Isaiah 23 Study Notes: The Oracle Against Tyre
Isaiah announces the ruin of Tyre, the rich sea-trading city, and calls its ships and partners to mourn. The LORD planned its fall to bring its proud splendor low, and after seventy years of being forgotten Tyre will trade again, with its profits devoted to the LORD for those who serve Him.
General
True or False: According to 23:5, Egypt greets the report of Tyre's fall with relief.
Answer: False
This is false. Sidon, the sea's stronghold, is put to shame as the sea itself mourns that it has no children to raise (23:4). When the news arrives in Egypt, its people will be in anguish over Tyre, and the coastland dwellers are told to cross to Tarshish and wail over the once-joyful, ancient city whose people had settled far away (23:5-7). Egypt's grain trade passed through Tyre (23:3), so Tyre's fall was Egypt's loss too. Ezekiel describes the coastlands appalled and their kings shuddering at Tyre's fall (Ezekiel 27:35), and Revelation uses similar language when traders the world over weep over the fall of Babylon the great (Revelation 18:11).
- Isaiah 23:4-7 (BSB)“Be ashamed, O Sidon, the stronghold of the sea, for the sea has spoken: “I have not been in labor or given birth. I have not raised young men or brought up young women.” When the report reaches Egypt, they will writhe in agony over the news of Tyre. Cross over to Tarshish; wail, O inhabitants of the coastland! Is this your jubilant city, whose origin is from antiquity, whose feet have taken her to settle far away?”Sidon is shamed, Egypt is in anguish, and the coastlands are sent to wail over Tyre.
- Isaiah 23:3 (BSB)“On the great waters came the grain of Shihor; the harvest of the Nile was the revenue of Tyre; she was the merchant of the nations.”Egypt's grain was the revenue that flowed through Tyre.
- Ezekiel 27:35 (BSB)“All the people of the coastlands are appalled over you. Their kings shudder with fear; their faces are contorted.”Ezekiel describes the coastlands appalled and their kings shuddering at Tyre's fall.
- Revelation 18:11 (BSB)“And the merchants of the earth will weep and mourn over her, because there is no one left to buy their cargo—”In Revelation the world's traders weep over fallen Babylon the great because no one buys their cargo.
Theological
True or False: 23:5 says Egypt will receive the report of Tyre's ruin with relief rather than anguish.
Answer: False
This is false. Sidon is shamed as the sea laments that it is childless (23:4); Egypt writhes at the report, and the coastlands are sent to Tarshish to wail over the festive city of ancient origin whose people had settled far away (23:5-7). Since Nile grain was Tyre's revenue (23:3), Tyre's collapse wounds its trading partners. Ezekiel 27:35 shows the coastlands appalled at Tyre's fall, and Revelation 18:11 uses similar language for the world's traders mourning the fall of Babylon the great.
- Isaiah 23:4-7 (BSB)“Be ashamed, O Sidon, the stronghold of the sea, for the sea has spoken: “I have not been in labor or given birth. I have not raised young men or brought up young women.” When the report reaches Egypt, they will writhe in agony over the news of Tyre. Cross over to Tarshish; wail, O inhabitants of the coastland! Is this your jubilant city, whose origin is from antiquity, whose feet have taken her to settle far away?”Sidon is shamed, Egypt is in anguish, and the coastlands are sent to wail over Tyre.
- Isaiah 23:3 (BSB)“On the great waters came the grain of Shihor; the harvest of the Nile was the revenue of Tyre; she was the merchant of the nations.”Egypt's grain was the revenue that flowed through Tyre.
- Ezekiel 27:35 (BSB)“All the people of the coastlands are appalled over you. Their kings shudder with fear; their faces are contorted.”Ezekiel describes the coastlands appalled and their kings shuddering at Tyre's fall.
- Revelation 18:11 (BSB)“And the merchants of the earth will weep and mourn over her, because there is no one left to buy their cargo—”In Revelation the world's traders weep over fallen Babylon the great because no one buys their cargo.
