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Lamentation over Tyre

27 The word of the Lord came to me: Now you, mortal, raise a lamentation over Tyre,(A) and say to Tyre, which sits at the entrance to the sea, merchant of the peoples on many coastlands: Thus says the Lord God:

O Tyre, you have said,
    “I am perfect in beauty.”(B)
Your borders are in the heart of the seas;
    your builders made perfect your beauty.(C)
They made all your planks
    of fir trees from Senir;
they took a cedar from Lebanon
    to make a mast for you.(D)
From oaks of Bashan
    they made your oars;
they made your deck of pines[a]
    from the coasts of Cyprus,
    inlaid with ivory.(E)
Of fine embroidered linen from Egypt
    was your sail,
    serving as your ensign;
blue and purple from the coasts of Elishah
    was your awning.
The inhabitants of Sidon and Arvad
    were your rowers;
skilled men of Zemer[b] were within you;
    they were your pilots.(F)
The elders of Gebal and its artisans were within you,
    caulking your seams;
all the ships of the sea with their sailors were within you,
    to barter for your wares.(G)
10 Paras[c] and Lud and Put
    were in your army,
    your mighty warriors;
they hung shield and helmet in you;
    they gave you splendor.(H)
11 Men of Arvad and Helech[d]
    were on your walls all around;
    men of Gamad were at your towers.
They hung their quivers all around your walls;
    they made perfect your beauty.(I)

12 Tarshish did business with you out of the abundance of your great wealth; silver, iron, tin, and lead they exchanged for your wares.(J) 13 Javan, Tubal, and Meshech traded with you; they exchanged human beings and vessels of bronze for your merchandise.(K) 14 Beth-togarmah exchanged for your wares horses, war horses, and mules.(L) 15 The Rhodians[e] traded with you; many coastlands were your own special markets; they brought you in payment ivory tusks and ebony.(M) 16 Edom[f] did business with you because of your abundant goods; they exchanged for your wares turquoise, purple, embroidered work, fine linen, coral, and rubies.(N) 17 Judah and the land of Israel traded with you; they exchanged for your merchandise wheat from Minnith, millet,[g] honey, oil, and balm.(O) 18 Damascus traded with you for your abundant goods—because of your great wealth of every kind—wine of Helbon and wool of Zahar.(P) 19 Vedan and Javan from Uzal[h] entered into trade for your wares; wrought iron, cassia, and sweet cane were bartered for your merchandise. 20 Dedan traded with you in saddlecloths for riding. 21 Arabia and all the princes of Kedar were your favored dealers in lambs, rams, and goats; in these they did business with you.(Q) 22 The merchants of Sheba and Raamah traded with you; they exchanged for your wares the best of all kinds of spices and all precious stones and gold.(R) 23 Haran, Canneh, Eden, the merchants of Sheba, Asshur, and Chilmad traded with you.(S) 24 These traded with you in choice garments, in clothes of blue and embroidered work, and in carpets of colored material, bound with cords and made secure; in these they traded with you.[i] 25 The ships of Tarshish traveled for you in your trade.

So you were filled and heavily laden
    in the heart of the seas.(T)
26 Your rowers have brought you
    into the high seas.
The east wind has wrecked you
    in the heart of the seas.(U)
27 Your riches, your wares, your merchandise,
    your sailors and your pilots,
your caulkers, your dealers in merchandise,
    and all your warriors within you,
with all the company
    that is with you,
sink into the heart of the seas
    on the day of your ruin.(V)
28 At the sound of the cry of your pilots
    the pasturelands shake,(W)
29 and down from their ships
    come all who handle the oar.
The sailors and all the pilots of the sea
    stand on the shore(X)
30 and wail aloud over you
    and cry bitterly.
They throw dust on their heads
    and wallow in ashes;(Y)
31 they make themselves bald for you
    and put on sackcloth,
and they weep over you in bitterness of soul,
    with bitter mourning.(Z)
32 In their wailing they raise a lamentation for you
    and lament over you:
“Who was ever destroyed[j] like Tyre
    in the midst of the sea?(AA)
33 When your wares came from the seas,
    you satisfied many peoples;
with your abundant wealth and merchandise
    you enriched the kings of the earth.(AB)
34 Now you are wrecked by the seas,
    in the depths of the waters;
your merchandise and all your crew
    have sunk with you.(AC)
35 All the inhabitants of the coastlands
    are appalled at you,
and their kings are horribly afraid;
    their faces are convulsed.(AD)
36 The merchants among the peoples hiss at you;
    you have come to a dreadful end
    and shall be no more forever.”(AE)

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Footnotes

  1. 27.6 Or boxwood
  2. 27.8 Cn: Heb your skilled men, O Tyre
  3. 27.10 Or Persia
  4. 27.11 Or and your army
  5. 27.15 Gk: Heb The Dedanites
  6. 27.16 Heb mss Syr Aquila: MT Aram
  7. 27.17 Meaning of Heb uncertain
  8. 27.19 Meaning of Heb uncertain
  9. 27.24 Cn: Heb in your market
  10. 27.32 Tg Vg: Heb silenced

