Ezekiel 27:1-36·~2 min

A Lament for Tyre

The word of the LORD tells Ezekiel to raise a lament over Tyre, the city enthroned at the gateway of the seas. Tyre is pictured as a ship of consummate beauty, built from the finest timbers, oars, ivory inlay, embroidered sails, and costly awnings. Her rowers, pilots, and craftsmen come from renowned coastal peoples, making her both beautiful and expertly manned.

T¹hen the word of the LORD came to me, saying, ²“Now you, son of man, take up a lament for Tyre. ³Tell Tyre, who dwells at the gateway to the sea, merchant of the peoples on many coasts, that this is what the Lord GOD says: ⁴Your borders are in the heart of the seas; ⁵They constructed all your planking ⁶Of oaks from Bashan ⁷Of embroidered fine linen from Egypt ⁸The men of Sidon and Arvad ⁹The elders of Gebal were aboard as shipwrights,

The lament widens to Tyre's defenses and markets. Foreign warriors man her army and hang their shields on her walls. Then a long procession of trading partners appears, bringing metals, slaves, horses, textiles, jewels, spices, animals, and luxury fabrics from every direction. Tyre becomes the center of a vast world economy, filled and glorified by the abundance of maritime commerce.

¹⁰Men of Persia, Lydia, and Put ¹¹Men of Arvad and Helech ¹²Tarshish was your merchant because of your great wealth of goods; they exchanged silver, iron, tin, and lead for your wares. ¹³Javan, Tubal, and Meshech were your merchants. They exchanged slaves and bronze utensils for your merchandise. ¹⁴The men of Beth-togarmah exchanged horses, war horses, and mules for your wares. ¹⁵The men of Dedan were your clients; many coastlands were your market; they paid you with ivory tusks and ebony. ¹⁶Aram was your customer because of your many products; they exchanged turquoise, purple, embroidered work, fine linen, coral, and rubies for your wares. ¹⁷Judah and the land of Israel traded with you; they exchanged wheat from Minnith, cakes and honey, oil and balm for your merchandise. ¹⁸Because of your many products and your great wealth of goods, Damascus traded with you wine from Helbon, wool from Zahar, ¹⁹and casks of wine from Izal for your wares. Wrought iron, cassia, and sweet cane were exchanged for your merchandise. ²⁰Dedan was your merchant in saddlecloths for riding. ²¹Arabia and all the princes of Kedar were your customers, trading in lambs, rams, and goats. ²²The merchants of Sheba and Raamah traded with you; for your wares they exchanged gold, the finest of all spices, and precious stones. ²³Haran, Canneh, and Eden traded with you, and so did the merchants of Sheba, Asshur, and Chilmad. ²⁴In your marketplace they traded with you fine garments of blue, embroidered work, and multicolored rugs with cords tightly twisted and knotted. ²⁵The ships of Tarshish

At the height of Tyre's fullness, her rowers bring her into great waters, where the east wind breaks her in the heart of the seas. Cargo, crew, warriors, and merchants sink together. The sound of the crash makes the coastlands tremble; mariners leave their ships to mourn, casting dust on their heads and wailing over the unmatched city now laid waste. The chapter ends with universal astonishment: merchants hiss, nations shudder, and Tyre becomes a terror never recovered.

²⁶Your oarsmen have brought you ²⁷Your wealth, wares, and merchandise, ²⁸The countryside will shake ²⁹All who handle the oars ³⁰They will raise their voices for you ³¹They will shave their heads for you ³²As they wail and mourn over you, ³³When your wares went out to sea, ³⁴Now you are shattered by the seas ³⁵All the people of the coastlands ³⁶Those who trade among the nations

Section summaryTyre is lamented as a beautifully constructed ship moored at the gateway of the seas, built with choice timbers, fine sails, and costly adornments. Her crew, craftsmen, soldiers, and traders come from every direction, making her both secure and splendid. The catalog of commerce displays the breadth of her maritime empire as nations bring metals, slaves, textiles, animals, spices, jewels, and luxury goods to her markets. But all of this magnificence is carried into deep waters and broken by the east wind. The result is not merely local ruin but international shock: rowers, sailors, merchants, warriors, and coastlands all cry out at the crash of Tyre's fall.

Role in the chapterThis section turns Tyre's maritime-commercial greatness into a dirge, showing that the broader and brighter her glory, the more devastating and public her collapse becomes.