Words in italic type have been added for clarity. They are not found in the original Hebrew or Aramaic.
Ezekiel 27 Lamentations for Tyre continues from Ezekiel Chapter 26.
“Nebuchadnezzar conquered the mainland city of Tyre, but failed to conquer the island city.
When Alexander the Great came through in 332 BC, he desired to sacrifice in the temple of Hercules in the island city of Tyre. The citizens of Tyre did not allow him to enter the city. Rather, they invited him to sacrifice in Old Tyre on the mainland. He of course refused, and took the island city after a seven-month siege. This invitation, however, indicated the two cities could clearly be identified with each other (Bury and Meiggs 1975: 460).”
~The Significance of Tyre in the Bible
After his defeat of Jerusalem in 587 BC, Nebuchadnezzar (Babylon) turned his attention to Tyre. Although he defeated mainland Tyre, a 13-year siege of the island city proved fruitless. The historian Diodorus attested that Alexander used the stones from the Old Tyre destroyed by Nebuchadnezzar to build his mole (Diodorus, 17.40; Wells 1936). The causeway was a half-mile (0.8 km) long and 200 ft (60 m) wide, and was built so Alexander could move his siege equipment over to the island. The rubble from Old Tyre was so thoroughly cleaned out by Alexander’s engineers that no trace of the ancient city can be found today. Thus, according to H. J. Katzenstein, the precise location of mainland Tyre is a point of controversy. According to this specialist on the history of Tyre, it was “totally dismantled by Alexander the Great in his famous siege…and disappeared totally” (1997: 15).
Map of Tyre in 1873, showing the present-day causeway between the mainland and the island city. When Alexander the Great besieged the island in 332 BC he built a narrow mole from the rubble of the destroyed mainland city of Tyre. It spanned the 1/3 mi (600 m) between the mainland and the island. In time, the causeway became enlarged by sand deposits washed in by the waves. Today the causeway and the island form a peninsula stretching out into the Mediterranean. Evidence of Tyre’s ancient ports can still be seen on the north and south sides of the former island.
See: Tyre and Sidon – Bible Archeology
Lamentation for Tyre
Ezekiel 27:1 The word of the Lord (Yᵊhōvâ) came again to me, saying,
Ezekiel 27:2 “Now, son of man (Lit. Adam), take up a lamentation for Tyre,
The Best of the Best in Beauty, Resources, and Fortification
Ezekiel 27:3 and say to Tyre, ‘You who are situated (Lit. sit or dwell) at the entrance of the sea, merchant of the peoples on many coastlands, thus says the Lord God (‘ăḏōnāy Yᵊhōvâ):
“O Tyre, you have said,
‘I am perfect in beauty.’
“Beauty has great value unless it is spent entirely on itself” ~BG
Ezekiel 27:4 Your borders are in the midst of the seas.
Your builders have perfected your beauty.
Ezekiel 27:5 They made (built) all your planks of fir trees from Senir;
They took a cedar from Lebanon to make you a mast.
Ezekiel 27:6 Of oaks from Bashan they made your oars;
The company of Ashurites have inlaid your planks
With ivory from the coasts of Cyprus (Heb. Kittim, western lands, especially Cyprus).
Ezekiel 27:7 Fine embroidered linen from Egypt was what you spread for your sail;
Blue and purple from the coasts of Elishah was what covered you.
Ezekiel 27:8 “Inhabitants of Sidon and Arvad were your oarsmen;
Your wise men, O Tyre, were in you;
They became your pilots.
Ezekiel 27:9 Elders of Gebal and its wise men
Were in you to caulk your seams;
All the ships of the sea
And their oarsmen were in you
To market your merchandise.
Ezekiel 27:10 “Those from Persia, Lydia (Heb. Lud) and Libya (Heb. Put),
Were in your army as men of war;
They hung shield and helmet in you;
They gave splendor to you.
Ezekiel 27:11 Men of Arvad with your army were on your walls all around,
And the men of Gammad were in your towers;
They hung their shields on your walls all around;
They made your beauty perfect.
Ezekiel 27:12 “Tarshish was your merchant because of your many luxury goods. They gave you silver, iron, tin, and lead for your goods.
Ezekiel 27:13 Javan, Tubal, and Meshech were your traders. They bartered human lives and vessels of bronze for your merchandise.
- Bartered human lives: the self, person, or individual; their seat of emotions and passions encapsulating the soul.
Ezekiel 27:14 Those from the house of Togarmah traded for your wares with horses, steeds, and mules.
Ezekiel 27:15 The men of Dedan were your traders; many isles were the market of your hand. They brought you ivory tusks and ebony as payment.
Ezekiel 27:16 Syria was your merchant because of the abundance of goods you made. They gave you for your wares emeralds, purple, embroidery, fine linen, corals, and rubies.
Ezekiel 27:17 Judah and the land of Israel were your traders. They traded for your merchandise wheat of Minnith, millet, honey, oil, and balm.
- Archeology: The Balm in Gilead
Scientists grow tree mentioned in Bible using mysterious 1,000-year-old seed (msn.com)
Daily Express US
Scientists grow tree mentioned in Bible using mysterious 1,000-year-old seed
Story by Kia Fatahi
Scientists have grown a tree from a 1000-year-old seed that may carry Biblical significance.© Communications Biology
Scientists have made a significant breakthrough when they have grown a tree from a 1,000-year-old seed in a desert cave near Jerusalem, which could carry Biblical significance.
The ancient seed, which measures about 2 centimeters long, was first unearthed in a Judean Desert cave during a late 1980s archaeological excavation and is believed to have originated as far (back) as 1202 AD.
