Zephaniah 3:6

⁴ Her prophets are reckless, faithless men. Her priests profane the sanctuary; they do violence to the law.

⁵ The LORD within her is righteous; He does no wrong. He applies His justice morning by morning; He does not fail at dawn, yet the unjust know no shame.

“I have cut off the nations; their corner towers are destroyed. I have made their streets deserted with no one to pass through. Their cities are laid waste, with no man, no inhabitant.

⁷ I said, ‘Surely you will fear Me and accept correction.’ Then her dwelling place would not be cut off despite all for which I punished her. But they rose early to corrupt all their deeds.

⁸ Therefore wait for Me,” declares the LORD, “until the day I rise to testify. For My decision is to gather nations, to assemble kingdoms, to pour out upon them My indignation— all My burning anger. For all the earth will be consumed by the fire of My jealousy.

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: “I have cut off the nations; their corner towers are destroyed. I have made their streets deserted with no one to pass through. Their cities are laid waste, with no man, no inhabitant.
KJV: I have cut off the nations: their towers are desolate; I made their streets waste, that none passeth by: their cities are destroyed, so that there is no man, that there is none inhabitant.
WEB: I have cut off nations. Their battlements are desolate. I have made their streets waste, so that no one passes by. Their cities are destroyed, so that there is no man, so that there is no inhabitant.
ASV: I have cut off nations; their battlements are desolate; I have made their streets waste, so that none passeth by; their cities are destroyed, so that there is no man, so that there is no inhabitant.
DARBY: I have cut off nations: their battlements are desolate; I made their streets waste, that none passeth by; their cities are destroyed, so that there is no man, so that there is no inhabitant.
BLB: “I have cut off nations; their corners are desolate; I have made desolate their streets without one passing through; their cities are destroyed, without a man, with no one dwelling.

ÅB: Jeg har utryddet hedningefolk, deres murtinder er ødelagt; jeg har gjort deres gater øde, så ingen går gjennom dem; deres byer er herjet, så det ikke finnes folk, ikke bor noen der.
OTB: “Jeg har fjernet nasjoner;
Deres hjørnetårn står forlatt.
Jeg har ødelagt deres gater,
Uten at noen passerer forbi;
Deres byer ligger i ruiner,
Uten en person, uten en innbygger.
B1930: Jeg har utryddet hedningefolk, deres murtinder er ødelagt; jeg har gjort deres gater øde, så ingen går gjennem dem; deres byer er herjet, så det ikke finnes folk, ikke bor nogen der.

Study notes (Tyndale)

Original text and word study

Cross references

Zephaniah 2:5
Woe to the dwellers of the seacoast, O nation of the Cherethites! The word of the LORD is against you, O Canaan, land of the Philistines: “I will destroy you, and no one will be left.”
Read in context
1 Corinthians 10:6
These things took place as examples to keep us from craving evil things as they did.
Read in context
Jeremiah 25:9–11
behold, I will summon all the families of the north, declares the LORD, and I will send for My servant Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon, whom I will bring against this land, against its residents, and against all the surrounding nations. So I will devote them to destruction and make them an object of horror and contempt, an everlasting desolation.
Read in context
1 Corinthians 10:11
Now these things happened to them as examples and were written down as warnings for us, on whom the fulfillment of the ages has come.
Read in context
Isaiah 37:24–26
Through your servants you have taunted the Lord, and you have said: “With my many chariots I have ascended to the heights of the mountains, to the remote peaks of Lebanon. I have cut down its tallest cedars, the finest of its cypresses. I have reached its farthest heights, the densest of its forests.
Read in context
Isaiah 37:36
Then the angel of the LORD went out and struck down 185,000 men in the camp of the Assyrians. When the people got up the next morning, there were all the dead bodies!
Read in context
Nahum 2:1–3
One who scatters advances against you, O Nineveh. Guard the fortress! Watch the road! Brace yourselves! Summon all your strength!
Read in context
Zechariah 7:14
But I scattered them with a whirlwind among all the nations that they had not known, and the land was left desolate behind them so that no one could come or go. Thus they turned the pleasant land into a desolation.”
Read in context