General
True or False: According to 23:12, the people of Sidon would find safety and rest if they crossed over to Cyprus.
Answer: False
This is false. The LORD has reached out His hand across the sea, made kingdoms shake and ordered Canaan's fortresses destroyed (23:11). He tells the oppressed daughter of Sidon that her celebrating is over; she may cross to Cyprus, but even there she will have no rest (23:12). When God's hand is against a people, distance offers no escape. Amos pictures a man who escapes a lion and then meets a bear (Amos 5:19), Isaiah says no one can turn back the LORD's outstretched hand (14:27), and the psalmist confesses there is nowhere to flee from God's presence (Psalm 139:7-8).
- Isaiah 23:11-12 (BSB)“The LORD has stretched out His hand over the sea; He has made kingdoms tremble. He has given a command that the strongholds of Canaan be destroyed. He said, “You shall rejoice no more, O oppressed Virgin Daughter of Sidon. Get up and cross over to Cyprus—even there you will find no rest.””The LORD's hand is against the sea and its strongholds; Sidon's people will find no rest even abroad.
- Amos 5:19 (BSB)“It will be like a man who flees from a lion, only to encounter a bear, or who enters his house and rests his hand against the wall, only to be bitten by a snake.”Amos pictures escaping one danger only to meet another.
- Isaiah 14:27 (BSB)“The LORD of Hosts has purposed, and who can thwart Him? His hand is outstretched, so who can turn it back?”When the LORD's hand is stretched out, no one can turn it back.
- Psalm 139:7-8 (BSB)“Where can I go to escape Your Spirit? Where can I flee from Your presence? If I ascend to the heavens, You are there; if I make my bed in Sheol, You are there.”There is nowhere a person can flee from God's presence.
Theological
True or False: 23:11-12 holds out Cyprus as a secure refuge where Sidon's people would finally find rest.
Answer: False
This is false. The LORD's hand extended over the sea shakes kingdoms and decrees the destruction of Canaan's fortresses (23:11); Sidon, the oppressed virgin daughter, may flee to Cyprus but will have no rest there either (23:12). Flight cannot outrun divine judgment, as Amos 5:19 illustrates, for the LORD's outstretched hand cannot be turned back (14:27) and no place lies beyond His presence (Psalm 139:7-8).
- Isaiah 23:11-12 (BSB)“The LORD has stretched out His hand over the sea; He has made kingdoms tremble. He has given a command that the strongholds of Canaan be destroyed. He said, “You shall rejoice no more, O oppressed Virgin Daughter of Sidon. Get up and cross over to Cyprus—even there you will find no rest.””The LORD's hand is against the sea and its strongholds; Sidon's people will find no rest even abroad.
- Amos 5:19 (BSB)“It will be like a man who flees from a lion, only to encounter a bear, or who enters his house and rests his hand against the wall, only to be bitten by a snake.”Amos pictures escaping one danger only to meet another.
- Isaiah 14:27 (BSB)“The LORD of Hosts has purposed, and who can thwart Him? His hand is outstretched, so who can turn it back?”When the LORD's hand is stretched out, no one can turn it back.
- Psalm 139:7-8 (BSB)“Where can I go to escape Your Spirit? Where can I flee from Your presence? If I ascend to the heavens, You are there; if I make my bed in Sheol, You are there.”There is nowhere a person can flee from God's presence.
General
What example does 23:13 point to as a warning for Tyre?
Answer: The Chaldeans' land, wrecked and left to wild animals
The prophet tells Tyre to look at the Chaldeans' land, a people now reduced to nothing: Assyria set up siege towers, stripped its palaces and left it as a home for desert creatures (23:13). If that land could be brought to nothing, Tyre's own strength was no guarantee. Babylon, the Chaldeans' proud jewel, was also marked for overthrow (13:19). God promises to bring down the arrogant (13:11), and Assyria itself was only His tool, though it boasted in its own strength and wisdom (10:13).
