(2.) A mount in the highlands of Ephraim, to the north of Jerusalem (2 Chr. 13:4-20). Here the armies of Abijah and Jeroboam engaged in a bloody battle, which issued in the total defeat of the king of Israel, who never "recovered strength again," and soon after died.
Zemarite -
the designation of one of the Phoenician tribes (Gen. 10:18) who
inhabited the town of Sumra, at the western base of the Lebanon
range. In the Amarna tablets (B.C. 1400) Zemar, or Zumur, was
one of the most important of the Phoenician cities, but it
afterwards almost disappears from history.
Zemira -
vine-dresser, a Benjamite; one of the sons of Becher (1 Chr.
7:8).
Zenas -
a disciple called "the lawyer," whom Paul wished Titus to bring
with him (Titus 3:13). Nothing more is known of him.
Zephaniah -
Jehovah has concealed, or Jehovah of darkness. (1.) The son of
Cushi, and great-grandson of Hezekiah, and the ninth in the
order of the minor prophets. He prophesied in the days of
Josiah, king of Judah (B.C. 641-610), and was contemporary with
Jeremiah, with whom he had much in common. The book of his
prophecies consists of:
(a) An introduction (1:1-6), announcing the judgment of the
world, and the judgment upon Israel, because of their
transgressions.
(b) The description of the judgment (1:7-18).
(c) An exhortation to seek God while there is still time
(2:1-3).
(d) The announcement of judgment on the heathen (2:4-15).
(e) The hopeless misery of Jerusalem (3:1-7).
(f) The promise of salvation (3:8-20).
(2.) The son of Maaseiah, the "second priest" in the reign of
Zedekiah, often mentioned in Jeremiah as having been sent from
the king to inquire (Jer. 21:1) regarding the coming woes which
he had denounced, and to entreat the prophet's intercession that
the judgment threatened might be averted (Jer. 29:25, 26, 29;
37:3; 52:24). He, along with some other captive Jews, was put to
death by the king of Babylon "at Riblah in the land of Hamath"
(2 Kings 25:21).
(3.) A Kohathite ancestor of the prophet Samuel (1 Chr. 6:36).
(4.) The father of Josiah, the priest who dwelt in Jerusalem
when Darius issued the decree that the temple should be rebuilt
(Zech. 6:10).
Zephath -
beacon; watch-tower, a Canaanite town; called also Hormah
(q.v.), Judg. 1:17. It has been identified with the pass of
es-Sufah, but with greater probability with S'beita.
Zephathah -
a valley in the west of Judah, near Mareshah; the scene of Asa's
conflict with Zerah the Ethiopian (2 Chr. 14:9-13). Identified
with the Wady Safieh.
Zerah -
sunrise. (1.) An "Ethiopian," probably Osorkon II., the
successor of Shishak on the throne of Egypt. With an enormous
army, the largest we read of in Scripture, he invaded the
kingdom of Judah in the days of Asa (2 Chr. 14:9-15). He reached
Zephathah, and there encountered the army of Asa. This is the
only instance "in all the annals of Judah of a victorious
encounter in the field with a first-class heathen power in full
force." The Egyptian host was utterly routed, and the Hebrews
gathered "exceeding much spoil." Three hundred years elapsed
before another Egyptian army, that of Necho (B.C. 609), came up
against Jerusalem.
(2.) A son of Tamar (Gen. 38:30); called also Zara (Matt.
1:3).
(3.) A Gershonite Levite (1 Chr. 6:21, 41).
Zered -
=Zared, luxuriance; willow bush, a brook or valley communicating
with the Dead Sea near its southern extremity (Num. 21:12; Deut.
2:14). It is called the "brook of the willows" (Isa. 15:7) and
the "river of the wilderness" (Amos 6:14). It has been
identified with the Wady el-Aksy.
