“Your wealth, merchandise and wares, your mariners, seamen and shipwrights, your merchants and all your soldiers, and everyone else on board will sink into the heart of the sea on the day of your shipwreck.
~ Ezekiel 27:27
James and Ellen,
Do you pay attention to warnings? When your dad and/or ma tells you to stop doing whatever you are doing or else, do you stop? When a teacher tells you to stop talking to a classmate or else, do you stop? When a coach tells you to stop goofing off or else, do you stop? When a fire alarm starts ringing in your school as a warning that there is a fire someplace in your school building, do you keep on doing what you are doing? When a siren’s loud sound is heard as a warning that an approaching thunderstorm has a strong possibility of producing a tornado touch down in your immediate vicinity, do you keep on doing what you are doing? When approaching flashing lights from a police car, a fire engine or an ambulance appear behind your dad or ma as he or she is driving on a street, road or highway, does your dad or ma keep on driving? Do you cross a street when the crossing light is red and there are cars driving through the intersection that you want to cross? Do you walk out on the ice of a pond that has a sign at the edge of the pond that says ‘thin ice’? Do you take every pill in a bottle of pills when you are not feeling well when it clearly states on the pill bottle’s label that taking more than the prescribed number of pills is a life-threatening thing to do? Despite knowing that a costly speeding ticket will be given to a guy or gal by a policeman whose radar gun says that the guy or gal is going faster than the posted speed limit, some guys and gals will still speed. Despite the warning on cigarette packs that cigarettes can cause serious health issues, some guys, gals and kids will still smoke. Despite being jailed for selling drugs, some guys, gals and kids will still sell drugs. Despite the potentially fatal consequence of intentionally ‘taking a chance’ to do something, some guys, gals and kids are willing to put their lives at risk by some of the choices or decisions that they make. Shanty towns cling right to the edges of deep ravines that crisscross through Guatemala City. Torrential rains will at times cause the edges of the ravines to give away resulting in some of the crudely constructed, ramshackle shanties ending up at the bottom of the ravines – with the guys, gals and kids who stayed in their shanties despite warnings to leave being killed. A tremor caused by a nearby earthquake will at times cause the sides of the ravines to break loose resulting in some of the poorly built, dilapidated shanties to slide down to the bottom of the ravine – with guys, gals and kids who are in the shanties being killed.
The city of Tyre was given a warning that its prosperity craze was leading to its ruin. God – as God the Father, used one of His prophet spokesmen – who was Ezekiel, to pass on the warning – as a lament, to the city of Tyre. A lament is a refrain that is repeated over and over again. By the time that Ezekiel finished passing on the lament that God – as God the Father, told Him to tell the guys, gals and kids who were living in the city of Tyre, your grandpaa is quite sure that every guy, gal and kid who lived in the city of Tyre got the message. The city of Tyre was located strategically. The Asher tribal clan guys and gals were the first to have Tyre as a city. The city of Tyre at times was a Galilean city and at other times a Phoenician or Lebanese city. The city of Tyre was a Mediterranean Sea seaport. Because the city of Tyre was built mostly on a rock outcropping that jutted out into the Mediterranean Sea as almost an island, The city of Tyre was almost impenetrable from enemy attacks. When Ezekiel recorded in Ezekiel 25 the lament that God – as God the Father, gave him to direct explicitly at the city of Tyre, God – as God the Father had Ezekiel refer to the city of Tyre as a beautiful ship whose domain was the high seas. The city of Tyre ‘as a ship’ was built from pine trees from Senir or Mount Hermon, the mast from a cedar from the country of Lebanon and the oars from oak trees from the country of Bashan. The city of Tyre ‘as a ship’ had its deck inlaid with ivory from the coast of the island of Cyprus, its awnings made from blue and purple cloth from the coast of the country of Elishah and its sail – which served as a banner, made from fine embroidered linen, from the country of Egypt and. The city of Tyre ‘as a ship’ had guys as oarsmen who were from the towns of Sidon and Arvad while guys from their own city were the seamen. The city of Tyre recruited guys from the countries Persia, Lydia and Put to serve as soldiers in its army. The city of Tyre traded its merchandise for silver, iron, tin and lead from the region of Tarshish, turquoise, purple fabric, fine linen, embroidered work, coral and rubies from the country of Aram, ivory tusks and ebony from the island of Rhodes, slaves and bronze from the country of Greece, mules, wheat, confections, honey, oil and balm from countries of Judah and Israel, work and war horses from the city of Beth Togarmah, wine from city of Helbon, calamus, cassia and iron from the city of Uzal, wool from the city of Zahar, saddle blankets from the city of Dedan, lambs, rams and goats from the country of Arabia, spices, precious stones and gold from the region of Sheba and Raamah and beautiful garments, blue fabric, embroidered work and multicolored rugs with cords that were twisted and tightly knotted from cities of Hanan, Canneh and Eden. Even though the city of Tyre did not pursue domination over the known world, its prideful accumulation of wealth sure did not please God.
A number of years after Ezekiel’s lament against the city of Tyre, Nebuchadnezzar and his Babylonian army began a 13 year siege against the city of Tyre – resulting in the words of verse 27, “Your wealth, merchandise and wares, your mariners, seamen and shipwrights, your merchants and all your soldiers, and everyone else on board will sink into the heart of the sea on the day of your shipwreck.” To be shipwrecked – pull a Tyre. You are warned.
Ezekiel 27 (899)