Zephaniah 1:1 The word of the Lord which came to Zephaniah son of Cushi, son of Gedaliah, son of Amariah, son of Hezekiah, in the days of Josiah son of Amon, king of Judah:
Hezekiah was the King of Judah from 715 to 686 B.C. He was a reformer who rejected the lies of Lucifer. He rejected the worship of idols and oversaw the repair, reopening, and purification of the Temple; the place where God met with his people. Hezekiah “did what is right in the sight of the Lord.” 2 Kings 18:3, 2 Chronicles 29:2
His son, Manasseh, did not follow in his father’s faithful footsteps.
He did evil in the eyes of the Lord, following the detestable practices of the nations the Lord had driven out before the Israelites. 3 He rebuilt the high places his father Hezekiah had destroyed; he also erected altars to Baal and made an Asherah pole, as Ahab king of Israel had done. He bowed down to all the starry hosts and worshiped them. 4 He built altars in the temple of the Lord, of which the Lord had said, “In Jerusalem I will put my Name.” 5 In the two courts of the temple of the Lord, he built altars to all the starry hosts. 6 He sacrificed his own son in the fire, practiced divination, sought omens, and consulted mediums and spiritists. He did much evil in the eyes of the Lord, arousing his anger. 2 Kings 21:2-6
Manasseh’s son, Amon learned well from his father.
Amon did evil in the eyes of the Lord, as his father Manasseh had done. 21 He followed completely the ways of his father, worshiping the idols his father had worshiped, and bowing down to them. 22 He forsook the Lord, the God of his ancestors, and did not walk in obedience to him. 2 Kings 21:20-22
The next king was eight year old Josiah.
At the time of his a coronation things were looking pretty bleak for the nation of Judah. The nation had not only been ignoring God, but they had been worshiping false gods and even sacrificing their children to false gods for the past 57 years.
How could an eight year old boy be expected to rule such a land?
God provided an answer. Read the first sentence of Zephaniah again:
Zephaniah 1:1 The word of the Lord which came to Zephaniah son of Cushi, son of Gedaliah, son of Amariah, son of Hezekiah, in the days of Josiah son of Amon, king of Judah:
Josiah’s great grandfather, as we have already noted, was the good King Hezekiah. According to the genealogy in this opening verse, Zephaniah’s great-great grandfather was also Hezekiah. God’s Word came to Zephaniah, Josiah’s cousin, a Prince in the Royal Court.
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