Zereda -
the fortress, a city on the north of Mount Ephraim; the
birthplace of Jeroboam (1 Kings 11:26). It is probably the same
as Zaretan (Josh. 3:16), Zererath (Judg. 7:22), Zartanah (1
Kings 4:12), or the following.
Zeredathah -
a place in the plain of Jordan; the same as Zarthan (2 Chr.
4:17; 1 Kings 7:46). Here Solomon erected the foundries in which
Hiram made the great castings of bronze for the temple.
Zererath -
(Judg. 7:22), perhaps identical with Zereda or Zeredathah. Some
identify it with Zahrah, a place about 3 miles west of
Beth-shean.
Zeresh -
star of Venus, the wife of Haman, whom she instigated to prepare
a gallows for Mordecai (Esther 5:10).
Zeruah -
stricken, mother of Jeroboam, the first king of the ten tribes
(1 Kings 11:26).
Zerubbabel -
the seed of Babylon, the son of Salathiel or Shealtiel (Hag.
1:1; Zorobabel, Matt. 1:12); called also the son of Pedaiah (1
Chr. 3:17-19), i.e., according to a frequent usage of the word
"son;" the grandson or the nephew of Salathiel. He is also known
by the Persian name of Sheshbazzar (Ezra 1:8, 11). In the first
year of Cyrus, king of Persia, he led the first band of Jews,
numbering 42,360 (Ezra 2:64), exclusive of a large number of
servants, who returned from captivity at the close of the
seventy years. In the second year after the Return, he erected
an altar and laid the foundation of the temple on the ruins of
that which had been destroyed by Nebuchadnezzar (3:8-13; ch.
4-6). All through the work he occupied a prominent place,
inasmuch as he was a descendant of the royal line of David.
Zeruiah -
stricken of the Lord, David's sister, and the mother of Abishai,
Joab, and Asahel (1 Chr. 2:16), who were the three leading
heroes of David's army, and being his nephews, they were
admitted to the closest companionship with him.
Zetham -
olive planter, a Levite (1 Chr. 23:8).
Zethan -
a Benjamite (1 Chr. 7:10).
Zia -
fear, a Gadite (1 Chr. 5:13).
Ziba -
post; statue, "a servant of the house of Saul" (2 Sam. 9:2), who
informed David that Mephibosheth, a son of Jonathan, was alive.
He afterwards dealt treacherously toward Mephibosheth, whom he
slanderously misrepresented to David.
Zibeon -
robber; or dyed. (1.) A Hivite (Gen. 36:2).
(2.) A Horite, and son of Seir (Gen. 36:20).
Zibia -
gazelle, a Benjamite (1 Chr. 8:9).
Zibiah -
the mother of King Joash (2 Kings 12:1; 2 Chr. 24:1).
Zichri -
remembered; illustrious. (1.) A Benjamite chief (1 Chr. 8:19).
(2.) Another of the same tribe (1 Chr. 8:23).
Ziddim -
sides, a town of Naphtali (Josh. 19:35), has been identified
with Kefr-Hattin, the "village of the Hittites," about 5 miles
west of Tiberias.
Zidkijah -
the Lord is righteous, one who sealed the covenant with Nehemiah
(Neh. 10:1).
Zidon -
a fishery, a town on the Mediterranean coast, about 25 miles
north of Tyre. It received its name from the "first-born" of
Canaan, the grandson of Noah (Gen. 10:15, 19). It was the first
home of the Phoenicians on the coast of Palestine, and from its
extensive commercial relations became a "great" city (Josh.
11:8; 19:28). It was the mother city of Tyre. It lay within the
lot of the tribe of Asher, but was never subdued (Judg. 1:31).
The Zidonians long oppressed Israel (Judg. 10:12). From the time
of David its glory began to wane, and Tyre, its "virgin
daughter" (Isa. 23:12), rose to its place of pre-eminence.
