Ezekiel 27:10

Eze 27:10 They of Persia and of Lud and of Phut were in thine army, thy men of war: they hanged the shield and helmet in thee; they set forth thy comeliness.

Ver. 10. They set forth thy comeliness.] They were to thee both for muniment and for ornament.

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.

The prophet here leaves the allegory of the ship to describe the armies of the Tyrians composed of mercenary soldiers.

Eze 27:10

Persia - The name of this people does not occur in the more ancient books of the Old Testament; but in the books of the exile and after the exile it is frequent. This exactly corresponds with the record of history. It was just at the time that Ezekiel wrote that the rude and warlike people of Persia were rising into notice, soon about to seize, under Cyrus, the empire of the Asiatic world.

Lud - See Gen 10:13. The union here of “Lud with Phut,” an undoubtedly African tribe (compare Eze 30:5; Isa 66:19) seems to indicate Lud to be of Hamitic race, not the Semitic race. Both names occur repeatedly on Egyptian inscriptions, especially as supplying mercenary soldiers.

Phut - Libyans (see Gen 10:6).

Eze 27:11

Gammadims - Rendered by Septuagint “watchmen;” by others, “brave warriors;” but more probably the name of some nation of which we have no record. The custom of hanging shields upon the walls of a town by way of ornament seems to have been of purely Phoenician origin, and thence introduced by Solomon into Jerusalem 1Ki 10:16.

Albert Barnes' Notes on the Bible (1834–1885) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.

27:10 Persia, Lydia, and Libya: Persia was far to the east over land, while Lydia was northwest in what is now Turkey. Libya was southwest on the shore of the Mediterranean.

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

Persia . . . Phut--warriors from the extreme east and west.

Lud--the Lydians of Asia Minor, near the Meander, famed for archery (Isa 66:19); rather than those of Ethiopia, as the Lydians of Asia Minor form a kind of intermediate step between Persia and Phut (the Libyans about Cyrene, shielded warriors, Jer 46:9, descended from Phut, son of Ham).

hanged . . . shield . . . comeliness--Warriors hanged their accoutrements on the walls for ornament. Divested of the metaphor, it means that it was an honor to thee to have so many nations supplying thee with hired soldiers.

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 10. They of Persia] Lud, the Lydians; Phut, a people of Africa, see Ge 10:6. From these places they had auxiliary troops; for as they traded with the then known world, were rich, and could afford to give good pay, they no doubt had soldiers and sailors from every part. Skilful and desperate men will go any where after their price.

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

(10) Of Persia and of Lud and of Phut.—Tyre, like most commercial nations, depended chiefly on mercenaries for the rank and file of its army. Persia, more anciently called Elam, was just now rising into prominence. Its soldiers were probably obtained by the Tyrians from their commerce in the Persian Gulf. Lud is not the one mentioned among the children of Shem (Gen_10:22), but the Ludim (Lydians) of Hamite family, descended from Mizraim (Gen_10:13). Phut was also an African tribe (Gen_10:6). Both are repeatedly mentioned on the Egyptian monuments as furnishing mercenaries to the army.

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

10. Her men of war.

Her mercenaries were drawn from all quarters of the world. The people called here “they of Persia” appears along with Cush and Phut, African peoples, in the army of Gog, ch. Eze_38:5, in which, however, northern nations as Gomer and Togarmah are also mustered. The host of Gog includes the nations lying on the outskirts of the known world, and Persia might be named among them, though the first certain mention of that country is in Ezr_4:5; Ezr_9:9, &c. Others have thought here of some African people. Lud is named, ch. Eze_30:5, along with Cush and Phut, as allies of Egypt (Jer_46:9); and in Gen_10:13 Ludim is the firstborn of Mizraim (Egypt). In Isa_66:19 Lud is named after Tarshish, and probably some people lying on the African coast, W. of Egypt, is referred to. Phut (Gen_10:6) is son of Ham, and brother of Cush (Ethiopia), Mizraim (Egypt) and Canaan (Phœnicia). In Eze_30:5 (Jer_46:9; Nah_3:9) the people is an ally of Egypt. LXX. renders Lybians. The inhabitants of western Egypt, or those on its western border may be referred to.

they hanged the shield] The great ship is still spoken of. A figure of a ship so adorned and dressed with weapons hung on its sides is given in Layard, Nineveh, ii. p. 388. The practice of hanging weapons on buildings was not unknown in Israel, Son_4:4 (1Ma_4:57).

