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26 In the eleventh year, in the first of the month, Yahweh’s word came to me, saying, “Son of man, because Tyre has said against Jerusalem, ‘Aha! She is broken! She who was the gateway of the peoples has been returned to me. I will be replenished, now that she is laid waste;’ therefore the Lord Yahweh says, ‘Behold, I am against you, Tyre, and will cause many nations to come up against you, as the sea causes its waves to come up. They will destroy the walls of Tyre, and break down her towers. I will also scrape her dust from her, and make her a bare rock. She will be a place for the spreading of nets in the middle of the sea; for I have spoken it,’ says the Lord Yahweh. ‘She will become plunder for the nations. Her daughters who are in the field will be slain with the sword. Then they will know that I am Yahweh.’

“For the Lord Yahweh says: ‘Behold, I will bring on Tyre Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon, king of kings, from the north, with horses, with chariots, with horsemen, and an army with many people. He will kill your daughters in the field with the sword. He will make forts against you, cast up a mound against you, and raise up the buckler against you. He will set his battering engines against your walls, and with his axes he will break down your towers. 10 By reason of the abundance of his horses, their dust will cover you. Your walls will shake at the noise of the horsemen, of the wagons, and of the chariots, when he enters into your gates, as men enter into a city which is broken open. 11 He will tread down all your streets with the hoofs of his horses. He will kill your people with the sword. The pillars of your strength will go down to the ground. 12 They will make a plunder of your riches, and make a prey of your merchandise. They will break down your walls, and destroy your pleasant houses. They will lay your stones, your timber, and your dust in the middle of the waters. 13 I will cause the noise of your songs to cease. The sound of your harps won’t be heard any more. 14 I will make you a bare rock. You will be a place for the spreading of nets. You will be built no more; for I Yahweh have spoken it,’ says the Lord Yahweh.

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A Prophecy Against Tyre

26 In the eleventh year, on the first day of the month,[a] the Lord’s message came to me: “Son of man, because Tyre[b] has said about Jerusalem, ‘Aha, the gateway of the peoples is broken; it has swung open to me. I will become rich,[c] now that she[d] has been destroyed,’ therefore this is what the Sovereign Lord says: Look,[e] I am against you,[f] O Tyre! I will bring up many nations against you, as the sea brings up its waves. They will destroy the walls of Tyre and break down her towers. I will scrape her soil[g] from her and make her a bare rock. She will be a place where fishing nets are spread, surrounded by the sea. For I have spoken, declares the Sovereign Lord. She will become plunder for the nations, and her daughters[h] who are in the field will be slaughtered by the sword. Then they will know that I am the Lord.

“For this is what the Sovereign Lord says: Take note that[i] I am about to bring King Nebuchadrezzar[j] of Babylon, king of kings, against Tyre from the north, with horses, chariots, and horsemen, an army and hordes of people. He will kill your daughters in the field with the sword. He will build a siege wall against you, erect a siege ramp against you, and raise a great shield against you. He will direct the blows of his battering rams against your walls and tear down your towers with his weapons.[k] 10 He will cover you with the dust kicked up by his many horses.[l] Your walls will shake from the noise of the horsemen, wheels, and chariots when he enters your gates like those who invade through a city’s broken walls.[m] 11 With his horses’ hooves he will trample all your streets. He will kill your people with the sword, and your strong pillars will tumble down to the ground. 12 They will steal your wealth and loot your merchandise. They will tear down your walls and destroy your luxurious[n] homes. Your stones, your trees, and your soil he will throw[o] into the water.[p] 13 I will silence[q] the noise of your songs; the sound of your harps will be heard no more. 14 I will make you a bare rock; you will be a place where fishing nets are spread. You will never be built again,[r] for I, the Lord, have spoken, declares the Sovereign Lord.

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Footnotes

  1. Ezekiel 26:1 tc Date formulae typically include the month. According to D. I. Block (Ezekiel [NICOT], 2:34, n. 27) some emend to “in the twelfth year in the eleventh month,” relying partially on the copy of the LXX from Alexandrinus, where Albright suggested that “eleventh month” may have dropped out due to haplography.sn April 23, 587 b.c.
  2. Ezekiel 26:2 sn Tyre was located on the Mediterranean coast north of Israel.
  3. Ezekiel 26:2 tn Heb “I will be filled.”
  4. Ezekiel 26:2 sn That is, Jerusalem.
  5. Ezekiel 26:3 tn The word הִנֵּה (hinneh, traditionally “behold”) draws attention to something and has been translated here as a verb.
  6. Ezekiel 26:3 tn Or “I challenge you.” The phrase “I am against you” may be a formula for challenging someone to combat or a duel. See D. I. Block, Ezekiel (NICOT), 1:201-2, and P. Humbert, “Die Herausforderungsformel ‘hinnenî ’êlékâ’” ZAW 45 (1933): 101-8.
  7. Ezekiel 26:4 tn Or “debris.”
  8. Ezekiel 26:6 sn That is, the towns located inland that were under Tyre’s rule.
  9. Ezekiel 26:7 tn The word הִנֵּה (hinneh, traditionally “behold”) draws attention to something.
  10. Ezekiel 26:7 tn Heb “Nebuchadrezzar” is a variant and more correct spelling of Nebuchadnezzar, as the Babylonian name Nabu-kudurri-uṣur has an an “r” rather than an “n.”
  11. Ezekiel 26:9 tn Heb “swords.”
  12. Ezekiel 26:10 tn Heb “From the abundance of his horses he will cover you (with) their dust.”
  13. Ezekiel 26:10 tn Heb “like those who enter a breached city.”
  14. Ezekiel 26:12 tn Heb “desirable.”
  15. Ezekiel 26:12 tn Heb “set.”
  16. Ezekiel 26:12 tn Heb “into the midst of the water.”
  17. Ezekiel 26:13 tn Heb “cause to end.”
  18. Ezekiel 26:14 sn This prophecy was fulfilled by Alexander the Great in 332 b.c.