Solomon entered into a matrimonial alliance with the Zidonians,
and thus their form of idolatrous worship found a place in the
land of Israel (1 Kings 11:1, 33). This city was famous for its
manufactures and arts, as well as for its commerce (1 Kings 5:6;
1 Chr. 22:4; Ezek. 27:8). It is frequently referred to by the
prophets (Isa. 23:2, 4, 12; Jer. 25:22; 27:3; 47:4; Ezek. 27:8;
28:21, 22; 32:30; Joel 3:4). Our Lord visited the "coasts" of
Tyre and Zidon = Sidon (q.v.), Matt. 15:21; Mark 7:24; Luke
4:26; and from this region many came forth to hear him preaching
(Mark 3:8; Luke 6:17). From Sidon, at which the ship put in
after leaving Caesarea, Paul finally sailed for Rome (Acts 27:3,
4).
This city is now a town of 10,000 inhabitants, with remains of
walls built in the twelfth century A.D. In 1855, the sarcophagus
of Eshmanezer was discovered. From a Phoenician inscription on
its lid, it appears that he was a "king of the Sidonians,"
probably in the third century B.C., and that his mother was a
priestess of Ashtoreth, "the goddess of the Sidonians." In this
inscription Baal is mentioned as the chief god of the Sidonians.
Zif -
brightness; splendour; i.e., "the flower month," mentioned only
in 1 Kings 6:1, 37, as the "second month." It was called Iyar by
the later Jews. (See MONTH.)
Ziha -
drought. (1.) The name of a family of Nethinim (Ezra 2:43; Neh.
7:46). (2.) A ruler among the Nethinim (Neh. 11:21).
Ziklag -
a town in the Negeb, or south country of Judah (Josh. 15:31), in
the possession of the Philistines when David fled to Gath from
Ziph with all his followers. Achish, the king, assigned him
Ziklag as his place of residence. There he dwelt for over a year
and four months. From this time it pertained to the kings of
Judah (1 Sam. 27:6). During his absence with his army to join
the Philistine expedition against the Israelites (29:11), it was
destroyed by the Amalekites (30:1, 2), whom David, however,
pursued and utterly routed, returning all the captives (1 Sam.
30:26-31). Two days after his return from this expedition, David
received tidings of the disastrous battle of Gilboa and of the
death of Saul (2 Sam. 1:1-16). He now left Ziklag and returned
to Hebron, along with his two wives, Ahinoam and Abigail, and
his band of 600 men. It has been identified with 'Asluj, a heap
of ruins south of Beersheba. Conder, however, identifies it with
Khirbet Zuheilikah, ruins found on three hills half a mile
apart, some seventeen miles north-west of Beersheba, on the
confines of Philistia, Judah, and Amalek.
Zillah -
shadow, one of the wives of Lamech, of the line of Cain, and
mother of Tubal-cain (Gen. 4:19, 22).
Zilpah -
drooping, Leah's handmaid, and the mother of Gad and Asher (Gen.
30:9-13).
Zilthai -
shadow (i.e., protection) of Jehovah. (1.) A Benjamite (1 Chr.
8:20). (2.) One of the captains of the tribe of Manasseh who
joined David at Ziklag (1 Chr. 12:20).
Zimmah -
mischief. (1.) A Gershonite Levite (1 Chr. 6:20).
(2.) Another Gershonite Levite (1 Chr. 6:42).
(3.) The father of Joah (2 Chr. 29:12).
Zimran -
vine-dressers; celebrated, one of the sons of Abraham by Keturah
(Gen. 25:2).
Zimri -
praise-worthy. (1.) A son of Salu, slain by Phinehas, the son of
Eleazar, because of his wickedness in bringing a Midianitish
woman into his tent (Num. 25:6-15).
(2.) Murdered Elah at Tirzah, and succeeded him on the throne
of Israel (1 Kings 16:8-10). He reigned only seven days, for
Omri, whom the army elected as king, laid siege to Tirzah,
whereupon Zimri set fire to the palace and perished amid its
ruins (11-20). Omri succeeded to the throne only after four
years of fierce war with Tibni, another claimant to the throne.
