal ideas are to be formed of the real inwardness of the time and the character of the administration. The prophetic passages identifiable with this reign, counted by its years, are: Jeremiah 24, after the deportation of Jehoiachin (Jeconiah)--the inferior classes left with Zedekiah (compare Ezek 11:15; 17:12-14); Jer 27 through 29, beginning of reign--false hopes of return of captives and futile diplomacies with neighboring nations; Jer 51:59, 4th year--Zedekiah's visit to Babylon; Ezek 4 through 7, 5th year--symbolic prophecies of the coming end of Judah; Ezek 8 through 12, 6th year--quasi-clairvoyant view of the idolatrous corruptions in Jerusalem; Ezek 17:11-21, same year--Zedekiah's treacherous intrigues with Egypt; Ezek 21:18-23, 7th year--Nebuchadnezzar casting a divination to determine his invasion of Judah; Jer 21, undated but soon after--deputation from the king to the prophet inquiring Yahweh's purpose; Jer 34:1-7, undated--the prophet's word to the king while Nebuchadnezzar's invasion is still among the cities of the land; Ezek 24:1,2, 9th year--telepathic awareness of the beginning of the siege, synchronistic with Jer 39:1-10; 2 Ki 25:1-7; Jer 37; 38, undated, but soon after--prophecies connected with the temporary raising of the siege and the false faith of the ruling classes; Jer 32, 10th year--Jeremiah's redemption of his Anathoth property in the midst of siege, and the good presage of the act; Jer 39, 11th year--annalistic account of the breaching of the city wall and the flight and eventual fate of the king. A year and a half later Ezekiel (33:21,22) hears the news from a fugitive.

II. The Administration of the Last King of Judah.

1. The Situation:

When Nebuchadnezzar took away Jehoiachin, and with him all the men of weight and character (see underJEHOIACHIN ), his object was plain: to leave a people so broken in resources and spirit that they would not be moved to rebellion (see Ezek 17:14). But this measure of his effected a segmentation of the nation which the prophets immediately recognized as virtually separating out their spiritual "remnant" to go to Babylon, while the worldly and inferior grades remained in Jerusalem. These are sharply distinguished from each other by Jeremiah in his parable of the Figs (chapter 24), published soon after the first deportation. The people that were left were probably of the same sort that Zephaniah described a few years before, those who had "settled on their lees" (1:12), a godless and inert element in religion and state. Their religious disposition is portrayed by Ezekiel in Zedekiah's 6th year, in his clairvoyant vision of the uncouth temple rites, as it were a cesspool of idolatry, maintained under the pretext that Yahweh had forsaken the land (see Ezek 8). Clearly these were not of the prophetic stamp. It was over such an inferior grade of people that Zedekiah was appointed to a thankless and tragic reign.

2. The Parvenu Temper:

For a people so raw and inexperienced in administration the prophets recognized one clear duty: to keep the oath which they had given to Nebuchadnezzar (see Ezek 17:14-16). But they acted like men intoxicated with new power; their accession to property and unwonted position turned their heads. Soon after the beginning of the reign we find Jeremiah giving emphatic warning both to his nation and the ambassadors of neighboring nations against a rebellious coalition (Jeremiah 27 mistakenly dated in the 4th year of Jehoiakim; compare 27:3,12); he has also an encounter with prophets who, in contradiction of his consistent message, predict the speedy restoration of Jehoiachin and the temple vessels. The king's visit to Babylon (Jer 51:59) was probably made to clear himself of complicity in treasonable plots. Their evil genius, Egypt, however, is busy with the too headstrong upstart rulers; and about the middle of the reign Zedekiah breaks his covenant with his over-lord and, relying on Egypt, embarks on rebellion. The prophetic view of this movement is, that it is a moral outrage; it is breaking a sworn word (Ezek 17:15-19), and thus falsifying the truth of Yahweh.

3. Inconsistencies:

This act of rebellion against the king of Babylon was not the only despite done to "Yahweh's oath." Its immediate effect, of course, was to precipitate the invasion of the Chaldean forces, apparently from Riblah on the Orontes, where for several years Nebuchadnezzar had his headquarters. Ezekiel has a striking description of his approach, halting to determine by arrow divination whether to proceed against Judah or Ammon (21:18-23). Before laying siege to Jerusalem, however, he seems to have spent some time reducing outlying fortresses (compare Jer 34:1-7); and during the suspense of this time the king sent a deputation to Jeremiah to inquire whether Yahweh would not do "according to all his wondrous works," evidently hoping for some such miraculous deliverance as had taken place in the time of Sennacherib (Jer 21:1 ff). The prophet gives his uniform answer, that the city must fall; advising the house of David also to "execute justice and righteousness." Setting about this counsel as if they would bribe Yahweh's favor, the king then entered into an agreement with his people to free all their Hebrew bond-slaves (Jer 34:8-10), and sent back a deputation to the prophet entreating his intercession (Jer 37:3), as if, having bribed Yahweh, they might work some kind of a charm on the divine will. Nebuchadnezzar had meanwhile invested the city; but just then the Egyptian army approached to aid Judah, and the Babylonian king raised the siege long enough to drive the Egyptians back to their own land; at which, judging that Yahweh had interfered as of old, the people caused their slaves to return to their bondage (Jer 34:11). This treachery called forth a trenchant prophecy from Jeremiah, predicting not only the speedy return of the Chaldean army (Jer 37:6-10), but the captivity of the king and the destruction of the city (Jer 34:17-22). It was during this temporary cessation of the siege that Jeremiah, attempting to go to Anathoth to redeem his family property, was seized on the pretext of deserting to the enemy, and put in prison (Jer 37:11-15).

4. Character of the King:

During the siege, which was soon resumed, Zedekiah's character, on its good and bad sides, was revealed through his frequent contact with the prophet Jeremiah. The latter was a prisoner most of the time; and the indignities which he suffered, and which the king heedlessly allowed, show how the prophet's word and office had fallen in respect (compare the treatment he received, Jer 26:16-19 with 37:15; 38:6). The king, however, was not arrogant and heartless like his brother Jehoiakim; he was weak and without consistent principles; besides, he was rather helpless and timid in the hands of his headstrong officials (compare Jer 38:5,24-26). His regard for the word of prophecy was rather superstitious than religious: while the prophet's message and counsel were uniformly consistent, he could not bring himself to follow the will of Yahweh, and seemed to think that Yahweh could somehow be persuaded to change his plans (see Jer 37:17; 38:14-16). His position was an exceedingly difficult one; but even so, he had not the firmness, the wisdom, the consistency for it.