After years of attempting to bring the tree back to life, researchers now suspect that the tree, which they named “Sheba,” might be the same species as those of the “Judean Balsam” or “Balm of Judea,” a tree that was grown in the Levant.
The Judean Balsam has been well documented in Biblical literature, including the Hellenistic, Roman-Byzantine, and Post-Classical eras, from the 4th century BC to the 8th century AD.
The tree’s resin, which was often referred to as “tsori” in Biblical literature (or “balm in English), was a rare plant that was traded in the Roman Empire for healing and medical purposes.
The balm was also used as an ingredient for perfumes and even incense in the First Temple in Jerusalem, which is believed to have been built by King Solomon around 950 BC.
Ezekiel 27:18 Damascus was your merchant because of the abundance of goods you made, because of your many luxury items, with the wine of Helbon and with white wool.
Ezekiel 27:19 Dan and Javan paid for your wares, traversing back and forth (from Uzal). Wrought iron, cassia, and cane were among your merchandise.
Ezekiel 27:20 Dedan was your merchant in saddle cloths for riding.
Ezekiel 27:21 Arabia and all the princes of Kedar were your regular merchants. They traded with you in lambs, rams, and goats.
Ezekiel 27:22 The merchants of Sheba and Raamah were your merchants. They traded for your wares the choicest spices, all kinds of precious stones, and gold.
Ezekiel 27:23 Haran, Canneh, Eden, the merchants of Sheba, Assyria, and Chilmad were your merchants.
Ezekiel 27:24 These were your merchants in choice items—in purple clothes, in embroidered garments, in chests of multicolored apparel, in sturdy woven cords, which were in your marketplace.
Ezekiel 27:25 “The ships of Tarshish were carriers of your merchandise.
You were filled and very glorious in the midst of the seas.
Ezekiel 27:26 Your oarsmen brought you into many waters,
Ezekiel 27:26 (continued) BUT! the east wind broke you in the midst of the seas.
- Note: The East Wind means coming from the East. (Side note: it was the East Wind which divided the waters of the Red Sea. The East Wind appears to Symbolize Jesus.)
- See: The Four Winds of the Bible
https://rrkelkar.wordpress.com/2007/06/28/the-four-winds-of-the-bible/ - East is associated with the Return of Jesus and Holiness.
The Prophesy of Destruction
Ezekiel 27:27 “Your riches, wares, and merchandise,
Your mariners and pilots,
Your caulkers and merchandisers,
All your men of war who are in you,
And the entire company which is in your midst,
Will fall into the midst of the seas on the day of your ruin.
Ezekiel 27:28 The common-land (open lands or pasture lands) will shake at the sound of the cry of your pilots.
Ezekiel 27:29 “All who handle the oar,
The mariners,
All the pilots of the sea
Will come down from their ships and stand on the shore (Lit. land).
Ezekiel 27:30 They will make their voice heard because of you;
They will cry bitterly and cast dust on their heads;
They will roll about in ashes;
Ezekiel 27:31 They will shave themselves completely bald because of you,
Gird themselves with sackcloth,
And weep for you
With bitterness of heart and bitter wailing.
Ezekiel 27:32 In their wailing for you
They will take up a lamentation,
And lament for you:
‘What city is like Tyre,
Destroyed in the midst of the sea?
Ezekiel 27:33 ‘When your wares went out by sea,
You satisfied many people;
You enriched the kings of the earth
With your many luxury goods and your merchandise.
Ezekiel 27:34 But you are broken by the seas in the depths of the waters;
Your merchandise and the entire company will fall in your midst.
Ezekiel 27:35 All the inhabitants of the isles will be astonished at you;
Their kings will be greatly afraid,
And their countenance will be troubled.
Ezekiel 27:36 The merchants among the peoples will hiss at you;
You will become a horror, AND BE NO MORE FOREVER.’ ” ’ ”
- There is more to come….Tyre recovered from Alexander’s devastation. In 126 BC, now a peninsula extending into the Mediterranean, Tyre became a Roman province and later the capital of Rome’s Syria-Phoenician province.
- Since history repeats itself, and evil spirits never die, the following verses appear to include Tyre.
- Revelation 18:15 The merchants of these things, who became rich by her, will stand at a distance for fear of her torment, weeping and wailing,
- Revelation 18:19 “They threw dust on their heads and cried out, weeping and wailing, and saying, ‘Alas, alas, that great city, in which all who had ships on the sea became rich by her wealth! For in one hour she is made desolate.’
- See Bible: Revelation Chapter 18
- Revelation 18:15 The merchants of these things, who became rich by her, will stand at a distance for fear of her torment, weeping and wailing,
- Remember, during the last half of the seven-year tribulation the “Babylonian” Antichrist is ruling in Jerusalem and most surely over the Middle-East extending globally. This includes Tyre and Sidon.
- Reference Verses influencing end-time events: Gog is Agag ie: Amalekite.
- Numbers 24:24 But ships shall come from the coasts of Cyprus, And they shall afflict Asshur and afflict Eber, And so shall Amalek, until he perishes.”
- Isaiah 23:1 Proclamation Against Tyre – The burden against Tyre. Wail, you ships of Tarshish! For it is laid waste, So that there is no house, no harbor; From the land of Cyprus it is revealed to them.
- Daniel 11:30 For ships from Cyprus shall come against him; therefore he shall be grieved, and return in rage against the holy covenant, and do damage. “So he shall return and show regard for those who forsake the holy covenant.
- Numbers 24:24 But ships shall come from the coasts of Cyprus, And they shall afflict Asshur and afflict Eber, And so shall Amalek, until he perishes.”
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