The American Wisdom Series

Presents
Pamphlet #8026 Ezekiel chapter 26

What is the final judgment upon Tyre, the little rock, the type of Babylon the Great of the end time?

Chapters 26 and 27 are written concerning the once very prosperous and extremely wealthy commercial city of ancient Tyre, a type and forerunner of Babylon the Great in Rev. 18, and there is nothing written in these two chapters that is in the least bit mysterious or complicated. Chapter 26 is simply our Father's decree through His watchman Ezekiel that this businessman's "dream city" of manufacturing and commerce and trading is "going down" (vs. 20). He promised He was going to destroy it and turn it into a wasteland and "it shall be no more" (vs. 21).So it was written, and so it has been done, precisely and in the exact manner as foretold in this 26th chapter of Ezekiel. Read the rich history of this once great city in the encyclopedias and the Bible dictionaries and then look at her today and you shall KNOW that God's Word is true, ALWAYS! Chapter 27 then is a "lamentation", which is the sad, sad song of her dreadful fate whereby she "has fallen, has fallen" from such greatness and mourned by the kings and merchants who prospered from her great wealth.

Tyre in Hebrew means "rock", and this city was actually built upon a rock. Here's a quote from "Davis Dictionary of the Bible", pg. 790, under the heading Tyre:

"According to ancient testimony, Tyre originally stood on the mainland; but in course of time, for safety against besiegers, it was transferred to the neighboring rocky island which gave name to the locality. Ancient writers frequently allude to its situation in the sea (Ezek. 26:17, 27:32)."

One thing is for sure, and that is "there is nothing new under the sun", as king Solomon so eloquently said it. People then and people now feel very "secure" with their big retirement 401k's and their ownership of businesses and properties and merchandise. Yet in the end, as with the city of Tyre, and as with the prosperity of the New World Order (Babylon the Great of Rev. 18), the riches of this world shall ALL FAIL to give LIFE! Yes, if that is the only "rock" you ever have, then "Good Bye!" You shall surely perish with that which is perishable!

Perhaps a few more quotes from the same Bible dictionary will help to characterize this ancient world trade center:

"The taste of the Tyrians was not for war, but for manufacture, commerce, money-making, sea voyages, and colonization. They produced purple dyes, metal work, and glass ware; and they trafficked even with the remotest peoples (cp. 1 Ki. 9:28)."

This next quote from the Davis Bible dictionary is to let the reader know that the "little Tyre people", the kenites, always make "deals" with and buy influence and even control when they can, the kings and leaders and politicians of the nations. So what else is new?

"Early in the ninth century B.C. they purchased immunity from Ashurnasirpal, king of Assyria, and later were represented in the alliance, which included Ahab, formed to resist Ashurnasirpal's son and successor Shalmaneser."

Here's a prime example of the influence of the Tyrians even in the dynasty of religion, and with our very own people no less:

"There was an altar in honor of Ashtoreth, the Tyrian goddess, "Queen of Heaven", built by Solomon on one of the summits of Olivet as a token of this friendship for Hiram, king of Tyre, which stood for 350 years, when it was destroyed by Josiah, only a few years before Jerusalem was taken by the Assyrians, under Nebuchadnezzar." ("Smith's Bible Dictionary", Holman, pg. 317.)

Ezekiel 26:1
And it came to pass in the eleventh year, in the first day of the month, that the word of the LORD came unto me, saying,

[2] Son of man, because that Tyrus hath said against Jerusalem, Aha, she is broken that was the gates of the people: she is turned unto me: I shall be replenished, now she is laid waste:

[3] Therefore thus saith the Lord GOD; Behold, I am against thee, O Tyrus, and will cause many nations to come up against thee, as the sea causeth his waves to come up.

Notice something very important in this verse. The destruction and demise of Tyre will be accomplished by more than one nation. God said He would send "many nations" against her, beginning with king Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon in verse 7. Each one will "take a shot" at her siege (and of course accept bribes and payoffs along the way) until Alexander the Great comes and builds a causeway from the mainland to the island and with horses and chariots conquers her.

Ezekiel 26:4
And they shall destroy the walls of Tyrus, and break down her towers: I will also scrape her dust from her, and make her like the top of a rock.