In his siege of the city Nebuchadnezzar depended mainly on starving it into surrender; and we cannot withhold a measure of admiration for a body of defenders who, in spite of the steadily decreasing food supply and the ravages of pestilence, held the city for a year and a half.

5. His Fate:

During this time Jeremiah's counsel was well known: the counsel of surrender, and the promise that so they could save their lives (Jer 21:9; 38:2). It was for this, indeed, that he was imprisoned, on the plea that he "weakened the hands" of the defenders; and it was due to the mercy of a foreign slave that he did not suffer death (Jer 38:7-9). At length in the 11th year of Zedekiah's reign, just as the supply of food in the city was exhausted, the Chaldean army effected a breach in the wall, and the king of Babylon with his high officials came in and sat in the middle gate. Zedekiah and his men of war, seeing this, fled by night, taking the ill-advised route by the road to Jericho; were pursued and captured in the plains of the Jordan; and Zedekiah was brought before the king of Babylon at Riblah. After putting to death Zedekiah's sons and the nobles of Judah before his eyes, the king of Babylon then put out the eyes of Zedekiah and carried him captive to Babylon, where, it is uncertain how long after, he died. Jeremiah had prophesied that he would die in peace and have a state mourning (Jer 34:4,5); Ezekiel's prophecy of his doom is enigmatic: "I will bring him to Babylon to the land of the Chaldeans; yet shall he not see it, though he shall die there" (Ezek 12:13).

6. Doom of the Nation:

The cruelly devised humiliation of the king was only an episode in the tragic doom of the city and nation. Nebuchadnezzar was not minded to leave so stubborn and treacherous a fortress on his path of conquest toward Egypt. A month after the event at Riblah his deputy, Nebuzaradan, entered upon the reduction of the city: burning the temple and all the principal houses, breaking down the walls, carrying away the temple treasures still unpillaged, including the bronze work which was broken into scrap metal, and deporting the people who were left after the desperate resistance and those who had voluntarily surrendered. The religious and state officials were taken to Riblah and put to death. "So," the historian concludes, "Judah was carried away captive out of his land" (Jer 52:27). This was in 586 BC. This, however, was only the political date of the Babylonian exile, the retributive limit for those leavings of Israel who for 11 years had played an insincere game of administration and failed. The prophetic date, from which Ezekiel reckons the years of exile, and from which the prophetic eye is kept on the fortunes and character of the people who are to be redeemed, was 597 BC, when Jehoiachin's long imprisonment began and when the flower of Israel, transplanted to a foreign home, began its term of submission to the word and will of Yahweh. It was this saving element in Israel who still had a recognized king and a promised future. By both Jeremiah and Ezekiel, Zedekiah was regarded not as Yahweh's anointed but as the one whom Nebuchadnezzar "had made king" (Jer 37:1; Ezek 17:16), "the king that sitteth upon the throne of David" (Jer 29:16). The real last king of Judah was Jehoiachin; Ezekiel's title for Zedekiah is "prince" (Ezek 12:10).

John Franklin Genung


ZEEB

ze'-eb, zeb.

See OREB .


ZELA, ZELAH

ze'-la (tsela` (2 Sam 21:14)): A city in the territory of Benjamin (Josh 18:28; the Septuagint here omits). Here was the burying-place of the family of Saul, whither the bones of the king and of Jonathan were brought for burial (2 Sam 21:14; the Septuagint here reads en te pleura, translating tsela`, "side"). The place is not identified. It may be the Zilu of the Tell el-Amarna Letters.


ZELEK

ze'-lek (tseleq, meaning unknown): An Ammonite, one of David's mighty men (2 Sam 23:37; 1 Ch 11:39).


ZELOPHEHAD

ze-lo'-fe-had (tslophchadh, meaning unknown): Head of a Manassite family who died without male issue (Nu 26:33; 27:1,7; 36:2,6,10,11; Josh 17:3; 1 Ch 7:15). His daughters came to Moses and Eleazar and successfully pleaded for a possession for themselves (Nu 27:1 ff). This became the occasion for a law providing that in the case of a man dying without sons, the inheritance was to pass to his daughters if he had any. A further request is made (Nu 36:2 ff) by the heads of the Gileadite houses that the women who were given this right of inheritance should be compelled to marry members of their own tribe, so that the tribe may not lose them and their property. This is granted and becomes law among the Hebrews.

Gray says (ICC on Nu 26:33) that the "daughters" of Zelophehad are towns or clans.

David Francis Roberts


ZELOTES

ze-lo'-tez (Zelotes).

See SIMON THE ZEALOT ;ZEALOT .


ZELZAH

zel'-za (tseltsach; hallomenous megala): A place where Samuel told Saul he would meet two men with news that the asses were found. Its position is defined as "by Rachel's sepulchre, in the border of Benjamin" (1 Sam 10:2). It has been thought that the place of meeting was sufficiently indicated without the word betseltsach, which is translated "at Zelzah," and that this cannot therefore be a place-name. The Septuagint has "leaping mightily" or "in great haste" (Ewald) points to a different text. Whether the Greek can be so translated is also a question, as megala does not elsewhere occur as an adverb. Some corruption of the text is probable. The border of Benjamin may be roughly determined, but the tomb of Rachel is now unknown. No name like Zelzah has been recovered in the district. Smith ("Samuel," ICC, at the place) suggests that we should read "Zela" for "Zelzah" (tsela`, for tseltsach).

W. Ewing


ZEMARAIM

zem-a-ra'-im (cemdrayim; Codex Vaticanus Sara; Codex Alexandrinus Semrim): A city in the territory of Benjamin. It is named between Betharabah and Bethel (Josh 18:22), and is probably to be sought East of the latter city. It is usual to identify it with es-Samra, a ruin about 4 miles North of Jericho. Mt. Zemaraim probably derived its name from the city, and must be sought in the neighborhood. On this height, which is said to be in Mt. Ephraim, Abijah, king of Judah, stood when making his appeal to the men of Israel under Jeroboam (2 Ch 13:4). If the identification with es-Samra is correct, this hill must be in the uplands to the West, es-Samra being on the floor of the valley. Dillmann (Joshua, at the place) thinks Zemaraim cannot be so far East of Bethel, but may be found somewhere to the South of that town.

