Ezekiel 26:17

17 And they shall take wailing on thee, and shall say to thee, How perishedest thou, noble city, that dwellest in the sea, that were strong in the sea, with thy dwellers, which dwellers all men dreaded? (And they shall take up a wailing for thee, and shall say of thee, How thou hast perished, O noble city, that dwellest by the sea, that were strong in the sea, with thy inhabitants, which inhabitants all the peoples feared!)

Ezekiel 26:17 Meaning and Commentary

Ezekiel 26:17

And they shall take up a lamentation for thee, and say unto
thee
The following mournful song: how art thou destroyed that wast inhabited of seafaring men;
or, "of the seas": by men who used the seas, and traded by sea to different parts of the world; and was frequented by persons that came by sea thither, by the great ocean, by the Red sea, the Mediterranean sea, and others; or, which was surrounded by the sea. So the Targum,

``that dwellest in the midst of the sea:''

"the renowned city, which wast strong in the sea"; fortified by the sea, and against it; strong in shipping and naval stores; so as to be formidable to others, and mistress of the sea. The Targum is,

``which dwell in the strength of the sea;''

and had the strength and riches of it brought unto it; and so was famous all the world over for its commerce, wealth, and power; but now ruined and undone: she and her inhabitants, which cause their terror to be on all that
haunt it!
the sea; on all that used the seas; or on all the inhabitants of the islands of the sea; who all stood in fear of Tyre and her inhabitants, and were obliged to strike their sails to their ships.

Ezekiel 26:17 In-Context

15 The Lord God saith these things of Tyre, Whether isles shall not be moved of the sound of thy fall, and of the wailing of thy slain men, when they be slain in the midst of thee? (The Lord God saith these things to Tyre, Shall not the islands be moved at the sound of thy fall, and at the wailing of thy slain, when they be killed in thy midst?)

16 And all the princes of the sea shall go down off their seats, and they shall do away their mantles, either their spoils of slain enemies, and they shall cast away their diverse clothes, and shall be clothed with wondering. They shall sit in the earth, and shall be astonied, and shall wonder on thy sudden fall. (And all the kings of the sea shall go down off their thrones, and they shall do away their mantles, or the spoils of their slain enemies, and they shall throw away their diverse clothes, and they shall be clothed with wondering. They shall sit on the ground, and shall be astonished, and shall wonder at thy sudden fall.)

17 And they shall take wailing on thee, and shall say to thee, How perishedest thou, noble city, that dwellest in the sea, that were strong in the sea, with thy dwellers, which dwellers all men dreaded? (And they shall take up a wailing for thee, and shall say of thee, How thou hast perished, O noble city, that dwellest by the sea, that were strong in the sea, with thy inhabitants, which inhabitants all the peoples feared!)

18 Now ships shall wonder in the day of thy dread, and isles in the sea shall be troubled, for none goeth out of thee. (Now the people shall wonder on the day of thy downfall, and the islands in the sea shall be troubled, for no one dwelleth within thee any more.)

19 For the Lord God saith these things, When I shall give thee to be a city desolate, as the cities that be not inhabited, and I shall bring on thee the depth of waters, and many waters shall cover thee. (For the Lord God saith these things, I shall make thee to be a desolate city, like the cities that be not inhabited, and I shall bring upon thee the water from the depths, and many waters shall cover thee.)