[5] It shall be a place for the spreading of nets in the midst of the sea: for I have spoken it, saith the Lord GOD: and it shall become a spoil to the nations.

[6] And her daughters which are in the field shall be slain by the sword; and they shall know that I am the LORD.

Remember from our last study that our Father does what He does, even chastises, for the ultimate "good" of His children? It is so that they "shall know that He is the LORD" and that He loves them enough to chastise them.

Ezekiel 26:7
For thus saith the Lord GOD; Behold, I will bring upon Tyrus Nebuchadrezzar king of Babylon, a king of kings, from the north, with horses, and with chariots, and with horsemen, and companies, and much people.

Jeremiah 27:6
And now have I given all these lands into the hand of Nebuchadnezzar the king of Babylon, my servant; and the beasts of the field have I given him also to serve him.

Ezekiel 26:8
He shall slay with the sword thy daughters in the field: and he shall make a fort against thee, and cast a mount against thee, and lift up the buckler against thee.

Ezekiel 26:9
And he shall set engines of war against thy walls, and with his axes he shall break down thy towers.

[10] 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 into thy gates, as men enter into a city wherein is made a breach.

[11] With the hoofs of his horses shall he tread down all thy streets: he shall slay thy people by the sword, and thy strong garrisons shall go down to the ground.

[12] And they shall make a spoil of thy riches, and make a prey of thy merchandise: 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 water.

Ezekiel 26:13
And I will cause the noise of thy songs to cease; and the sound of thy harps shall be no more heard.

[14] And I will make thee like the top of a rock: thou shalt be a place to spread nets upon; thou shalt be built no more: for I the LORD have spoken it, saith the Lord GOD.

[15] Thus saith the Lord GOD to Tyrus; Shall not the isles shake at the sound of thy fall, when the wounded cry, when the slaughter is made in the midst of thee?

[16] Then all the princes of the sea shall come down from their thrones, and lay away their robes, and put off their broidered garments: they shall clothe themselves with trembling; they shall sit upon the ground, and shall tremble at every moment, and be astonished at thee.

Rev. 18:10
Standing afar off for the fear of her torment, saying, Alas, alas, that great city Babylon, that mighty city! for in one hour is thy judgment come.

[11] And the merchants of the earth shall weep and mourn over her; for no man buyeth their merchandise any more:

[12] The merchandise of gold, and silver, and precious stones, and of pearls, and fine linen, and purple, and silk, and scarlet, and all thyine wood, and all manner vessels of ivory, and all manner vessels of most precious wood, and of brass, and iron, and marble,

[13] And cinnamon, and odours, and ointments, and frankincense, and wine, and oil, and fine flour, and wheat, and beasts, and sheep, and horses, and chariots, and slaves, and souls of men.

[14] And the fruits that thy soul lusted after are departed from thee, and all things which were dainty and goodly are departed from thee, and thou shalt find them no more at all.

Ezekiel 26:17
And they shall take up a lamentation for thee, and say to thee, How art thou destroyed, that wast inhabited of seafaring men, the renowned city, which wast strong in the sea, she and her inhabitants, which cause their terror to be on all that haunt it!

Ezekiel 26:18
Now shall the isles tremble in the day of thy fall; yea, the isles that are in the sea shall be troubled at thy departure.

[19] For thus saith the Lord GOD; When I shall make thee a desolate city, like the cities that are not inhabited; when I shall bring up the deep upon thee, and great waters shall cover thee;

[20] When I shall bring thee down with them that descend into the pit, with the people of old time, and shall set thee in the low parts of the earth, in places desolate of old, with them that go down to the pit, that thou be not inhabited; and I shall set glory in the land of the living;

And when it is destroyed, our Father will set "glory" in the land of the living! Whether one is among those "living" in that land or among those called "dead" depends on what "Rock" he or she now stands upon. You see, there are TWO rocks and as it is written in the Song of Moses (the 32nd chapter of Deut.), their rock is not our Rock:

Deut. 32:31
For their rock is not as our Rock, even our enemies themselves being judges.

Ezekiel 26:21
I will make thee a terror, and thou shalt be no more: though thou be sought for, yet shalt thou never be found again, saith the Lord GOD.