the Week of Proper 28 / Ordinary 33
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Bible Encyclopedias
Zephathah
Cyclopedia of Biblical, Theological and Ecclesiastical Literature
or (Heb. Tsepha'thah, צְפָתָה , watchtower; Sept. κατὰ βοῤᾶν; Josephus, Σαφθά , Ant. 8:12,1; Vulg. Sephata), the name of a valley (גֵּאי ) where Asa joined battle with Zerah the Ethiopian (2 Chronicles 14:10). It was "at," or rather "belonging to," Mareshah (לְמָרֵשָׁה; Josephus, οὐκ ἄπωθεν ). This would seem to exclude the possibility of its being, as suggested by Robinson (Bibl. Res.2, 31), at Teles-Safieh, which is not less than eight miles from Marash, the modern representative of Mareshah. There is a deep valley, which runs past the latter place down to, Beit Jibrin, and thence into the plain of Philistia. This, perhaps, may be the valley of Zephathah (Porter, Handbook, p. 258). Some, however, understand the name Zephathah to be only thatof Zepihath (q.v.), with ה directive, and render it "the valley towards Zephath."
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McClintock, John. Strong, James. Entry for 'Zephathah'. Cyclopedia of Biblical, Theological and Ecclesiastical Literature. https://www.studylight.org/encyclopedias/eng/tce/z/zephathah.html. Harper & Brothers. New York. 1870.