Zin -
a low palm-tree, the south-eastern corner of the desert et-Tih,
the wilderness of Paran, between the Gulf of Akabah and the head
of the Wady Guraiyeh (Num. 13:21). To be distinguished from the
wilderness of Sin (q.v.).
Zina -
ornament, one of the sons of Shimei (1 Chr. 23:10).
Zion -
sunny; height, one of the eminences on which Jerusalem was
built. It was surrounded on all sides, except the north, by deep
valleys, that of the Tyropoeon (q.v.) separating it from Moriah
(q.v.), which it surpasses in height by 105 feet. It was the
south-eastern hill of Jerusalem.
When David took it from the Jebusites (Josh. 15:63; 2 Sam.
5:7) he built on it a citadel and a palace, and it became "the
city of David" (1 Kings 8:1; 2 Kings 19:21, 31; 1 Chr. 11:5). In
the later books of the Old Testament this name was sometimes
used (Ps. 87:2; 149:2; Isa. 33:14; Joel 2:1) to denote Jerusalem
in general, and sometimes God's chosen Israel (Ps. 51:18; 87:5).
In the New Testament (see SION ¯T0003448) it is used sometimes
to denote the Church of God (Heb. 12:22), and sometimes the
heavenly city (Rev. 14:1).
Zior -
littleness, a city in the mountains of Judah (Josh. 15:54); the
modern Si'air, 4 1/2 miles north-north-east of Hebron.
Ziph -
flowing. (1.) A son of Jehaleleel (1 Chr. 4:16).
(2.) A city in the south of Judah (Josh. 15:24), probably at
the pass of Sufah.
(3.) A city in the mountains of Judah (Josh. 15:55),
identified with the uninhabited ruins of Tell ez-Zif, about 5
miles south-east of Hebron. Here David hid himself during his
wanderings (1 Sam. 23:19; Ps. 54, title).
Ziphah -
a descendant of Judah (1 Chr. 4:16).
Ziphron -
sweet odour, a city on the northern border of Palestine (Num.
34:9), south-east of Hamath.
Zippor -
a little bird, the father of Balak, king of Moab (Num. 22:2, 4).
Zipporah -
a female bird. Reuel's daughter, who became the wife of Moses
(Ex. 2:21). In consequence of the event recorded in Ex. 4:24-26,
she and her two sons, Gershom and Eliezer, when so far on the
way with Moses toward Egypt, were sent back by him to her own
kinsfolk, the Midianites, with whom they sojourned till Moses
afterwards joined them (18:2-6).
Zithri -
the Lord protects, a Levite, son of Uzziel (Ex. 6:22).
Ziz -
projecting; a flower, a cleft or pass, probably that near
En-gedi, which leads up from the Dead Sea (2 Chr. 20:16) in the
direction of Tekoa; now Tell Hasasah.
Ziza -
splendour; abundance. (1.) A Simeonite prince (1 Chr. 4:37-43).
(2.) A son of Rehoboam (2 Chr. 11:20).
Zizah -
a Gershonite Levite (1 Chr. 23:11).
Zoan -
(Old Egypt. Sant= "stronghold," the modern San). A city on the
Tanitic branch of the Nile, called by the Greeks Tanis. It was
built seven years after Hebron in Palestine (Num. 13:22). This
great and important city was the capital of the Hyksos, or
Shepherd kings, who ruled Egypt for more than 500 years. It was
the frontier town of Goshen. Here Pharaoh was holding his court
at the time of his various interviews with Moses and Aaron. "No
trace of Zoan exists; Tanis was built over it, and city after
city has been built over the ruins of that" (Harper, Bible and
Modern Discovery). Extensive mounds of ruins, the wreck of the
ancient city, now mark its site (Isa. 19:11, 13; 30:4; Ezek.
