Tyre Will Be Humbled, and Its Wealth Will Serve the Lord

23:1 Here is a message about Tyre: Wail, you large ships, for the port is too devastated to enter! From the land of Cyprus this news is announced to them. 23:2 Lament, you residents of the coast, you merchants of Sidon who travel over the sea, whose agents sail over 23:3 the deep waters! Grain from the Shihor region, crops grown near the Nile she receives; she is the trade center of the nations. 23:4 Be ashamed, O Sidon, for the sea says this, O fortress of the sea: “I have not gone into labor or given birth; I have not raised young men or brought up young women.” 23:5 When the news reaches Egypt, they will be shaken by what has happened to Tyre. 23:6 Travel to Tarshish! Wail, you residents of the coast! 23:7 Is this really your boisterous city whose origins are in the distant past, and whose feet led her to a distant land to reside? 23:8 Who planned this for royal Tyre, whose merchants are princes, whose traders are the dignitaries of the earth? 23:9 The Lord who commands armies planned it – to dishonor the pride that comes from all her beauty, to humiliate all the dignitaries of the earth. 23:10 Daughter Tarshish, travel back to your land, as one crosses the Nile; there is no longer any marketplace in Tyre. 23:11 The Lord stretched out his hand over the sea, he shook kingdoms; he gave the order to destroy Canaan’s fortresses. 23:12 He said, “You will no longer celebrate, oppressed virgin daughter Sidon! Get up, travel to Cyprus, but you will find no relief there.” 23:13 Look at the land of the Chaldeans, these people who have lost their identity! The Assyrians have made it a home for wild animals. They erected their siege towers, demolished its fortresses, and turned it into a heap of ruins. 23:14 Wail, you large ships, for your fortress is destroyed! 23:15 At that time Tyre will be forgotten for seventy years, the typical life span of a king. At the end of seventy years Tyre will try to attract attention again, like the prostitute in the popular song: 23:16 “Take the harp, go through the city, forgotten prostitute! Play it well, play lots of songs, so you’ll be noticed!” 23:17 At the end of seventy years the Lord will revive Tyre. She will start making money again by selling her services to all the earth’s kingdoms. 23:18 Her profits and earnings will be set apart for the Lord. They will not be stored up or accumulated, for her profits will be given to those who live in the Lord’s presence and will be used to purchase large quantities of food and beautiful clothes.

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God announces judgment on Tyre, a rich and proud trading city. Its ships, markets, and fame will fail. But the Lord will not lose control. After a time of shame, Tyre will be restored, and its profit will be set apart for the Lord’s use.

This passage is a warning to Tyre and to all who trust in wealth and power. Tyre was a great city built on trade and sea travel. Its success reached many nations. But the Lord says its pride will be brought low.

The mourning is real. Ships, merchants, and coastlands all feel the loss. This shows that when God judges a city, the effects spread far beyond it.

The key truth is that the Lord planned this. Tyre’s beauty, influence, and wealth did not place it beyond his rule. He humbles proud people and proud nations.

The passage then says Tyre will be forgotten for seventy years. That is a measured period of shame, not a random delay. After that, Tyre will rise again, but even then its wealth will not belong to itself. Its gain will be set apart for the Lord and used for those who live in his presence.

So the lesson is clear. Wealth is fragile. Pride is dangerous. The Lord rules over nations, markets, and kings.

• The Lord rules over Tyre and over the nations.
• Prosperity can hide pride, and God judges pride.
• Human wealth and status are not secure.
• God’s judgment can affect many people, not only the city itself.
• Tyre’s later recovery still happens under God’s control.
• Even restored wealth is to be used for the Lord’s purposes.

• Wail and lament, because Tyre’s judgment is real.
• Do not trust in trade, prestige, or riches.
• Remember that the Lord humbles the proud.
• Wait through the appointed period of shame and recovery.
• Use material gain for holy purposes, not self-exaltation.

The Lord shows that he governs the rise and fall of wealthy nations. He brings down Tyre’s pride, then later redirects its gain toward his own purposes. This fits the larger biblical pattern that all nations and their riches are under God’s rule.

Do not treat money, success, or influence as proof that everything is well. God can judge pride even in successful places. Hold wealth loosely, and use what you have in ways that honor the Lord.

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