The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges (gen. ed. J. J. S. Perowne; Cambridge University Press, 1878–1918) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

The men of Arvad, with thine army were upon thy walls round about,.... Placed there for the defence of the city, to watch against an enemy, lest it should be surprised; here they were upon the patrol day and night; see Isa 62:6, these were the men of the same place before mentioned, Eze 27:8 which furnished Tyre both with mariners and soldiers:

and the Gammadims were in thy towers: not the Medes, as Symmachus renders it; nor the Cappadocians, as the Targum; much less were they images of their tutelar gods, as Spencer thinks, of a cubit long; nor "pygmies", as the Vulgate Latin version renders it; which to mention would not be to the honour of their militia; though Kimchi and Ben Melech call them dwarfs, men of a small stature, of a cubit high, from whence they are supposed to have their name; so Schindler (q): rather they were the inhabitants of some place in Phoenicia; either of Ancon; which in Greek signifies a cubit, as Gamad does in Hebrew; or of Gammade, the same which Pliny (r) corruptly calls Gamale. Hillerus (s) thinks the word signifies "ambidexters", or left handed men, such as Ehud:

they hanged their shields upon thy walls roundabout. Kimchi and Ben Melech observe it was a custom in some places to hang such weapons upon the tops of towers, and upon the walls of them; which might be done, either that they might be ready to take up and make use of, whenever occasion required; or to dismay their enemies, and to show them that they were provided for them:

they have made thy beauty perfect; besides the beauty of her buildings and shipping, there was the beauty of her militia; which was increased by the soldiers from Persia, Lydia, and Lybia, and added to by the men of Arvad, but completed by the Gammadim; and particularly being glided, as probably they were, looked very glittering and beautiful in the rays of the sun.

(q) Lexic. Pentaglott. col. 319, 320. (r) Nat. Hist. l. 2. c. 91. (s) Onomast. Sacr. p. 159.

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

Lybians. Hebrew, "Phut." They had been expelled by the Cyreneans. Tyre had in her pay the most warlike nations of Persia, &c. Cyrus soon after shook off the yoke of the Medes, and conquered the Lydians. --- Hung up, ver. 11. This was very usual, Canticle of Canticles iv. 4., and Isaias xxii. 8. (Calmet)

George Leo Haydock (1774–1849), Haydock's Catholic Family Bible and Commentary, 1859 edition — public domain. Excludes Psalms (Douay-Rheims chapter numbering differs from Protestant) and Deuterocanonical books (Catholic canon only).

They of Persia; Persians, excellent archers.

Of Lud; Lydians; not those Croesus was king over, but those that dwelt in Egypt about the lake Marcotis, or higher towards Ethiopia, if they were not of that country, Ethiopians themselves.

Of Phut; Libyans, a people of Africa; these were the hired soldiers, and ever served in their army under Tyrian commanders.

Men of war; stationary soldiers in time of peace, and who were sent out by sea or land as occasion required in a time of war.

They hanged the shield, in time of peace; or might they not, so often as they came off the guard, bring each man his armour, and hang it up in the public armoury?

The shield, which defended the body, and helmet, which covered the head.

They set forth thy comeliness; these stout, expert, well-armed guards were an honour to the state they served, and their arsenal especially did prove the gallantry of this Tyrian state.

