Introduction
Describes the beauty and wealth of Tyre. Ezekiel 27:1-9.
Tyre’s army was made up of many nations. Ezekiel 27:10-11.
The splendour of Tyre’s commerce. Ezekiel 27:12-25.
The time is coming when all who praised her will despise her. Ezekiel 27:26-36.
LAMENT FOR TYRE
‘The word of the LORD came to me: ‘Son of man, take up a lament concerning Tyre. Say to Tyre, situated at the gateway to the sea, merchant of peoples on many coasts, ‘This is what the Sovereign LORD says: ‘You say, Tyre, ‘I am perfect in beauty.’ Your domain was on the high seas; your builders brought your beauty to perfection. They made all your timbers of juniper from Senir; they took a cedar from Lebanon to make a mast for you. Of oaks from Bashan, they made your oars; of cypress wood from the coasts of Cyprus they made your deck, adorned with ivory. Fine embroidered linen from Egypt was your sail and served as your banner; your awnings were of blue and purple from the coasts of Elishah. Men of Sidon and Arvad were your oarsmen; your skilled men, Tyre, were aboard as your sailors. Veteran craftsmen of Byblos were on board as shipwrights to caulk your seams. All the ships of the sea and their sailors came alongside to trade for your wares. ‘Men of Persia, Lydia and Put served as soldiers in your army. They hung their shields and helmets on your walls, bringing you splendour. Men of Arvad and Helek guarded your walls on every side; men of Gammad were in your towers. They hung their shields around your walls; they brought your beauty to perfection. ‘Tarshish did business with you because of your great wealth of goods; they exchanged silver, iron, tin, and lead for your merchandise. ‘Greece, Tubal and Meshek did business with you; they traded human beings and articles of bronze for your wares. ‘Men of Beth Togarmah exchanged chariot horses, cavalry horses and mules for your merchandise. ‘The men of Rhodes traded with you, and many coastlands were your customers; they paid you with ivory tusks and ebony. ‘Aram did business with you because of your many products; they exchanged turquoise, purple fabric, embroidered work, fine linen, coral, and rubies for your merchandise. ‘Judah and Israel traded with you; they exchanged wheat from Minnith and confections, honey, olive oil and balm for your wares. ‘Damascus did business with you because of your many products and great wealth of goods. They offered wine from Helbon, wool from Zahar and casks of wine from Izal in exchange for your wares: wrought iron, cassia and calamus. ‘Dedan traded in saddle blankets with you. ‘Arabia and all the princes of Kedar were your customers; they did business with you in lambs, rams, and goats. ‘The merchants of Sheba and Raamah traded with you; for your merchandise they exchanged the finest of all kinds of spices and precious stones, and gold. ‘Harran, Kanneh and Eden and merchants of Sheba, Ashur and Kilmad traded with you. In your marketplace they traded with you beautiful garments, blue fabric, embroidered work, and multi-coloured rugs with cords twisted and tightly knotted. ‘The ships of Tarshish serve as carriers for your wares. You are filled with heavy cargo as you sail the sea. Your oarsmen take you out to the high seas. But the east wind will break you to pieces far out at sea. Your wealth, merchandise and wares, your mariners, sailors and shipwrights, your merchants and all your soldiers, and everyone else on board will sink into the heart of the sea on the day of your shipwreck. The shore lands will quake when your sailors cry out. All who handle the oars will abandon their ships; the mariners and all the sailors will stand on the shore. They will raise their voice and cry bitterly over you; they will sprinkle dust on their heads and roll in ashes. They will shave their heads because of you and will put on sackcloth. They will weep over you with anguish of soul and with bitter mourning. As they wail and mourn over you, they will take up a lament concerning you: ‘Who was ever silenced like Tyre, surrounded by the sea?’ When your merchandise went out on the seas, you satisfied many nations; with your great wealth and your wares you enriched the kings of the earth. Now you are shattered by the sea in the depths of the waters; your wares and all your company have gone down with you. All who live in the coastlands are appalled at you; their kings shudder with horror and their faces are distorted with fear. The merchants among the nations scoff at you; you have come to a horrible end and will be no more.’ Ezekiel 27:1-36
Ezekiel is told to take up lament concerning Tyre, Ezekiel 27:1-2. Tyre had become proud and was one of the causes of its judgment, Ezekiel 26:2 / Psalms 10:4 / Proverbs 6:17 / Proverbs 8:13 / Proverbs 16:18. Judgment upon Tyre was an indirect judgment upon all those nations who traded through her ports, Ezekiel 27:3.