- Isaiah 23:13 (BSB)“Look at the land of the Chaldeans—a people now of no account. The Assyrians destined it for the desert creatures; they set up their siege towers and stripped its palaces. They brought it to ruin.”The prophet points Tyre to the ruined land of the Chaldeans as an example.
- Isaiah 13:19 (BSB)“And Babylon, the jewel of the kingdoms, the glory of the pride of the Chaldeans, will be overthrown by God like Sodom and Gomorrah.”Babylon, the pride of the Chaldeans, was also marked for overthrow.
- Isaiah 13:11 (BSB)“I will punish the world for its evil and the wicked for their iniquity. I will end the haughtiness of the arrogant and lay low the pride of the ruthless.”God promises to end the arrogance of the proud and ruthless.
- Isaiah 10:13 (BSB)“For he says: ‘By the strength of my hand I have done this, and by my wisdom, for I am clever. I have removed the boundaries of nations and plundered their treasures; like a mighty one I subdued their rulers.”Assyria boasted in its own strength, though it was only God's instrument.
Theological
To what object lesson does 23:13 direct Tyre's attention?
Answer: The Chaldeans' land, wrecked and left to wild animals
Tyre is told to consider the Chaldean homeland, reduced to insignificance when the Assyrians besieged it, stripped its palaces and abandoned it to wild creatures (23:13). The ruin of one proud power is a mirror for another. Isaiah elsewhere marks Babylon, the Chaldean jewel, for overthrow (13:19), announces God's purpose to humble the arrogant (13:11), and exposes Assyria's boast of self-made success even as God uses it (10:13).
- Isaiah 23:13 (BSB)“Look at the land of the Chaldeans—a people now of no account. The Assyrians destined it for the desert creatures; they set up their siege towers and stripped its palaces. They brought it to ruin.”The prophet points Tyre to the ruined land of the Chaldeans as an example.
- Isaiah 13:19 (BSB)“And Babylon, the jewel of the kingdoms, the glory of the pride of the Chaldeans, will be overthrown by God like Sodom and Gomorrah.”Babylon, the pride of the Chaldeans, was also marked for overthrow.
- Isaiah 13:11 (BSB)“I will punish the world for its evil and the wicked for their iniquity. I will end the haughtiness of the arrogant and lay low the pride of the ruthless.”God promises to end the arrogance of the proud and ruthless.
- Isaiah 10:13 (BSB)“For he says: ‘By the strength of my hand I have done this, and by my wisdom, for I am clever. I have removed the boundaries of nations and plundered their treasures; like a mighty one I subdued their rulers.”Assyria boasted in its own strength, though it was only God's instrument.
General
According to 23:8-9, who planned Tyre's downfall and for what purpose?
Answer: The LORD, to stain its splendor and shame the famous
The prophet asks who devised this ruin for Tyre, the city that handed out crowns and whose traders were princes (23:8). The answer is that the LORD planned it, to stain all the splendor it gloried in and bring disgrace on everyone famous on earth (23:9). Tyre's fall was not an accident of history but God's deliberate purpose. The LORD has a day set against everything proud and lofty (2:12), and what He has purposed will stand, since no one can turn back His hand (14:24, 27). Even Nebuchadnezzar confessed that God can bring low anyone who walks proudly (Daniel 4:37).
- Isaiah 23:8-9 (BSB)“Who planned this against Tyre, the bestower of crowns, whose traders are princes, whose merchants are renowned on the earth? The LORD of Hosts planned it, to defile all its glorious beauty, to disgrace all the renowned of the earth.”The prophet asks who planned Tyre's fall and answers that the LORD did, to humble pride.
- Isaiah 2:12 (BSB)“For the Day of the LORD of Hosts will come against all the proud and lofty, against all that is exalted—it will be humbled—”The LORD has a day appointed against all that is proud and exalted.
- Isaiah 14:24 (BSB)“The LORD of Hosts has sworn: “Surely, as I have planned, so will it be; as I have purposed, so will it stand.”What the LORD has planned and purposed will surely stand.