The Sinking of Tyre

27 The word of the Lord came to me: “Now, son of man, lament for Tyre.(A) Say to Tyre, who is situated at the entrance of the sea, merchant of the peoples(B) to many coasts and islands, ‘This is what the Lord God says:

Tyre, you declared,
“I am perfect in beauty.”
Your realm was in the heart of the sea;
your builders perfected your beauty.
They constructed all your planking
with pine trees from Senir.(C)
They took a cedar from Lebanon
to make a mast for you.
They made your oars of oaks from Bashan.
They made your deck of cypress wood
from the coasts of Cyprus,(D)
inlaid with ivory.
Your sail was made of
fine embroidered linen from Egypt,
and served as your banner.
Your awning was of blue and purple fabric
from the coasts of Elishah.
The inhabitants of Sidon and Arvad(E)
were your rowers.
Your wise men were within you, Tyre;
they were your captains.
The elders of Gebal and its wise men(F)
were within you, repairing your leaks.
“‘All the ships of the sea and their sailors
came to you to barter for your goods.
10 Men of Persia, Lud, and Put(G)
were in your army, serving as your warriors.
They hung shields and helmets in you;
they gave you splendor.
11 Men of Arvad and Helech
were stationed on your walls all around,
and Gammadites were in your towers.
They hung their shields[a] all around your walls;
they perfected your beauty.

12 “‘Tarshish(H) was your trading partner because of your abundant wealth of every kind. They exchanged silver, iron, tin, and lead for your merchandise. 13 Javan, Tubal, and Meshech(I) were your merchants. They exchanged slaves[b] and bronze utensils for your goods. 14 Those from Beth-togarmah(J) exchanged horses, war horses, and mules for your merchandise. 15 Men of Dedan[c](K) were also your merchants; many coasts and islands were your regular markets. They brought back ivory tusks(L) and ebony as your payment. 16 Aram[d] was your trading partner because of your numerous products. They exchanged turquoise,[e] purple and embroidered cloth, fine linen, coral,[f] and rubies[g] for your merchandise. 17 Judah and the land of Israel were your merchants. They exchanged wheat from Minnith,(M) meal,[h] honey, oil, and balm, for your goods. 18 Damascus was also your trading partner because of your numerous products and your abundant wealth of every kind, trading in wine from Helbon and white wool.[i] 19 Vedan[j] and Javan from Uzal[k](N) dealt in your merchandise; wrought iron, cassia,(O) and aromatic cane were exchanged for your goods. 20 Dedan(P) was your merchant in saddlecloths for riding. 21 Arabia and all the princes of Kedar were your business partners, trading with you in lambs, rams, and goats. 22 The merchants of Sheba(Q) and Raamah traded with you. For your merchandise they exchanged the best of all spices and all kinds of precious stones as well as gold.(R) 23 Haran, Canneh, Eden,(S) the merchants of Sheba, Asshur,(T) and Chilmad traded with you. 24 They were your merchants in choice garments, cloaks of blue and embroidered materials, and multicolored carpets,[l] which were bound and secured with cords in your marketplace. 25 Ships of Tarshish(U) were the carriers for your goods.

“‘So you became full and heavily loaded[m]
in the heart of the sea.
26 Your rowers have brought you
onto the high seas,(V)
but the east wind has wrecked you
in the heart of the sea.
27 Your wealth, merchandise, and goods,
your sailors and captains,
those who repair your leaks,
those who barter for your goods,
and all the warriors on board,
with all the other people within you,
sink into the heart of the sea
on the day of your downfall.

28 “‘The countryside shakes
at the sound of your sailors’ cries.(W)
29 All the oarsmen
disembark from their ships.
The sailors and all the captains of the sea
stand on the shore.
30 Because of you, they raise their voices
and cry out bitterly.
They throw dust on their heads;(X)
they roll in ashes.
31 They shave their heads because of you
and wrap themselves in sackcloth.
They weep over you
with deep anguish and bitter mourning.

32 “‘In their wailing they lament for you,(Y)
mourning over you:
“Who was like Tyre,
silenced[n] in the middle of the sea?
33 When your merchandise was unloaded from the seas,
you satisfied many peoples.
You enriched the kings of the earth
with your abundant wealth and goods.
34 Now you are wrecked by the sea
in the depths of the waters;
your goods and the people within you
have gone down.
35 All the inhabitants of the coasts and islands
are appalled(Z) at you.
Their kings shudder with fear;
their faces are contorted.
36 Those who trade among the peoples
scoff[o](AA) at you;
you have become an object of horror
and will never exist again.”’” (AB)

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Footnotes

  1. 27:11 Or quivers; Hb obscure
  2. 27:13 Lit souls of men
  3. 27:15 LXX reads Rhodes
  4. 27:16 Some Hb mss, Aq, Syr read Edom
  5. 27:16 Hb obscure
  6. 27:16 Hb obscure
  7. 27:16 Hb obscure
  8. 27:17 Or resin; Hb obscure
  9. 27:18 Or and wool from Zahar
  10. 27:19 Or Dan
  11. 27:19 Hb obscure
  12. 27:24 Hb obscure
  13. 27:25 Or and very glorious
  14. 27:32 Hb obscure
  15. 27:36 Lit hiss