Isaiah 23
King James Version
23 The burden of Tyre. Howl, ye ships of Tarshish; for it is laid waste, so that there is no house, no entering in: from the land of Chittim it is revealed to them.
2 Be still, ye inhabitants of the isle; thou whom the merchants of Zidon, that pass over the sea, have replenished.
3 And by great waters the seed of Sihor, the harvest of the river, is her revenue; and she is a mart of nations.
4 Be thou ashamed, O Zidon: for the sea hath spoken, even the strength of the sea, saying, I travail not, nor bring forth children, neither do I nourish up young men, nor bring up virgins.
5 As at the report concerning Egypt, so shall they be sorely pained at the report of Tyre.
6 Pass ye over to Tarshish; howl, ye inhabitants of the isle.
7 Is this your joyous city, whose antiquity is of ancient days? her own feet shall carry her afar off to sojourn.
8 Who hath taken this counsel against Tyre, the crowning city, whose merchants are princes, whose traffickers are the honourable of the earth?
9 The Lord of hosts hath purposed it, to stain the pride of all glory, and to bring into contempt all the honourable of the earth.
10 Pass through thy land as a river, O daughter of Tarshish: there is no more strength.
11 He stretched out his hand over the sea, he shook the kingdoms: the Lord hath given a commandment against the merchant city, to destroy the strong holds thereof.
12 And he said, Thou shalt no more rejoice, O thou oppressed virgin, daughter of Zidon: arise, pass over to Chittim; there also shalt thou have no rest.
13 Behold the land of the Chaldeans; this people was not, till the Assyrian founded it for them that dwell in the wilderness: they set up the towers thereof, they raised up the palaces thereof; and he brought it to ruin.
14 Howl, ye ships of Tarshish: for your strength is laid waste.
15 And it shall come to pass in that day, that Tyre shall be forgotten seventy years, according to the days of one king: after the end of seventy years shall Tyre sing as an harlot.
16 Take an harp, go about the city, thou harlot that hast been forgotten; make sweet melody, sing many songs, that thou mayest be remembered.
17 And it shall come to pass after the end of seventy years, that the Lord will visit Tyre, and she shall turn to her hire, and shall commit fornication with all the kingdoms of the world upon the face of the earth.
18 And her merchandise and her hire shall be holiness to the Lord: it shall not be treasured nor laid up; for her merchandise shall be for them that dwell before the Lord, to eat sufficiently, and for durable clothing.
Isaia 23
Cornilescu 1924 - Revised 2010, 2014
Împotriva Tirului
23 Prorocie(A) împotriva Tirului. „Bociţi-vă, corăbii din Tarsis! Căci Tirul a fost nimicit: nu mai are nici case, nici intrare! Din(B) ţara Chitim le-a venit vestea aceasta. 2 Amuţiţi de groază, locuitori ai ţărmului, pe care o umpleau odată negustorii din Sidon, care străbăteau marea! 3 Veniturile lui erau grâul Nilului şi secerişul râului, aduse pe ape mari, aşa că(C) el era târgul neamurilor. 4 Ruşinează-te, Sidoane, căci aşa vorbeşte marea, cetăţuia mării: ‘Eu n-am avut durerile facerii, nici n-am născut, n-am hrănit tineri, nici n-am crescut fete’!” 5 Când(D) vor afla egiptenii vestea aceasta, vor tremura auzind de căderea Tirului 6 şi vor zice: „Treceţi la Tarsis, bociţi-vă, locuitori ai ţărmului! 7 Aceasta este cetatea(E) voastră cea veselă, care avea o obârşie veche şi ale cărei picioare o duceau să locuiască departe.” 8 Cine a luat această hotărâre împotriva Tirului, împărţitorul(F) cununilor, el, ai cărui negustori erau nişte voievozi şi ai cărui târgoveţi erau cei mai bogaţi de pe pământ? 9 Domnul oştirilor a luat această hotărâre, ca să ruşineze mândria a tot ce străluceşte şi să smerească pe toţi cei mari ai pământului: 10 „Străbate-ţi ţara, ca Nilul, niciun brâu nu te mai strânge, fiica Tarsisului! Nu mai este niciun jug! 11 Domnul Şi-a întins mâna asupra mării; a făcut să tremure împărăţii; a poruncit nimicirea cetăţuilor Canaanului 12 şi a zis: ‘De acum nu(G) te vei mai bucura, fecioară necinstită, fiica Sidonului! Scoală-te şi treci(H) în ţara Chitim; dar nici acolo nu vei avea odihnă. 13 Iată pe haldeeni, care nu erau un popor, locuitorii aceştia(I) ai pustiei, cărora asirianul le-a întemeiat o ţară; ei înalţă turnuri, surpă casele împărăteşti ale Tirului, le prefac în dărâmături’.” 14 „Bociţi-vă(J), corăbii din Tarsis! Căci cetăţuia voastră este nimicită.” 15 În vremea aceea, Tirul va fi dat uitării şaptezeci de ani, cât ţine viaţa unui împărat, dar după şaptezeci de ani, se va întâmpla Tirului ca şi curvei despre care vorbeşte cântecul: 16 „Ia harpa şi străbate cetatea, curvă dată uitării; cântă bine, cântă-ţi cântecele de mai multe ori, ca iarăşi să-şi aducă lumea aminte de tine.” 17 Tot aşa, după şaptezeci de ani, Domnul va cerceta Tirul şi se va întoarce iarăşi la câştigul lui; va avea(K) legături cu toate împărăţiile lumii de pe faţa pământului; 18 dar câştigul şi plata lui vor(L) fi închinate Domnului, nu vor fi nici strânse, nici păstrate; ci câştigul lui va aduce celor ce locuiesc înaintea Domnului, o hrană îmbelşugată şi haine strălucite.
