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'Zion' (Hebrew: צִיּוֹן, ''tziyyon''; Tiberian vocalization: ''tsiyyôn''; transliterated '''Zion''' or '''Sion''') is a term that most often designates the Land of Israel and its capital, Jerusalem. The word is found in texts dating back almost three millennia. It originally referred to a specific mountain near Jerusalem ('Mount Zion'), on which stood a Jebusite fortress of the same name that was conquered by David and was named the City of David.
''Zion'' came to designate the area of Jerusalem where the fortress stood, and later became a metonym for Solomon's Temple in Jerusalem, the city of Jerusalem and the entire Promised Land to come, in which, according to the Hebrew Bible, God dwells among his chosen people.

Contents

Modern use

Zionism

Anti-slavery

Latter-day Saints

Rastafari movement

Ugaritic texts and the Bible

Mount Zion

The Daughter of Zion

Notes

References

External links

Modern use

Zion appears 154 times in the Tanakh (Hebrew Old Testament). Some examples from the book of Psalms, which have been frequently recited and memorized by Jews for centuries, state:

★ "By the rivers of Babylon we sat down and wept when we remembered Zion." (Psalms 137:1)

★ "For there they that carried us away captive required of us a song; and they that wasted us ''required of us'' mirth, ''saying'', Sing us ''one'' of the songs of Zion. How shall we sing the Lord's song in a strange land? If I forget thee, O Jerusalem, let my right hand forget ''her cunning''. If I do not remember thee, let my tongue cleave to the roof of my mouth; if I prefer not Jerusalem above my chief joy. Remember, O Lord, the children of Edom in the day of Jerusalem; who said, Rase ''it'', rase ''it'', even to the foundation thereof; O daughter of Babylon, that art to be destroyed; happy shall he be, that repayeth thee as thou hast served us." (Psalms 137:3-8) (King James Version, with italics for words not in the original Hebrew)

★ "The builder of Jerusalem is God, the outcast of Israel he will gather in... Praise God O Jerusalem, laud your God O Zion." (Psalms 147:2-12)

Zionism

Main articles: Zionism

Zionism is a political movement and an ideology that supports a homeland for the Jewish people in the Land of Israel, where the Jewish nation originated over 3,200 years ago and where Jewish kingdoms and self-governing states existed up to the 2nd century CE. While Zionism is based in part upon religious tradition linking the Jewish people to the Land of Israel, the modern movement was originally secular, beginning largely as a response to rampant antisemitism in Europe during the 19th century. After a number of advances and setbacks, and after the Holocaust had destroyed Jewish society in Europe, the Zionist movement culminated in the establishment of the State of Israel in 1948.

Anti-slavery

The Jewish longing for Zion, starting with the deportation and enslavement of Jews during the Babylonian captivity, was adopted as a metaphor by Christianized Black slaves. Thus, Zion symbolizes a longing by wandering peoples for a safe homeland. This could be a literal place such as in Ethiopia for Rastafari for example. For others, it has taken on a more spiritual meaning—a safe ''spiritual'' homeland, like in heaven, or a kind of peace of mind in one's present life.
In the 1999 science fiction cult movie The Matrix humankind has been enslaved by intelligent machines and the only existing city for "liberated" humans is Zion where humans long to live freely after the battle with the machines has been won and humankind liberated from slavery.

Latter-day Saints

''Zion'' is a term with broad significance in The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. In addition to its Biblical meaning referring to Jerusalem, Mormons see Zion more broadly as any city in which the people are unified and are "pure in heart," with no contention and no poor among them based on living the Law of Consecration. In specific scriptural references, the term refers to the central physical location or city to which Latter-day Saints have historically gathered, which has included Kirtland, Ohio; Independence, Missouri; and Nauvoo, Illinois. In a more metaphorical sense, Zion represents a unified society of Latter-day Saints, unified under the law of consecration. Under this interpretation, one can strive to make even one's own home "Zion". ''Zion'' also refers to what Latter-day Saints generally believe will be the 'New Jerusalem', a physical, millennial city expected to be headquartered in Jackson County, Missouri.

Rastafari movement

For Rastafarians, Zion is to be found in Africa, and more specifically in Ethiopia, where the term is also in use. Some Rastas believe themselves to represent the Children of Israel in modern times, and their goal is to repatriate to Africa, or to Zion. Rasta reggae is peppered with references to Zion; among the best-known examples are the Bob Marley songs '"Zion Train" and "Iron Lion Zion." Reggae groups such as Steel Pulse and Cocoa Tea also have many references to Zion in their various songs. In recent years, such references have also "crossed over" into pop music thanks to artists like OAR, Sublime, Lauryn Hill, Boney M (Rivers of Babylon), Dreadzone with the reggae-tinged track "Zion Youth" and Damian Marley, who released his track "Road to Zion" featuring Nas in 2005.
Example from the Mad Professor song "Africa Is Zion": "Africa is Zion and Zion is Africa, Ethiopia is Mount Zion / Them tell us that Africa is Africa, the Bible tell us it's Zion".
"Zion" stands for an utopian place of unity, peace and freedom, as opposed to "Babylon", the oppressing and exploiting system of the western world and a place of evil.

Ugaritic texts and the Bible

In texts uncovered at Ugarit, references to "Zephon" (Tsephon) have been identified with the Syrian mountain Jebel Aqra. In these texts, the mountain is the holy place of the gods, where the god known as the "Lord" reigns over the divine assembly. The word "Zephon" is a common Semitic word for "North", and some have considered it to be possibly cognate with the Hebrew name Zion (Tsiyyon). Psalm 48:2 mentions both terms together: ''"...Har-Tsiyyon yarktey Tsafon..."'' ("Mount Zion on the Northern side"), usually taken to refer to the north side of Mount Zion, not necessarily indicating that Zion is found to the North.

Mount Zion

Main articles: Mount Zion

Mount Zion is also the modern name of a hill south of the Old City's Armenian Quarter — the result of a misnomer dating from the Middle Ages when pilgrims mistook the relatively large, flat summit for the original site of the City of David. The Dormition Church (right) is located upon that hill.

The Daughter of Zion

The location of the Temple was neither a mountain nor a city, nor even the highest elevation near the city, but rather a smallish hill (Mount Moriah), and this hill is sometimes considered to be what is meant by the phrase "Daughter of Zion" - as though the Temple Mount is the "daughter" of Mount Zion. Another cryptic verse, Zechariah 4:7, seems to refer to this hill, but is also ambiguous, depending on the punctuation. In Hebrew it reads ''"Mi attah Har-haGadol lifnei Zerubbabel l'mishor..."''; the plain text has no punctuation, but the Masoretic text puts a pause following ''Har-haGadol'', to mean "What are you, great mountain? Before Zerubbabel, [you will become just] a plain..." However, if the pause is placed following ''Zerubbabel'', it would mean instead "What are you, "great mountain" before Zerubbabel? [You are just] a plain..." Since this hill is where Zerubbabel built the Second Temple, it appears to be a reference to the "Daughter of Zion" (the hill), as distinct from Zion (the mountain).

Notes

References

★ Steven Zarlengo: ''Daughter of Zion: Jerusalem's Past, Present, and Future''. (Dallas: Joseph Publishing, 2007).

External links

★ Guide to the Mormon Scriptures: Zion

★ Mormon Bible Dictionary: Zion