A Prophecy against Tyre (Isaiah 23:1–18)
1 DBY And it came to pass in the eleventh year, on the first of the month, that the word of Jehovah came unto me, saying, BSB BSB: In the eleventh month of the twelfth year, on the first day of the month, the word of the LORD came to me, saying,
2 DBY Son of man, because Tyre hath said against Jerusalem, Aha, she is broken, the gate of the peoples! she is turned unto me: I shall be replenished now she is laid waste; BSB BSB: “Son of man, because Tyre has said of Jerusalem, ‘Aha! The gate to the nations is broken; it has swung open to me; now that she lies in ruins I will be filled,’
3 DBY therefore thus saith the Lord Jehovah: Behold, I am against thee, Tyre, and will cause many nations to come up against thee, as the sea causeth its waves to come up. BSB BSB: therefore this is what the Lord GOD says: ‘Behold, O Tyre, I am against you, and I will raise up many nations against you, as the sea brings up its waves.
4 DBY And they shall destroy the walls of Tyre, and break down her towers. And I will scrape her dust from her, and make her a bare rock. BSB BSB: They will destroy the walls of Tyre and demolish her towers. I will scrape the soil from her and make her a bare rock.
5 DBY She shall be a place for the spreading of nets in the midst of the sea; for I have spoken it , saith the Lord Jehovah; and she shall become a spoil for the nations. BSB BSB: She will become a place to spread nets in the sea, for I have spoken, declares the Lord GOD. She will become plunder for the nations,
6 DBY And her daughters that are in the field shall be slain by the sword; and they shall know that I am Jehovah. BSB BSB: and the villages on her mainland will be slain by the sword. Then they will know that I am the LORD.’
7 DBY For thus saith the Lord Jehovah: Behold, I will bring from the north, against Tyre, Nebuchadrezzar king of Babylon, the king of kings, with horses, and with chariots, and with horsemen, and an assemblage, and much people. BSB BSB: For this is what the Lord GOD says: ‘Behold, I will bring against Tyre from the north Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon, king of kings, with horses and chariots, with cavalry and a great company of troops.
8 DBY He shall slay with the sword thy daughters in the field, and he shall make forts against thee, and cast up a mound against thee, and lift up the target against thee; BSB BSB: He will slaughter the villages of your mainland with the sword; he will set up siege works against you, build a ramp to your walls, and raise his shields against you.
9 DBY and he shall set his engines of attack against thy walls, and with his spikes he shall break down thy towers. BSB BSB: He will direct the blows of his battering rams against your walls and tear down your towers with his axes.
10 DBY By reason of the abundance of his horses their dust shall cover thee; thy walls shall shake at the noise of the horsemen, and of the wheels, and of the chariots, when he shall enter through thy gates, as a city is entered into, wherein is made a breach. BSB BSB: His multitude of horses will cover you in their dust. When he enters your gates as an army entering a breached city, your walls will shake from the noise of cavalry, wagons, and chariots.
11 DBY With the hoofs of his horses shall he tread down all thy streets; he shall slay thy people by the sword, and the pillars of thy strength shall go down to the ground. BSB BSB: The hooves of his horses will trample all your streets. He will slaughter your people with the sword, and your mighty pillars will fall to the ground.
12 DBY And they shall make a spoil of thy riches, and make a prey of thy wares; and they shall break down thy walls, and destroy thy pleasant houses; and they shall lay thy stones and thy timber and thy dust in the midst of the waters. BSB BSB: They will plunder your wealth and pillage your merchandise. They will demolish your walls, tear down your beautiful homes, and throw your stones and timber and soil into the water.
13 DBY And I will cause the noise of thy songs to cease; and the sound of thy harps shall be no more heard. BSB BSB: So I will silence the sound of your songs, and the music of your lyres will no longer be heard.
14 DBY And I will make thee a bare rock; thou shalt be a place for the spreading of nets; thou shalt be built no more: for I Jehovah have spoken it , saith the Lord Jehovah. BSB BSB: I will make you a bare rock, and you will become a place to spread the fishing nets. You will never be rebuilt, for I, the LORD, have spoken, declares the Lord GOD.’
15 DBY Thus saith the Lord Jehovah to Tyre: Shall not the isles shake at the sound of thy fall, when the wounded groan, when the slaughter is made in the midst of thee? BSB BSB: This is what the Lord GOD says to Tyre: ‘Will not the coastlands quake at the sound of your downfall, when the wounded groan at the slaughter in your midst?
16 DBY And all the princes of the sea shall come down from their thrones, and lay aside their robes, and put off their broidered garments: they shall clothe themselves with trembling, they shall sit upon the ground, and shall tremble every moment, and be astonied because of thee. BSB BSB: All the princes of the sea will descend from their thrones, remove their robes, and strip off their embroidered garments. Clothed with terror, they will sit on the ground, trembling every moment, appalled over you.
17 DBY And they shall take up a lamentation for thee, and say to thee, How hast thou perished, that wast inhabited from the seas, O renowned city, which wast strong in the sea, — she and her inhabitants, who caused their terror to be on all them that dwell therein! BSB BSB: Then they will lament for you, saying, “How you have perished, O city of renown inhabited by seafaring men—she who was powerful on the sea, along with her people, who imposed terror on all peoples!
18 DBY Now shall the isles tremble in the day of thy fall; and the isles that are in the sea shall be troubled at thy departure. BSB BSB: Now the coastlands tremble on the day of your downfall; the islands in the sea are dismayed by your demise.”’
19 DBY For thus saith the Lord Jehovah: When I shall make thee a desolate city, like the cities that are not inhabited; when I bring up the deep upon thee, and the great waters cover thee: BSB BSB: For this is what the Lord GOD says: ‘When I make you a desolate city like other deserted cities, and when I raise up the deep against you so that the mighty waters cover you,
20 DBY then will I bring thee down, with them that go down to the pit, to the people of old time, and will cause thee to dwell in the lower parts of the earth, in places desolate of old, with them that go down to the pit, that thou be not inhabited; and I will set glory in the land of the living. BSB BSB: then I will bring you down with those who descend to the Pit, to the people of antiquity. I will make you dwell in the earth below like the ancient ruins, with those who descend to the Pit, so that you will no longer be inhabited or set in splendor in the land of the living.
21 DBY And I will make thee a terror, and thou shalt be no more ; and thou shalt be sought for, and shalt never be found again, for ever, saith the Lord Jehovah. BSB BSB: I will make you an object of horror, and you will be no more. You will be sought, but will never be found,’ declares the Lord GOD.”