Shaphan meaning

Meaning

Coney, Shy

Etymology

From the noun שפן (shapan), Coney (?), from the verb שפן (shapan), to hide.

Related names

• Via שפן (spn): Atroth-shophan, Baal-zephon, Elizaphan, Ishpan, Mizpah, Ramathaim-zophim, Ramath-mizpeh, Zaphenath-paneah, Zaphon, Zephaniah, Zephath, Zephathah, Zepho, Ziphion, Zophai, Zophim, Zuph

It's not clear how many different men named Shaphan there are in the Bible. Estimates range from just one (NOBSE Study Bible Name List) to four (Jones' Dictionary of Old Testament Proper Names) to five (BDB Theological Dictionary, although BDB helpfully acknowledges that the five probably overlap). The five candidates are:

• The son of Azaliah, son of Meshullam, and scribe in service of king Josiah of Judah (2 Kings 22:3). When Josiah initiated his famous reforms, he sent Shaphan to high priest Hilkiah to arrange for the workmen to be paid. Hilkiah submitted to Shaphan that he had found the Book of the Law, gave it to Shaphan, who then gave it to king Josiah. The words of the book prompted Josiah into even further reforms, and he sent Shaphan and a small delegation to Huldah the prophetess to have the book expounded (2 Kings 22:14).
• The father of Ahikam, whom Josiah sent to Huldah as well (2 Kings 22:12), and who helped save the prophet Jeremiah (Jeremiah 26:24). This Shaphan was also the grandfather of Gedaliah, the governor of Judah after the second Babylonian deportation (2 Kings 25:22). Both Alfred Jones and BDB Theological Dictionary deem this Shaphan and the previous one as separate, but neither argues this. BDB even states that it's only "improbable" that the two are the same. The reason for this is probably that the first Shaphan is distinguished as "the scribe" and the second one typically isn't. If the two Shaphans mentioned in 2 Kings 22:12 were the same, it would have been indicated (like "Shaphan the scribe and Ahikam his son").
• The father of Elasah, who carried Jeremiah's letter to the exiles in Babylon (Jeremiah 29:3). BDB suggests that this Shaphan could be the same as the second (meaning that Elasah and Ahikam were brothers). Jones neither refutes nor confirms this.
• A scribe and the father of Gemariah, who had a chamber in the house of YHWH (Jeremiah 36:10-12). In this chamber, Baruch read the book of Jeremiah. BDB generously admits that this Shaphan might be the same as the first one. Jones sees no reason to even divide the two and lists Jeremiah 36:10-12 as occurrences of the first Shaphan.
• The father of Jaazaniah, one of the seventy elders whom Ezekiel saw commit falsehoods in the temple (Ezekiel 8:11). Jones lists this Shaphan as separate but BDB proposes that this one too might be the same as the first.

The name Shaphan is the same as the noun שפן (shapan), which denotes a quadruped cud-chewing animal:

For a meaning of the name Shaphan, NOBSE Study Bible Name List reads Prudent, Shy. Jones' Dictionary of Old Testament Proper Names has Coney. BDB Theological Dictionary doesn't translate Shaphan but does confirm that it's identical to the noun שפן (shapan).