Ezekiel 27:2-12

2 And thou, son of man, take up a lamentation for Tyre,

3 and say unto Tyre: O thou that art situate at the entries of the sea, and traffickest with the peoples in many isles, thus saith the Lord Jehovah: Thou, Tyre, hast said, I am perfect in beauty.

4 Thy borders are in the heart of the seas, thy builders have perfected thy beauty.

5 They made all thy double boards of cypress-trees of Senir; they took cedars from Lebanon to make masts for thee.

6 Of the oaks of Bashan did they make thine oars; they made thy benches of ivory, inlaid in box-wood, out of the isles of Chittim.

7 Byssus with broidered work from Egypt was thy sail, to serve thee for a banner; blue and purple from the isles of Elishah was thine awning.

8 The inhabitants of Zidon and Arvad were thy rowers; thy wise men, O Tyre, who were in thee, were thy pilots.

9 The elders of Gebal and the wise men thereof were in thee repairing thy leaks; all the ships of the sea with their mariners were in thee, to barter with thee.

10 Persia and Lud and Phut were in thine army, thy men of war: they hanged shield and helmet in thee; they gave splendour to thee.

11 The children of Arvad with thine army were upon thy walls round about, and the Gammadim were on thy towers: they hanged their shields upon thy walls round about; they made thy beauty perfect.

12 Tarshish dealt with thee by reason of the abundance of all substance; with silver, iron, tin, and lead, they furnished thy markets.

Ezekiel 27:2-12 Meaning and Commentary

INTRODUCTION TO EZEKIEL 27

This chapter contains a lamentation on Tyre; setting forth her former grandeur, riches, and commerce; her ruin and destruction; and the concern of others on that account. The prophet is bid to take up his lamentation concerning it, Eze 27:1,2, observing her situation and magnificence, of which she boasted, Eze 27:3,4, describing the excellency of her shipping and naval stores, Eze 27:5-7, declaring who were her mariners, pilots, and caulkers, Eze 27:8,9, her military men, Eze 27:10,11 her several merchants, and the things they traded in with her in her fairs and markets, Eze 27:12-25, then follows an account of her destruction, Eze 27:26,27, the lamentation of pilots and mariners because of it, Eze 27:28-32, and of the kings and inhabitants of the isles, and merchants of the people, Eze 27:33-36.

Footnotes

• [a]. Or 'thou that dwellest.'
• [b]. Or 'maritime countries,' 'coasts.'
• [c]. Or 'thy deck.'
• [d]. Or 'larch.'
• [e]. Or 'skilful.'
• [f]. Lit. 'making fast thy chinks;' perhaps 'thy calkers:' so ver. 27.
• [g]. Lit. 'barter thy barter:' so ver. 27.
• [h]. See Jer. 46.9.
• [i]. Or 'fighting-men.'