Zephaniah 2:13

13 And he will stretch out his hand against the north, and destroy Assyria; and he will make Nineveh a desolation, a dry waste like the desert.

Zephaniah 2:13 Meaning and Commentary

Zephaniah 2:13

And he will stretch out his hand against the north
Either the Lord, or Nebuchadnezzar his sword; who, as he would subdue the nations that lay southward, he would lead his army northward against the land of Assyria, which lay to the north of Judea, as next explained: and destroy Assyria;
that famous monarchy, which had ruled over the kingdoms of the earth, now should come to an end, and be reduced to subjection to the king of Babylon: and will make Nineveh a desolation;
which was the capital city, the metropolis of the Assyrian monarchy: Nahum prophesies at large of the destruction of this city: [and] dry like a wilderness;
which before was a very watery place, situated by rivers, particularly the river Tigris; so that it was formerly like a pool of water, ( Nahum 2:6 Nahum 2:8 ) but now should be dry like a heath or desert, Dr. Prideaux places the destruction of Nineveh in the twenty ninth year of Josiah's reign; but Bishop Usher earlier, in the sixteenth year of his reign; and, if so, then Zephaniah, who here prophesies of it, must begin to prophesy in the former part of Josiah's reign.

Zephaniah 2:13 In-Context

11 The Lord will be terrible against them; he will shrivel all the gods of the earth, and to him shall bow down, each in its place, all the coasts and islands of the nations.

12 You also, O Ethiopians, shall be killed by my sword.

13 And he will stretch out his hand against the north, and destroy Assyria; and he will make Nineveh a desolation, a dry waste like the desert.

14 Herds shall lie down in it, every wild animal; the desert owl and the screech owl shall lodge on its capitals; the owl shall hoot at the window, the raven croak on the threshold; for its cedar work will be laid bare.

15 Is this the exultant city that lived secure, that said to itself, "I am, and there is no one else"? What a desolation it has become, a lair for wild animals! Everyone who passes by it hisses and shakes the fist.