May 11, 2026, Isaiah 23:1-18
May 11, 2026, Isaiah 23:1-18
23 The oracle concerning Tyre.
Wail, O ships of
Tarshish,
for Tyre is laid
waste, without house or harbor!
From the land of Cyprus
it is revealed to them.
2 Be still, O inhabitants of the coast;
the merchants
of Sidon, who cross the sea, have filled you.
3 And on many waters
your revenue was the grain of Shihor,
the harvest of the Nile;
you were the merchant
of the nations.
4 Be ashamed, O Sidon, for the sea has spoken,
the stronghold of the sea,
saying:
“I have neither labored nor given birth,
I have neither reared
young men
nor brought up young
women.”
5 When the report comes to Egypt,
they will be in
anguish over the report about Tyre.
6 Cross over to Tarshish;
wail, O inhabitants of the
coast!
7 Is this your exultant city
whose origin is from days
of old,
whose feet carried her
to settle far away?
8 Who has purposed this
against Tyre, the bestower
of crowns,
whose merchants were princes,
whose traders were the
honored of the earth?
9 The Lord of
hosts has purposed it,
to defile the pompous
pride of all glory,
to dishonor all the
honored of the earth.
10 Cross over your land like the Nile,
O daughter of Tarshish;
there is no restraint anymore.
11 He has stretched out his hand over the sea;
he has shaken the
kingdoms;
the Lord has given
command concerning Canaan
to destroy its
strongholds.
12 And he said:
“You will no more exult,
O oppressed virgin
daughter of Sidon;
arise, cross over to Cyprus,
even there you will have
no rest.”
13 Behold the land of the Chaldeans! This is the people
that was not; Assyria destined it for wild beasts. They erected their
siege towers, they stripped her palaces bare, they made her a ruin.
14 Wail, O ships of Tarshish,
for your stronghold is
laid waste.
15 In that day Tyre will be forgotten for seventy years,
like the days of one king. At the end of seventy years, it will
happen to Tyre as in the song of the prostitute:
16 “Take a harp;
go about the city,
O forgotten prostitute!
Make sweet melody;
sing many songs,
that you may be
remembered.”
17 At the end of seventy years, the Lord will visit Tyre, and she will
return to her wages and will prostitute herself with all the kingdoms of
the world on the face of the earth. 18 Her
merchandise and her wages will be holy to the Lord. It will not be stored or hoarded, but her merchandise
will supply abundant food and fine clothing for those who dwell before
the Lord.
Isaiah 23 is a prophecy declaring the destruction of Tyre,
a proud, wealthy Phoenician maritime city, by God (the Lord of Hosts) for her
arrogance. The chapter predicts that her trading partners—especially the ships
of Tarshish—will mourn as her harbors are destroyed, ultimately humbling Tyre
and her proud merchants who were considered princes.
Do you view your paycheck as "mine," or as a
resource God has entrusted to you to help "those who dwell in the presence
of the Lord"?
Consider using a specific portion of your income this month
to dedicate toward a spiritual or communal need, viewing it as "holy to
the Lord" rather than just a donation.
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