A Lament Over Tyre

27 The word of the Lord came to me: “Son of man, take up a lament(A) concerning Tyre. Say to Tyre,(B) situated at the gateway to the sea,(C) merchant of peoples on many coasts, ‘This is what the Sovereign Lord says:

“‘You say, Tyre,
    “I am perfect in beauty.(D)
Your domain was on the high seas;
    your builders brought your beauty to perfection.(E)
They made all your timbers
    of juniper from Senir[a];(F)
they took a cedar from Lebanon(G)
    to make a mast for you.
Of oaks(H) from Bashan
    they made your oars;
of cypress wood[b] from the coasts of Cyprus(I)
    they made your deck, adorned with ivory.
Fine embroidered linen(J) from Egypt was your sail
    and served as your banner;
your awnings were of blue and purple(K)
    from the coasts of Elishah.(L)
Men of Sidon and Arvad(M) were your oarsmen;
    your skilled men, Tyre, were aboard as your sailors.(N)
Veteran craftsmen of Byblos(O) were on board
    as shipwrights to caulk your seams.
All the ships of the sea(P) and their sailors
    came alongside to trade for your wares.

10 “‘Men of Persia,(Q) Lydia(R) and Put(S)
    served as soldiers in your army.
They hung their shields(T) and helmets on your walls,
    bringing you splendor.
11 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.(U)

12 “‘Tarshish(V) did business with you because of your great wealth of goods;(W) they exchanged silver, iron, tin and lead for your merchandise.

13 “‘Greece,(X) Tubal and Meshek(Y) did business with you; they traded human beings(Z) and articles of bronze for your wares.

14 “‘Men of Beth Togarmah(AA) exchanged chariot horses, cavalry horses and mules for your merchandise.

15 “‘The men of Rhodes[c](AB) traded with you, and many coastlands(AC) were your customers; they paid you with ivory(AD) tusks and ebony.

16 “‘Aram[d](AE) did business with you because of your many products; they exchanged turquoise,(AF) purple fabric, embroidered work, fine linen,(AG) coral(AH) and rubies for your merchandise.

17 “‘Judah and Israel traded with you; they exchanged wheat(AI) from Minnith(AJ) and confections,[e] honey, olive oil and balm(AK) for your wares.(AL)

18 “‘Damascus(AM) did business with you because of your many products and great wealth of goods.(AN) They offered wine from Helbon, wool from Zahar 19 and casks of wine from Izal(AO) in exchange for your wares: wrought iron, cassia(AP) and calamus.

20 “‘Dedan(AQ) traded in saddle blankets with you.

21 “‘Arabia(AR) and all the princes of Kedar(AS) were your customers; they did business with you in lambs, rams and goats.

22 “‘The merchants of Sheba(AT) and Raamah traded with you; for your merchandise they exchanged the finest of all kinds of spices(AU) and precious stones, and gold.(AV)

23 “‘Harran,(AW) Kanneh and Eden(AX) and merchants of Sheba, Ashur(AY) and Kilmad traded with you. 24 In your marketplace they traded with you beautiful garments, blue fabric, embroidered work and multicolored rugs with cords twisted and tightly knotted.

25 “‘The ships of Tarshish(AZ) serve
    as carriers for your wares.
You are filled with heavy cargo
    as you sail the sea.(BA)
26 Your oarsmen take you
    out to the high seas.
But the east wind(BB) will break you to pieces
    far out at sea.
27 Your wealth,(BC) 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(BD)
    on the day of your shipwreck.
28 The shorelands will quake(BE)
    when your sailors cry out.
29 All who handle the oars
    will abandon their ships;
the mariners and all the sailors
    will stand on the shore.
30 They will raise their voice
    and cry bitterly over you;
they will sprinkle dust(BF) on their heads
    and roll(BG) in ashes.(BH)
31 They will shave their heads(BI) because of you
    and will put on sackcloth.
They will weep(BJ) over you with anguish of soul
    and with bitter mourning.(BK)
32 As they wail and mourn over you,
    they will take up a lament(BL) concerning you:
“Who was ever silenced like Tyre,
    surrounded by the sea?(BM)
33 When your merchandise went out on the seas,(BN)
    you satisfied many nations;
with your great wealth(BO) and your wares
    you enriched the kings of the earth.
34 Now you are shattered by the sea
    in the depths of the waters;
your wares and all your company
    have gone down with you.(BP)
35 All who live in the coastlands(BQ)
    are appalled(BR) at you;
their kings shudder with horror
    and their faces are distorted with fear.(BS)
36 The merchants among the nations scoff at you;(BT)
    you have come to a horrible end
    and will be no more.(BU)’”

