The prophet Zephaniah was the son of Cushi. The opening verse of the Book of Zephaniah gives this family identification and places his ministry during the reign of Josiah, king of Judah.
Zephaniah 1:1 also traces his ancestry through Gedaliah and Amariah to Hezekiah. Many readers understand the final Hezekiah as the famous eighth-century BCE king of Judah, which would make Zephaniah unusually well connected among the biblical prophets. The text itself, however, does not explicitly explain whether that Hezekiah is the king.
Zephaniah likely preached in Judah during the late seventh century BCE, before or during Josiah’s religious reforms. His prophecy warns of the coming “day of the Lord,” condemns idolatry and injustice, and ends with a vision of restoration. Cushi is the canonical answer because the biblical wording identifies him as Zephaniah’s father; it should not be confused with Cush, the region or people associated with parts of Africa.