Ezekiel 26:12

(12) They shall make.—In Eze_26:12 the nominative changes. It is no longer Nebuchadnezzar who does these things, but “they.” This may intimate that the prophet’s vision now again passes beyond the immediate future to the long succession of calamities, beginning indeed with Nebuchadnezzar’s conquest, with which Tyre was to be visited. The “spoil” and “prey” is to be understood more of what the Tyrians lost than of what the conquerors gained. In the long-continued sieges to which the city was subjected there was great waste of its substance; but their command of the water generally enabled them before the close to send away their moveable wealth, so that the booty of the victor was small. (With the close of the verse comp. Eze_26:4.) The situation of Tyre led naturally to her ruins being thrown into the sea. Robinson saw in one place as many as forty or fifty marble columns beneath the water.

A Bible Commentary for English Readers, edited by Charles John Ellicott (1878–1897) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

Eze 26:12 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.

Ver. 12. And they shall make a spoil of thy riches.] Raked together by right and wrong. See on Eze 26:2. Male parta male dilabuntur. {a}

{a} Sallust.

John Trapp, A Commentary or Exposition upon All the Books of the Old and New Testament (1647–1656) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

Eze_26:12

And they shall make a spoil of thy riches.

Spoliation of treasure is a moral gain

Scholars and artists have mourned for ages over the almost universal destruction of the works of ancient genius. I suppose that many a second-rate city, in the time of Christ, possessed a collection of works of surpassing beauty, which could not be equalled by all the specimens now existing that have been discovered. The Alexandrian library is believed to have contained a greater treasure of intellectual riches than has ever since been hoarded in a single city. These, we know, have all vanished from the earth. The Apollo Belvidere and the Venus de Medicis stand in almost solitary grandeur to remind us of the perfection to which the plastic art of the ancients had attained. The Alexandrian library furnished fuel for years for the baths of illiterate Moslems. I used myself frequently to wonder why it had pleased God to blot out of existence these magnificent productions of ancient genres It seemed to me strange that the pail of oblivion should thus be thrown over all to which man, in the flower of his age, had given birth. But the solution of this mystery is found, I think, in the remains of Herculaneum and Pompeii. We discover that every work of man was so penetrated by corruption, every production of genius was so defiled with uncleanness, that God, in introducing a better dispensation, determined to cleanse the world from the pollution of preceding ages. As when all flesh had corrupted his way, He purified the world by the waters of the flood, so, when genius had covered the earth with images of sin, He overwhelmed the works of ancient civilisation with a deluge of barbarism. It was too bad to exist: and He swept it all away. (F. Wayland.)

The Biblical Illustrator, edited by Joseph S. Exell (c. 1880s–1900s) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

Eze 26:12-14. And they shall make a spoil of thy riches — The Chaldean army shall hinder thy trade during the war, and plunder thee in the end of it. And make a prey of thy merchandise — Of the fruit, or gains, of thy merchandise. And destroy thy pleasant houses — The houses of thy desire, as the margin reads it, or, Thy desirable houses. And shall lay thy stones, &c., in the midst of the water — Shall cast thy ruins into the midst of the sea. And I will cause the noise of thy songs to cease — All signs or indications of mirth shall cease from the midst of thee. Great cities are full of all kinds of gayety and luxury: this had been the case with Tyre, but it is here foretold that all this should be turned into a melancholy silence. I will make thee like the top of a rock — See note on Eze 26:4. Thou shalt be built no more — This was fulfilled; for though the inhabitants built a new city, and called it New Tyre, yet it was situated in a quite different place, namely, on an island, at some distance from the continent on which the former city stood: see note on Isa 23:1. It was also fulfilled with respect to the new city, which “received a great blow from Alexander, not only by his taking and burning it, but much more by his building of Alexandria in Egypt, which in time deprived it of much of its trade, and thereby contributed more effectually to its ruin. It had the misfortune afterward of changing its masters often, being sometimes in the hands of the Ptolemies, kings of Egypt, and sometimes of the Seleucidæ, kings of Syria, till at length it fell under the dominion of the Romans. It was taken by the Saracens about the year of Christ 639, in the reign of Omar, their third emperor. It was retaken by the Christians, during the time of the holy war, in the year 1124: Baldwin, the second of that name, being then king of Jerusalem, and assisted by a fleet of the Venetians. From the Christians it was taken again, in the year 1289, by the Mamelukes of Egypt, under their sultan, Alphix, who sacked and razed this, and Zidon, and other strong towns, that they might not ever again afford any harbour or shelter to the Christians. From the Mamelukes it was again taken, in the year 1516, by Selim, the ninth emperor of the Turks, and under their dominion it continues at present. But, alas! how fallen! how changed from what it was formerly! for, from being the centre of trade, frequented by all the merchant ships of the east and west, it is now become a heap of ruins, visited only by the boats of a few poor fisher-men: see note on Eze 26:4. So that as to this New Tyre, or this part of Tyre, the prophecy hath likewise been literally fulfilled: I will make thee like the top of a rock; thou shalt be a place to spread nets upon.” — Bishop Newton.