30:14). "The whole constitutes one of the grandest and oldest
ruins in the world."
This city was also called "the Field of Zoan" (Ps. 78:12, 43)
and "the Town of Rameses" (q.v.), because the oppressor rebuilt
and embellished it, probably by the forced labour of the
Hebrews, and made it his northern capital.
Zoar -
small, a town on the east or south-east of the Dead Sea, to
which Lot and his daughters fled from Sodom (Gen. 19:22, 23). It
was originally called Bela (14:2, 8). It is referred to by the
prophets Isaiah (15:5) and Jeremiah (48:34). Its ruins are still
seen at the opening of the ravine of Kerak, the Kir-Moab
referred to in 2 Kings 3, the modern Tell esh-Shaghur.
Zobah -
=Aram-Zobah, (Ps. 60, title), a Syrian province or kingdom to
the south of Coele-Syria, and extending from the eastern slopes
of Lebanon north and east toward the Euphrates. Saul and David
had war with the kings of Zobah (1 Sam. 14:47; 2 Sam. 8:3;
10:6).
Zohar -
brightness. (1.) The father of Ephron the Hittite (Gen. 23:8).
(2.) One of the sons of Simeon (Gen. 46:10; Ex. 6:15).
Zoheleth -
the serpent-stone, a rocky plateau near the centre of the
village of Siloam, and near the fountain of En-rogel, to which
the women of the village resort for water (1 Kings 1:5-9). Here
Adonijah (q.v.) feasted all the royal princess except Solomon
and the men who took part with him in his effort to succeed to
the throne. While they were assembled here Solomon was
proclaimed king, through the intervention of Nathan. On hearing
this, adonijah fled and took refuge in the sanctuary (1 Kings
1:49-53). He was afterwards pardoned.
Zoheleth projects into or slightly over-hangs the Kidron
valley. It is now called ez-Zehwell or Zahweileh.
Zoheth -
snatching (?), one of the sons of Ishi (1 Chr. 4:20).
Zophah -
spreading out, a son of Helem (1 Chr. 7:35), a chief of Asher.
Zophar -
chirping, one of Job's friends who came to condole with him in
his distress (Job 2:11. The LXX. render here "king of the
Mineans" = Ma'in, Maonites, Judg. 10:12, in Southern Arabia). He
is called a Naamathite, or an inhabitant of some unknown place
called Naamah.
Zophim, Field of -
field of watchers, a place in Moab on the range of Pisgah (Num.
23:14). To this place Balak brought Balaam, that he might from
thence curse the children of Israel. Balaam could only speak the
word of the Lord, and that was blessing. It is the modern
Tal'at-es-Safa. (See PISGAH.)
Zorah -
place of wasps, a town in the low country of Judah, afterwards
given to Dan (Josh. 19:41; Judg. 18:2), probably the same as
Zoreah (Josh. 15:33). This was Samson's birthplace (Judg. 13:2,
25), and near it he found a grave (16:31). It was situated on
the crest of a hill overlooking the valley of Sorek, and was
fortified by Rehoboam (2 Chr. 11:10). It has been identified
with Sur'ah, in the Wady Surar, 8 miles west of Jerusalem. It is
noticed on monuments in the fifteenth century B.C. as attacked
by the Abiri or Hebrews.
Zuph -
honeycomb, a Kohathite Levite, ancestor of Elkanah and Samuel (1
Sam. 1:1); called also Zophai (1 Chr. 6:26).
Zuph, Land of -
(1 Sam. 9:5, 6), a district in which lay Samuel's city, Ramah.
It was probably so named after Elkanah's son, Zuph (1 Chr. 6:26,
marg.).
Zur -
rock. (1.) One of the five Midianite kings whom the Israelites
defeated and put to death (Num. 31:8).
(2.) A Benjamite (1 Chr. 8:30).
Zuriel -
rock of God, chief of the family of the Merarites (Num. 3:35) at
the time of the Exodus.