Ezekiel 27
1 And the word of Jehovah came unto me, saying:
Yahweh said this to me:
2 And thou, son of man, take up a lamentation for Tyre,
“You human, sing a funeral song about Tyre.
3 and say unto Tyre: O thou that art situate at the entries of the sea, and traffickest with the peoples in many isles, thus saith the Lord Jehovah: Thou, Tyre, hast said, I am perfect in beauty.
[The city of] is located [on an island] at the edge of the sea, and their merchants (traded/bought and sold goods) with people-groups [who live] along many seacoasts. This is what [I], Yahweh the Lord, say [that you should tell them]: ‘You [people of] Tyre said that your [city] was very beautiful.
4 Thy borders are in the heart of the seas, thy builders have perfected thy beauty.
You controlled what was bought and sold by people who lived along the sea. Those who built your [city] caused it to become very beautiful.
5 They made all thy double boards of cypress-trees of Senir; they took cedars from Lebanon to make masts for thee.
You were like [SIM] a huge ship that was built from the from pine/cypress [trees] on Hermon [Mountain]. Then they took cedar [wood] from Lebanon to make a mast for the ship.
6 Of the oaks of Bashan did they make thine oars; they made thy benches of ivory, inlaid in box-wood, out of the isles of Chittim.
They carved your oars from oak trees from the Bashan [region]. They made the deck from cypress/pine wood from Cyprus [island], and they covered [the decks] with ivory.
7 Byssus with broidered work from Egypt was thy sail, to serve thee for a banner; blue and purple from the isles of Elishah was thine awning.
The sails for the ship were made from fine embroidered linen from Egypt, and those sails were like flags that people could see [far away]. For shade they [hung pieces of] blue and purple cloth [brought] from [people living on] Cyprus [island].
8 The inhabitants of Zidon and Arvad were thy rowers; thy wise men, O Tyre, who were in thee, were thy pilots.
Men from Sidon and Arvad [cities] pulled the oars; the men who steered the boat were skilled men from Tyre.
9 The elders of Gebal and the wise men thereof were in thee repairing thy leaks; all the ships of the sea with their mariners were in thee, to barter with thee.
Experienced craftsmen from Byblos [city on the coast] (did the caulking/filled the spaces between the planks in the sides) of the ship. Sailors from many countries came in their ships to buy and sell goods there.
10 Persia and Lud and Phut were in thine army, thy men of war: they hanged shield and helmet in thee; they gave splendour to thee.
Men from [as far away as] Persia, Lydia, and Libya were [soldiers] in your army. They hung their shields and helmets on [the walls of] your [city], and that caused people to admire your city.
11 The children of Arvad with thine army were upon thy walls round about, and the Gammadim were on thy towers: they hanged their shields upon thy walls round about; they made thy beauty perfect.
Men from Arvad and Helech [cities were watchmen] on the walls [of your city]; men from Gammad [town] were in your towers. They [also] hung their shields on your walls; they also caused your [city] to be very beautiful.
12 Tarshish dealt with thee by reason of the abundance of all substance; with silver, iron, tin, and lead, they furnished thy markets.
Because of the many things that you had [to trade], men from Tarshish [in Spain] sent merchants who brought silver, iron, tin, and lead to trade for things that you had.
13 Javan, Tubal, and Meshech, they were thy traffickers: they bartered with thee the persons of men, and vessels of bronze.
[Merchants from] Greece, Tubal, and Meshech brought slaves and things made from bronze to trade for things that you had.
14 They of the house of Togarmah furnished thy markets with horses, and horsemen, and mules.
[Men from] Beth-Togarmah [in Armenia] brought work horses, war horses, and mules to trade for things that you had.
15 The children of Dedan were thy traffickers; many isles were the mart of thy hand: they rendered in payment horns of ivory, and ebony.
Merchants came to you from Rhodes [island]. [People from] nations along the coast traded with you; they brought (ivory/elephant tusks) and [valuable black] ebony [wood] to trade for things that you had.
16 Syria dealt with thee for the multitude of thy handiworks: they traded in thy markets with carbuncles, purple, and broidered work, and fine linen, and corals, and rubies.
Because you had very many things [to trade], people from Syria brought to you valuable turquoise stones, purple [cloth], embroidered [cloth], fine linen [cloth], and [jewelry made from] coral and rubies to trade for your things.
17 Judah and the land of Israel were thy traffickers: they bartered with thee wheat of Minnith, and sweet cakes, and honey, and oil, and balm.
Men from Judah and Israel brought wheat from Minnith [city in Ammon], and figs, honey, [olive] oil, and ointment to trade for your things.
18 Damascus dealt with thee because of the multitude of thy handiworks, by reason of the abundance of all substance, with wine of Helbon, and white wool.
Because you had very many things [to trade], men from Damascus brought wine from Helbon [town] and white wool from the Zahar [area] to trade for many things that you had.