Joseph Benson's Commentary on the Old and New Testaments (1811–1818) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

26:12-14 The end result was exactly as the prophet had described earlier in metaphorical language. Tyre would become a bare rock, a desolate haunt for local fishermen to spread their nets to dry, instead of a bustling center for long-distance trading vessels and caravans from the east (26:2). According to Josephus, Tyre was besieged by Nebuchadnezzar for thirteen years, although it was not finally destroyed until the time of Alexander the Great (332 BC).

Tyndale Open Study Notes — © Tyndale Open Resources, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0. Text via the HelloAO Bible API.

lay thy stones . . . timber . . . in . . . midst of . . . water--referring to the insular New Tyre (Eze 26:3, Eze 26:5; Eze 27:4, Eze 27:25-26). When its lofty buildings and towers fall, surrounded as it was with the sea which entered its double harbor and washed its ramparts, the "stones . . . timbers . . . and dust" appropriately are described as thrown down "in the midst of the water." Though Ezekiel attributes the capture of Tyre to Nebuchadnezzar (see on Eze 29:18), yet it does not follow that the final destruction of it described is attributed by him to the same monarch. The overthrow of Tyre by Nebuchadnezzar was the first link in the long chain of evil--the first deadly blow which prepared for, and was the earnest of, the final doom. The change in this verse from the individual conqueror "he," to the general "they," marks that what he did was not the whole, but only paved the way for others to complete the work begun by him. It was to be a progressive work until she was utterly destroyed. Thus the words here answer exactly to what Alexander did. With the "stones, timber," and rubbish of Old Tyre, he built a causeway in seven months to New Tyre on the island and so took it [CURTIUS, 4, 2], 322 B.C.

Jamieson, Fausset & Brown — Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible (1871) — public domain (CC PDM 1.0). Text via the HelloAO Bible API.

Verse 12. And they shall lay thy stones and thy timber and thy dust in the midst of the water.] This answers to the taking of Tyre by Alexander; he actually took the timbers, stones, rubbish, c. of old Tyre, and filled up the space between it and new Tyre, and thus connected the latter with the main land and this he was obliged to do before he could take it.

Adam Clarke's Commentary on the Bible (1810–1826) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.

And they shall make a spoil of thy riches,.... The Chaldean army, when they entered the city, and got possession of it, would plunder it, and divide the riches of it among them:

and make a prey of thy merchandise; of the merchants' goods, laid up in their warehouses for sale, which was greatly hindered by this long siege; compare with this Rev 18:11,

and they shall break down thy walls; the walls of their houses; mention being made before of breaking down the walls of the city, towers, and garrisons:

and destroy thy pleasant houses; or, "houses of thy desire" (l); the most desirable ones in the city; the houses of their princes and chief magistrates; their summer houses; or which were most delightfully situated towards the sea, to have the prospect and advantage of that:

and they shall lay thy stones and thy timber and thy dust in the midst of the water; of the sea, near unto or about it; into which they cast the rubbish of the demolished houses, stones, timber, and dust, and so left it bare and naked: or rather this was fulfilled when Alexander, with the ruins of old Tyre, its stones, timber, and rubbish, and trees from Lebanon, made a causeway from the continent to the island; and by that means took it, after seven months' toil and labour of this sort (m).