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

10. Persia… Lud… Phut — The Persians appear for the first time in Ezekiel’s century as a national power (Toy). (See notes Dan_5:28.) They were probably near relatives of the Medes, with whom they had a close alliance, and were at this time the enemies of Assyria. Toy, because of the parallel list (Eze_30:5), changes Persia (Paras) to Cush. Lud originally came from Egypt (Gen_10:13), and was her warm ally (Jer_46:9) and suffered in her downfall (Eze_30:5), though Gen_10:22, points to a Semitic origin. A prehistoric migration into the Nile Delta might account for this divergence of statement. Jensen believes the people referred to are not the Lydians (Assyrian, Lu-ud-di) as has been commonly assumed, but some nomadic tribe of the Syrian desert living between Aram and Uz on one side and Babylonia on the other (Sunday School Times, February 11, 1899). George Adam Smith and many others believe them to have been Libyans (as LXX.). Put, or Phut, was of Hamitic origin and a close relative of the Ethiopians, Egyptians, and Canaanites (Phoenicians, Gen_10:6). The nation appears in many places as a close ally of Egypt (Eze_30:5; Jer_46:9; Nah_3:9). It also appears in the army of Gog (Eze_38:5). Scholars have generally identified these people with various African nations, as the Nubians or Libyans. A text of Nebuchadnezzar states that in his thirty-seventh year in a campaign against Egypt he defeated “the soldiers of the city of Pudhu-yavan, a distant land which is within the sea,” from which Sayce draws the conclusion that “Phut of the Ionians” may have been Kyrene, or Pelusium, or some other settlement of the Greek mercenaries in Egypt. However, the names of towns migrate rapidly, and the use of the “yavan” as a descriptive term may indicate that there was an original Phut which was not “Phut of the Ionians.” Edward Glaser believes that he has found a Phut (Puta) in Southwest Arabia (Acad., 40:76), at which place, close to the base of the Gala Mountains, Mr. W. Bent has found an ancient harbor resembling closely that which is pictured on the Egyptian monuments as that of Punt, the land of incense. (See note Eze_27:21.) Naville, however, is sure that Punt was on the African coast of the Red Sea (Deir el Bahari, 3:1898). It is at any rate plain that Tyre formed her army largely of mercenaries, and it is very natural that she should choose allies of Egypt in her defense against the aggressions of Assyria.

Hanged the shield and helmet in thee — So the walls were adorned (See Eze_27:11 and Son_4:4).

Daniel D. Whedon (gen. ed.), Commentary on the Old and New Testaments (1874–1909) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

Persia. The name does not meet us in any Old Testament book before the exile, Elam taking its place. It was just about the time that Ezekiel wrote that the Persians were becoming conspicuous through their alliance with the Modes. So we find it again in Eze_38:5 Dan_5:28; 2Ch_36:20, 2Ch_36:22; Ezr_1:1 Ezr_4:5; Est_1:3. Here they are named as mercenaries in the Tyrian army. Lud. The LXX and the Vulgate, led by the similarity of sound, give Lydians in Gen_10:13 the Ludim appear as descendants of Mizraim, while Lud in Gen_10:22 is joined with Elam and Asshur as among the sons of Shem. Its combination with "Phut" (i.e. Libya) here and in Jer_46:9 is infavor of its referring to an African nation. (comp. also Eze_30:5; Isa_66:19) Phut. Both the LXX and the Vulgate give Libyans. in Gen_10:6 the name is joined with Cash and Mizraim. The Lubim (Libyans) are named as forming part of Shishak"s army in 2Ch_12:3 2Ch_16:8, and in Nah_3:9 and Jer_46:9 as closely allied with the Egyptians. Ezekiel names Phut again as sharing in the fall of Tyre, (Eze_30:5) and as serving in the army of Gog. (Eze_38:5) Mr. R. S. Peele is inclined to identify them with the Nubians.

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

Lud - Lydians, not those Cresus was king over, but those that dwelt in Egypt about the lake Maraeolis. Phut - Lybians, a people of Africa; these were their hired soldiers. Hanged the shield - In time of peace. They set forth - These stout, expert, well armed guards, were an honour to thee.

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 words "you" and "your" in these verses refer to Tyre.

Persia, Lydia ... Libya ... Arvad ... Helek ... Gammad

These are the names of places. (See: How to Translate Names)

your men of war

"men who fought in your wars" or "serving as your warriors"

your splendor

The abstract noun "splendor" can be translated using the adjective "splendid." AT: "how splendid you were" or "how majestic you were" (See: Abstract Nouns)

They completed your beauty

The abstract noun "beauty" can be translated using the adjective "beautiful." AT: "They finished making you beautiful" or "They made you perfectly beautiful" (See: Abstract Nouns)

translationWords

Persia

shield

splendor

people group

watchtower

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