Ezekiel 26

Judgment on Tyre

Open your Bibles to…

Gen. 12:1 Now the LORD had said to Abram:

“Get out of your country,

From your family

And from your father’s house,

To a land that I will show you.

Gen. 12:2 I will make you a great nation;

I will bless you

And make your name great;

And you shall be a blessing.

Gen. 12:3 I will bless those who bless you,

And I will curse him who curses you;

And in you all the families of the earth shall be blessed.”

Pray

Intro

√ Judgment on the nations

By way of review you’ll remember that with the close of chapter 24 we concluded God’s prophecy of judgment upon Israel.

The siege of Jerusalem has begun.

God’s fury against His people and their long history of sin and rebellion is being poured out as Ezekiel pens this next section.

So, beginning with chapter 25 we find that God now turns His attention to the nations surrounding Israel.

The idea is that if He would not spare His own people because of their sin…

…how then would the sinful nations around her escape His judgment!?

Therefore we find that chapters 25-32 record God’s word of judgment against 7 different nations…

Ammon, Moab & Edom ~ the nations forming Judah’s Eastern boundary

Philistia ~ the nation to the West of Judah

(The above covered in our last study)

Tyre & Sidon ~ the kingdoms to the North

Egypt ~ the major power to Judah’s Southwestern border

The reason for God’s judgment was not just that they were sinful people…

…specifically they were guilty of sinning against Judah and thereby bringing upon themselves the curse of God as recorded in our opening text.

Ap. The Abrahamic Covenant is still in effect!

You’ll note that the context of God’s blessing upon Abraham in Genesis 12 is both personal and national.

That is God promised to bless those who blessed Abraham…

…and his descendants who would make up the nation of Israel.

He also warned that He would bring a curse upon those who cursed Abraham…

…and his descendants who would make up the nation of Israel.

That promise and warning is still in effect today and a good reason to be careful how we as individuals, and as a nation deal with the Jewish people and their nation.

√ Tyre

Chapter 26-28:19 records God’s predicted judgment against Tyre, the city to the north of Israel.

It’s a rather long prophecy with some interesting details about how God would bring down the kingdom of Tyre.

Providing more evidence of God’s divine inspiration of Ezekiel’s prophecy.

The Sin of Tyre (vs. 1-2)

Ezek. 26:1 And it came to pass in the eleventh year, on the first day of the month, that the word of the LORD came to me, saying,

Ezek. 26:2 “Son of man, because Tyre has said against Jerusalem, ‘Aha! She is broken who was the gateway of the peoples; now she is turned over to me; I shall be filled; she is laid waste.’

√ Date of the prophecy

Ezekiel begins by giving us the date on which he received this prophecy from the Lord.

Important because it establishes that he is speaking prophetically…

…not historically.

That is, the destruction he describes has not yet happened.

The date is a bit obscure though because he doesn’t give us the month, only the year and day.

The 11^th year is a reference to king Jehoiakim’s exile so that would mean that Ezekiel received this message sometime in 586 B.C.

Since Jerusalem fell on July 18, 586 B.C. and verse 2 records Tyre’s response to her destruction it seems best to place the date the prophecy was received as sometime after July 18.

√ The sin of Tyre

Remember the context of chapters 25-32 is that God is judging the nations surrounding Judah for their sin against His people.

For they cursed the descendants of Abraham and rejoiced at God’s judgment upon His own people (ref. Gen. 12:1-3).

So, we read in vs. 2 what it was that the people of Tyre did and said that got God so riled up!

“Son of man, because Tyre has said against Jerusalem, ‘Aha! She is broken who was the gateway of the peoples; now she is turned over to me; I shall be filled; she is laid waste.’

Tyre’s sin was that she gloated with greed over the destruction of Jerusalem rather than mourning the loss of life.

The rulers and the people of Tyre saw Jerusalem’s destruction as profitable to themselves for they had long been in competition with Judah over the lucrative trade routes of the East.

Historically Tyre controlled the sea-going trade while Judah controlled the land caravans that passed along the Via Maris (ref. Megiddo).

Now that Jerusalem lay in ruins and the Jewish people were scattered Tyre couldn’t wait to get their hands on control of the land caravan routes.

So, God takes note of their evil intentions and turns His judgment from Jerusalem to Tyre!

The Judgment of Tyre (vs. 3-6)

Ezek. 26:3 “Therefore thus says the Lord GOD: ‘Behold, I am against you, O Tyre, and will cause many nations to come up against you, as the sea causes its waves to come up.