W. Ewing


ZEMARITE

zem'-a-rit (ha-tsemari; ho Samaraios): A Canaanite people named in Gen 10:18; 1 Ch 1:16. The occurrence of the name between Arvadite and Hamathite gives a hint as to locality. A place called Cumur is mentioned in the Tell el-Amarna Letters along with Arvad. The name probably survives in that of Sumra, a village on the seacoast between Tripolis and Ruwad, about 1 1/2 miles North of Nahr el-Kebir. We may with some certainty identify this modern village with the site of the town from which the inhabitants were named "Zemarites."


ZEMIRAH

ze-mi'-ra (zemirah, meaning uncertain; Septuagint Codex Vaticanus Amarias; Codex Alexandrinus Zamarias; the King James Version Zemira): A descendant of Benjamin (1 Ch 7:8), but more probably of Zebulun (Curtis, Chronicles, 145 ff).


ZENAN

ze'-nan.

See ZAANAN .


ZENAS

ze'-nas (Zenas (Tit 3:13); the name in full would probably be Zenodorus, literally, meaning "the gift of Zeus"):

1. A Jewish Lawyer:

Paul calls Zenas "the lawyer." The meaning of this is, that, previous to his becoming a Christian, he had been a Jewish lawyer. The lawyers were that class of Jewish teachers who were specially learned in the Mosaic Law, and who interpreted that Law, and taught it to the people.

They are met with again and again in the Gospels, where they frequently came into contact with Christ, usually in a manner hostile to Him. For example, "A certain lawyer stood up and made trial of him, saying, Teacher, what shall I do to inherit eternal life?" (Lk 10:25). our Lord replied to him on his own ground, asking, "What is written in the law? how readest thou?" Regarding this class of teachers as a whole, it is recorded that "the Pharisees and lawyers rejected for themselves the counsel of God" (Lk 7:30). The term nomikos, "lawyer," applied to Zenas, is in the Gospels varied by nomodidakalos, "a teacher of the law," and by grammateus, "a scribe": all three terms describe the same persons. Before his conversion to Christ, Zenas had been a lawyer, one of the recognized expounders of the Law of Moses.

A different view of Zenas' occupation is taken by Zahn (Introduction to the New Testament, II, 54), who says that in itself nomikos could denote a rabbi, quoting Ambrosiaster, "Because Zenas had been of this profession in the synagogue, Paul calls him by this name." But Zahn gives his own opinion that "since the Jewish scribe who became a Christian, by that very act separated himself from the rabbinic body, and since the retention of rabbinic methods and ways of thinking was anything but a recommendation in Paul's eyes (1 Tim 1:7), Zenas is here characterized, not as legis (Mosaicae), doctor, but as juris peritus. The word denotes not an office, but usually the practical lawyer, through whose assistance e.g. a will is made, or a lawsuit carried on. Plutarch applies this name to the renowned jurist Mucius Scaevola."

The ordinary meaning seems preferable, which sees in Zenas one who previous to his conversion had been a Jewish rabbi.

2. Paul's Wishes regarding Zenas:

It is not certain where Paul was when he wrote the Epistle to Titus. But he directs Titus to come to him to Nicopolis, where he had resolved to spend the ensuing winter. And he adds the injunction that he desires him to "bring Zenas the lawyer and Apollos"--Paul's old friend from Alexandria--with him "on their journey diligently, that nothing be wanting unto them" (the King James Version). This may mean that Paul wished to have Zenas and Apollos with him at Nicopolis; but, on the other hand, it may not have this meaning. For the King James Version in translating "bring" is in error. The word signifies, as given in the Revised Version (British and American), "set forward" on their journey, that is, furnish them with all that they need for the journey. But even supposing Paul is not instructing Titus to bring Zenas and Apollos to Nicopolis--though this is perhaps what he means--yet it is most interesting to find these two friends of the apostle mentioned in this particular way, and especially at a time so near to the close of his life. Paul was unselfish as ever, solicitous that Zenas and Apollos be comfortably provided for on their intended journey. He is full of affectionate regard for them, interested in their welfare at every step; while he himself is far distant in another country, he remembers them with tender and sympathetic friendship. Doubtless the two friends reciprocated his affection.

Nothing more is known of Zenas than is contained in this passage.

John Rutherfurd


ZEND-AVESTA

zend-a-ves'-ta.

See PERSIAN RELIGION ;ZOROASTRIANISM .


ZEPHANIAH

zef-a-ni'-a (tsephanyah, tsephanyahu, "Yah hath treasured"):

(1) The prophet.

See ZEPHANIAH ,BOOK OF .

(2) A Levite or priest (1 Ch 6:36 (Hebrew 6:21)), called in some genealogies "Uriel" (1 Ch 6:24; 15:5,11).

(3) Judean father or fathers of various contemporaries of Zechariah, the prophet (Zec 6:10,14).

(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 (Jer 21:1) and at other crises (Jer 37:3; compare 29:25,29; 2 Ki 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 Ki 25:18 parallel Jer 52:24).

Nathan Isaacs


ZEPHANIAH, APOCALYPSE OF

A (probably) Jewish apocryphal work of this name is mentioned in the Stichometry of Nicephorus and another list practically identical with this; a quotation from it is also preserved by Clement of Alexandria (Strom., v. 11,77). Dr. Charles thinks this indicates a Christian revision (Encyclopedia Brittanica, II, article "Apocalypse"); others suppose it to point to a Christian, rather than a Jewish, origin. See Schurer,HJP , divII , volumeIII , pp. 126-27, 132; GJV4, III, 367-69.


ZEPHANIAH, BOOK OF

I. THE AUTHOR

1. Name

2. Ancestry

3. Life

II. TIME

1. Date

2. Political Situation

3. Moral and Religious Conditions

III. BOOK

1. Contents

2. Integrity

IV. TEACHING

1. The Day of Yahweh

2. Universalism

3. Messianic Prophecy

LITERATURE

I. The Author.

1. Name:

The name "Zephaniah" (tsephanyah; Sophonias), which is borne by three other men mentioned in the Old Testament, means "Yah hides," or "Yah has hidden" or "treasured." "It suggests," says G. A. Smith, "the prophet's birth in the killing time of Manasseh" (2 Ki 21:16).

