Bible Dictionary Project: Old Testament

Name: April Osgood

Student ID: L03479446

Course: 201520 Spring 2015 Bibl 104-B46 LUO

Date: 2/15/15

Old Testament Bible Dictionary Project:

Zephaniah
Zephaniah is an Old Testament Minor prophet book. Written by Zephaniah himself during 630-625 BC, it mainly focused on Judah itself. The main purposes of the book have to do with changing the focus of Judah to help them to get back on the right path. It also was written to inform the people of Judah to inform them of the coming of the Lord’s Judgement. The main people we see throughout this book is King Josiah, Judah’s last godly king, and Judah itself. Judah thought that since they were God’s chosen people, that they didn’t have to worry but that was the opposite, they needed to repent and get back on the path towards the Lord. The book discusses not just the judgement of Judah, but also the judgement of all the nations. Zephaniah stressed that the Lord’s blessings weren’t for the wicked and those who were evildoers, but instead was for the humble. The reign of King Josiah and during the transitions as the Neo-Assyrian Empire was coming to an end and the Babylonians were rising to power in the Middle East, prior to Jerusalem falling to the Babylonians.

Saul
King Saul was born in 1082 BC and lived until 1010 BC, when he committed suicide during a battle with the Philistines on Mount Gilboa. He was born in the town of Gibeah in northern Jerusalem. Saul was king between 1050-1010 BC and became a king in a very different way. He was selected as a King by people’s choice. They selected him based upon his outward appearance rather than his heart and his mind. Saul’s main contemporaries were Samuel and David. Saul was not a king