Exegetical and Hermeneutical Commentary of Ezekiel 27:25
The ships of Tarshish did sing of thee in thy market: and thou wast replenished, and made very glorious in the midst of the seas.
25. The “ships of Tarshish” here are deep-sea ships, great ships trading to the most distant coasts, Isa 2:16; Psa 48:7.
did sing of thee ] For this Ges. suggested “were thy caravans” from a verb signifying to travel (Isa 57:9). The camel has been called the ship of the desert, but conversely to call an east indiaman a caravan is too brilliant for the prophet. Probably by a slight change of reading: the ships of Tarshish did serve thee with (in) thy wares ( Eze 27:13 ; Eze 27:17 &c.), cf. Isa 60:9-10, and above Eze 27:9. So Aquila (Field).
made very glorious ] Rather: and wast heavily laden. The figure of a mistress served by all nations, who bring wares and riches to her from all lands, passes here again into the idea of the vessel deeply laden with cargo, and therefore more easily shipwrecked and broken in dangerous waters.
Fuente: The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges
Did sing of thee – Or, were thy bulwarks, i. e., bulwarks of thy traffic. Others render it: were thy caravans, thy merchandise.
Fuente: Albert Barnes’ Notes on the Bible
Verse 25. The ships of Tarshish] The ships of Tharsis, in Cilicia, were the chief of those which traded with thee.
Fuente: Adam Clarke’s Commentary and Critical Notes on the Bible
Ships of Tarshish; the ships from all parts of the sea, which came to thee, and traded with thee, praised thee, boasted of thee.
Did sing of thee; had their songs of praise, which were made to commend thy state.
In thy market; as mariners, in the ports where they arrive, usually do with mirth and songs entertain one another, so at Tyre.
Thou wast replenished; all trading came to thee, none like thee in thy warehouses or public stores.
Made very glorious; and, to do thee right, thou wert very glorious, magnificent, and beautiful, none like thee. Hitherto the prophet hath recounted Tyres greatness, now cometh her fall, foretold as if already come.
Fuente: English Annotations on the Holy Bible by Matthew Poole
25. sing of theepersonification;thy great merchant ships were palpable proofs of thy greatness.Others translate from a different Hebrew root, “were thy(mercantile) travellers.” FAIRBAIRNtranslates, “Were thy walls.” But the parallelism to “thouwast glorious” favors English Version, “sing ofthee.”
Fuente: Jamieson, Fausset and Brown’s Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible
The ships of Tarshish did sing of thee in market,…. The ships of the sea in general; for Tarshish is used for the sea; these from all parts came to Tyre with their several wares, the product of their country from whence they came, and, finding a good market for them at Tyre, spoke greatly in her praise, or, “were thy princes”, or “thy chief ones, in thy market” f; these brought the principal things into it, and took off the chief that were in it, which were of the produce of Tyre:
and thou wast replenished; with goods from all parts, with every thing for their necessity, convenience, pleasure, and delight, and to carry on a traffic with all nations:
and made very glorious in the midst of the seas; with great riches, stately towers and buildings. Here ends the account of Tyre’s greatness; next follows her ruin and destruction.
f “principes”, V. L. Montanus, Castalio, Starckius; “praecipuae”, Tigurine version, Grotius. So some in Vatablus.
Fuente: John Gill’s Exposition of the Entire Bible
C. The Ship Sinking Beneath the Waves 27:25b-36
TRANSLATION
(25b) So you became full and very heavy[418] in the heart of the seas. (26) Into great waters your rowers have brought you; the east wind has broken you in the heart of the seas. (27) Your wealth, your wares, your merchandise, your sailors, your pilots, your repairmen and your merchant men, all your men of war which were on board, with all your company that is in your midst, will fall into the heart of the seas in the day of your collapse. (28) At the sound of the cry of your pilots the countryside will shake. (29) All who handle the oar, the sailors, all the pilots of the sea shall come down from their ships, shall stand upon the land, (30) and shall cause their voice to be heard over you, and shall cry bitterly, and shall cast dust upon their heads, wallow in ashes; (31) and they shall make themselves bald because of you, and gird themselves with sackcloth; and they shall weep over you in bitterness of soul, with bitter mourning. (32) Moreover in their wailing they shall take up a lamentation for you, and they shall lament over you: Who is like Tyre, like she that is silent in the midst of the sea. (33) When your wares went out from the seas, you satisfied many peoples; with the multitude of your wealth and your merchandise you enriched the kings of the earth. (34) Now you are broken by the seas in the depths of the waters; your merchandise and all your company have fallen in your midst. (35) All the inhabitants of the coastlands are appalled over you, and their kings are horribly afraid; they are troubled in their countenance. (36) The merchants among the people whistle in astonishment over you; you have become a terror, and you will be no more.
[418] NASB, very glorious.
COMMENTS
Through all this commercial activity the good ship Tyre became overloaded in the midst of the sea, in the very place where she was thought to be supreme (Eze. 27:25 b). Into the deep and dangerous open sea the sailors have rowed the vessel. There she would meet disaster. The east wind (cf. Psa. 48:7) stirred up the waves and battered the ship until it broke apart under the pressure (Eze. 27:26). All was lost the merchandise, and all the individuals associated with transporting and protecting it (Eze. 27:27). The countryside[419] (KJV, suburbs) which had supplied so many of the personnel on board would shake at the desperate cries of Tyres crew sinking beneath the waves (Eze. 27:28). Worldwide shipping would come to a halt as sailors paused on land to express sympathy for the departed Queen of the Seas (Eze. 27:29). The lament would be bitter, and accompanied by all the outward signs of mourning which were customary in the ancient world dust on the head, baldness, sackcloth (Eze. 27:30-31).