2. Ancestry:

The ancestry of the prophet is carried back four generations (Zeph 1:1), which is unusual in the Old Testament (compare Isa 1:1; Hos 1:1); hence, it is thought, not without reason (Eiselen, Minor Prophets, 505), that the last-mentioned ancestor, Hezekiah, must have been a prominent man--indeed, no other than King Hezekiah of Judah, the contemporary of Isaiah and Micah. If Zephaniah was of royal blood, his condemnation of the royal princes (1:8) becomes of great interest. In a similar manner did Isaiah, who in all probability was of royal blood, condemn without hesitation the shortcomings and vices of the rulers and the court. An ancient tradition declares that Zephaniah was of the tribe of Simeon, which would make it impossible for him to be of royal blood; but the origin and value of this tradition are uncertain.

Zephaniah lived in Judah; that he lived in Jerusalem is made probable by the statement in 1:4, "I will cut off .... from this place," as well as by his intimate knowledge of the topography of the city (1:10,11).

3. Life:

For how long he continued his prophetic activity we do not know, but it is not improbable that, as in the case of Amos, his public activity was short, and that, after delivering his message of judgment in connection with a great political crisis, he retired to private life, though his interest in reforms may have continued (2 Ki 23:2).

II. Time.

1. Date:

The title (Zeph 1:1) places the prophetic activity of Zephaniah somewhere within the reign of Josiah, that is, between 639 and 608 BC. Most scholars accept this statement as historically correct. The most important exception is E. Koenig (Einl, 252 ff), who places it in the decade following the death of Josiah. Koenig's arguments are altogether inconclusive, while all the internal evidence points toward the reign of Josiah as the period of Zephaniah's activity. Can the ministry of the prophet be more definitely located within the 31 years of Josiah? The latter's reign falls naturally into two parts, separated by the great reform of 621. Does the work of Zephaniah belong to the earlier or the later period?

The more important arguments in favor of the later period are: (a) Dt 28:29,30 is quoted in Zeph 1:13,15,17, in a manner which shows that the former book was well known, but according to the modern view, the Deuteronomic Code was not known until 621, because it was lost (2 Ki 22:8). (b) The "remnant of Baal" (Zeph 1:4) points to a period when much of the Baal-worship had been removed, which means subsequent to 621. (c) The condemnation of the "king's sons" (Zeph 1:8) presupposes that at the time of the utterance they had reached the age of moral responsibility; this again points to the later period. These arguments are inconclusive: (a) The resemblances between Deuteronomy and Zephaniah are of such a general character that dependence of either passage on the other is improbable. (b) The expression in Zeph 1:4 bears an interpretation which made its use quite appropriate before 621 (Eiselen, Minor Prophets, 508). (c) "King's sons" may be equivalent to "royal princes," referring not to Josiah's children at all. The last two objections lose all force if the Septuagint readings are accepted (Zeph 1:4, "names of Baal"; 1:8, "house of the king").

On the other hand, there are several considerations pointing to the earlier date: (a) The youth of the king would make it easy for the royal princes to go to the excesses condemned in Zeph 1:8,9. (b) The idolatrous practices condemned by Zephaniah (1:3-5) are precisely those abolished in 621. (c) The temper described in Zeph 1:12 is explicable before 621 and after the death of Josiah in 608, but not between 621 and 608, when religious enthusiasm was widespread. (d) Only the earlier part of Josiah's reign furnishes a suitable occasion for the prophecy. Evidently at the time of its delivery an enemy was threatening the borders of Judah and of the surrounding nations. But the only foes of Judah during the latter part of the 7th century meeting all the conditions are the Scythians, who swept over Western Asia about 625 BC. At the time the prophecy was delivered their advance against Egypt seems to have been still in the future, but imminent (Zeph 1:14); hence, the prophet's activity may be placed between 630 and 625, perhaps in 626. If this date is correct, Zephaniah and Jeremiah began their ministries in the same year.

2. Political Situation:

Little can be said about the political conditions in Judah during the reign of Josiah, because the Biblical books are silent concerning them. Josiah seems to have remained loyal to his Assyrian lord to the very end, even when the latter's prestige had begun to wane, and this loyalty cost him his life (2 Ki 23:29). As already suggested, the advance of the Scythians furnished the occasion of the prophecy. Many questions concerning these Scythians remain still unanswered, but this much is clear, that they

were a non-Semitic race of barbarians, which swept in great hordes over Western Asia during the 7th century BC (see SCYTHIANS ). The prophet looked upon the Scythians as the executioners of the divine judgment upon his sinful countrymen and upon the surrounding nations; and he saw in the coming of the mysterious host the harbinger of the day of Yahweh.

3. Moral and Religious Conditions:

The Book of Zephaniah, the early discourses of Jeremiah, and 2 Ki 21 through 23 furnish a vivid picture of the social, moral, and religious conditions in Judah at the time Zephaniah prophesied. Social injustice and moral corruption were widespread (3:1,3,7). Luxury and extravagance might be seen on every hand; fortunes were heaped up by oppressing the poor (1:8,9). The religious situation was equally bad. The reaction under Manasseh came near making an end of Yahweh-worship (2 Ki 21). Amon followed in the footsteps of his father, and the outlook was exceedingly dark when Josiah came to the throne. Fortunately the young king came under prophetic influence from the beginning, and soon undertook a religious reform, which reached its culmination in the 18th year of his reign. When Zephaniah preached, this reform was still in the future. The Baalim were still worshipped, and the high places were flourishing (1:4); the hosts of heaven were adored upon the housetops (1:5); a half-hearted Yahweh-worship, which in reality was idolatry, was widespread (1:5); great multitudes had turned entirely from following Yahweh (1:6). When the cruel Manasseh was allowed to sit undisturbed upon the throne for more than 50 years, many grew skeptical and questioned whether Yahweh was taking any interest in the affairs of the nation; they began to say in their hearts, "Yahweh will not do good, neither will he do evil" (1:12). Conditions could hardly be otherwise, when the religious leaders had become misleaders (3:4). The few who, amid the general corruption, remained faithful would be insufficient to avert the awful judgment upon the nation, though they themselves might be "hid in the day of Yahweh's anger" (2:3).

