The Meaning of Zephaniah 2:4 Explained

Zephaniah 2:4

KJV: For Gaza shall be forsaken, and Ashkelon a desolation: they shall drive out Ashdod at the noon day, and Ekron shall be rooted up.

YLT: For Gaza is forsaken, And Ashkelon is for a desolation, Ashdod! at noon they do cast her forth, And Ekron is rooted up.

Darby: For Gazah shall be forsaken, and Ashkelon shall be a desolation; they shall drive out Ashdod at noonday, and Ekron shall be rooted up.

ASV: For Gaza shall be forsaken, and Ashkelon a desolation; they shall drive out Ashdod at noonday, and Ekron shall be rooted up.

KJV Reverse Interlinear

For Gaza  shall be forsaken,  and Ashkelon  a desolation:  they shall drive out  Ashdod  at the noon day,  and Ekron  shall be rooted up. 

What does Zephaniah 2:4 Mean?

Verse Meaning

The prophet announced that destruction would overtake four of the five cities of the Philistine pentapolis (cf. Isaiah 14:28-32; Jeremiah 47; Ezekiel 25:15-17; Amos 1:6-8). He listed them from south to north. Gath had evidently declined already (cf. 2 Chronicles 26:6; Amos 1:6-8; Zechariah 9:5-7), or perhaps Zephaniah selected only four towns to preserve literary parallelism. "Gaza" and "abandoned" sound similar in Hebrew, as do "Ekron" and "uprooted." Being driven out at noon may imply an unexpected time since people normally rested during the hottest part of the day.

Context Summary

Zephaniah 2:1-15 - Meekness Saves, Pride Destroys
The nation, on the whole, had no remorse, no desire for God; but there were a few meek and lowly souls, and the hope was held out to them that they would be hidden from the coming overthrow. God discriminates in His judgments, and sends His angels to conduct Lot out of Sodom. The judgment of the surrounding nations occupies Zephaniah 2:4-15. Philistia, Moab, Amnion, Ethiopia and Assyria, are mentioned. God never forgets the treatment meted out to His people by their foes, Zephaniah 2:8-10. The captivity of Israel would be turned again, but there was no hope of recovery for the peoples that had rejoiced in their overthrow. What a picture is given in Zephaniah 2:11 of famished gods! It seemed incredible that great Nineveh should become a wilderness, yet so it has been for centuries. Whenever an individual or nation dwells carelessly, destruction is not far away. [source]

Chapter Summary: Zephaniah 2

1  An exhortation to repentance
4  The judgment of the Philistines,
8  of Moab and Ammon,
12  of Ethiopia,
13  and of Assyria

What do the individual words in Zephaniah 2:4 mean?

For Gaza forsaken shall be and Ashkelon desolate Ashdod at noonday they shall drive out and Ekron shall be uprooted -
כִּ֤י עַזָּה֙ עֲזוּבָ֣ה תִֽהְיֶ֔ה וְאַשְׁקְל֖וֹן לִשְׁמָמָ֑ה אַשְׁדּ֗וֹד בַּֽצָּהֳרַ֙יִם֙ יְגָ֣רְשׁ֔וּהָ וְעֶקְר֖וֹן תֵּעָקֵֽר ס

עַזָּה֙  Gaza 
Parse: Proper Noun, feminine singular
Root: עַזָּה  
Sense: another name for ‘Gaza’, a city of the Philistines located in the extreme southwest of Palestine close to the Mediterranean.
עֲזוּבָ֣ה  forsaken 
Parse: Verb, Qal, QalPassParticiple, feminine singular
Root: עָזַב 
Sense: to leave, loose, forsake.
תִֽהְיֶ֔ה  shall  be 
Parse: Verb, Qal, Imperfect, third person feminine singular
Root: אֶהְיֶה 
Sense: to be, become, come to pass, exist, happen, fall out.
וְאַשְׁקְל֖וֹן  and  Ashkelon 
Parse: Conjunctive waw, Proper Noun, feminine singular
Root: אַשְׁקְלֹון  
Sense: a maritime city of the Philistines, southwest of Jerusalem.
לִשְׁמָמָ֑ה  desolate 
Parse: Preposition-l, Noun, feminine singular
Root: שְׁמָמָה 
Sense: devastation, waste, desolation.
אַשְׁדּ֗וֹד  Ashdod 
Parse: Proper Noun, feminine singular
Root: אַשְׁדֹּוד  
Sense: a major Philistine city on the Mediterranean Sea west from Jerusalem, modern Esdud.
בַּֽצָּהֳרַ֙יִם֙  at  noonday 
Parse: Preposition-b, Article, Noun, masculine plural
Root: צֹהַר 
Sense: noon, midday.
יְגָ֣רְשׁ֔וּהָ  they  shall  drive  out 
Parse: Verb, Piel, Imperfect, third person masculine plural, third person feminine singular
Root: גָּרַשׁ 
Sense: to drive out, expel, cast out, drive away, divorce, put away, thrust away, trouble, cast up.
וְעֶקְר֖וֹן  and  Ekron 
Parse: Conjunctive waw, Proper Noun, feminine singular
Root: עֶקְרֹון  
Sense: the most northerly of the 5 principal cities of the Philistines; located in the lowlands of Judah and later given to Dan.
תֵּעָקֵֽר  shall  be  uprooted 
Parse: Verb, Nifal, Imperfect, third person feminine singular
Root: עָקַר 
Sense: to pluck up, root up.
ס  - 
Parse: Punctuation