Shophet

In several ancient Semitic-speaking cultures and associated historical regions, the shopheṭ or shofeṭ (plural shophetim or shofetim; Hebrew: שׁוֹפֵט, romanized: šōp̄ēṭ, Phoenician: 𐤔𐤐𐤈, romanized: šōfēṭ, Punic: 𐤔𐤐𐤈, romanized: šūfeṭ, the last loaned into Latin as sūfes; see also Ugaritic: 𐎘𐎔𐎉, romanized: ṯāpiṭ) was a community leader of significant civic stature, often functioning as a chief magistrate with authority roughly equivalent to Roman consular powers.