Ezekiel 27:24
These were thy merchants in all sorts of things, in blue clothes, and broidered work, and in chests of rich apparel, bound with cords, and made of cedar, among thy merchandise. These were thy merchants in all sorts of things, in blue clothes, and broidered work, and in chests of rich apparel, bound with cords, and made of cedar, among thy merchandise.
Ezekiel 27:24 describes merchants from Haran, Canneh, Eden, Sheba, Asshur and Chilmad, that is from Assyria and Chaldea and the lands about the Tigris and Euphrates, bringing to Tyre every kind of costly ware in blue cloth, embroidered work, and rich garments packed in cedar chests bound with cords. It belongs to the prophecy concerning Tyre among the prophecies against the surrounding nations in Ezekiel 25 to 31, foretelling the destruction of Tyre and Sidon. Tyre was the great commercial emporium of Phoenicia on the Mediterranean, one of the greatest and most famous cities of the ancient world. That vast and luxurious commerce was to end when Tyre would be utterly wiped out, captured by Nebuchadnezzar, until the very place where she stood would become a place for spreading nets in the midst of the sea. The fall stands as a warning and lesson to cities that forget and defy God, applied to San Francisco as a modern Tyre and great seaport, and to modern Babylon whose worldwide commercialism puts wealth first and seeks to control every commodity, even human bodies and souls.
Tyre's Trade and Doom
Ezekiel 27:24 is part of the prophecy foretelling the destruction of Tyre and Sidon. It belongs to the prophecies of other nations in Ezekiel 25 to 31 concerning Ammon, Moab, Tyre, and Egypt, specifically to the prophecy concerning Tyre, whose fulfillment is evident today.
Tyre was a merchant city of the Mediterranean, the commercial emporium of Phoenicia, one of the greatest and most famous cities of the ancient world, and the great commercial city of the world. Its ancient site on the mainland had long been abandoned for a new city built on a small island half a mile from shore, which Alexander the Great joined to the shore by an artificial mole made by scraping bare the rock of ancient Tyre. Tyre is associated with Hiram its king who assisted Solomon in building the temple, and with Jezebel wife of Ahab as daughter of Ethbaal king of the Sidonians.
The merchants in the verse are Haran, and Canneh, and Eden, and Sheba, Asshur, and Chilmad, meaning Babylonian and Assyrian merchants, that is Assyria, Chaldea, and the people about the Tigris and the Euphrates, trading in Tyre. They traded in all sorts of things and many kinds of valuable goods, including blue cloth and blue clothing, embroidered work, rich garments and costly apparel packed in chests made of cedar and bound with cords and secured with cords. These luxury wares display Tyre's vast wealth and greatness and the range, abundance, variety, richness, and extensive international reach of its commerce. The verse shows part of the worldwide fairs of Tyre before her fall, in which all nations traded in all manner of merchandise. This proves that world's fairs are not peculiar to modern times, for Tyre had them 2,500 years ago.
That commerce would end because Tyre would be utterly wiped out of existence, so that the very place where she stood would be a place for the spreading of nets in the midst of the sea. Nebuchadnezzar would capture Tyre, and from Tyre would conquer Jerusalem. Tyre was one of the two great nations held up to Israel as an illustration of how God deals with surrounding kingdoms and brings down pride during twenty-two years of pleading for Israel to turn to God, and its ruins as an ancient commercial metropolis illustrate the fulfillment of the prophecy about it. The verse supplies the background for Nehemiah's mention of merchants from Tyre selling goods in Jerusalem on the Sabbath, since Ezekiel 27 identifies Tyre as a merchant city whose trade included rich and varied goods, including fine clothing and cedar chests.
Warning for Modern Cities
Ezekiel 27 stands as a warning and lesson for cities that forget and defy God. Its account of Tyre, with costly goods including blue cloth, embroidered work, rich garments packed in chests, and cedar chests bound with cords, shows the fate that follows such defiance. The lesson calls people to do what is right from principle, not merely from a passing impulse.
Tyre was a city of extensive trade, receiving and dealing in many kinds of merchandise and rich goods. Its merchants trading in luxury goods, including blue cloth, embroidered work, and rich garments kept in cedar chests and fastened with cords, display an extensive commerce and a wealthy trading city. San Francisco is a modern Tyre, a great seaport and commercial center whose trade supplied much of the surrounding region. Tyre's punishment is a warning to San Francisco and other modern cities that defy God.
Tyre as a center of extensive trade, with merchants dealing in many kinds of valuable goods, illustrates by its merchandise and commercial reach the corrupt, self-exalting spirit that brings judgment. That trade foreshadows modern Babylon, a worldwide federation whose commercialism places wealth first and overrides honor and integrity. This federation seeks to control every commodity, even human bodies and souls. When Babylon falls, the merchants who grew rich through her lament the sudden destruction of her wealth.