III. Book.

1. Contents:

The Book of Zephaniah falls naturally into two parts of unequal length. The first part (1:2 through 3:8) contains, almost exclusively, denunciations and threats; the second (3:9-20), a promise of salvation and glorification. The prophecy opens with the announcement of a world judgment (1:2,3), which will be particularly severe upon Judah and Jerusalem, because of idolatry (1:4-6). The ungodly nobles will suffer most, because they are the leaders in crime (1:8,9). The judgment is imminent (1:7); when it arrives there will be wailing on every hand (1:10,11). No one will escape, even the indifferent skeptics will be aroused (1:12,13). In the closing verses of chapter 1, the imminence and terribleness of the day of Yahweh are emphasized, from which there can be no escape, because Yahweh has determined to make a "terrible end of all them that dwell in the land" (1:14-18). A way of escape is offered to the meek; if they seek Yahweh, they may be "hid in the day of Yahweh" (2:1-3). Zeph 2:4-15 contains threats upon 5 nations, Philistia (2:4-7), Moab and Ammon (2:8-11), Ethiopia (2:12), Assyria (2:13-15). In Zeph 3:1 the prophet turns once more to Jerusalem. Leaders, both civil and religious, and people are hopelessly corrupt (3:1-4), and continue so in spite of Yahweh's many attempts to win the city back to purity (3:5-7); hence, the judgment which will involve all nations has become inevitable (3:8). A remnant of the nations and of Judah will escape and find rest and peace in Yahweh (3:9-13). The closing section (3:14-20) pictures the joy and exaltation of the redeemed daughter of Zion.

2. Integrity:

The authenticity of every verse in Zephaniah 2 and 3, and of several verses in chapter 1, has been questioned by one or more scholars, but the passages rejected or questioned with greatest persistency are 2:1-3,4-15 (especially 2:8-11); 3:9,10,14-20. The principal objection to 2:1-3 is the presence in 2:3 of the expressions "meek of the earth," and "seek meekness." It is claimed that "meek" and "meekness" as religious terms are post-exilic. There can be no question that the words occur more frequently in post-exilic psalms and proverbs than in preexilic writings, but it cannot be proved, or even shown to be probable, that the words might not have been used in Zephaniah's day (compare Ex 10:3; Nu 12:3; Isa 2:9 ff; Mic 6:8). A second objection is seen in the difference of tone between these verses and Zephaniah 1. The latter, from beginning to end, speaks of the terrors of judgment; 2:1-3 weakens this by offering a way of escape. But surely, judgment cannot have been the last word of the prophets; in their thought, judgment always serves a disciplinary purpose. They are accustomed to offer hope to a remnant. Hence, 2:1-3 seems to form the necessary completion of chapter 1.

The objections against Zephaniah 2:4-15 as a whole are equally inconclusive. For 2:13-15, a date preceding the fall of Nineveh seems most suitable. The threat against Philistia (2:4-7) also is quite intelligible in the days of Zephaniah, for the Scythians passed right through the Philistine territory. If Ethiopia stands for Egypt, 2:12 can easily be accounted for as coming from Zephaniah, for the enemies who were going along the Mediterranean coast must inevitably reach Egypt. But if it is insisted upon that the reference is to Ethiopia proper, again no difficulty exists, for in speaking of a world judgment Zephaniah might mention Ethiopia as the representative of the far south. Against 2:8-11 the following objections are raised: (a) Moab and Ammon were far removed from the route taken by the Scythians. (b) The "reproaches" of 2:8,10 presuppose the destruction of Jerusalem (Ezek 25:3,6,8). (c) The attitude of the prophet toward Judah (Zech 2:9,10) is the exact opposite of that expressed in Zephaniah 1. (d) The qinah meter, which predominates in the rest of the section, is absent from 2:8-11. (e) Zeph 2:12 is the natural continuation of 2:9. These five arguments are by no means conclusive: (a) The prophet is announcing a world judgment. Could this be executed by the Scythians if they confined themselves to the territory along the Mediterranean Sea? (b) Is it true that the "reproaches" of 2:8,10 presuppose the destruction of Jerusalem? (c) The promises in 2:7,8-10 are only to a remnant, which presupposes a judgment such as is announced in chapter 1. (d) Have we a right to demand consistency in the use of a certain meter in oratory, and, if so, may not the apparent inconsistency be due to corruption of the text, or to a later expansion of an authentic oracle? (e) Zeph 2:8-11 can be said to interrupt the thought only if it is assumed that the prophet meant to enumerate the nations in the order in which the Scythians naturally would reach their territory. From Philistia they would naturally pass to Egypt. But is this assumption warranted? While the objections against the entire paragraph are inconclusive, it cannot be denied that 2:12 seems the natural continuation of 2:9, and since 2:10 and 11 differ in other respects from those preceding, suspicion of the originality of these two verses cannot be suppressed.

Zeph 3:1-8 is so similar to chapter 1 that its originality cannot be seriously questioned, but 3:1-8 carry with them 3:9-13, which describe the purifying effects of the judgment announced in 3:1-8. The present text of 3:10 may be corrupt, but if properly emended there remains insufficient reason for questioning 3:10 and 11. The authenticity of 3:14-20 is more doubtful than that of any other section of Zephaniah. The buoyant tone of the passage forms a marked contrast to the somber, quiet strain of 3:11-13; the judgments upon Judah appear to be in the past; 3:18-20 seem to presuppose a scattering of the people of Judah, while the purifying judgment of 3:11-13 falls upon the people in their own land; hence, there is much justice in Davidson's remark that "the historical situation presupposed is that of Isa 40 ff." On the other hand, it must be borne in mind that the passage is highly poetic, that it presents an ideal picture of the future, in the drawing of which imagination must have played some part, and it may be difficult to assert that the composition of this poem was entirely beyond the power of Zephaniah's enlightened imagination. But while the bare possibility of Zephaniah's authorship may be admitted, it is not impossible that 3:14-20 contains a "new song from God," added to the utterances of Zephaniah at a period subsequent to the fall of Jerusalem.