When Israel came out of Egyptian captivity, God gave to the Israelites all the territory that extended into the land of the Hittites to the north, modern-day Turkey, to the border with Egypt to the south. He even gave them the territory to the east of the Jordan River when they defeated the Ammonites. The territory that He gave them was the heart of all the Near East trade.
If they would have remained faithful to Him, they would have developed into one of the most glorious empires of the world with the opportunity to influence the world for God. One wonders what the world would have been like today if they had remained faithful to God. They had the opportunity, but they foolishly turned their back on God.
The emphasis on the greatness of Tyre in this chapter manifests just a portion of the international trade and opportunity that Israel could have had if she would have conquered all the land that God gave her and then remained faithful to Him. Just having this one city within her border would have given her the opportunity to preach the name of God throughout all nations of the world.
As Bible historians, we see in the words of this prophecy concerning the fall of Tyre the fall of a great opportunity for Israel that they could have had if they would have controlled their rebellious attitude and stiff-necked behaviour. There is thus more to the words of this prophecy against Tyre than a condemnation of the city. We must not forget that the city and port could have belonged to the people of God, who in turn could have had a great impact on the world through their monotheistic beliefs.
Tyre though it was perfect in beauty, Ezekiel 27:3 / Lamentations 2:15 / Ezekiel 28:1-17 / Revelation 3:17. Tyre is described as a large, beautiful merchant ship, Ezekiel 27:4, referring to its prominence and dominance. The wood was from juniper from Senir, Ezekiel 27:5.
Thomson, in his commentary says the following.
‘Senir was the Amorite name for Mount Hermon (as in Deuteronomy 3:9).’
The mast was made from cedar from Lebanon, Ezekiel 27:5. The oars were made of oaks from Bashan and cypress wood from the coasts of Cyprus and the decking adorned with ivory, Ezekiel 27:6.
Coffman, in his commentary, says the following.
‘That the wood was precious is seen in the fact that it was used in the framing of the tabernacle, Exodus 26:15-16 / Numbers 3:36 / Numbers 4:31.’
The sail was made from fine embroidered linen from Egypt, Ezekiel 27:7 / Genesis 41:42 / Proverbs 7:16, and became a banner, Ezekiel 27:7. The awnings were of blue and purple from the coasts of Elishah, Ezekiel 27:7. Because her trading partners extended even to the ports of Spain and all of northern Africa, Ezekiel 26:15-18. The Near East trade that went through the port city of Tyre is often ignored when dealing with the judgment of God upon the nation of Israel.
Taylor, in his commentary, says the following.
‘The description of every lavish detail of the trading vessel that represents the city of Tyre is expressed as an elaboration of Tyre’s opinion of her own matchlessness: ’I am perfect in beauty’.
The crew consisted of men of Sidon and Arvad who were your oarsmen, and the sailors from Tyre were the skilled men who were its sailors, Ezekiel 27:8. Veteran craftsmen or repairmen of Byblos, which is in Lebanon, were on board and acted as shipwrights to caulk their seams, Ezekiel 27:9. Because Tyre was the main trading place all the other traders from different places came to trade with them, Ezekiel 27:9.
Notice men of Persia, Lydia the KJV uses the word Lud, Jeremiah 46:9 / Genesis 10:13 / Isaiah 66:19, and Put served as soldiers in your army, Ezekiel 27:10. This tells us that because Tyre was strong it was attractable to these nations. Adding to Tyre’s splendour, these men hung their shields and helmets on their walls, Ezekiel 27:10.
The men of Arvad and Helek guarded their walls Ezekiel 27:11, and men of Gammad were in their towers. Notice they too hung their shields around their walls to add to Tyre’s beauty, Ezekiel 27:11.
Tarshish was also a trading partner with Tyre, they traded with silver, iron, tin and lead, Ezekiel 27:12. Greece, Tubal and Meshek were also trading partners with Tyre, they traded human beings and articles of bronze, Ezekiel 27:13.
Coffman, in his commentary, says the following.