Ezek. 26:4 And they shall destroy the walls of Tyre and break down her towers; I will also scrape her dust from her, and make her like the top of a rock.

Ezek. 26:5 It shall be a place for spreading nets in the midst of the sea, for I have spoken,’ says the Lord GOD; “it shall become plunder for the nations.

Ezek. 26:6 Also her daughter villages which are in the fields shall be slain by the sword. Then they shall know that I am the LORD.’

√ The judgment of Tyre

Vs. 3-6 give us the overview of God’s judgment upon the city of Tyre.

In the following verses God provides details of how He will destroy Tyre.

Of special note is vs. 3 which provides a picture of the “how” God’s judgment will come…

“Behold, I am against you, O Tyre, and will cause many nations to come up against you, as the sea causes its waves to come up.”

Note that He says many nations will be involved in the destruction of Tyre and that their attacks will be like waves of the sea.

The prophetic picture is that God would destroy Tyre through successive waves of attackers from many nations.

In the following verses He identifies the two big waves, tsunamis, that would destroy Tyre.

The 1^st Wave of God’s Judgment (vs. 7-11)

Ezek. 26:7 “For thus says the Lord GOD: ‘Behold, I will bring against Tyre from the north Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon, king of kings, with horses, with chariots, and with horsemen, and an army with many people.

Ezek. 26:8 He will slay with the sword your daughter villages in the fields; he will heap up a siege mound against you, build a wall against you, and raise a defense against you.

Ezek. 26:9 He will direct his battering rams against your walls, and with his axes he will break down your towers.

Ezek. 26:10 Because of the abundance of his horses, their dust will cover you; your walls will shake at the noise of the horsemen, the wagons, and the chariots, when he enters your gates, as men enter a city that has been breached.

Ezek. 26:11 With the hooves of his horses he will trample all your streets; he will slay your people by the sword, and your strong pillars will fall to the ground.

√ The 1^st wave of God’s judgment

Notice that God names Nebuchadnezzar and his army as the first wave in His judgment against Tyre.

You may remember that Tyre had joined with Jerusalem and others in a rebellion to throw off the yoke of Babylon.

Nebuchadnezzar responded by invading the near-Middle East beginning his attack with Jerusalem.

His next step was to move his armies against Tyre where he was able to quickly conquer the suburbs of Tyre (ref. “daughter villages in the fields” ~ vs. 8) and the mainland city of Tyre…

…but was unable to conquer the main fortress which was located on an island half a mile off the coast.

So, Nebuchadnezzar spent the next 13 years trying to get at the island fortress but eventually returned home without achieving that victory.

The 2^nd Wave of God’s Judgment (vs. 12-14)

Ezek. 26:12 They will plunder your riches and pillage your merchandise; they will break down your walls and destroy your pleasant houses; they will lay your stones, your timber, and your soil in the midst of the water.

Ezek. 26:13 I will put an end to the sound of your songs, and the sound of your harps shall be heard no more.

Ezek. 26:14 I will make you like the top of a rock; you shall be a place for spreading nets, and you shall never be rebuilt, for I the LORD have spoken,’ says the Lord GOD.

√ The 2^nd wave of God’s judgment

God said that He would destroy Tyre and that she would never again rise to power.

Since Nebuchadnezzar was not able to take the island fortress of Tyre in the first wave of God’s judgment…

…God sent a second wave to finish it off!

The second wave came in 332 B.C. when Alexander the Great lead a coalition of nations against Tyre and successfully took the island fortress.

√ The historical fulfillment of the prophecy is amazing!

Notice that God switches from the singular “he” in verses 7-11, a reference to Nebuchadnezzar…

…to the plural “they” in vs. 12 when describing the second wave of attacks.

Alexander’s army was made up of troops from at least 11 different nations (ref. the historian Arrian, author of "Anabasi Alexandri”).

Fulfilling God’s word in vs. 3 where He says that “many nations” would come against Tyre.

Like Nebuchadnezzar Alexander was initially stumped by the natural barrier of the sea surrounding the island fortress of Tyre.

But, in a moment of inspiration he called on his engineers to take the materials from the destroyed mainland city…

…cast them into the sea and make a causeway for his army to reach the island!

Look at vs. 12 and how it is that God predicts that the second wave will destroy the island fortress…

“they will break down your walls and destroy your pleasant houses; they will lay your stones, your timber, and your soil in the midst of the water.”

Historically that is exactly what Alexander’s army did!