IV. Teaching.

The teaching of Zephaniah closely resembles that of the earlier prophetic books. Yahweh is the God of the universe, a God of righteousness and holiness, who expects of His worshippers a life in accord with His will. Israel are His chosen people, but on account of rebellion they must suffer severe punishment. Wholesale conversion seems out of the question, but a remnant may escape, to be exalted among the nations. He adds little, but attempts with much moral and spiritual fervor to impress upon his comtemporaries the fundamental truths of the religion of Yahweh. Only a few points deserve special mention.

1. The Day of Yahweh:

Earlier prophets had spoken of the day of Yahweh; Amos (5:18-20) had described it in language similar to that employed by Zephaniah; but the latter surpasses all his predecessors in the emphasis he places upon this terrible manifestation of Yahweh (see ESCHATOLOGY OF THE OLD TESTAMENT ). His entire teaching centers around this day; and in the Book of Zephaniah we find the germs of the apocalyptic visions which become so common in later prophecies of an eschatological character. Concerning this day he says (a) that it is a day of terror (1:15), (b) it is imminent (1:14), (c) it is a judgment for sin (1:17), (d) it falls upon all creation (1:2,3; 2:4-15; 3:8), (e) it is accompanied by great convulsions in Nature (1:15), (f) a remnant of redeemed Hebrews and foreigners will escape from its terrors (Zeph 2:3; 3:9-13).

2. Universalism:

The vision of the book is world-wide. The terrors of the day of Yahweh will fall upon all. In the same manner from all nations converts will be won to Yahweh (Zeph 3:9,10). These will not be compelled to come to Jerusalem to worship Yahweh (Isa 2:2; Mic 4:1); they may worship Him "every one from his place" (Zeph 2:11), which is a step in the direction of the utterance of Jesus in Jn 4:21.

3. Messianic Prophecy:

The Messianic King is not mentioned by Zephaniah. Though he draws a sublime picture of the glories of the Messianic age (Zeph 3:14-20), there is not a word concerning the person of the Messianic King. Whatever is done is accomplished by Yahweh Himself.

LITERATURE.

Cornms. on the Minor Prophets by Ewald, Pusey, Keil, Orelli, G. A. Smith (Expositor's Bible); Driver (New Century); Eiselen; A. B. Davidson, Commentary on Nahum, Habakkuk, and Zephaniah (Cambridge Bible); A. F. Kirkpatrick, Doctrine of the Prophets; Eiselen, Prophecy and the Prophets; F. W. Farrar, "Minor Prophets," Men of the Bible; S. R. Driver, Driver, Introduction to the Literature of the Old Testament; Hastings, Dictionary of the Bible (five volumes), article "Zephaniah, Book of"; Encyclopedia Biblica, article "Zephaniah."

F. C. Eiselen


ZEPHATH

ze'-fath.

See HORMAH .


ZEPHATHAH, VALLEY OF

zef'-a-tha (ge'tsephathah; Septuagint kata borran, reading tsephoah, instead of tsephathah): This is the place where Asa met and defeated the Ethiopians under Zerah (2 Ch 14:10). It is said to be at Mareshah. No name resembling this has been recovered there. Possibly, therefore, the Septuagint rendering is right, "in the ravine to the North of Mareshah." In that case the battle may have been fought in Wady el-`Afranj.


ZEPHI; ZEPHO

ze'-fi, ze'-fo (tsephi, perhaps "gaze," or "gazing," in 1 Ch 1:36; tspho, the same meaning in Gen 36:11,15): A duke of Edom. Septuagint has Sophar, which Skinner (Genesis, 431) says may be the original of Job's kind friend. In Gen 36:43 the Septuagint has Zaphoei (= tsepho, i.e. Zepho), for Iram. Skinner holds it probable that the two names, Zepho and Iram, were in the original text, thus making the number 12 (compare Lagarde, Septuagint-Stud., II, 10, 1. 178; 37, 1. 270; Nestle, Margin., 12). Lucian has Sophar, in Gen 36:11,15; Sepphoue, in 1 Ch 1:37, and Saphoin, in Gen 36:43.

David Francis Roberts


ZEPHON

ze'-fon.

See ZIPHION .


ZEPHONITES

ze'-fon-its, ze-fo'-nits (ha-tsphoni; ho Saphoni, Codex Alexandrinus omits): A family of Gadites descended from Zephon (Nu 26:15), who is called "Ziphion" in Gen 46:16.


ZER

zer, zer (tser; in Septuagint the verse (Josh 19:35) reads kai hai poleis teichereis ton Turion, which implies a Hebrew text with ha-tsurim, "Tyrians"; this must be an error): One of the fortified cities in Naphtali, named between Ziddim (ChaTTin) and Hammath (el-Chammeh, South of Tiberias). If the text is correct, it must have lain on the slopes West of the Sea of Galilee. It is not identified.


ZERAH

ze'-ra (zerach, meaning uncertain):

(1) In Gen 38:30; 46:12; Nu 26:20; Josh 7:1,18,24; 22:20; 1 Ch 2:4,6; 9:6; Neh 11:24; Mt 1:3, younger twin-son of Judah and Tamar, and an ancestor of Achan. In Nu 26:20; Josh 7:17 f he is the head of the Zerahites (also 1 Ch 27:11,13). the King James Version has "Zarah" in Gen 38:30; 46:12, and "Zarhites" for "Zerahites" in Numbers, Joshua and 1 Chronicles. See Curtis (Chronicles, 84 f) for identification of Ezrahite with Zerahite.

(2) Edomites: (a) an Edomite chief (Gen 36:13,17; 1 Ch 1:37); (b) father of an Edomite king (Gen 36:33; 1 Ch 1:44).

(3) Levites: (a) 1 Ch 6:21 (Hebrew verse 6); (b) 1 Ch 6:41 (Hebrew verse 26).

(4) Head of the Zerahites (Nu 26:13, the King James Version "Zarhites"; 1 Ch 4:24). In Nu 26:13 = "Zohar" of Gen 46:10; Ex 6:15.

See ZOHAR , (2).

