Answer: Cushi
Zephaniah 1:1 says, "The word of the LORD which came unto Zephaniah the son of Cushi, the son of Gedaliah, the son of Amariah, the son of Hizkiah..."
The name Cushi means that he is a Cushite, from the land of Cush.
From Quiz: Zephaniah
Answer: Fish Gate
The Fish Gate was probably named from being close to the fish market. It was on the north side of Jerusalem, in the Second Quarter, built in the reign of Manasseh (2 Chronicles 33) and rebuilt in the time of the return from exile (Nehemiah 3).
From Quiz: BBB Bible Series: Zephaniah
Answer: Josiah
Josiah was king from about 640 to 609 BC. The name Josiah means "Yahweh heals."
Zephaniah 1:1 continues: "... in the days of Josiah the son of Amon, king of Judah."
From Quiz: Zephaniah
Answer: silver and gold
The theme of Zephaniah is very much like that of the earlier prophet Amos, who warned that riches and wealth will be of no use when the anger of the Lord is turned against the world.
From Quiz: BBB Bible Series: Zephaniah
Answer: inhabit them
Zephaniah 1:13: "Therefore their goods shall become a booty, and their houses a desolation: they shall also build houses, but not inhabit them; and they shall plant vineyards, but not drink the wine thereof."
This verse is a reference to what happens in times of war, when the enemy takes over the houses so that the people who lived in them can no longer live there.
From Quiz: Zephaniah
Answer: Persia
In this chapter the prophet describes how the wrath of the Lord will be directed against peoples in all four directions: west (Gaza, the Philistines, Ashkelon), the east (Moab, Ammon), the south (Ethiopians, by which he means the Ethiopian dynasty ruling in Egypt), and the north (Assyria, Nineveh). Persia would not become a major power until the next century.
From Quiz: BBB Bible Series: Zephaniah
Answer: righteousness and meekness
Zephaniah 2:3 "Seek ye the LORD, all ye meek of the earth, which have wrought his judgment; seek righteousness, seek meekness: it may be ye shall be hid in the day of the LORD's anger."
This does not necessarily mean that bad things will not happen, but that God will be with us and give us strength for when they do happen.
From Quiz: Zephaniah
Answer: Sodom
Genesis 19 tells the story of the destruction by fire of the cities of Sodom and Gomorrah. The similarity between Moab and Sodom is that both have incurred the wrath of the Lord and will be destroyed by his anger.
From Quiz: BBB Bible Series: Zephaniah
Answer: Gaza
Zephaniah 2:4 "For Gaza shall be forsaken, and Ashkelon a desolation: they shall drive out Ashdod at the noon day, and Ekron shall be rooted up."
The name "Gaza" means strong. It was a Philistine city.
From Quiz: Zephaniah
Answer: Nineveh
Nineveh was a city in what is now the northern portion of Iraq. It was one of the most important ancient cities and was the capital of the Assyrian Empire in the 7th century BC. It was also the city to which the prophet Jonah was sent and which repented of its wicked ways. It was in fact destroyed in 612 BC, soon after the prophecy of Zephaniah was delivered.
From Quiz: BBB Bible Series: Zephaniah
Answer: Ethiopia
Zephaniah 2:12 "Ye Ethiopians also, ye shall be slain by my sword."
This is not necessarily the same Ethiopia that we know today. Ethiopia and Cush are often alternated between (as far as which word is used) so it is believed they are the same place.
From Quiz: Zephaniah
Answer: greedy wolves
The passage reads in the RSV: "her judges are evening wolves that leave nothing till the morning". The point seems to be that these wolves are so ravenous that they eat all their catch in the evening, leaving nothing for the next day.
From Quiz: BBB Bible Series: Zephaniah
Answer: roaring lions
Zephaniah 3:3 says, "Her princes within her are roaring lions; her judges are evening wolves; they gnaw not the bones till the morrow."
This implies the rulers are evil and act more like animals than like leaders.
From Quiz: Zephaniah
Answer: Ethiopia
"Ethiopia" in the ancient context does not mean the modern nation in northeast Africa, but rather the Sudan. The Romans called the same people "Nubians", and these were located up the Nile beyond the borders of Egypt. The waters of Ethiopia would be the Nile and its two main branches.
From Quiz: BBB Bible Series: Zephaniah
Answer: afflicted and poor people
Zephaniah 3:12 says, "I will also leave in the midst of thee an afflicted and poor people, and they shall trust in the name of the LORD."
Often people only turn to God when they are in trouble, and here it says that the afflicted and poor people will trust in the name of the Lord. In the New Testament, Jesus talks about how it is easier for a poor person to get into Heaven than a rich person.
From Quiz: Zephaniah
Answer: a warrior
The phrase "a warrior who gives victory" is very much like the image used in Zechariah 3:5 where the just king comes, "bringing salvation". The Lord is both the conquering hero and the one who brings salvation to his people.
From Quiz: BBB Bible Series: Zephaniah
Answer: "Let not thine hands be slack."
Zephaniah 3:16 says, "In that day it shall be said to Jerusalem, Fear thou not: and to Zion, Let not thine hands be slack."
This is a reminder that we should serve the Lord.
The other lines are all famous lines. "To thine own self be true" is from Shakespeare's "Hamlet", "Do not go gentle into that good night" is from a poem by Dylan Thomas, and "Love your neighbor as yourself" is what Jesus tells his disciples in the New Testament.
From Quiz: Zephaniah
Answer: The Day of the Lord
For Zephaniah the Lord cares very much about morality and proper ethical behaviour. Those who act wrongly, especially those with riches and power and authority, will be punished when "the day of the Lord arrives", a very frequent phrase in Zephaniah.
From Quiz: BBB Bible Series: Zephaniah
Answer: Lord
Zephaniah 3:20 says, "At that time will I bring you again, even in the time that I gather you: for I will make you a name and a praise among all people of the earth, when I turn back your captivity before your eyes, saith the LORD."
I hope you enjoyed this quiz on Zephaniah. The next quiz will be on the book of Haggai.
From Quiz: Zephaniah
