Ezekiel Chapter 26

At a Glance

  • Ezekiel 26 pronounces judgment against Tyre, the mighty maritime city whose boastful self-image—“I am of perfect beauty”—reflects pride and wealth.
  • The chapter blends lament with military-theological forecasting, inviting readers to see pride as a spiritual hazard that invites ruin.
  • Historical & Literary Context.
  • This chapter sits in the broader Ezekiel frame of doom against proud nations in the late 6th century BCE.
  • - Pride and Ultimate Humiliation: Tyre’s beauty is eclipsed by divine judgment.

Chapter Overview

Ezekiel 26 pronounces judgment against Tyre, the mighty maritime city whose boastful self-image—“I am of perfect beauty”—reflects pride and wealth. The oracle is a detailed, almost architectural lament: a catalog of Tyre’s treasures, ships, merchants, and elite, followed by a decisive verdict of destruction. Nebuchadnezzar’s coming siege is described with military precision, including the dismantling of walls, the laying waste of streets, and the plundering of treasures. The prophecy predicts not only the city’s ruin but also the impact on its surrounding industries and inhabitants, including its role as a trade hub threatened by vanquishing powers. The imagery intensifies as Tyre’s glory is reduced to dust and rubble, becoming a base for nets in the sea. The passage culminates with the emphasis that divine judgment will reveal the Lord’s supremacy over all nations, even those considered invincible.

The chapter blends lament with military-theological forecasting, inviting readers to see pride as a spiritual hazard that invites ruin. Yet the oracle’s scope extends beyond mere destruction; it serves as a corrective, reminding readers of the fragile foundations of human power and the necessity of humble dependence on God.

Historical & Literary Context

This chapter sits in the broader Ezekiel frame of doom against proud nations in the late 6th century BCE. Tyre’s strategic coastal wealth made it a natural target for empires like Babylon, and Ezekiel’s vision channels historical warfare into prophetic drama. The genre is oracle of judgment, richly woven with city imagery and geopolitical references, typical of Ezekiel’s prophetic method to translate political events into spiritual meanings. The chapter reinforces the theme that even the most prosperous centers of commerce are vulnerable to divine judgment when pride becomes their governing principle. The text thus links economic power with moral accountability.

Key Themes

- Pride and Ultimate Humiliation: Tyre’s beauty is eclipsed by divine judgment.

- Divine Sovereignty over Nations and Economies: God controls the fates of cities as part of his wider plan.

- The Fragility of Human Glory: Material wealth cannot withstand God’s corrective purposes.

- The Consequences of Affronting God: Those who magnify themselves outside of God’s moral order invite ruin.

Modern Application

For modern readers, Ezekiel 26 cautions against clientelist idolatries—the worship of wealth, status, and global influence. It invites humility in economic life, warning against exploiting others or treating markets as ultimate reality. The text can inspire prudent leadership that prioritizes justice and stewardship over prideful expansion. It also offers a sober reminder that resilience comes from alignment with God’s purposes, not from sheer power or intricate trade networks. Individuals may translate these themes into ethical business practices, responsible governance, and a posture of dependence on God in the face of economic volatility.

- Isaiah 23 (judgment on Tyre-like cities)

- Amos 1–2 (judgments against nations)

- Jeremiah 25 (prophecies against surrounding powers)

- Revelation 18 (Babylon’s fall as cosmic judgment)

Recommended Personas

- Ezekiel (prophetic perspective on city ruin)

- Jesus (humbling of power and the upside-down kingdom)

- Daniel (foreign power, divine sovereignty)

- Moses (leadership, endurance in exile)

Chapter Text

1

And it came to pass in the eleventh year, in the first day of the month, that the word of the LORD came unto me, saying,

2

Son of man, because that Tyrus hath said against Jerusalem, Aha, she is broken that was the gates of the people: she is turned unto me: I shall be replenished, now she is laid waste:

3

Therefore thus saith the Lord GOD; Behold, I am against thee, O Tyrus, and will cause many nations to come up against thee, as the sea causeth his waves to come up.

4

And they shall destroy the walls of Tyrus, and break down her towers: I will also scrape her dust from her, and make her like the top of a rock.

5

It shall be a place for the spreading of nets in the midst of the sea: for I have spoken it, saith the Lord GOD: and it shall become a spoil to the nations.

6

And her daughters which are in the field shall be slain by the sword; and they shall know that I am the LORD.

7

For thus saith the Lord GOD; Behold, I will bring upon Tyrus Nebuchadrezzar king of Babylon, a king of kings, from the north, with horses, and with chariots, and with horsemen, and companies, and much people.

8

He shall slay with the sword thy daughters in the field: and he shall make a fort against thee, and cast a mount against thee, and lift up the buckler against thee.

9

And he shall set engines of war against thy walls, and with his axes he shall break down thy towers.

10

By reason of the abundance of his horses their dust shall cover thee: thy walls shall shake at the noise of the horsemen, and of the wheels, and of the chariots, when he shall enter into thy gates, as men enter into a city wherein is made a breach.

11

With the hoofs of his horses shall he tread down all thy streets: he shall slay thy people by the sword, and thy strong garrisons shall go down to the ground.

12

And they shall make a spoil of thy riches, and make a prey of thy merchandise: and they shall break down thy walls, and destroy thy pleasant houses: and they shall lay thy stones and thy timber and thy dust in the midst of the water.

13

And I will cause the noise of thy songs to cease; and the sound of thy harps shall be no more heard.

14

And I will make thee like the top of a rock: thou shalt be a place to spread nets upon; thou shalt be built no more: for I the LORD have spoken it, saith the Lord GOD.

15

Thus saith the Lord GOD to Tyrus; Shall not the isles shake at the sound of thy fall, when the wounded cry, when the slaughter is made in the midst of thee?

16

Then all the princes of the sea shall come down from their thrones, and lay away their robes, and put off their broidered garments: they shall clothe themselves with trembling; they shall sit upon the ground, and shall tremble at every moment, and be astonished at thee.

17

And they shall take up a lamentation for thee, and say to thee, How art thou destroyed, that wast inhabited of seafaring men, the renowned city, which wast strong in the sea, she and her inhabitants, which cause their terror to be on all that haunt it!

18

Now shall the isles tremble in the day of thy fall; yea, the isles that are in the sea shall be troubled at thy departure.

19

For thus saith the Lord GOD; When I shall make thee a desolate city, like the cities that are not inhabited; when I shall bring up the deep upon thee, and great waters shall cover thee;

20

When I shall bring thee down with them that descend into the pit, with the people of old time, and shall set thee in the low parts of the earth, in places desolate of old, with them that go down to the pit, that thou be not inhabited; and I shall set glory in the land of the living;

21

I will make thee a terror, and thou shalt be no more: though thou be sought for, yet shalt thou never be found again, saith the Lord GOD.

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