(5) Cushite king (2 Ch 14:9). See the next article

David Francis Roberts


ZERAH (THE ETHIOPIAN)

(zerach ha-kushi (2 Ch 14:9); Zare): A generation ago the entire story of Zerah's conquest of Asa, coming as it did from a late source (2 Ch 14:9-15), was regarded as "apocryphal": "If the incredibilities are deducted nothing at all is left" (Wellhausen, Prolegomena to the History of Israel, 207, 208); but most modern scholars, while accepting certain textual mistakes and making allowance for customary oriental hyperbole in description; accept this as an honest historical narrative, "nothing" in the Egyptian inscriptions being "inconsistent" with it (Nicol in BD; and compare Sayce,HCM , 362-64). The name "Zerah" is a "very likely corruption" of "Usarkon" (U-Serak-on), which it closely resembles (see Petrie, Egypt and Israel, 74), and most writers now identify Zerah with UsarkonII , though the Egyptian records of this particular era are deficient and some competent scholars still hold to UsarkonI (Wiedemann, Petrie, McCurdy, etc.). The publication by Naville (1891) of an inscription in which Usarkon II claims to have invaded "Lower and Upper Palestine" seemed to favor this Pharaoh as the victor over Asa; but the chronological question is difficult (Eighth Memoir of the Egyptian Exploration Fund, 51). The title "the Cushite" (Hebrew) is hard to understand. There are several explanations possible. (1) Wiedemann holds that this may refer to a real Ethiopian prince, who, though unrecorded in the monuments, may have been reigning at the Asa era. There is so little known from this era "that it is not beyond the bounds of probability for an Ethiopian invader to have made himself master of the Nile Valley for a time" (Geschichte von Alt-Aegypten, 155). (2) Recently it has been the fashion to refer this term "Cushite" to some unknown ruler in South or North Arabia (Winckler, Cheyne, etc.). The term "Cushite" permits this, for although it ordinarily corresponds to ETHIOPIA (which see), yet sometimes it designates the tract of Arabia which must be passed over in order to reach Ethiopia (Jeremias, The Old Testament in the Light of Ancient East, I, 280) or perhaps a much larger district (see BD ;EB ; Hommel, Ancient Hebrew Tradition; Winckler,KAT , etc.). This view, however, is forced to explain the geographical and racial terms in the narrative differently from the ordinary Biblical usage (see Cheyne,EB ). Dr. W. M. Flinders Petrie points out that, according to the natural sense of the narrative, this army must have been Egyptian for (a) after the defeat it fled toward Egypt, not eastward toward Arabia; (b) the cities around Gerar (probably Egyptian towns on the frontier of Palestine), toward which they naturally fled when defeated, were plundered; (c) the invaders were Cushim and Lubim (Libyans), and this could only be the case in an Egyptian army; (d) Mareshah is a well-known town close to the Egyptian frontier (History of Egypt, III, 242-43; compare Konig, Funf neue arab. Landschaftsnamen im Altes Testament, 53-57). (3) One of the Usarkons might be called a "Cushite" in an anticipatory sense, since in the next dynasty (XXIII) Egypt was ruled by Ethiopian kings.

Camden M. Cobern


ZERAHIAH

zer-a-hi'-a (zerachyah, "Yahweh hath risen" or "come forth"; the Septuagint has Zaraia, with variants):

(1) A priest of the line of Eleazar (1 Ch 6:6,51; Ezr 7:4).

(2) A head of a family, who returned with Ezra from Babylon (Ezr 8:4).


ZERAHITES

ze'-ra-hits (ha-zarchi; Codex Vaticanus ho Zarai; Codex Alexandrinus ho Zaraei; the King James Version Zarhites):

(1) A family of Simeonites (Nu 26:13).

(2) Descendants of Zerah, son of Judah (Nu 26:20). To this family Achan belonged (Josh 7:17), as did also two of David's captains (1 Ch 27:11,13).


ZERED

ze'-red (zeredh; Codex Vaticanus Zaret; Codex Alexandrinus Zare; the King James Version, Zared (Nu 21:12)): This is the nachal or "torrent valley" given as the place where Israel encamped before they reached the Arnon (Nu 21:12). In Dt 2:13 f, the crossing of the brook Zered marks the end of the 38 years' desert wanderings. It has often been identified with Wady el-`Achsa, which runs up from the southeastern corner of the Dead Sea. A fatal objection to this is that the host had entered the wilderness to the East of Moab before they crossed the Zered (Nu 21:11), while Wady el-`Achsa must have formed the southern boundary of Moab. We may conclude with certainty that one of the confluents of Wady Kerak is intended, but which, it is impossible now to say.

W. Ewing


ZEREDAH; ZEREDATH; ZEREDATHA; ZERERAH; ZERERATH

zer'-e-da, zer'-e-dath, zer-e-da'-tha, zer'-e-ra, zer'-e-rath.

See ZARETHAN .


ZERESH

ze'-resh (zeresh, "gold," from the Persian; Sosara): The wife of Haman (Est 5:10,14; 6:13), the vizier of Xerxes.


ZERETH

ze'-reth (tsereth, meaning unknown): A Judahite (1 Ch 4:7).


ZERETH-SHAHAR

ze'-reth-sha'-har (tsereth ha-shachar; Codex Vaticanus Sereda kai Seion, Codex Alexandrinus Sarth kai Sior): A town in the territory of Reuben, "in the mount of the valley," named with Kiriathaim and Sibmah (Josh 13:19). Perhaps in the name Chammat ec-Cara, attaching to the hot springs near Macherus, there may be some echo of the ancient name; but no identification is possible.


ZERI

ze'-ri (tseri, meaning unknown): "Son" of Jeduthun, and a temple musician (1 Ch 25:3) = "Izri" of 1 Ch 25:11, which should be read here.

See IZRI .


ZEROR

ze'-ror (tseror, meaning unknown; the Septuagint has Ared; Lucian has Sara): An ancestor of Kish and King Saul (1 Sam 9:1).

See ZUR , (2).


ZERUAH

ze-roo'-a (tseru`ah, perhaps "leprous"): Mother of King Jeroboam I (1 Ki 11:26), the Septuagint, Codex Vaticanus and Lucian omit the name in 1 Ki 11:26, but the long the Septuagint after Massoretic Text of 12:24 reads (12:24b): "And there was a man of the hill-country of Ephraim, a servant of Solomon, and his name was Jeroboam, and the name of his mother was Sareisa (Septuagint has Sareisa), a harlot."

See ZARETHAN .


