Isaiah 24:6

⁴ The earth mourns and withers; the world languishes and fades; the exalted of the earth waste away.

⁵ The earth is defiled by its people; they have transgressed the laws; they have overstepped the decrees and broken the everlasting covenant.

Therefore a curse has consumed the earth, and its inhabitants must bear the guilt; the earth’s dwellers have been burned, and only a few survive.

⁷ The new wine dries up, the vine withers. All the merrymakers now groan.

⁸ The joyful tambourines have ceased; the noise of revelers has stopped; the joyful harp is silent.

This was said to Israel at a particular time, so it is wise to read it together with the surrounding text. Do read the surrounding verses too, because the context often says more than a single verse.

Compare

BSB: Therefore a curse has consumed the earth, and its inhabitants must bear the guilt; the earth’s dwellers have been burned, and only a few survive.
KJV: Therefore hath the curse devoured the earth, and they that dwell therein are desolate: therefore the inhabitants of the earth are burned, and few men left.
WEB: Therefore the curse has devoured the earth, and those who dwell therein are found guilty. Therefore the inhabitants of the earth are burned, and few men are left.
ASV: Therefore hath the curse devoured the earth, and they that dwell therein are found guilty: therefore the inhabitants of the earth are burned, and few men left.
DARBY: Therefore doth the curse devour the earth, and they that dwell therein are held guilty; therefore the inhabitants of the earth are consumed, and few men are left.
BLB: Upon thus a curse has consumed the earth, and those who dwell upon it are found guilty; thus those dwelling in the earth have been burned, and few men have been left.

ÅB: Derfor fortærer forbannelse jorden, og de som bor på den, må bøte; derfor brenner jordboerne, og det blir bare få mennesker igjen.
OTB: Derfor fortærer en forbannelse jorden, og dens folk lider for sin skyld. Slik blir jordens innbyggere brent, og få blir igjen.
B1930: Derfor fortærer forbannelse jorden, og de som bor på den, må bøte; derfor brenner jordboerne, og det blir bare få mennesker igjen.

Study notes (Tyndale)

Original text and word study

Cross references

Malachi 4:1
“For behold, the day is coming, burning like a furnace, when all the arrogant and every evildoer will be stubble; the day is coming when I will set them ablaze,” says the LORD of Hosts. “Not a root or branch will be left to them.”
Read in context
Matthew 7:14
But small is the gate and narrow the way that leads to life, and only a few find it.
Read in context
Zechariah 5:3–4
Then he told me, “This is the curse that is going out over the face of all the land, for according to one side of the scroll, every thief will be removed; and according to the other side, every perjurer will be removed.
Read in context
Ezekiel 5:3
But you are to take a few strands of hair and secure them in the folds of your garment.
Read in context
Romans 9:27
Isaiah cries out concerning Israel: “Though the number of the Israelites is like the sand of the sea, only the remnant will be saved.
Read in context
Leviticus 26:22
I will send wild animals against you to rob you of your children, destroy your livestock, and reduce your numbers, until your roads lie desolate.
Read in context
Malachi 4:6
And he will turn the hearts of the fathers to their children, and the hearts of the children to their fathers. Otherwise, I will come and strike the land with a curse.”
Read in context
Isaiah 1:31
The strong man will become tinder and his work will be a spark; both will burn together, with no one to quench the flames.
Read in context