Isaiah 23
1 The Burden of Tyre. Howl, ye ships of Tarshish, For it hath been destroyed, Without house, without entrance, From the land of Chittim it was revealed to them.
A declaration about Tyre: Howl, you ships of Tarshish; for there is neither home nor harbor; from the land of Cyprus it has been revealed to them.
2 Be silent, ye inhabitants of the isle, Trader of Zidon, passing the sea, they filled thee.
Be silent, you inhabitants of the coast; the merchant of Sidon, who travels over the sea, has filled you.
3 And in many waters [is] the seed of Sihor, The harvest of the brook [is] her increase, And she is a mart of nations.
Upon the great waters was the grain of Shihor, the harvest of the Nile was her produce; and it became the commerce of the nations.
4 Be ashamed, O Zidon; for the sea spake, The strength of the sea, saying: 'I have not been pained, nor have I brought forth, Nor have I nourished young men, [nor] brought up virgins.'
Be ashamed, Sidon; for the sea has spoken, the mighty one of the sea. He says, “I have not labored nor given birth, nor have I raised young men nor brought up young women.”
5 As [at] the report of Egypt they are pained, So [at] the report of Tyre.
When the report comes to Egypt, they will be grieved concerning Tyre.
6 Pass over to Tarshish, howl, ye inhabitants of the isle,
Cross over to Tarshish; wail, you inhabitants of the coast.
7 Is this your exulting one? From the days of old [is] her antiquity, Carry her do her own feet afar off to sojourn.
Has this happened to you, the joyful city, whose origin is from ancient times, whose feet carried her far away to foreign places to settle?
8 Who hath counselled this against Tyre, The crowning one, whose traders [are] princes, Her merchants the honoured of earth?'
Who has planned this against Tyre, the giver of crowns, whose merchants are princes, whose traders are the honored ones of the earth?
9 Jehovah of Hosts hath counselled it, To pollute the excellency of all beauty, To make light all the honoured of earth.
Yahweh of hosts has planned it to dishonor her pride and all her glory, to shame all her honored ones of the earth.
10 Pass through thy land as a brook, Daughter of Tarshish, there is no more a girdle.
Plow your land, as one plows the Nile, daughter of Tarshish. There is no longer a marketplace in Tyre.
11 His hand He hath stretched out over the sea, He hath caused kingdoms to tremble, Jehovah hath charged concerning the merchant one, To destroy her strong places.
Yahweh has reached out with his hand over the sea, and he has shaken the kingdoms; he has given a command concerning Phoenicia, to destroy the strongholds.
12 And He saith, 'Thou dost not add any more to exult, O oppressed one, virgin daughter of Zidon, To Chittim arise, pass over, Even there — there is no rest for thee.'
He said, “You will not rejoice again, oppressed virgin daughter of Sidon; arise, pass over to Cyprus; but neither there you will have rest.”
13 Lo, the land of the Chaldeans — this people was not, Asshur founded it for the Ziim, They raised its watch-towers, They lifted up her palaces, — He hath appointed her for a ruin!
See the land of the Chaldeans. This people has ceased to be; the Assyrians have made it a wilderness for wild animals. They set up their siege towers; they demolished its palaces; they made it a heap of ruins.
14 Howl, ye ships of Tarshish, For your strength hath been destroyed.
Howl, you ships of Tarshish; for your refuge has been destroyed.
15 And it hath come to pass, in that day, That forgotten is Tyre seventy years, According to the days of one king. At the end of seventy years there is to Tyre as the song of the harlot.
In that day, Tyre will be forgotten for seventy years, like the days of a king. After the end of seventy years there will happen in Tyre something like in the song of the prostitute.
16 Take a harp, go round the city, O forgotten harlot, play well, Multiply song that thou mayest be remembered.
Take a harp, go about the city, you forgotten prostitute; play it well, sing many songs, so that you may be remembered.
17 And it hath come to pass, At the end of seventy years Jehovah inspecteth Tyre, And she hath repented of her gift, That she committed fornication With all kingdoms of the earth on the face of the ground.
It will come about that after seventy years, Yahweh will help Tyre, and she will start making money again by doing the work of a prostitute, and she will offer her services to all the kingdoms of the earth.
18 And her merchandise and her gift have been holy to Jehovah, Not treasured up nor stored, For to those sitting before Jehovah is her merchandise, To eat to satiety, and for a lasting covering!
Her profits and earnings will be set apart to Yahweh. They will not be stored up or kept in the treasury, for her profits will be given to those who live in Yahweh's presence and will be used to supply them with abundant food and so they can have the best quality clothing.