ZERUBBABEL

ze-rub'-a-bel (zerubbabhel, probably a transliteration of the Babylonian name Zeru-Babili, "seed of Babylon"; Zorobabel):

1. Name:

Is commonly called the son of Shealtiel (Ezr 3:2,8; 5:2; Neh 12:1; Hag 1:1,12,14; Mt 1:12; Lk 3:27); but in 1 Ch 3:19 he is called the son of Pedaiah, the brother apparently of Shealtiel (Salathiel) and the son or grandson of Jeconiah. It is probable that Shealtiel had no children and adopted Zerubbabel; or that Zerubbabel was his levirate son; or that, Shealtiel being childless, Zerubbabel succeeded to the rights of sonship as being the next of kin.

2. Family:

Whatever may have been his blood relationship to Jeconiah, the Scriptures teach that Zerubbabel was his legal successor, of the 3rd or 4th generation. According to 1 Ch 3:19, he had one daughter, Shelomith, and seven sons, Meshullam, Hananiah, Hashubah, Ohel, Berechiah, Hasadiah and Jushab-hesed. In Mt 1:13 he is said to have been the father of Abiud (i.e. Abi-hud). As it is the custom in Arabia today to give a man a new name when his first son is born, so it may have been, in this case, that Meshullam was the father of Hud, and that his name was changed to Abiud as soon as his son was named Hud. In Lk 3:27, the son of Zerubbabel is called Rhesa. This is doubtless the title of the head of the captivity, the resh gelutha', and would be appropriate as a title of Meshullam in his capacity as the official representative of the captive Jews. That Zerubbabel is said in the New Testament to be the son of Shealtiel the son of Neri instead of Jeconiah may be accounted for on the supposition that Shealtiel was the legal heir or adopted son of Jeconiah, who according to Jer 36:30 was apparently to die childless.

3. Relation to Sheshbazzar:

It has been shown in the article on Sheshbazzar that he and Zerubbabel may possibly have been the same person and that the name may have been Shamash-ban (or bun)-zer-Babili-usur. It seems more probable, however, that Sheshbazzar, the prince of Judah, was governor under Cyrus and that Zerubbabel was governor under Darius. The former, according to Ezr 1:8 and 5:14-16, laid the foundations, and the latter completed the building of the temple (Ezr 2:2,68; 4:2; Hag 1:14; Zec 4:9).

4. History:

All that is known certainly about Zerubbabel is found in the canonical books of Zechariah, Haggai and Ezra-Nehemiah. According to these he and Jeshua, the high priest, led up a band of captives from Babylon to Jerusalem and began rebuilding the temple in the second year of Darius Hystaspis. They first constructed the altar of burnt offerings, and afterward built a temple, usually called the Second Temple, much inferior in beauty to that of Solomon. According to Josephus and the apocryphal Book of Ezra (1 Esdras 3,4), Zerubbabel was a friend of Darius Hystaspis, having successfully competed before him in a contest whose object was to determine what was the strongest thing in the world--wine, kings, women, or truth. Zerubbabel, having demonstrated that truth was the mightiest of all, was called the king's "cousin," and was granted by him permission to go up to Jerusalem and to build the temple. Zerubbabel was also made a governor of Jerusalem, and performed also the duties of the tirshatha, an official who was probably the Persian collector of taxes.

See TIRSHATHA .

R. Dick Wilson


ZERUIAH

ze-roo-i'-a, ze-roo'-ya (tseruyah, tseruyah (2 Sam 14:1; 16:10), meaning uncertain; Sarouia): In 2 Sam 2:18; 17:25; 1 Ch 2:16, and elsewhere where the names Joab, Abishai, occur. According to 1 Ch 2:16 a sister of David and mother of Joab, Abishai and Asahel, the two former being always referred to as sons of Zeruiah. This latter fact is explained by some as pointing to a type of marriage by which the children belonged to their mother's clan (compare Abimelech, Jdg 8:31; 9:1 ff); by others as being due to her husband's early death; and again as a proof of the mother in this case being the stronger personality. Either of the last two reasons may be the correct one, and plenty of parallels from the village names of boys today can be produced to illustrate both explanations. According to 2 Sam 2:32, her husband was buried at Bethlehem. In 2 Sam 17:25, "Abigal the daughter of Nahash" is said to be her sister.

See ABIGAIL .

David Francis Roberts


ZETHAM

ze'-tham (zetham, meaning unknown): A Gershonite Levite (1 Ch 23:8; 26:22). In the second passage Curtis holds that "the sons of Jehieli" is a gloss; he points the Massoretic Text to read "brethren" instead of "brother," and so has "Jehiel (1 Ch 26:22) and his brethren, Zetham and Joel, were over the treasures."


ZETHAN

ze'-than (zethan, perhaps "olive tree"): A Benjamite (1 Ch 7:10), but Curtis holds that he is a Zebulunite (Chron., 145 ff).


ZETHAR

ze'-thar (zethar; Oppert, Esther, 25, compares Persian zaitar, "conqueror"; see BDB ; Septuagint Abataza):A eunuch of Ahasuerus (Est 1:10).


ZEUS

zus (Zeus, the Revised Version margin; the Revised Version (British and American) and the King James Version Jupiter): The supreme god of Hellenic theology, "king of gods and of men." In 168 BC Antiochus Epiphanes, "who on God's altars danced," bent upon the thorough Hellenization of Judea and Jerusalem, sent "an old man of Athens" (or "Geron an Athenian," the Revised Version margin) to pollute the sanctuary in the temple at Jerusalem and to call it by the name of Jupiter Olympius, and that at Gerizim by the name of Jupiter Xenius (2 Macc 6:1 ff). Olympius, from Mt. Olympus, the home of the gods, is the favorite epithet of Zeus, Zeus Olympius being to the Greek world what Jupiter Capitolinus was to the Roman. The same Antiochus commenced the splendid temple of Zeus Olympius, finished under Hadrian. Zeus is also frequently styled Xenius or "Protector of strangers" (Juppiter hospitalis) in classical literature. The epithet is here applied because the people of Gerizim--the Samaritans--were hospitable, probably an ironical statement of the author (compare Lk 9:52 f). Zeus is also in Acts 14:12 f the Revised Version margin for JUPITER (which see).

S. Angus



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