(l) "domos desiderii tui", Montanus, Vatablus. (m) Curt. Hist, l. 4. c. 2. 4.

John Gill's Exposition of the Whole Bible (1746–1763) — public domain (CC PDM 1.0). Text via the HelloAO Bible API.

They; Chaldean soldiers.

Make a spoil; hinder thy trade during the war, and plunder thee in the end of the war.

Make a prey of thy merchandise; intercepting much, as it is coming to thee whilst besieged, and taking what they find, when they conquer.

Break down thy walls: see Eze 26:4,9; there he speaks of the walls of the city, here of the walls of private houses, as appears by that which follows. Pleasant houses, that the Tyrians dwelt in with delight, or diverted themselves in as houses of pleasure; summerhouses.

Lay thy stones, & c.

in the midst of the water: it had been a quicker and easier way to have burnt all, but it is like the greedy soldier might dream of treasure hid in walls or under the timber, and therefore they take the pains to pull all down, and throw it into the sea; the very dust too. Thus God fulfils his word, and scraped Tyrus.

Matthew Poole's English Annotations on the Holy Bible (1683–1685) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.

Thy pleasant houses; Hebrew, houses of desire. The palaces of the merchant-princes of Tyro, stately as those of Genoa or Venice. In the midst of the water. We are again reminded that it is the island city of which the prophet speaks.

The Pulpit Commentary (1880–1919), ed. H.D.M. Spence-Jones & Joseph S. Exell — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

Shall lay - It had been a quicker way, to have burnt all; but the greedy soldier might dream of treasures hid in walls, or under the timber, and therefore take the pains to pull all down, and throw it into the sea.

John Wesley, Explanatory Notes Upon the Whole Bible (1754–1765) — public domain. Text via the GEBible commentary corpus.

Connecting Statement:

Yahweh continues giving Ezekiel his message to Tyre.

General Information:

The word "They" in these verses refers to the soldiers in the armies of Nebuchadnezzar. The words "your" and "you" refer to the city of Tyre.

They will plunder your riches and loot your merchandise

The phrases "plunder your riches" and "loot your merchandise" mean about the same thing and are repeated for emphasis. (See: Parallelism)

luxurious

expensive and comfortable

Your stones, your timber, and the rubble

These refer to what is left after the walls and homes are torn down.

into the waters

"into the sea"

The sound of your harps will be heard no more

This can be stated in active form. AT: "No one will hear the sound of your harps anymore" (See: Active or Passive)

I will make you a bare rock

This metaphor describes the results after Yahweh completely destroys Tyre. See how you translated a similar phrase in Ezekiel 26:4. (See: Metaphor)

you will become a place where nets are spread out to dry

This metaphor also describes the results after Yahweh destroys Tyre. See how you translated a similar phrase in Ezekiel 26:5. (See: Metaphor)

you will become a place where nets

This can be stated in active form. AT: "I will make you a place where nets" (See: Active or Passive)

translationWords

harp

declare

Lord Yahweh

unfoldingWord translationNotes — © Distant Shores Media and the Door43 World Missions Community, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0. Source: git.door43.org/Door43/en_tn.

your merchandise [as translated], your merchandise.

Rashi on the Tanakh — English translations: “The Judaica Press complete Tanach with Rashi, translated by A. J. Rosenberg” (CC BY 4.0); “Pentateuch with Rashi's commentary by M. Rosenbaum and A.M. Silbermann, 1929-1934” (public domain); “The Metsudah Tanach series, Lakewood, N.J” (CC BY 4.0); and “The Book of Joshua, Metsudah Publications, 1997” (CC BY 4.0). Text via Sefaria.