Ezekiel 28

1 The word of the LORD came again unto me, saying,

2 "Son of man, say unto the prince of Tyre, `Thus saith the Lord GOD: "`Because thine heart is lifted up and thou hast said, "I am a god, I sit in the seat of God in the midst of the seas," yet thou art a man, and not God, though thou set thine heart as the heart of God.

3 Behold, thou art wiser than Daniel; there is no secret that they can hide from thee.

4 With thy wisdom and with thine understanding thou hast gotten thee riches, and hast gotten gold and silver into thy treasuries.

5 By thy great wisdom and by thy traffic hast thou increased thy riches, and thine heart is lifted up because of thy riches.

6 "`Therefore thus saith the Lord GOD: Because thou hast set thine heart as the heart of God,

7 behold, therefore I will bring strangers upon thee, the terrible of the nations; and they shall draw their swords against the beauty of thy wisdom, and they shall defile thy brightness.

8 They shall bring thee down to the pit, and thou shalt die the deaths of them that are slain in the midst of the seas.

9 Wilt thou yet say before him that slayeth thee, "I am God"? But thou shalt be a man, and no god in the hand of him that slayeth thee.

10 Thou shalt die the deaths of the uncircumcised by the hand of strangers; for I have spoken it, saith the Lord GOD.'"

11 Moreover the word of the LORD came unto me, saying,

12 "Son of man, take up a lamentation over the king of Tyre, and say unto him, `Thus saith the Lord GOD: "`Thou sealest up the sum, full of wisdom and perfect in beauty.

13 Thou hast been in Eden the garden of God; every precious stone was thy covering: the sardius, topaz, and the diamond, the beryl, the onyx, and the jasper, the sapphire, the emerald, and the carbuncle, and gold; the workmanship of thy taborets and of thy pipes was prepared in thee in the day that thou wast created.

14 Thou art the anointed cherub that covereth, and I have set thee so; thou wast upon the holy mountain of God; thou hast walked up and down in the midst of the stones of fire.

15 Thou wast perfect in thy ways from the day that thou wast created, till iniquity was found in thee.

16 By the multitude of thy merchandise they have filled the midst of thee with violence, and thou hast sinned; therefore I will cast thee as profane out of the mountain of God; and I will destroy thee, O covering cherub, from the midst of the stones of fire.

17 Thine heart was lifted up because of thy beauty; thou hast corrupted thy wisdom by reason of thy brightness. I will cast thee to the ground; I will lay thee before kings, that they may behold thee.

18 Thou hast defiled thy sanctuaries by the multitude of thine iniquities, by the iniquity of thy traffic. Therefore will I bring forth a fire from the midst of thee; it shall devour thee; and I will bring thee to ashes upon the earth in the sight of all them that behold thee.

19 All they that know thee among the people shall be astonished at thee; thou shalt be a terror, and never shalt thou be any more.'"

20 Again the word of the LORD came unto me, saying,

21 "Son of man, set thy face against Sidon, and prophesy against it

22 and say, `Thus saith the Lord GOD: "`Behold, I am against thee, O Sidon, and I will be glorified in the midst of thee; and they shall know that I am the LORD, when I shall have executed judgments in her and shall be sanctified in her.

23 For I will send into her pestilence, and blood into her streets; and the wounded shall be judged in the midst of her by the sword upon her on every side; and they shall know that I am the LORD.

24 And there shall be no more a pricking brier unto the house of Israel, nor any grieving thorn of all who are round about them, who despised them; and they shall know that I am the Lord GOD.

25 "`Thus saith the Lord GOD: When I shall have gathered the house of Israel from the people among whom they are scattered, and shall be sanctified in them in the sight of the heathen, then shall they dwell in their land that I have given to My servant Jacob.

26 And they shall dwell safely therein, and shall build houses and plant vineyards; yea, they shall dwell with confidence when I have executed judgments upon all those that despise them round about them; and they shall know that I am the LORD their God.'"

Ezekiel 28 Commentary

Chapter 28

The sentence against the prince or king of Tyre. (1-19) The fall of Zidon. (20-23) The restoration of Israel. (24-26)

Verses 1-19 Ethbaal, or Ithobal, was the prince or king of Tyre; and being lifted up with excessive pride, he claimed Divine honours. Pride is peculiarly the sin of our fallen nature. Nor can any wisdom, except that which the Lord gives, lead to happiness in this world or in that which is to come. The haughty prince of Tyre thought he was able to protect his people by his own power, and considered himself as equal to the inhabitants of heaven. If it were possible to dwell in the garden of Eden, or even to enter heaven, no solid happiness could be enjoyed without a humble, holy, and spiritual mind. Especially all spiritual pride is of the devil. Those who indulge therein must expect to perish.

20-26. The Zidonians were borderers upon the land of Israel, and they might have learned to glorify the Lord; but, instead of that, they seduced Israel to the worship of their idols. War and pestilence are God's messengers; but he will be glorified in the restoring his people to their former safety and prosperity. God will cure them of their sins, and ease them of their troubles. This promise will at length fully come to pass in the heavenly Canaan: when all the saints shall be gathered together, every thing that offends shall be removed, all griefs and fears for ever banished. Happy, then, is the church of God, and every living member of it, though poor, afflicted, and despised; for the Lord will display his truth, power, and mercy, in the salvation and happiness of his redeemed people.

Chapter Summary

INTRODUCTION TO EZEKIEL 28

This chapter contains a prophecy of the destruction of the prince of Tyre; a lamentation for the king of Tyre; a denunciation of judgments on Zidon, and a promise of peace and safety to Israel. The order given the prophet to prophesy of the ruin of the prince of Tyre, Eze 28:1,2, the cause of his ruin, his pride on account of his wisdom and riches, which rose to such a pitch, as to make himself God, Eze 28:2-6, the manner in which his destruction shall be accomplished, Eze 28:7-10, the lamentation for the king of Tyre begins Eze 28:11,12, setting forth his former grandeur and dignity, Eze 28:13-15, his fall, and the cause of it, injustice and violence in merchandise, pride because of beauty and wisdom, and profanation of sanctuaries, Eze 28:16-19, next follow the judgments on Zidon, Eze 28:20-23, and the chapter is concluded with a promise of the restoration of the Jews to their own land, and of great tranquillity and safety in it, Eze 28:24-26.