‘This verse is important as the confirmation of the charge by Amos against Tyre, Amos 1:9, that these heartless old slave-traders had even sold Israelites to Edom; and also as the confirmation of the fact of the Greeks themselves having been involved in this contemptible ‘trading in the persons of men,’ as Joel charged in Joel 3:6.’
Men of Beth Togarmah exchanged chariot horses, cavalry horses and mules for your merchandise, Ezekiel 27:14. Men of Rhodes also traded with them, and many coastlands were your customers; they paid you with ivory tusks and ebony, Ezekiel 27:15.
Constable, in his commentary, says the following.
‘Some translators followed the Septuagint here and replaced Dedan with Rhodes, a Greek Aegean port, because the change only involves repointing the Hebrew word and because Dedan appears again in Ezekiel 27:20.’
Aram or Syria also did business with them because of Tyre had so much choice, they traded with turquoise, purple fabric, embroidered work, fine linen, coral and rubies, Ezekiel 27:16. Judah and Israel also traded with them, they traded wheat from Minnith and confections, honey, olive oil and balm, Ezekiel 27:17.
Damascus also did business with them because of their choice of valuable goods, they traded wine from Helbon, wool from Zahar and casks of wine from Izal, for wrought iron, cassia and calamus, Ezekiel 27:18-19. Dedan traded with saddle blankets, Ezekiel 27:20 / Judges 5:10, and Arabia and all the princes of Kedar traded with them, they traded in lambs, rams and goats, Ezekiel 27:20.
The merchants of Sheba and Raamah also traded with them, they traded all kinds of spices and precious stones, and gold, Ezekiel 27:22. Harran, Kanneh and Eden and merchants of Sheba, Ashur and Kilmad traded also traded with them, Ezekiel 27:23. They traded beautiful garments, blue fabric, embroidered work and multi-coloured rugs with cords twisted and tightly knotted, Ezekiel 27:24.
The ships of Tarshish carried Tyre’s merchandise, so much cargo that the ship was filled with merchandise, Ezekiel 27:25. Tyre’s oarsmen took the ship out on high seas but when a strong east wind prevailed it broke it up in the middle of nowhere, Ezekiel 27:26 / Psalm 48:7. As a result, everyone and everything was lost at sea, Ezekiel 27:27.
Clarke in his commentary, says the following.
‘When the ship was dashed against the rocks by the violence of the winds and the waves, and all hope of life was taken away, then a universal cry was set up by all on board. I have heard this cry, and nothing more dismal can be imagined, when the ship by a violent tempest is driving among rocks on a lee shore. Then ‘All lost! Cut away the boat!’ is more dreadful than the cry of fire at midnight.’
Block, in his commentary, says the following, concerning Ezekiel 27:28.
‘The people on the mainland are aghast, and the sailors on board other ships are horrified at the sinking of this Tyrian Titanic. Lesser vessels might be expected to perish in a Mediterranean squall, but surely not this proud monarch of the seas!’
Those who were the oared will abandon ship, while the mariners and sailors will stand on the shore, Ezekiel 27:29. Notice they will raise their voices, sprinkle dust on their heads, roll in ashes, shave their heads, put on sackcloth, weep and mourn, Ezekiel 27:30-31 / Deuteronomy 14:1, these are all actions commonly associated with funerals.
They will wail, mourn and take up a lament over Tyre’s destruction, they would wonder would has even been silenced Tyre, because they had never witnessed anything like this before, Ezekiel 27:32 / Ezekiel 27:2. Tyre had satisfied many nations and kings with their great wealth and wares, Ezekiel 27:33. Tyre and it’s trade, have sunk to the bottom of the sea, and as a result, her traders would wail, Ezekiel 27:34.
Notice Tyre’s trading partners would be appalled at her, and even their kings would be in horror because the now lack of trade from Tyre is going to affect them and their kingdoms, Ezekiel 27:25. From among the other nations, merchants would scoff at them, because the way Tyre came to end and cease to exist, Ezekiel 27:35 / 1 Kings 9:8 / Revelation 18:15-19.
Feinberg, in his commentary, says the following.
‘The record of Tyre has a peculiar relevance for our day, for those areas in which she excelled and was the envy of the entire ancient world are precisely the fields in which every modern nation seeks superiority. But Tyre has a message for our age, and it is that riches without God are unable to satisfy the heart of man and often keep many from dependence upon God. Has not this spirit invaded the church, and does it not pervade the lives of too many Christians?’