- Isaiah 14:27 (BSB)“The LORD of Hosts has purposed, and who can thwart Him? His hand is outstretched, so who can turn it back?”No one can thwart the LORD's purpose or turn back His outstretched hand.
- Daniel 4:37 (BSB)“Now I, Nebuchadnezzar, praise and exalt and glorify the King of heaven, for all His works are true and all His ways are just. And He is able to humble those who walk in pride.”Nebuchadnezzar confessed that God is able to humble the proud.
Theological
What answer does 23:8-9 give to the question of who purposed Tyre's ruin, and why?
Answer: The LORD, to stain its splendor and shame the famous
The rhetorical question of 23:8, who devised this against the crown-giving city of merchant princes, receives a theological answer: the LORD purposed it, to desecrate the splendor it gloried in and bring the honored of the earth into contempt (23:9). The fall of a commercial empire is attributed directly to God's sovereign decree. This is a consistent theme in Isaiah: the LORD has appointed a day for all human loftiness (2:12), His purposes stand and cannot be annulled (14:24, 27), and even Nebuchadnezzar acknowledged God's power to abase the proud (Daniel 4:37).
- Isaiah 23:8-9 (BSB)“Who planned this against Tyre, the bestower of crowns, whose traders are princes, whose merchants are renowned on the earth? The LORD of Hosts planned it, to defile all its glorious beauty, to disgrace all the renowned of the earth.”The prophet asks who planned Tyre's fall and answers that the LORD did, to humble pride.
- Isaiah 2:12 (BSB)“For the Day of the LORD of Hosts will come against all the proud and lofty, against all that is exalted—it will be humbled—”The LORD has a day appointed against all that is proud and exalted.
- Isaiah 14:24 (BSB)“The LORD of Hosts has sworn: “Surely, as I have planned, so will it be; as I have purposed, so will it stand.”What the LORD has planned and purposed will surely stand.
- Isaiah 14:27 (BSB)“The LORD of Hosts has purposed, and who can thwart Him? His hand is outstretched, so who can turn it back?”No one can thwart the LORD's purpose or turn back His outstretched hand.
- Daniel 4:37 (BSB)“Now I, Nebuchadnezzar, praise and exalt and glorify the King of heaven, for all His works are true and all His ways are just. And He is able to humble those who walk in pride.”Nebuchadnezzar confessed that God is able to humble the proud.
General
What does 23:15-17 foretell for Tyre after a set period?
Answer: Out of mind for seventy years, then restored to its trading
Tyre would drop out of memory for seventy years, about the length of one king's life (23:15). Then, like a forgotten prostitute who takes up her harp and sings to be noticed again, Tyre would come back, the LORD would restore Tyre, and it would return to its old trade with kingdoms all over the world (23:15-17). The image pictures Tyre's commerce as selling itself for profit. Jeremiah uses the same span of seventy years for the nations' service to Babylon's king (Jeremiah 25:11). Both Tyre's eclipse and its return are under God's control (14:24).
- Isaiah 23:15-17 (BSB)“At that time Tyre will be forgotten for seventy years—the span of a king’s life. But at the end of seventy years, it will happen to Tyre as in the song of the harlot: “Take up your harp, stroll through the city, O forgotten harlot. Make sweet melody, sing many a song, so you will be remembered.” And at the end of seventy years, the LORD will restore Tyre. Then she will return to hire as a prostitute and sell herself to all the kingdoms on the face of the earth.”Tyre will be forgotten for a set time, then restored by the LORD and back at its old trade.
- Jeremiah 25:11 (BSB)“And this whole land will become a desolate wasteland, and these nations will serve the king of Babylon for seventy years.”Jeremiah uses the same span of seventy years for the nations' service to Babylon.
- Isaiah 14:24 (BSB)“The LORD of Hosts has sworn: “Surely, as I have planned, so will it be; as I have purposed, so will it stand.”The LORD's plans, including the timing of nations' rise and fall, will surely stand.