A Prophecy Against the King of Tyre

28 The word of the Lord came to me: “Son of man(BV), say to the ruler of Tyre, ‘This is what the Sovereign Lord says:

“‘In the pride of your heart
    you say, “I am a god;
I sit on the throne(BW) of a god
    in the heart of the seas.”(BX)
But you are a mere mortal and not a god,
    though you think you are as wise as a god.(BY)
Are you wiser than Daniel[f]?(BZ)
    Is no secret hidden from you?
By your wisdom and understanding
    you have gained wealth for yourself
and amassed gold and silver
    in your treasuries.(CA)
By your great skill in trading(CB)
    you have increased your wealth,(CC)
and because of your wealth
    your heart has grown proud.(CD)

“‘Therefore this is what the Sovereign Lord says:

“‘Because you think you are wise,
    as wise as a god,
I am going to bring foreigners against you,
    the most ruthless of nations;(CE)
they will draw their swords against your beauty and wisdom(CF)
    and pierce your shining splendor.(CG)
They will bring you down to the pit,(CH)
    and you will die a violent death(CI)
    in the heart of the seas.(CJ)
Will you then say, “I am a god,”
    in the presence of those who kill you?
You will be but a mortal, not a god,(CK)
    in the hands of those who slay you.(CL)
10 You will die the death of the uncircumcised(CM)
    at the hands of foreigners.

I have spoken, declares the Sovereign Lord.’”

11 The word of the Lord came to me: 12 “Son of man, take up a lament(CN) concerning the king of Tyre and say to him: ‘This is what the Sovereign Lord says:

“‘You were the seal of perfection,
    full of wisdom and perfect in beauty.(CO)
13 You were in Eden,(CP)
    the garden of God;(CQ)
every precious stone(CR) adorned you:
    carnelian, chrysolite and emerald,
    topaz, onyx and jasper,
    lapis lazuli, turquoise(CS) and beryl.[g]
Your settings and mountings[h] were made of gold;
    on the day you were created they were prepared.(CT)
14 You were anointed(CU) as a guardian cherub,(CV)
    for so I ordained you.
You were on the holy mount of God;
    you walked among the fiery stones.
15 You were blameless in your ways
    from the day you were created
    till wickedness was found in you.
16 Through your widespread trade
    you were filled with violence,(CW)
    and you sinned.
So I drove you in disgrace from the mount of God,
    and I expelled you, guardian cherub,(CX)
    from among the fiery stones.
17 Your heart became proud(CY)
    on account of your beauty,
and you corrupted your wisdom
    because of your splendor.
So I threw you to the earth;
    I made a spectacle of you before kings.(CZ)
18 By your many sins and dishonest trade
    you have desecrated your sanctuaries.
So I made a fire(DA) come out from you,
    and it consumed you,
and I reduced you to ashes(DB) on the ground
    in the sight of all who were watching.(DC)
19 All the nations who knew you
    are appalled(DD) at you;
you have come to a horrible end
    and will be no more.(DE)’”

A Prophecy Against Sidon

20 The word of the Lord came to me: 21 “Son of man, set your face against(DF) Sidon;(DG) prophesy against her 22 and say: ‘This is what the Sovereign Lord says:

“‘I am against you, Sidon,
    and among you I will display my glory.(DH)
You will know that I am the Lord,
    when I inflict punishment(DI) on you
    and within you am proved to be holy.(DJ)
23 I will send a plague upon you
    and make blood flow in your streets.
The slain will fall within you,
    with the sword against you on every side.
Then you will know that I am the Lord.(DK)

24 “‘No longer will the people of Israel have malicious neighbors who are painful briers and sharp thorns.(DL) Then they will know that I am the Sovereign Lord.

25 “‘This is what the Sovereign Lord says: When I gather(DM) the people of Israel from the nations where they have been scattered,(DN) I will be proved holy(DO) through them in the sight of the nations. Then they will live in their own land, which I gave to my servant Jacob.(DP) 26 They will live there in safety(DQ) and will build houses and plant(DR) vineyards; they will live in safety when I inflict punishment(DS) on all their neighbors who maligned them. Then they will know that I am the Lord their God.(DT)’”

Footnotes

  1. Ezekiel 27:5 That is, Mount Hermon
  2. Ezekiel 27:6 Targum; the Masoretic Text has a different division of the consonants.
  3. Ezekiel 27:15 Septuagint; Hebrew Dedan
  4. Ezekiel 27:16 Most Hebrew manuscripts; some Hebrew manuscripts and Syriac Edom
  5. Ezekiel 27:17 The meaning of the Hebrew for this word is uncertain.
  6. Ezekiel 28:3 Or Danel, a man of renown in ancient literature
  7. Ezekiel 28:13 The precise identification of some of these precious stones is uncertain.
  8. Ezekiel 28:13 The meaning of the Hebrew for this phrase is uncertain.

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