Editing Zephaniah (section)

===Date of activity===
Under the two preceding kings of Judah, [[Amon of Judah]] and [[Manasseh of Judah]], the cult of other deities, especially [[Baal]] and [[Astarte]], had developed in Jerusalem,<ref>[http://www.theology.edu/lec21.htm ANE History: The End of Judah] Copyright © Quartz Hill School of Theology</ref><ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.enduringword.com/commentaries/1221.htm|title=2 Kings 21 - The Wicked Reigns of Manasseh and Amon}}</ref> bringing with it elements of alien culture and morals. Josiah, a dedicated reformer,<ref name = "a">[http://members.bib-arch.org/publication.asp?PubID=BSBKAM&Volume=0&Issue=0&ArticleID=4 "The Religious Reforms of Hezekiah and Josiah"] at the [http://members.bib-arch.org/ Biblical Archaeology Society Online Archive]</ref> wished to put an end to perceived misuse of the holy places. One of the most zealous champions and advisers of this reform was Zephaniah, and his writing remains one of the most important documents for the understanding of the era of Josiah.

Boldly predicting the destruction of [[Judea and Samaria Area|Judah]] for the evil committed by its occupants,<ref name=mason/> the prophet spoke against the religious and moral corruption, when, in view of the idolatry which had penetrated even into the sanctuary, he warned that God would "destroy out of this place the remnant of Baal, and the names of the idolatrous priests" (Zeph 1:4), and pleaded for a return to the simplicity of their fathers instead of the luxurious foreign clothing which was worn especially in aristocratic circles (1:8).

The age of Zephaniah was also a key historical period, because the lands of [[Western Asia]] were overrun by foreigners due to the migration of the [[Scythians]] in the last decades of the seventh century BC, and because Jerusalem was only a few decades before [[Siege of Jerusalem (587 BC)|its downfall in 586 BC]].<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.newadvent.org/cathen/14146a.htm|title=CATHOLIC ENCYCLOPEDIA: Sophonias (Zephaniah)|website=www.newadvent.org}}</ref> In light of these events, a message of impending judgment is the primary burden of this figure's preaching (1:7).