Theological
What pattern of eclipse and recovery does 23:15-17 foretell for Tyre?
Answer: Out of mind for seventy years, then restored to its trading
Tyre is to drop from memory for seventy years, about one royal lifetime, and then, like a forgotten prostitute singing to regain attention, to be remembered; the LORD Himself restores Tyre, and it resumes its commerce with the world's kingdoms (23:15-17). The harlot imagery depicts mercantile trade pursued purely for gain. The seventy-year span parallels Jeremiah 25:11, and both the eclipse and the revival are framed as the outworking of God's fixed purpose (14:24).
- Isaiah 23:15-17 (BSB)“At that time Tyre will be forgotten for seventy years—the span of a king’s life. But at the end of seventy years, it will happen to Tyre as in the song of the harlot: “Take up your harp, stroll through the city, O forgotten harlot. Make sweet melody, sing many a song, so you will be remembered.” And at the end of seventy years, the LORD will restore Tyre. Then she will return to hire as a prostitute and sell herself to all the kingdoms on the face of the earth.”Tyre will be forgotten for a set time, then restored by the LORD and back at its old trade.
- Jeremiah 25:11 (BSB)“And this whole land will become a desolate wasteland, and these nations will serve the king of Babylon for seventy years.”Jeremiah uses the same span of seventy years for the nations' service to Babylon.
- Isaiah 14:24 (BSB)“The LORD of Hosts has sworn: “Surely, as I have planned, so will it be; as I have purposed, so will it stand.”The LORD's plans, including the timing of nations' rise and fall, will surely stand.
General
What will finally become of Tyre's profits, according to 23:18?
Answer: They will be devoted to God and supply His people
The chapter ends with a surprise: Tyre's earnings will be dedicated to the LORD instead of being stored up, and they will provide plenty of food and fine clothes for those who live in His presence (23:18). The proud trading city's wealth will end up serving God's people. A psalm pictures Tyre personified as a daughter bringing a gift (Psalm 45:12), another names Tyre among the nations counted as born in Zion, God's city (Psalm 87:4), and Isaiah later sees the riches of many nations flowing to Zion (60:5).
- Isaiah 23:18 (BSB)“Yet her profits and wages will be set apart to the LORD; they will not be stored or saved, for her profit will go to those who live before the LORD, for abundant food and fine clothing.”Tyre's future earnings will be dedicated to the LORD and used for those who live before Him.
- Psalm 45:12 (BSB)“The Daughter of Tyre will come with a gift; men of wealth will seek your favor.”A psalm pictures Tyre personified as a daughter bringing a gift.
- Psalm 87:4 (BSB)““I will mention Rahab and Babylon among those who know Me—along with Philistia, Tyre, and Cush—when I say, ‘This one was born in Zion.’””Tyre is named among the nations counted as born in Zion.
- Isaiah 60:5 (BSB)“Then you will look and be radiant, and your heart will tremble and swell with joy, because the riches of the sea will be brought to you, and the wealth of the nations will come to you.”Isaiah later sees the riches of the sea and the nations brought to Zion.
Theological
How does 23:18 describe the final destination of Tyre's profits?
Answer: They will be devoted to God and supply His people
The oracle closes on a note of grace: Tyre's gain will be holy, consecrated to God, not hoarded, and it will furnish abundant provision for those who dwell before Him (23:18). The wealth of a pagan commercial power is consecrated to the service of God's people. Psalm 45:12 envisions Tyre bringing tribute, Psalm 87:4 enrolls Tyre among those born in Zion, and Isaiah 60:5 foresees the riches of many peoples brought to God's city.
- Isaiah 23:18 (BSB)“Yet her profits and wages will be set apart to the LORD; they will not be stored or saved, for her profit will go to those who live before the LORD, for abundant food and fine clothing.”Tyre's future earnings will be dedicated to the LORD and used for those who live before Him.
