Study Desk

"‘The people in Judah and Israel traded with you. They paid for the things you sold with the wheat, olives, early figs, honey, oil, and balm.

Damascus was a good customer. They traded with you for the many wonderful things you had. They traded wine from Helbon and white wool for those things.

Damascus traded wine from Uzal for the things you sold. They paid with wrought iron, cassia, and sugar cane.

The merchants of Sheba and Raamah traded with you. They traded all the best spices and every kind of precious stone and gold for your goods.

They paid with the finest clothing, blue cloth, cloth with fine needlework, rugs of many colors, and the strongest ropes. These were the things they traded with you.

They will be very sad about you. They will cry, throw dust on their heads, and roll in ashes.

"‘And in their loud crying they will sing this sad song about you: "‘No one is like Tyre! Tyre is destroyed, in the middle of the sea!

I will bring strangers to fight against you. They are most terrible among the nations! They will pull out their swords and use them against the beautiful things your wisdom brought you. They will ruin your glory.

Your business brought you many riches. But they also put cruelty inside you, and you sinned. So I treated you like something unclean and threw you off the mountain of God. You were one of the chosen Cherubs who spread your wings over my throne. But I forced you to leave the jewels that sparkled like fire.

Say, ‘This is what the Lord God says: "‘I am against you, Sidon! Your people will learn to respect me. I will punish Sidon. Then people will know that I am the Lord . Then they will learn that I am holy, and they will treat me that way.

"‘Then the surrounding nations that hate Israel will no longer be like stinging nettles and painful thorns. And they will know that I am the Lord God .'"

This is what the Lord God said: "I scattered the people of Israel among other nations, but I will gather the family of Israel together again. Then the nations will know that I am holy, and they will treat me that way. At that time the people of Israel will live in their land—I gave that land to my servant Jacob.

They will live safely in the land. They will build houses and plant vineyards. I will punish the nations around them that hated them. Then the people of Israel will live in safety, and they will know that I am the Lord their God."

The people of Israel leaned on Egypt for support, but Egypt only pierced their hands and shoulder. They leaned on you for support, but you broke and twisted their back.'"

Egypt will be empty and destroyed. Then they will know that I am the Lord ." God said, "Why will I do these things? Because you said, ‘This is my river. I made this river.'

And the family of Israel will never again depend on Egypt. The Israelites will remember their sin—they will remember that they turned to Egypt for help and not to God, and they will know that I am the Lord God ."

"Son of man, King Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon made his army fight hard against Tyre. They shaved every soldier's head. Every shoulder was rubbed bare from carrying heavy loads. Nebuchadnezzar and his army worked hard to defeat Tyre, but they got nothing from all that hard work."

I will start a fire in Egypt, and all her helpers will be destroyed. Then they will know that I am the Lord !

Nebuchadnezzar and his people are the most terrible of the nations, and I will bring them to destroy Egypt. They will pull out their swords against Egypt. They will fill the land with dead bodies.

"Now, none of the trees by that water will be proud. They will not try to reach the clouds. None of the strong trees that drink that water will brag about being tall, because all of them must die. They will all go down into the world below, to Sheol, the place of death. They will join the other people who died and went down into that deep hole."