Study Desk

"They traded with you in choice fabrics and garments, in clothes of blue or violet and embroidered work, and in [treasures of] multi-colored damask and knotted carpets bound with tightly wound cords, which were among your merchandise.

"All who handle the oar, The mariners and all the pilots of the sea Will come down from their ships; They will stand on the shore,

And they will make their voice heard [as they wail loudly] over you And they will cry bitterly. They will throw dust on their heads; They will wallow in ashes.

"And they will make themselves [completely] bald for you And wrap themselves in sackcloth; And in bitterness of soul they will weep for you With bitter mourning and wailing.

"In their wailing they will take up a dirge (funeral poem to be sung) for you And sing a dirge for you: 'Who is like Tyre, Like her who is silent [destroyed] in the midst of the sea?

Therefore, behold, I will bring strangers (Babylonians) upon you, The most ruthless and violent of the nations. And they will draw their swords Against the beauty of your wisdom [O Tyre] And defile your splendor.

'They will bring you down to the pit [of destruction], And you will die the death of all those who die In the heart of the seas.

"You were in Eden, the garden of God; Every precious stone was your covering: The ruby, the topaz, and the diamond; The beryl, the onyx, and the jasper; The lapis lazuli, the turquoise, and the emerald; And the gold, the workmanship of your settings and your sockets, Was in you. They were prepared On the day that you were created.

"Your heart was proud and arrogant because of your beauty; You destroyed your wisdom for the sake of your splendor. I cast you to the ground; I lay you before kings, That they might look at you.

and say, 'Thus says the Lord GOD, "Behold, I am against you, O Sidon, And I will show My glory and be glorified in your midst. Then they will know [by personal experience] that I am the LORD when I bring judgment and punishment on her, And I will manifest My holiness in her.

"For I will send virulent disease to her And blood into her streets, And the wounded will fall in her midst By the sword upon her from every side, And they shall know [without any doubt] that I am the LORD.

"And there will no longer be a briar or a painful thorn to prick the house of Israel from all those around them who treated them with contempt; then they will know [with clarity] that I am the Lord GOD."

'Thus says the Lord GOD, "When I gather the house of Israel from the nations among whom they are scattered, and I manifest my Holiness in them in the sight of the nations, then they will live in their own land which I gave to My servant Jacob.

"They shall live in it securely; and they will build houses, plant vineyards and live securely when I execute judgment on all those around them who despise them. Then they will know [with clarity and confidence] that I am the LORD their God."'"

"And all the inhabitants of Egypt will know [without any doubt] that I am the LORD, Because they have been [only] a staff made of [fragile] reeds to the house of Israel.

"When they (Israel) grasped you (Egypt) by the hand, You broke and tore apart their hands; When they leaned on you, You broke and strained their backs."

and the land of Egypt will be a desolation and a wasteland. And they will know [without any doubt] that I am the LORD. "Because you said, 'The Nile is mine and I have made it,'

"I will reverse the fortunes of Egypt [as I will that of Israel] and cause them to return to the land of Pathros, the land of their origin, and there they will be a lowly kingdom.

"It will be the lowliest of the kingdoms, and it will never again exalt itself above the nations; I will diminish the Egyptians so they will never again rule over the nations.

"And Egypt will never again have the confidence of the house of Israel; their wickedness will be remembered whenever Israel looks toward them [for help]. Then they will know [without any doubt] that I am the Lord GOD."'"