Rabbi Ben Zion Halberstam, the second Rebbe of Bobov, known as the Kedushat Tzion after his work, was born on 10 Iyar 5634 (1874) in Bukowsko, Galicia, the son of Rabbi Shlomo Halberstam, the first Bobover Rebbe, a grandson of the Divrei Chaim of Sanz. Tradition relates that the Divrei Chaim, seeing the infant in his cradle, foretold that he would accomplish what he himself had not had time to do.

In 1892 the family moved to Bobov, a small town thought quieter and healthier for his ailing father; as the illness worsened, Rabbi Ben Zion took over the rabbinate in his place, and in 1905 succeeded him as Rebbe. He made Bobov one of the great Chassidic courts of Galicia, attracting young people in particular, for whom he founded the Etz Chaim network of yeshivot. He was also known for his many niggunim, Chassidic melodies still sung today. His Torah commentary is titled Kedushat Tzion.

In July 1941 Lvov, where he then lived, fell to the Nazis. He hid for about a month in a room concealed behind a bookcase, then was arrested and murdered on 4 Av 5701 (1941). His son, Rabbi Shlomo Halberstam, survived and rebuilt Bobov Chassidism in New York.