That prophecy was fulfilled 2700 years ago

Submitted by Michael S. (United States), Sep 3, 2014 at 21:24

Zephaniah:

First of all, let's put the author in his context:

"Son of Hezekiah, (possibly the famous Judean king [c. 716-687 B.C.]) The author places himself during the reign of Josiah, son of Amon, king of Judah (c. 641-609 B.C.)"
-- https://bible.org/article/introduction-book-zephaniah

Now, let's see what the context is, in his prophecies, of Gaza, Ashkelon and Ashdodd:

Zeph 2

[1] Gather yourselves together, yea, gather together, O nation not desired;
[2] Before the decree bring forth, before the day pass as the chaff, before the fierce anger of the LORD come upon you, before the day of the LORD's anger come upon you.
[3] Seek ye the LORD, all ye meek of the earth, which have wrought his judgment; seek righteousness, seek meekness: it may be ye shall be hid in the day of the LORD's anger.
[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.
[5] Woe unto the inhabitants of the sea coast, the nation of the Cherethites! the word of the LORD is against you; O Canaan, the land of the Philistines, I will even destroy thee, that there shall be no inhabitant.
[6] And the sea coast shall be dwellings and cottages for shepherds, and folds for flocks.

Gaza, Ashkelon Ashdod and Ekron were all cities on the Mediterranean coast of Israel, centered on modern Gaza. The "land of the Philistines" was a more general term for this area; so, except possibly for the "Cherethites", we can assume this is one prophecy about one event that would befall onepeople of Zephaniah's day -- namely, the Philistines. Let's check out those "Cherethites":

Cherethites and Pelethites (Hebrew: כרתי‎), the former also spelled Kerethites, are names given by the Hebrew Bible to two of the ethnic groups in the Levant. Their identity has not been determined with certainty. The Cherethites are mentioned independently three times, and as the "Cherethites and Pelethites" seven times. They are interpreted to have been a group of elite mercenaries employed by King David, some of whom acted as his bodyguards, and others as part of his army.
-- http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cherethites_and_Pelethites

Without going into speculations, it's generally believed that the Cherethites and Pelethites were also Philistines. What happened to these people, and when?

In 604 B.C. Nebuchadnezzar destroyed the Philistine cities of Ashdod, Akron, Ashkelon, and Akron.
-- http://ancienthistory.about.com/od/biblicalhistory/g/012411-The-Philistines.htm

Zephaniah's prophecy was therefore fulfilled, a few decades after he gave it. It did not refer to modern-day Gaza; which is no longer inhabited by Philistines but instead by Arabs.

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