Bible dictionary

Rephan

A pagan deity mentioned by Stephen in Acts 7:43 (King James Version "Remphan"; New American Standard Bible "Rompha"). Stephen quoted from the text of Amos 5:26 to show how the Israelites worshiped false gods during their time in the wilderness.

Stephen was quoting from the Septuagint (the Greek translation of the Old Testament). The Septuagint translators understood the Hebrew word kaiwan to refer to the Assyrian god of Saturn, or possibly to the Egyptian Saturn god Repa.

Some scholars argue that Amos 5:26 does not name specific ancient gods at all, but is simply making a general reference to the false worship practiced by the Israelites in the wilderness.

The International Standard Bible Encyclopedia (1915)The classic article on this subjectSmith’s Bible Dictionary (1863)The entry on this subject

Adapted by Mission Mutual (Aquifer Open Bible Dictionary) from Tyndale Open Bible Dictionary © 2023 Tyndale House Publishers. CC BY-SA 4.0. About the sources