Isaiah 23:1-7
Commercial splendor collapses when God judges pride.
1 The burden of Tyre. Howl, you ships of Tarshish! For it is laid waste, so that there is no house, no entering in. From the land of Kittim it is revealed to them.
2 Be still, you inhabitants of the coast, you whom the merchants of Sidon that pass over the sea, have replenished.
3 On great waters, the seed of the Shihor, the harvest of the Nile, was her revenue. She was the market of nations.
4 Be ashamed, Sidon; for the sea has spoken, the stronghold of the sea, saying, “I have not travailed, nor given birth, neither have I nourished young men, nor brought up virgins.”
5 When the report comes to Egypt, they will be in anguish at the report of Tyre.
6 Pass over to Tarshish! Wail, you inhabitants of the coast!
7 Is this your joyous city, whose antiquity is of ancient days, whose feet carried her far away to travel?
Commercial splendor collapses when God judges pride.
To announce the impending devastation of Tyre and expose the fragility of its commercial glory.
Tyre was a major Phoenician trading center whose ships and merchants dominated Mediterranean commerce during Isaiah's era.
The Oracle Against Tyre, the Humbling of Commercial Glory, and Wealth Set Apart for the LORD
Isaiah 23 declares that the LORD Almighty humbles the pride of commercial glory, brings Tyre’s maritime wealth to nothing, and ultimately redirects even merchant profit to serve his holy purposes.