Ezekiel 28

1 The word of the LORD came again unto me, saying,

2 Son of man, say unto the prince of Tyre, Thus hath the Lord GOD said: Because thy heart has lifted thee up and thou hast said, I am God, I sit in the seat of God, in the midst of the seas (yet thou art man, and not God); and thou hast set thine heart as the heart of God:

3 behold, thou art wiser than Daniel; there is no secret that they can hide from thee:

4 with thy wisdom and with thine intelligence thou hast gotten thee riches and hast gotten gold and silver into thy treasures:

5 by the greatness of thy wisdom in thy trafficking thou hast multiplied thy riches, and thine heart is lifted up because of thy riches:

6 therefore thus hath the Lord GOD said: Because thou hast set thine heart as the heart of God,

7 behold, therefore I will bring strangers upon thee, the strong ones of the Gentiles, and they shall draw their swords against the beauty of thy wisdom, and they shall defile thy brightness.

8 They shall bring thee down to the pit, and thou shalt die of the death of those that are slain in the midst of the seas.

9 Wilt thou yet say before him that slays thee, I am God? but thou shalt be a man, and not God, in the hand of him that slays thee.

10 Thou shalt die the death of the uncircumcised by the hand of strangers: for I have spoken, said the Lord GOD.

11 And the word of the LORD came unto me, saying,

12 Son of man, raise up lamentations upon the king of Tyre and say unto him, Thus hath the Lord GOD said: Thou dost seal up the sum of perfection, full of wisdom, and completed in beauty.

13 Thou hast been in Eden the garden of God; every precious stone was thy covering: the sardius, topaz, diamond, turquoise, onyx, and beryl, the sapphire, ruby, and emerald, and gold; the works of thy tambourines and of thy pipes were prepared in thee in the day that thou wast created.

14 Thou, great cherubim, wast covered, and I placed thee; thou wast in the holy mountain of God; thou hast walked among stones of fire.

15 Thou wast perfect in all thy ways from the day that thou wast created, until iniquity was found in thee.

16 Because of the multitude of thy trafficking thou wast filled with violence, and thou hast sinned; and I cast thee out of the mountain of God, and I cast thee unto evil from among the stones of fire, O cherubim that wast covered.

17 Thine heart lifted thee up because of thy beauty; thou hast corrupted thy wisdom by reason of thy brightness; I will cast thee to the earth; I will expose thee before the kings, that they may behold thee.

18 Thou hast defiled thy sanctuary by the multitude of thine iniquities, by the iniquity of thy trafficking; therefore I brought forth fire from the midst of thee, which has consumed thee, and I brought thee to ashes upon the earth in the sight of all those that behold thee.

19 All those that knew thee from among the peoples shall marvel over thee; thou hast been greatly disturbed, and thou shalt not exist again forever.

20 And the word of the LORD came unto me, saying,

21 Son of man, set thy face against Zidon and prophesy against her

22 and say, Thus hath the Lord GOD said: Behold, I am against thee, O Zidon; and I will be glorified in the midst of thee; and they shall know that I am the LORD, when I shall have executed judgments in her and shall be sanctified in her.

23 For I will send into her pestilence and blood into her streets; and the dead shall fall in the midst of her, by the sword upon her on every side; and they shall know that I am the LORD.

24 And there shall no longer be a pricking brier unto the house of Israel, nor any thorn that causes him pain, round about them of those that despise them; and they shall know that I am the Lord GOD.

25 Thus hath the Lord GOD said: When I shall have gathered the house of Israel from the peoples among whom they are scattered and shall be sanctified in them in the eyes of the Gentiles, then they shall dwell in their land that I have given to my slave Jacob.

26 And they shall dwell safely therein and shall build houses and plant vineyards; and they shall dwell with confidence, when I have executed judgments in all those that spoil them round about them; and they shall know that I am the LORD their God.

Ezekiel 28 Commentary

Chapter 28

The sentence against the prince or king of Tyre. (1-19) The fall of Zidon. (20-23) The restoration of Israel. (24-26)

Verses 1-19 Ethbaal, or Ithobal, was the prince or king of Tyre; and being lifted up with excessive pride, he claimed Divine honours. Pride is peculiarly the sin of our fallen nature. Nor can any wisdom, except that which the Lord gives, lead to happiness in this world or in that which is to come. The haughty prince of Tyre thought he was able to protect his people by his own power, and considered himself as equal to the inhabitants of heaven. If it were possible to dwell in the garden of Eden, or even to enter heaven, no solid happiness could be enjoyed without a humble, holy, and spiritual mind. Especially all spiritual pride is of the devil. Those who indulge therein must expect to perish.

20-26. The Zidonians were borderers upon the land of Israel, and they might have learned to glorify the Lord; but, instead of that, they seduced Israel to the worship of their idols. War and pestilence are God's messengers; but he will be glorified in the restoring his people to their former safety and prosperity. God will cure them of their sins, and ease them of their troubles. This promise will at length fully come to pass in the heavenly Canaan: when all the saints shall be gathered together, every thing that offends shall be removed, all griefs and fears for ever banished. Happy, then, is the church of God, and every living member of it, though poor, afflicted, and despised; for the Lord will display his truth, power, and mercy, in the salvation and happiness of his redeemed people.

Chapter Summary

INTRODUCTION TO EZEKIEL 28

This chapter contains a prophecy of the destruction of the prince of Tyre; a lamentation for the king of Tyre; a denunciation of judgments on Zidon, and a promise of peace and safety to Israel. The order given the prophet to prophesy of the ruin of the prince of Tyre, Eze 28:1,2, the cause of his ruin, his pride on account of his wisdom and riches, which rose to such a pitch, as to make himself God, Eze 28:2-6, the manner in which his destruction shall be accomplished, Eze 28:7-10, the lamentation for the king of Tyre begins Eze 28:11,12, setting forth his former grandeur and dignity, Eze 28:13-15, his fall, and the cause of it, injustice and violence in merchandise, pride because of beauty and wisdom, and profanation of sanctuaries, Eze 28:16-19, next follow the judgments on Zidon, Eze 28:20-23, and the chapter is concluded with a promise of the restoration of the Jews to their own land, and of great tranquillity and safety in it, Eze 28:24-26.