Isaías 23

¹ The{{See Isa_13:1}}burden of Tyre. Howl, ye ships ofYou of Cilicia that come here for merchandise.Tarshish; forTyrus is destroyed by Nebuchadnezzar.it is laid waste, so that there is no house, no entering in: from the land ofBy Chittim they meant all the isles and countries west of Palestine.Chittim it isAll men know of this destruction.revealed to them.

² Be still, ye inhabitants of the isle; thou whom the merchants of Zidon, that pass over the sea, haveHave hunted and enriched you.replenished.

³ And by great waters theMeaning, the corn of Egypt which was fed by the overflowing of the Nile.seed of Sihor, the harvest of the river, [is] her revenue; and she is a merchandise of nations.

⁴ Be thou ashamed, O Zidon: for theThat is, Tyrus, which was the chief part of the sea.sea hath spoken, [even] the strength of the sea, saying, II have no people left in me, and am as a barren woman, that never had children.travail not, nor bring forth children, neither do I nourish young men, [nor] bring up virgins.

⁵ As at the report concerning Egypt, [so] shall they beBecause these two countries were joined in league together.greatly pained at the report of Tyre.

⁶ Pass ye over toTyrus wills other merchants to go to Cilicia, and to come no more there.Tarshish; wail, ye inhabitants of the isle.

⁷ Is not this that your glorious citie? her antiquitie is of ancient daies: her owne feete shall leade her afarre off to be a soiourner.

⁸ Who hath taken this counsel against Tyre, theWho makes her merchants like princes.crowning [city], whose merchants [are] princes, whose traders [are] the honourable of the earth?

⁹ The Lorde of hostes hath decreed this, to staine the pride of all glorie, and to bring to contempt all them that be glorious in the earth.

¹⁰ Pass through thy land as a river, OYour strength will no more serve you: therefore flee to other countries for comfort.daughter of Tarshish: [there is] no more strength.

¹¹ He stretched out his hand vpon the sea: he shooke the kingdomes: the Lorde hath giuen a commaundement concerning the place of marchandise, to destroy the power thereof.

¹² And he said, Thou shalt no more rejoice, O thou oppressedFor Tyre was never touched nor afflicted before.virgin,Because Tyrus was built by them of Zidon.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] theThe Chaldeans who dwelt in tents in the wilderness were gathered by the Assyrians into cities.Assyrian founded it for them that dwell in the wilderness: they set up its towers, they raised up its palaces; [and] heThe people of the Chaldeans destroyed the Assyrians: by which the prophet means that seeing the Chaldaeans were able to overcome the Assyrians who were so great a nation, much more will these two nations of Chaldea and Assyria be able to overthrow Tyrus.brought it to ruin.

¹⁴ Howl, ye ships of Tarshish: for yourThat is, Tyrus by whom you are enriched.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 ofTyrus will lie destroyed seventy years which he calls the reign of one king, or a man's age.seventy years shall TyreWill use all craft and subtilty to entice men again to her.sing as an harlot.

¹⁶ Take an harp, go about the city, thou harlot that hast been forgotten;She will labour by all means to recover her first credit, as a harlot when she is long forgotten, seeks by all means to entertain her lovers.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 herThough she has been chastised by the Lord, yet she will return to her old wicked practises and for gain will give herself to all men's lusts like a harlot.hire, and shall play the harlot with all the kingdoms of the world upon the face of the earth.

¹⁸ And her merchandise and her hire shall beHe shows that God yet by the preaching of the gospel will call Tyre to repentance and turn her heart from evil and filthy gain, to the true worshipping of God, and liberality toward his saints.holiness to the LORD: it shall not be treasured nor laid up; for her merchandise shall be for them that dwell before the LORD, for sufficient food and for durable clothing.