19 Vedan and Javan of Uzal traded in thy markets: wrought iron, cassia, and calamus were in thy traffic.
Greek men from the Uzal [area] brought things made of iron, and cassia [spice], and [fragrant] calamus [seeds] to trade for things that you had.
20 Dedan was thy trafficker in precious riding-cloths.
[Merchants came from] Dedan [in southern Edom] bringing saddle blankets to trade for things that you had.
21 Arabia and all the princes of Kedar were the merchants of thy hand: in lambs, and rams, and goats, in these did they trade with thee.
Men from Arabia and all the rulers of the Kedar [region] sent merchants to trade lambs and rams and male goats for things that you had.
22 The merchants of Sheba and Raamah were thy traffickers: they furnished thy markets with all the choice spices, and with all precious stones and gold.
Merchants from Sheba and Raamah [in Arabia] brought many kinds of very good spices and jewels and gold to exchange for things that you had.
23 Haran, and Canneh, and Eden, the merchants of Sheba, Asshur, and Chilmad traded with thee:
[Men came from] Haran, Canneh, Eden, Sheba, Asshur and Kilmad [in Mesopotamia] with their goods.
24 these traded with thee in sumptuous clothes, in wrappings of blue and broidered work, and in chests full of variegated stuffs, bound with cords and made of cedar-wood, amongst thy merchandise.
They brought pretty things to trade: Blue cloth, embroidered cloth, and rugs of [many] colors that were [rolled up and] tied with ropes.
25 The ships of Tarshish were thy caravans for thy traffic; and thou wast replenished, and highly honoured, in the heart of the seas.
Cargo ships from Tarshish carried [all] those things that you traded; and the warehouses on your island were full of all those things.’”
26 Thy rowers have brought thee into great waters; the east wind hath broken thee in the heart of the seas.
“‘The men who row your boats took [the ships full of] cargo out on the stormy seas. But the strong east wind wrecked those cargo boats.
27 Thy substance, and thy markets, thy merchandise, thy mariners, and thy pilots, they that repair thy leaks, and they that barter with thee, and all thy men of war that are in thee, along with all thine assemblage which is in the midst of thee, shall fall into the heart of the seas in the day of thy fall.
Everything in the boats (was lost/sank to the bottom of the sea)— all the valuable cargo [DOU] and [many of] [HYP] the sailors and ship pilots, the ship workers and merchants and soldiers. On the day that the ships were wrecked, many of those on the ships sank to the bottom of the sea.
28 The open places shall shake at the sound of the cry of thy pilots.
[The people in cities along] the coast trembled when they heard your ship pilots cry out.
29 And all that handle the oar, the mariners, all the pilots of the sea, shall come down from their ships; they shall stand upon the land,
All the men who remained who pulled the oars left the ships; the sailors and pilots [go to the shore and] stand on the beach.
30 and shall cause their voice to be heard over thee, and shall cry bitterly; and they shall cast up dust upon their heads; they shall wallow themselves in ashes.
They cry aloud because of [what has happened to] your [wealth], and they weep bitterly. They throw dirt on their heads and roll around in ashes.
31 And they shall make themselves utterly bald for thee, and gird themselves with sackcloth; and they shall weep for thee in bitterness of soul with bitter mourning.
They shave their heads to show that they are very sad because of [what has happened to] you, and they put on rough sackcloth. They weep for you very bitterly and mourn for you.
32 And in their wailing they shall take up a lamentation for thee, and lament over thee, [saying, ] Who is like Tyre, like her that is destroyed in the midst of the sea?
While they wail and mourn because of what has happened to you, they sing this sad funeral song: “There was certainly never [RHQ] a city like Tyre that now is silent, covered by the waves of the sea.”
33 When thy wares went forth over the seas, thou filledst many peoples; thou didst enrich the kings of the earth with the abundance of thy substance and of thy merchandise.
The goods that your merchants traded were things that pleased the people of many countries. Kings in very distant places became rich from the wealth that they obtained from trading with you.
34 In the time [when] thou art broken by the seas, in the depths of the waters, thy merchandise and all thine assemblage in the midst of thee have fallen.
But now your city is like a ship [MET] that is wrecked in the sea, and everything that was in it is broken, at the bottom of the sea. All of your cargo and your sailors have sunk to the bottom of the sea along with the ships.
35 All the inhabitants of the isles are amazed at thee, and their kings are horribly afraid, [their] countenance is troubled.
All the people who live along the seacoast are appalled/horrified because of what has happened to you. Their kings are very horrified, [causing] their faces to be twisted [as they watch].
36 The merchants among the peoples hiss at thee; thou art become a terror, and thou shalt never be any more.
The merchants of the [other] nations shake their heads [because it is difficult for them to believe what has happened]; your city has disappeared, and it will not exist any more.’”
