The Oracle Concerning Tyre (23:1-18)
Neal Pollard
Before Isaiah shifts his attention to general judgments against the “earth” (24:1) and proclamations of praise and faith (ch. 25-26) and prophecy about his people’s future (ch. 27), he ends with one more specific locale under divine judgment. Having looked north (to several nations), east (Edom), and south (Philistia and Egypt), Isaiah looks west to Tyre. Perhaps their most famous king was Hiram, who was an ally of David and Solomon and who supplied the cedars of Lebanon to build David’s palace and the original temple. Multiple historians, ancient and modern, speak of the vast wealth enjoyed by Tyre up through the days of Isaiah. Consider this:
“Tyre, in concert with Sidon, successfully grew an extensive maritime enterprise that revolved around cedar wood and purple dye (see Ezra 2–7). Soon, however, Tyre’s maritime prowess and prosperity would surpass that of its neighbor. This sentiment is reflected in the discovery of coins that call Tyre ‘the mother of the Sidonians.’
As a display of the great wealth acquired from Tyre’s sea dominance, Josephus provides evidence indicating that Hiram erected extravagant temples in place of the more modest ancient ones. Hiram established a reputation for temple-building following the construction of temples dedicated to Baal Melqart (“king of the city,” the patron deity of Tyre and the Tyrian name for Heracles) and Asherah” (Ferry, Lexham Bible Dictionary., np).”
It’s easy to see how Judah might be tempted to trust in such a wealthy neighbor when pressed by fears and challenges. Isaiah reveals the destiny of Tyre, who as we can see, turned to idols over Jehovah. We follow James Smith’s three divisions in this chapter.
LAMENTATION (1-7)
This is signified with words like “wail” (1,6), “be still” (2), “be ashamed” (4), and “anguish” (5). This mourning would be the result of a total and traumatic loss of wealth and prosperity. Isaiah speaks of the loss in terms of individuals and businesses (1), of revenue and business partners (3), and even children and descendants (4). From a once mighty and respected position, Tyre’s fall would be dramatically thorough (7).
EXPLANATION (8-14)
As with previous oracles, God’s reason for judgment was the pride of Tyre. They bestowed crowns, had princely merchants and renowned traders (8). In divine judgment, God would “defile the pompous pride of all glory, to dishonor all the honored of the earth” (9). God would act in justice against them (11-14) as God upended their strongholds and the things they boasted in.
RESTORATION (15-18)
While Tyre would still struggle with worldliness–“she will return to her wages and will prostitute herself with all the kingdoms of the world on the face of the earth” (17)–she would sow some fruits of righteousness in interaction with God’s people (18). Smith suggests that this was in supplying materials for the second temple following Babylonian Captivity (The Major Prophets, 73). First, however, Tyre would have to endure what Judah would endure: seventy years of captivity at the hands of Babylon (15,17).
Through these oracles, a dominant them arises. Pride led to forgetting God, yet led to the judgment of God. Judah was foolish to trust in men rather than their Maker. The lesson was to avoid earthly alliances in submission to God. They could learn that lesson the easy way (believe and obey Isaiah’s prophetic message) or the hard way (through death and captivity). History reveals that Judah would have to learn the hard way. But, these things are written for our learning (Rom. 15:4). The application for us is to do what Judah refused to do.
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