The Bible in Basic English BBE
Good News Translation GNT
1 The word of the Lord came to me again, saying,
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The Lord spoke to me.
2 Son of man, say to the ruler of Tyre, This is what the Lord has said: Because your heart has been lifted up, and you have said, I am a god, I am seated on the seat of God in the heart of the seas; but you are man and not God, though you have made your heart as the heart of God:
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"Mortal man," he said, "tell the ruler of Tyre what I, the Sovereign Lord, am saying to him: Puffed up with pride, you claim to be a god. You say that like a god you sit on a throne, surrounded by the seas. You may pretend to be a god, but, no, you are mortal, not divine.
3 See, you are wiser than Daniel; there is no secret which is deeper than your knowledge:
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You think you are wiser than Danel, that no secret can be kept from you.
4 By your wisdom and deep knowledge you have got power for yourself, and put silver and gold in your store-houses:
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Your wisdom and skill made you rich with treasures of gold and silver.
5 By your great wisdom and by your trade your power is increased, and your heart is lifted up because of your power:
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You made clever business deals and kept on making profits. How proud you are of your wealth!
6 For this cause the Lord has said: Because you have made your heart as the heart of God,
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"Now then, this is what I, the Sovereign Lord, am saying: Because you think you are as wise as a god,
7 See, I am sending against you strange men, feared among the nations: they will let loose their swords against your bright wisdom, they will make your glory a common thing.
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I will bring ruthless enemies to attack you. They will destroy all the beautiful things you have acquired by skill and wisdom.
8 They will send you down to the underworld, and your death will be the death of those who are put to the sword in the heart of the seas.
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They will kill you and send you to a watery grave.
9 Will you say, in the face of those who are taking your life, I am God? but you are man and not God in the hands of those who are wounding you.
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When they come to kill you, will you still claim that you are a god? When you face your murderers, you will be mortal and not at all divine.
10 Your death will be the death of those who are without circumcision, by the hands of men from strange lands: for I have said it, says the Lord.
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You will die like a dog at the hand of godless foreigners. I, the Sovereign Lord, have given the command."
11 Then the word of the Lord came to me, saying,
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The Lord spoke to me again.
12 Son of man, make a song of grief for the king of Tyre, and say to him, This is what the Lord has said: You are all-wise and completely beautiful;
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"Mortal man," he said, "grieve for the fate that is waiting for the king of Tyre. Tell him what I, the Sovereign Lord, am saying: You were once an example of perfection. How wise and handsome you were!
13 You were in Eden, the garden of God; every stone of great price was your clothing, the sardius, the topaz, and the diamond, the beryl, the onyx, and the jasper, the emerald and the carbuncle: your store-houses were full of gold, and things of great price were in you; in the day when you were made they were got ready.
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You lived in Eden, the garden of God, and wore gems of every kind: rubies and diamonds; topaz, beryl, carnelian, and jasper; sapphires, emeralds, and garnets. You had ornaments of gold. They were made for you on the day you were created.
14 I gave you your place with the winged one; I put you on the mountain of God; you went up and down among the stones of fire.
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I put a terrifying angel there to guard you. You lived on my holy mountain and walked among sparkling gems.
15 There has been no evil in your ways from the day when you were made, till sin was seen in you.
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Your conduct was perfect from the day you were created until you began to do evil.
16 Through all your trading you have become full of violent ways, and have done evil: so I sent you out shamed from the mountain of God; the winged one put an end to you from among the stones of fire.
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You were busy buying and selling, and this led you to violence and sin. So I forced you to leave my holy mountain, and the angel who guarded you drove you away from the sparkling gems.
17 Your heart was lifted up because you were beautiful, you made your wisdom evil through your sin: I have sent you down, even to the earth; I have made you low before kings, so that they may see you.
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You were proud of being handsome, and your fame made you act like a fool. Because of this I hurled you to the ground and left you as a warning to other kings.
18 By all your sin, even by your evil trading, you have made your holy places unclean; so I will make a fire come out from you, it will make a meal of you, and I will make you as dust on the earth before the eyes of all who see you.
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You did such evil in buying and selling that your places of worship were corrupted. So I set fire to the city and burned it to the ground. All who look at you now see you reduced to ashes.
19 All who have knowledge of you among the peoples will be overcome with wonder at you: you have become a thing of fear, and you will never be seen again.
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You are gone, gone forever, and all the nations that had come to know you are terrified, afraid that they will share your fate."
20 And the word of the Lord came to me, saying,
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The Lord said to me,
21 Son of man, let your face be turned to Zidon, and be a prophet against it, and say,
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"Mortal man, denounce the city of Sidon.
22 These are the words of the Lord: See, I am against you, O Zidon; and I will get glory for myself in you: and they will be certain that I am the Lord, when I send my punishments on her, and I will be seen to be holy in her.
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Tell the people there what I, the Sovereign Lord, say about them: I am your enemy, Sidon; people will praise me because of what I do to you. They will know that I am the Lord, when I show how holy I am by punishing those who live in you.
23 And I will send on her disease and blood in her streets; and the wounded will be falling in the middle of her, and the sword will be against her on every side; and they will be certain that I am the Lord.
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I will send diseases on you and make blood flow in your streets. You will be attacked from every side, and your people will be killed. Then you will know that I am the Lord."
24 And there will no longer be a plant with sharp points wounding the children of Israel, or a thorn troubling them among any who are round about them, who put shame on them; and they will be certain that I am the Lord.
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The Lord said, "None of the surrounding nations that treated Israel with scorn will ever again be like thorns and briers to hurt Israel. And they will know that I am the Sovereign Lord."
25 This is what the Lord has said: When I have got together the children of Israel from the peoples among whom they are wandering, and have been made holy among them before the eyes of the nations, then they will have rest in the land which is theirs, which I gave to my servant Jacob
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The Sovereign Lord said, "I will bring back the people of Israel from the nations where I scattered them, and all the nations will know that I am holy. The people of Israel will live in their own land, the land that I gave to my servant Jacob.
26 And they will be safe there, building houses and planting vine-gardens and living without fear; when I have sent my punishments on all those who put shame on them round about them; and they will be certain that I am the Lord their God.
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They will live there in safety. They will build houses and plant vineyards. I will punish all their neighbors who treated them with scorn, and Israel will be secure. Then they will know that I am the Lord their God."
The Bible in Basic English is in the public domain.
Scripture taken from the Good News Translation - Second Edition, Copyright 1992 by American Bible Society. Used by Permission.