[419] Literally, the open spaces.
Eze. 27:32 introduces a rather unusual lament within a lament (cf. Eze. 27:2). What other city could be compared to Tyre that now lies silent in a watery grave (Eze. 27:32). In their lament the sailors emphasize the benefits which Tyre had brought to the kings of the earth (Eze. 27:33). Her exports along the shipping lanes had contributed to international wealth. But now the sea had rebelled against her mistress, and the good ship Tyre with crew and cargo had gone to the bottom (Eze. 27:34). Other seafaring peoples now feared for their own future. The outward signs of sympathy for Tyre were but a mask to conceal the selfish fears that they too might experience a similar fate (Eze. 27:35). Merchants throughout the world would express their astonishment by hissing (whistling; Eze. 27:36).
Fuente: College Press Bible Study Textbook Series
(25) Ships of Tarshish means simply, ships of the largest size, such as were fitted for the voyage to Tarshish: as we now say, East Indiaman. (Comp. 1Ki. 22:48; Psa. 48:7.) Did sing of thee in thy market is, literally, thy, thy trade, the blank being an uncertain word, supposed by our translators to mean singers. Opinion is now divided as to whether the meaning is bulwarks or caravans; either gives a good sense. Thy great ships were at once thy defence and the means of thy commerce, or were thy caravans of the sea, &c. The former is preferable.
Fuente: Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers (Old and New Testaments)
25. Ships of Tarshish See note Eze 27:12.
Did sing of thee Several versions have “served thee.” R.V., “were thy caravans.”
Glorious LXX., heavy. The ship Tyre was laden to the water’s edge with treasure.
Fuente: Whedon’s Commentary on the Old and New Testaments
The Shipwreck.
The ship of Tyre is depicted as setting out fully loaded, only to meet a strong east wind and be sunk, with all her merchandise, her crew, her traders, and her guards, with the result that those ashore bewail her passing.
“The ships of Tarshish were your caravans for your merchandise.”
Instead of camels, the ‘ships of the desert’, Tyre used seagoing ships for carrying their merchandise. It has been suggested that the name ‘ships of Tarshish’ refers to a type of refinery ship, or an ore-carrier, but it more probably refers to large long distance vessels which could go even as far as Tarshish.
Fuente: Commentary Series on the Bible by Peter Pett
“So you were loaded (replenished) and heavily laden (made very glorious), in the heart of the seas.
Your rowers have brought you out, into great waters,
The east wind has broken you up, in the heart of the seas.
Your riches and your wares, your merchandise,
Your mariners and your rope-pullers,
Your caulkers and your dealers in merchandise,
And all your men of war who are in you,
With all your company, who are in your midst,
Sink into the heart of the seas, on the day of your ruin.”
The ship that set out so well equipped, and heavily laden with its goods, had proudly pulled out into deep waters. Then the east wind arose, tore at the mast and the sail and broke up the ship, while the waves pounded against them. And everything went to the bottom, their wealth and their wares, all their merchandise, their crew and their tradesmen, and all their military guard, the whole ship’s company.
Note the stress on the loss of what they lived for, first their merchandise. That was the pride and joy of Tyre. And then the ship’s company. So would Tyre be destroyed by the wind of God, the armies of Nebuchadnezzar.
Fuente: Commentary Series on the Bible by Peter Pett
Eze 27:25 The ships of Tarshish did sing of thee in thy market: and thou wast replenished, and made very glorious in the midst of the seas.
Ver. 25. Thou wast replenished and made very glorious. ] Or, Very heavy: a as a ship, though not top full, may yet have freight enough to sink it; so had this metaphorical ship Tyre enough to sink it, though not enough to satisfy it.
a Aggravata es.
Fuente: John Trapp’s Complete Commentary (Old and New Testaments)
ships: 1Ki 10:22, Psa 48:7, Isa 2:16, Isa 23:14, Isa 60:9
glorious: Eze 27:4
Reciprocal: Isa 23:15 – shall Tyre sing as an harlot Eze 27:3 – O thou Eze 38:13 – Sheba Rev 18:23 – thy merchants
Fuente: The Treasury of Scripture Knowledge
Eze 27:25. Sing is defined in the lexicon, “To turn, i.e. travel about (as a harlot or a merchant). Considering the general subject, and the correct rendering of the original for sing, the clause means the ships of Tarshish travel for thee because of thy market.” The result is that Tyrus la replenished or made richer, and is able to make a glorious appearance In the midBt of the sea. However, the various success of the merchandising of Tyrus filled her with pride and a feeling of independence which caused the Lord to decree her downfall.
Fuente: Combined Bible Commentary
Eze 27:25. The ships of Tarshish did sing of thee, &c. Ships of Tarshish signify sometimes in Scripture any trading or merchant ships; and in this general sense the expression seems to be used here: the prophet, having already reckoned up the principal countries which traded with Tyre, now adds, in comprehensive terms, that all merchants, or traders, sung or spake great things of her riches: see note on Isa 2:16. In the midst of the seas Through all the islands of the sea, the sea-coasts, and from one part to another.
Fuente: Joseph Bensons Commentary on the Old and New Testaments
The sinking of the great ship 27:25-36
This great ship (commercial empire) was headed for shipwreck.
Fuente: Expository Notes of Dr. Constable (Old and New Testaments)
Ships from Tarshish, probably Spain, carried Tyre’s merchandise. Tyre became very rich because of all this sea trade.