- Psalm 45:12 (BSB)“The Daughter of Tyre will come with a gift; men of wealth will seek your favor.”A psalm pictures Tyre personified as a daughter bringing a gift.
- Psalm 87:4 (BSB)““I will mention Rahab and Babylon among those who know Me—along with Philistia, Tyre, and Cush—when I say, ‘This one was born in Zion.’””Tyre is named among the nations counted as born in Zion.
- Isaiah 60:5 (BSB)“Then you will look and be radiant, and your heart will tremble and swell with joy, because the riches of the sea will be brought to you, and the wealth of the nations will come to you.”Isaiah later sees the riches of the sea and the nations brought to Zion.
General
In 23:1, who is told to wail over Tyre's destruction, and why?
Answer: The ships of Tarshish, since Tyre's harbor and homes are gone
The oracle opens by calling the ships of Tarshish, the great ocean-going trading vessels, to wail, because Tyre has been ruined and has neither houses nor a harbor left to receive them; the news reaches them from Cyprus (23:1). Tyre was a wealthy port, and its fall shook the whole trading world. Ezekiel also speaks to Tyre as the city at the sea's entrance and trader to many coasts (Ezekiel 27:3), and says God would raise many nations against it like waves (Ezekiel 26:3). Zechariah describes Tyre heaping up silver and gold, yet the Lord would strip away her wealth (Zechariah 9:3-4).
- Isaiah 23:1 (BSB)“This is the burden against Tyre: Wail, O ships of Tarshish, for Tyre is laid waste, without house or harbor. Word has reached them from the land of Cyprus.”The oracle opens by calling the trading ships to lament Tyre's ruin.
- Ezekiel 27:3 (BSB)“Tell Tyre, who dwells at the gateway to the sea, merchant of the peoples on many coasts, that this is what the Lord GOD says: You have said, O Tyre, ‘I am perfect in beauty.’”Ezekiel also addresses Tyre as the great trading city of the sea.
- Ezekiel 26:3 (BSB)“therefore this is what the Lord GOD says: ‘Behold, O Tyre, I am against you, and I will raise up many nations against you, as the sea brings up its waves.”Ezekiel announces that God Himself is against Tyre and will bring nations against it.
- Zechariah 9:3-4 (BSB)“Tyre has built herself a fortress; she has heaped up silver like dust, and gold like the dirt of the streets. Behold, the Lord will impoverish her and cast her wealth into the sea, and she will be consumed by fire.”Zechariah says the Lord would strip Tyre of the wealth it had piled up.
Theological
Whom does 23:1 summon to lament, and for what reason?
Answer: The ships of Tarshish, since Tyre's harbor and homes are gone
The oracle begins with a summons to the ships of Tarshish, the long-haul merchant fleet, to lament: Tyre is devastated, with no house or harbor to return to, as word reaches them from Cyprus (23:1). The collapse of Tyre's port is a blow to the whole maritime economy. Ezekiel's oracles likewise portray Tyre as the trading center of the coasts (Ezekiel 27:3) under God's own opposition (Ezekiel 26:3), and Zechariah 9:3-4 announces the Lord's dispossession of her hoarded wealth.
- Isaiah 23:1 (BSB)“This is the burden against Tyre: Wail, O ships of Tarshish, for Tyre is laid waste, without house or harbor. Word has reached them from the land of Cyprus.”The oracle opens by calling the trading ships to lament Tyre's ruin.
- Ezekiel 27:3 (BSB)“Tell Tyre, who dwells at the gateway to the sea, merchant of the peoples on many coasts, that this is what the Lord GOD says: You have said, O Tyre, ‘I am perfect in beauty.’”Ezekiel also addresses Tyre as the great trading city of the sea.
- Ezekiel 26:3 (BSB)“therefore this is what the Lord GOD says: ‘Behold, O Tyre, I am against you, and I will raise up many nations against you, as the sea brings up its waves.”Ezekiel announces that God Himself is against Tyre and will bring nations against it.