Isaiah 23
New American Bible (Revised Edition)
Chapter 23
Tyre and Sidon
1 [a]Oracle on Tyre:
Wail, ships of Tarshish,
for your port is destroyed;
From the land of the Kittim[b]
the news reaches them.(A)
2 Silence! you who dwell on the coast,
you merchants of Sidon,
Whose messengers crossed the sea
3 over the deep waters,
Whose revenue was the grain of Shihor,[c] the harvest of the Nile,
you who were the merchant among the nations.(B)
4 Be ashamed, Sidon, fortress on the sea,
for the sea[d] has spoken,
“I have not been in labor, nor given birth,
nor raised young men,
nor reared young women.”
5 When the report reaches Egypt
they shall be in anguish at the report about Tyre.
6 Pass over to Tarshish,[e]
wail, you who dwell on the coast!
7 Is this your exultant city,
whose origin is from old,
Whose feet have taken her
to dwell in distant lands?
8 Who has planned such a thing
against Tyre, the bestower of crowns,
Whose merchants are princes,
whose traders are the earth’s honored men?
9 The Lord of hosts has planned it,
to disgrace the height of all beauty,
to degrade all the honored of the earth.(C)
10 Cross to your own land,
ship of Tarshish;
the harbor is no more.
11 His hand he stretches out over the sea,
he shakes kingdoms;
The Lord commanded the destruction
of Canaan’s strongholds:[f](D)
12 Crushed, you shall exult no more,
virgin daughter Sidon.
Arise, pass over to the Kittim,
even there you shall find no rest.(E)
13 [g]Look at the land of the Chaldeans,
the people that has ceased to be.
Assyria founded it for ships,
raised its towers,
Only to tear down its palaces,
and turn it into a ruin.(F)
14 Lament, ships of Tarshish,
for your stronghold is destroyed.
15 On that day, Tyre shall be forgotten for seventy years,[h] the lifetime of one king. At the end of seventy years, the song about the prostitute will be Tyre’s song:
16 Take a harp, go about the city,
forgotten prostitute;
Pluck the strings skillfully, sing many songs,
that you may be remembered.
17 At the end of the seventy years the Lord shall visit Tyre. She shall return to her hire and serve as prostitute[i] with all the world’s kingdoms on the face of the earth.(G) 18 But her merchandise and her hire shall be sacred to the Lord. It shall not be stored up or laid away; instead, her merchandise shall belong to those who dwell before the Lord, to eat their fill and clothe themselves in choice attire.
Footnotes
- 23:1–17 This oracle, a satire directed against the Phoenician cities of Tyre and Sidon, is perhaps to be situated at the time of Sennacherib’s campaign against the Phoenican cities in 701 B.C, following his subjugation of their Babylonian allies in 703 B.C.
- 23:1 Kittim: Cyprus. The Hebrew word is derived from the term for the well-known city of Cyprus, Kition. In later centuries the term Kittim is used for the Greeks, the Romans, and other distant peoples.
- 23:3 Shihor: a synonym for the Nile.
- 23:4 The sea: here personified, it brings to distant coasts the news that Sidon must disown her children; her people are dispersed.
- 23:6–7 Tarshish: perhaps Tartessus in Spain. Distant lands: the reference is to the far-flung colonies established by the Phoenicians throughout the Mediterranean, including North Africa, Spain, and Sardinia. Oceangoing vessels were therefore called Tarshish ships.
- 23:11 Canaan’s strongholds: the fortresses of Phoenicia.
- 23:13 The reference here seems to be to Assyria’s subjugation of Babylon in 703 B.C., which left the coastal cities of Phoenicia as well as Judah open to Sennacherib’s invasion in 701 B.C. Founded it…its palaces…turn it: the city of Babylon.
- 23:15 Seventy years: a conventional expression for a long period of time; cf. Jer 25:11 and 29:10.
- 23:17–18 Her hire…prostitute: the international trade engaged in by Tyre will become a source of wealth to God’s people (cf. 45:14; 60:4–14; Zec 14:14).
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