Israel and her neighbors were like a family of nations. They were very close geographically and they had shared histories going back to the time of Abraham. At least three of the nations – Edom, Moab, and Ammon – were cousins of the Israelites, and Hiram, king of Tyre, was a good friend and supporter to King David and King Solomon.

So God was angry when Israel and Judah’s neighbors gloated over the demise of Jerusalem. It was a tragedy, but they cruelly saw it as an opportunity.

“The word of the Lord came to me: ‘Son of man, because Tyre has said of Jerusalem, ‘Aha! The gate to the nations is broken, and its doors have swung open to me; now that she lies in ruins I will prosper.’ Therefore this is what the Sovereign Lord says: I am against you, Tyre, and I will bring many nations against you, like the sea casting up its waves.’” Ezekiel 26:1-3

The City State of Tyre

Ancient Tyre was the greatest seaport of its time. The Bible vividly describes its wealth, power and influence throughout the world. All the nations came with their choicest goods to trade with Tyre – it was the jewel of commerce.

The city was built on an island about a half mile off the coast of Lebanon in the Mediterranean Sea. The location was first occupied around 2700 BC, but by the time Ezekiel wrote about it, it was a great city fortified with 150 ft. tall stone walls that protected it from assault on all sides. It had its own fleets of trading ships, but it was also the port for ships from all over Phoenicia. It was the destination for inland traders who brought their goods by caravan.

As in many wealthy, powerful places, the people of Tyre felt their wealth gave them immunity against consequences for bad behavior. They dictated terms to everyone around them; no one was likely to cross them and no one was able to get through their fortifications to defeat them.

Ezekiel’s prophecies against Tyre were fulfilled twice. He accurately predicted the attempt by Nebuchadnezzar to take Tyre, but it was another power that finished the job two hundred years later.

The End of Tyre

Ezekiel 27 is a lament over Tyre and it describes the city and its many glories. Many people from surrounding nations invested themselves in Tyre, from merchants and builders to sailors and soldiers. The best of the best flourished in Tyre.

They may have been safe inside the city, but Tyre couldn’t resist the power of God at sea.

“Your oarsmen take you out to the high seas. But the east wind will break you to pieces far out at sea. Your wealth, merchandise and wares, your mariners, sailors and shipwrights, your merchants and all your soldiers, and everyone else on board will sink into the heart of the sea on the day of your shipwreck.” Ezekiel 27:26-27

“The mariners and all the sailors will stand on the shore. They will raise their voice and cry bitterly over you; they will sprinkle dust on their heads and roll in ashes . . . They will weep over you with anguish of soul and with bitter mourning . . . All who live in the coastlands are appalled at you; their kings shudder with horror and their faces are distorted with fear. The merchants among the nations scoff at you; you have come to a horrible end and will be no more.” Ezekiel 27:29-31, 35-36

Nebuchadnezzar wasn’t as successful in defeating Tyre. He tried to batter his way through its walls but couldn’t do it. He inflicted what damage he could while besieging the city, but he finally had to withdraw.

Alexander the Great

More than two hundred years later, in 332 BC, Alexander the Great arrived at Tyre, fresh from his defeat of the Persian Empire and confident he could take the city. It was harder than he expected. He was unable to weaken the city with a seven-month siege and his ships were unable to batter down the walls, so he built a wide stone causeway from the Lebanon shore to the eastern side of the island city.

At the end of the causeway he built the two tallest siege towers ever constructed. They were 160 ft. high with archers standing on top shooting arrows over the wall into Tyre. At their base catapults fired rocks at Tyre’s ships that came after Alexander’s army on the causeway.

The Tyrians overcame the siege towers when they hung oil pots from the masts of an old ship, set it on fire and pushed it up against the causeway. When the masts burned and broke, the oil pots hit the flames and an explosion set the siege towers on fire. Alexander abandoned the causeway and decided to attack Tyre from the sea instead.

He amassed a great number of ships from several nations and created a multi-layered fleet. He had fast ships loaded with soldiers and archers sailing in and out barraging the city. He equipped some slower ships with battering rams and they persistently ran into the walls trying to penetrate them.

When Alexander discovered there were great stones under the water making the channel too shallow for his battering vessels, he brought in crane ships to lift the rocks out of the way.

Tyre Fell as Ezekiel Said It Would

Less than a year after Alexander began his assault, one of his ships pierced a small hole through Tyre’s wall and the Greeks broke in and took the city. Alexander was so furious with Tyre by then that he killed more than half the residents inside.

Ezekiel accurately foresaw the destruction of Tyre, even though it didn’t occur until two hundred years after his death. He not only predicted the destruction of the city, but the reactions it caused in the nations who saw it happen.

This kind of fulfillment of prophecy is one of the most amazing facts about the Bible, and it’s a compelling reason to read the Word.

The King of Tyre

God allowed Tyre to be destroyed because it was an arrogant and proud city. The king of Tyre exemplified this attitude.

“In the pride of your heart you say, ‘I am a god; I sit on the throne of a god in the heart of the seas.’ But you are a mere mortal and not a god, though you think you are as wise as a god.” Ezekiel 28:2

This arrogant king was influenced by someone beyond himself, however, someone who had exalted himself above the throne of God. There are very few places in the Bible where Satan is described, but Ezekiel 28:11-19 is one of them. Ezekiel referred to the king of Tyre in this passage, but what God told the prophet went far beyond anything an earthly king ever experienced.

This passage describes Satan as a guardian cherub, perfect in beauty, adorned in jewels with high status among the cherubim (Ezekiel 28:14). We saw in Ezekiel 1 and 10 that cherubim were the angels who supported the throne of God. They went with God when he visited the earth. Satan was a chief among them until the sin of pride was revealed in him

“Your heart became proud on account of your beauty, and you corrupted your wisdom because of your splendor.” Ezekiel 28:17

“You said in your heart, ‘I will ascend to heaven; I will raise my throne above the stars of God; I will sit enthroned on the mount of assembly, on the utmost heights of the sacred mountain. I will ascend above the tops of the clouds; I will make myself like the Most High.’” Isaiah 14:13-14

The king of Tyre was influenced by Satan himself and suffered the same fate Satan will eventually face.

The End of Satan

God threw Satan out of heaven and he went to dwell on the earth where he has been ever since, fomenting rebellion against the Lord. Someday God is going to restrain Satan in an abyss for a thousand years and there will be peace on the earth. He will be released for a short time and then final judgment will come. At the final judgment Satan will be thrown into the lake of fire, never to trouble creation again. You can read all about this in Revelation 20, but Ezekiel had this to say about the end of Satan:

“By your many sins and dishonest trade you have desecrated your sanctuaries. So I made a fire come out from you, and it consumed you, and I reduced you to ashes on the ground in the sight of all who were watching. All the nations who knew you are appalled at you; you have come to a horrible end and will be no more.” Ezekiel 28:18-19

Tomorrow we will pick up with the fall of Jerusalem and its sad aftermath. More prophecies will be fulfilled as we continue to read through this historic narrative.