- Zechariah 9:3-4 (BSB)“Tyre has built herself a fortress; she has heaped up silver like dust, and gold like the dirt of the streets. Behold, the Lord will impoverish her and cast her wealth into the sea, and she will be consumed by fire.”Zechariah says the Lord would strip Tyre of the wealth it had piled up.
General
What was the source of Tyre's wealth according to 23:2-3?
Answer: Shipping Egypt's grain as trader to the nations
Sidon's merchants crossed the sea, and grain from Shihor and the Nile valley came over the vast waters to become Tyre's income; she was the trading center of the nations (23:2-3). Tyre's greatness rested on commerce. Ezekiel calls Tyre the merchant of many coastlands (Ezekiel 27:3) and tells Tyre's ruler that his skill in trade multiplied his riches, but his heart grew proud because of them (Ezekiel 28:5), until he even claimed to be a god (Ezekiel 28:2). Trade itself was not the sin; the pride that grew with the wealth was.
- Isaiah 23:2-3 (BSB)“Be silent, O dwellers of the coastland, you merchants of Sidon, whose traders have crossed the sea. On the great waters came the grain of Shihor; the harvest of the Nile was the revenue of Tyre; she was the merchant of the nations.”Tyre's income came from shipping Egypt's grain across the sea.
- Ezekiel 27:3 (BSB)“Tell Tyre, who dwells at the gateway to the sea, merchant of the peoples on many coasts, that this is what the Lord GOD says: You have said, O Tyre, ‘I am perfect in beauty.’”Ezekiel calls Tyre the merchant of the peoples on many coasts.
- Ezekiel 28:5 (BSB)“By your great skill in trading you have increased your wealth, but your heart has grown proud because of it.”Ezekiel tells Tyre's ruler that his trading skill increased his wealth and made his heart proud.
- Ezekiel 28:2 (BSB)““Son of man, tell the ruler of Tyre that this is what the Lord GOD says: Your heart is proud, and you have said, ‘I am a god; I sit in the seat of gods in the heart of the sea.’ Yet you are a man and not a god, though you have regarded your heart as that of a god.”Tyre's ruler grew so proud that he claimed to be a god.
Theological
How does 23:2-3 describe the basis of Tyre's prosperity?
Answer: Shipping Egypt's grain as trader to the nations
Tyre's prosperity was mercantile: Sidonian traders crossed the sea, and Egypt's grain, from Shihor and the Nile, was shipped through Tyre as its revenue, making it the market of the nations (23:2-3). Ezekiel 27:3 confirms Tyre's role as merchant to many coasts, while 28:5 and 28:2, addressed to Tyre's ruler, show how commercial success bred a pride that ended in self-deification. The judgment that follows targets that pride rather than trade as such.
- Isaiah 23:2-3 (BSB)“Be silent, O dwellers of the coastland, you merchants of Sidon, whose traders have crossed the sea. On the great waters came the grain of Shihor; the harvest of the Nile was the revenue of Tyre; she was the merchant of the nations.”Tyre's income came from shipping Egypt's grain across the sea.
- Ezekiel 27:3 (BSB)“Tell Tyre, who dwells at the gateway to the sea, merchant of the peoples on many coasts, that this is what the Lord GOD says: You have said, O Tyre, ‘I am perfect in beauty.’”Ezekiel calls Tyre the merchant of the peoples on many coasts.
- Ezekiel 28:5 (BSB)“By your great skill in trading you have increased your wealth, but your heart has grown proud because of it.”Ezekiel tells Tyre's ruler that his trading skill increased his wealth and made his heart proud.
- Ezekiel 28:2 (BSB)““Son of man, tell the ruler of Tyre that this is what the Lord GOD says: Your heart is proud, and you have said, ‘I am a god; I sit in the seat of gods in the heart of the sea.’ Yet you are a man and not a god, though you have regarded your heart as that of a god.”Tyre's ruler grew so proud that he claimed to be a god.