Ezekiel 27

Ezekiel 25–32 is a collection of prophecies concerning neighboring nations. Within this section, chapters 26–28 deal with Tyre, and this chapter is a lament that follows the sentence of destruction pronounced in Ezekiel 26. The next chapter, Ezekiel 28, turns to a prophecy against the king of Tyre.

Outline

• Verses 1–3 The LORD tells Ezekiel to take up a lament for Tyre. Tyre boasts, "I am of perfect beauty."
• Verses 4–9 Tyre is likened to a ship on the sea. The ship is built of fir trees from Senir, cedars from Lebanon, oaks of Bashan, boxwood from the isles of Chittim, and fine linen from Egypt. Men of Sidon and Arvad serve as its mariners, and the men of Gebal caulk its seams.
• Verses 10–11 Men of Persia, Lud, and Phut serve in its army, and the men of Arvad guard its walls.
• Verses 12–24 A lengthy list of the nations that traded with Tyre and the goods they exchanged. These include Tarshish, Javan, Tubal, Meshech, Togarmah, Dedan, Aram, Judah and Israel, Damascus, Arabia and Kedar, Sheba and Raamah, Haran, and Assyria.
• Verses 25–27 The ships of Tarshish carry its merchandise, and Tyre prospers greatly. But the east wind breaks the ship in the midst of the seas, and its wealth and its people all sink.
• Verses 28–32 The sailors stand on the shore, cast dust upon their heads, shave their heads, wail, and take up a lament.
• Verses 33–36 Tyre enriched many peoples and kings, but now it is shipwrecked. The inhabitants of the isles and their kings are afraid, and the merchants hiss at it. The song ends with the declaration that Tyre "never shalt be any more."

Key Verses

• Ezekiel 27:3 "I am of perfect beauty" — This phrase sums up Tyre's pride; the entire chapter is a lament over this boast.
• Ezekiel 27:26 "The east wind hath broken thee in the midst of the seas" — This is the turning point at which the image of the splendid ship suddenly gives way to shipwreck.
• Ezekiel 27:36 "Never shalt be any more" — This declares that Tyre's downfall is final.

People and Places

• Tyre: A Phoenician port city on the Mediterranean coast that flourished through maritime trade.
• Sidon, Arvad, and Gebal: Phoenician coastal cities like Tyre. Gebal is commonly identified with Byblos.
• Senir: Another name for Mount Hermon (Deuteronomy 3:9).
• Tarshish: A distant trading center in the west; its location is debated.
• Javan: Commonly identified with the region of Greece (Ionia).
• Dedan, Kedar, and Sheba: Peoples and lands of the Arabian region.
• Most of the other place names refer to nations and cities of the ancient Near East and the Mediterranean world. Some locations cannot be identified with certainty.

Interpretive Considerations

• This chapter is not a record of events but a lament in poetic form. The metaphor depicting Tyre as a single ship should be read as a literary device.
• Interpretations differ regarding the historical fulfillment. Nebuchadnezzar is well known to have besieged Tyre for a long period, and Ezekiel 29:17–20 states that he gained no reward from Tyre. For this reason, some interpreters connect the fulfillment with Alexander the Great's later conquest of Tyre. Others regard the language as the heightened poetic expression characteristic of prophecy.
• In Revelation 18, when Babylon falls, the merchants, shipmasters, and sailors stand afar off and mourn. This scene closely resembles the language of this chapter, and the two passages are often read together.