Ziphah
Ziphah, a descendant of Judah, was one of the sons of Jehallelel (1Ch.4.16).
Biography
Ziphah was a son of Jehallelel, a descendant of Judah, named alongside his brothers Ziph, Tiria, and Asarel in the genealogical record of 1 Chronicles 4:16. The Chronicles genealogies of Judah in chapter 4 extend the tribal record across numerous sub-clans and families, preserving names that otherwise appear nowhere in the biblical narrative. Ziphah's name appears only in this single verse, offering no details about his life, occupation, or descendants. He belongs to the extensive sub-structure of the tribe of Judah whose careful documentation by the Chronicler served the post-exilic community's need to establish tribal identity and land heritage. His very obscurity is representative of the vast majority of Israel's covenant community whose lives were lived in faithful but unrecorded faithfulness.
Significance
Ziphah's solitary appearance in 1 Chronicles 4:16 exemplifies a theological dimension of the biblical genealogies that is easy to overlook: the covenant community of God is vast, multi-generational, and populated by countless individuals whose names God preserves even when their stories are not told. The Chronicler's preservation of Ziphah's name alongside his brothers reflects the conviction that every member of God's people has a place in the record of divine covenant faithfulness. In a broader sense, Ziphah represents all those whose contribution to the people of God was real and valued even though it left no visible mark on the narrative of salvation history.
Verse Appearances (1)
1Chr
References
- Orr, J. (ed.) (1915) The International Standard Bible Encyclopedia. Chicago: Howard-Severance Company. [Public Domain]
- Tyndale House, Cambridge (n.d.) Translators Individualised Proper Names with all References (TIPNR). STEPBible. Available at: https://www.stepbible.org. [CC BY 4.0]
- Wikidata contributors (n.d.) Wikidata. Available at: https://www.wikidata.org. [CC0]
- Church of England (1769) The Holy Bible, Authorized (King James) Version. [Public Domain]