Tyndale Open Study NotesEzekiel 26

• This section contains a series of messages of judgment against nearby nations. There are six shorter messages against Judah's immediate neighbors, arranged in a clockwise order, followed by a final message against Egypt (Ezekiel 30–32). Through experiencing God's judgment, the nations would recognize God's control over everything. The nations might be used to carry out God's judgment on his people, but they would not avoid judgment themselves.

• One of the main purposes of these messages was to show that the negative part of God's promise to Abraham ("I will … curse those who curse you," Genesis 12:3) was still active. No one can harm God's people and avoid consequences, even when God's people are under his judgment.

The message against Tyre, Israel’s northwestern neighbor, is more detailed than the short messages before it. It consists of three similar sections (Ezekiel 26:2–21; 27:1–36; and 28:1–19). Each section conveys the same idea: Tyre would meet a terrible end and cease to exist (Ezekiel 27:36).

February 3, 585 BC was about seven months after the fall of Jerusalem.

Like its neighbors, Tyre celebrated when Jerusalem fell. This event removed a competing trade center and possibly opened new trade routes and markets for Tyre.

• The nations Tyre wanted to trade with would instead attack her, prepared for war. Like Jerusalem, she would become loot for their armies.

• as the sea brings up its waves: This image fits Tyre very well. Tyre was built on a small island along the coast. Waves were a normal part of life there.

  The picture shows how enemies would strike Tyre again and again, like waves hitting the shore. It is a metaphor (a word picture) for a military assault.

The detailed description of Tyre's expected destruction shows confidence in the conflict's outcome.

In the end, events happened just as the prophet had described earlier in picture language (metaphor). Tyre would become a bare rock. It would no longer be a great and wealthy city.

Instead of being a busy center for ships and caravans from the east, it would become a quiet place. Local fishermen would spread their nets there to dry (Ezekiel 26:2). The great trading city would become empty and ruined.

The Jewish historian Josephus wrote that Nebuchadnezzar besieged Tyre for 13 years. However, Tyre was not completely destroyed at that time.

It was finally destroyed later by Alexander the Great in 332 BC.

The fall of Tyre would not affect Tyre alone. It would also harm the cities and nations that traded with her.

Tyre was an important center for trade along the coast. Many rulers depended on her for wealth and goods. When Tyre fell, the economic impact (financial damage) would spread along the whole coastline.

Because of this loss, some rulers would abdicate (give up their rule and step down from power).

• A funeral song would be sung for Tyre. This kind of song is called a lament (a song of mourning for the dead). The prophet had used this kind of song earlier (see study note on Ezekiel 19:1–14). People would repeat this funeral song from place to place. Many would mourn the fall of the great city.

• powerful on the sea … who imposed terror: Tyre had strong naval power (military strength at sea). Her ships traveled widely and controlled important trade routes.

  Because of this power, Tyre spread fear among other nations. Her trading system was not always peaceful. It was often based on conquest (defeating others in war), subjugation (forcing others to submit), and exploitation (using others unfairly for gain). See Ezekiel 28:16, 18.

God would show his sovereign power by completely destroying Tyre.

It would be as if the great city had sunk beneath the deep waters of the sea. This picture describes total ruin. The people of Tyre would go down to the pit (the place of the dead), where the wicked dead remain. They would never return.