They were able to complete the causeway and breach the walls of the island fortress in only 7 months!

So, what Nebuchadnezzar failed to accomplish in 13 years Alexander succeeded in just over half a year! (ref. Daniel 7:6 ~ the leopard with 4 wings).

The Surrender of Tyre’s Neighbors (vs. 15-18)

Ezek. 26:15 “Thus says the Lord GOD to Tyre: ‘Will the coastlands not shake at the sound of your fall, when the wounded cry, when slaughter is made in the midst of you?

Ezek. 26:16 Then all the princes of the sea will come down from their thrones, lay aside their robes, and take off their embroidered garments; they will clothe themselves with trembling; they will sit on the ground, tremble every moment, and be astonished at you.

Ezek. 26:17 And they will take up a lamentation for you, and say to you:

“How you have perished,

O one inhabited by seafaring men,

O renowned city,

Who was strong at sea,

She and her inhabitants,

Who caused their terror to be on all her inhabitants!

Ezek. 26:18 Now the coastlands tremble on the day of your fall;

Yes, the coastlands by the sea are troubled at your departure.” ’

√ The surrender of Tyre’s neighbors

In these verses Ezekiel tells us how the neighboring kingdoms would respond when the island fortress of Tyre fell, note vs. 16…

“Then all the princes of the sea will come down from their thrones, lay aside their robes, and take off their embroidered garments; they will clothe themselves with trembling; they will sit on the ground, tremble every moment, and be astonished at you.”

His prediction is that once the other coastal nations heard of Tyre’s destruction they would recognize that they were powerless to defend themselves and would surrender without a fight.

Historically that’s exactly what happened!

When the other kingdoms along the coast heard of Alexander’s brilliant strategy and how easily he defeated Tyre they rolled over and surrendered!

So, just as God said He would destroy Tyre it came to pass.

The End of Tyre (vs. 19-21)

Ezek. 26:19 “For thus says the Lord GOD: ‘When I make you a desolate city, like cities that are not inhabited, when I bring the deep upon you, and great waters cover you,

Ezek. 26:20 then I will bring you down with those who descend into the Pit, to the people of old, and I will make you dwell in the lowest part of the earth, in places desolate from antiquity, with those who go down to the Pit, so that you may never be inhabited; and I shall establish glory in the land of the living.

Ezek. 26:21 I will make you a terror, and you shall be no more; though you are sought for, you will never be found again,’ says the Lord GOD.”

√ The end of Tyre

Once Alexander’s’ army breached the walls and entered the city they leveled it’s walls, palaces, and towers, to the bare rock.

The people they captured were sold as slaves to the surrounding nations.

The end result is that Tyre has never since returned to prominence as a world, or even a regional power and you can find fisherman today drying their nets on the island that once was the pride of Tyre’s kingdom.

√ Seven for seven

So, in this chapter Ezekiel gives us 7 specific predictions regarding how God planned to destroy Tyre…

1^st wave ~ destroy the mainland city and suburbs of Tyre (vs. 7-8).

2^nd wave ~ that many nations would be involved in the final destruction of the island fortress of Tyre (vs. 3).

The city would be flattened and scraped bare like a rock (vs. 4 & 14).

That the proud city would become a place for fisherman to dry their nets (vs. 5 & 14).

That the invading army would use the ruins of the mainland city to build a path through the sea to reach the island fortress (vs. 12).

That others cities and kingdoms would surrender after Tyre’s fall (vs. 15-18).

That Tyre would not be rebuilt (vs. 20-21).

All that has come to pass!

Ap. Ezekiel was divinely inspired

In his book, “Science Speaks”, statistician Peter Stoner concludes that the probability of those seven predictions coming to pass by chance to be…

…1 in 75 million!

Ex. Practical terms

You’re twice as likely to be killed on the ground by an airplane than for these 7 predictions to come to pass by chance!

Or, if you’d like to try this at home, the probability of these 7 predictions coming to pass by chance (verses divine inspiration)…

…is the same as the probability of flipping a coin and getting heads 26 times in a row!

Neither is very likely which simply demonstrates that God is the Author of prophecy and that He is involved in the events of human history.

Close

√ Judgment on Tyre and Sidon

Ezekiel 26 reminds us that…

1) The Abrahamic covenant is real and still in force.

Therefore, we ought to as individuals and as a nation be careful how we treat the Jewish people and Israel.

2) That the Bible is God’s Word

He’s given us ample proof of its divine inspiration, therefore, we ought to read and heed what it says!