Zephaniah (son of Maaseiah)

Biblical Account

Zephaniah son of Maaseiah was a priest in the final years of the kingdom of Judah who appears in 2 Kings and Jeremiah. Jeremiah 52:24 and 2 Kings 25:18 call him "the second priest," that is, the priest ranking next to the high priest. According to Jeremiah 29:26, he was responsible for order in the house of the LORD, that is, the temple. He also had authority to put in the stocks (a wooden frame that fastened the feet) anyone who made himself a prophet.

• A letter from exile: Shemaiah the Nehelamite, who had been carried away to Babylon, sent a letter to Zephaniah and the priests in Jerusalem. The letter demanded to know why they had not restrained Jeremiah, who had said that the captivity would be long (Jeremiah 29:24-28). Zephaniah read this letter to Jeremiah. Afterward, the word of the LORD came to Jeremiah pronouncing judgment on Shemaiah (Jeremiah 29:29-32).
• Royal envoy: When Nebuchadnezzar attacked Jerusalem, King Zedekiah sent Pashur son of Melchiah and Zephaniah to Jeremiah, asking him to inquire of the LORD on their behalf. Jeremiah answered that God would instead fight against the city (Jeremiah 21:1-7). When the Babylonian army had temporarily withdrawn, the king again sent Jehucal son of Shelemiah and Zephaniah to request prayer. Jeremiah replied that the Babylonian army would return and burn the city with fire (Jeremiah 37:3-10).
• Execution: After Jerusalem fell, Nebuzaradan, the captain of the guard, seized Seraiah the chief priest, Zephaniah the second priest, the three keepers of the door, and others. He brought them to the king of Babylon at Riblah in the land of Hamath, and the king put them to death there (Jeremiah 52:24-27; 2 Kings 25:18-21).

Significance in Scripture

Zephaniah illustrates how the leadership of Judah responded to Jeremiah's prophecies on the eve of the nation's destruction. In each crisis the king sent men to Jeremiah to seek God's help, yet he did not accept the counsel to surrender to Babylon (Jeremiah 21:8-10). Zephaniah was a senior priest who served as an intermediary between the king and the prophet, and he was ultimately executed in the destruction of Jerusalem that Jeremiah had foretold. He is not mentioned in the New Testament.

Interpretations and Debates

• His attitude toward Jeremiah: After receiving Shemaiah's letter, Zephaniah did not punish Jeremiah but instead read the letter to him (Jeremiah 29:29). Some interpreters take this as evidence that he was somewhat sympathetic to Jeremiah. Others hold that he merely informed Jeremiah of the letter's contents in order to demand an explanation. The text does not disclose his intentions.
• The two envoy accounts: Some regard the accounts in Jeremiah 21 and 37 as describing separate occasions, while others see them as two versions of the same event. Because the Book of Jeremiah is not arranged in chronological order, the precise timing is difficult to determine.
• Others of the same name: The prophet Zephaniah who wrote the Book of Zephaniah was the son of Cushi and lived in the days of King Josiah (Zephaniah 1:1); he is a different person. The Levite Zephaniah in 1 Chronicles 6:36 and the men named Zephaniah from the time of Nehemiah are also different individuals.

In the Korean Church

He is rarely made the subject of a sermon or Sunday school lesson in his own right. He is usually mentioned as one of the figures in Jeremiah 21, 29, and 37 or in treatments of the fall of Jerusalem. Because he shares a name with the author of the book of Zephaniah among the Minor Prophets, the two are easily confused. The biblical text itself usually distinguishes him by calling him "the son of Maaseiah."