Bible Commentaries
Zephaniah 2

Verses 1-15

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.

Zephaniah 2:4 Comments - Amos, Jeremiah, Zephaniah and Zechariah list only four of the five renowned Philistine cities in their prophecies: Gaza, Ashdod, Ashkelon, and Ekron. Stuart suggests the fifth leading city of Gath, the city farthest inland and renown as the home of Goliath, may not have been mentioned because of being weakened by the conquests of Hazael, king of Syria. He supports this statement by noting how Gath is omitted from later prophecies against Philistia, perhaps because it lost its independence (Amos 1:8, Jeremiah 25:20, Zephaniah 2:4, Zechariah 9:5-7). [7] However, it may be possible that King David contributed to the demise of Gath during his conquests mentioned in 2 Samuel 21:18-22 when the brothers of Goliath were killed. Uzziah later warred against Gath and other Philistine cities (2 Chronicles 26:6). It appears Gath had been overthrown by the time of Amos, the earliest of these prophets (Amos 6:2).

[7] Douglas Stuart, Hosea-Jonah, in Word Biblical Commentary: 58 Volumes on CD-Rom, vol. 31, eds. Bruce M. Metzger, David A. Hubbard and Glenn W. Barker (Dallas: Word Inc., 2002), in Libronix Digital Library System, v. 2.1c [CD-ROM] (Bellingham, WA: Libronix Corp., 2000-2004), comments on Amos 1:6-8.

Amos 1:8, “And I will cut off the inhabitant from Ashdod, and him that holdeth the sceptre from Ashkelon, and I will turn mine hand against Ekron: and the remnant of the Philistines shall perish, saith the Lord GOD.”

Jeremiah 25:20, “And all the mingled people, and all the kings of the land of Uz, and all the kings of the land of the Philistines, and Ashkelon, and Azzah, and Ekron, and the remnant of Ashdod,”

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.”

Zechariah 9:5-7, “Ashkelon shall see it, and fear; Gaza also shall see it, and be very sorrowful, and Ekron; for her expectation shall be ashamed; and the king shall perish from Gaza, and Ashkelon shall not be inhabited. And a bastard shall dwell in Ashdod, and I will cut off the pride of the Philistines. And I will take away his blood out of his mouth, and his abominations from between his teeth: but he that remaineth, even he, shall be for our God, and he shall be as a governor in Judah, and Ekron as a Jebusite.”

2 Chronicles 26:6, “And he went forth and warred against the Philistines, and brake down the wall of Gath, and the wall of Jabneh, and the wall of Ashdod, and built cities about Ashdod, and among the Philistines.”

Amos 6:2, “Pass ye unto Calneh, and see; and from thence go ye to Hamath the great: then go down to Gath of the Philistines: be they better than these kingdoms? or their border greater than your border?”