2 "Son of man, say to the prince of Tyre, Thus says the Lord GOD: "Because your heart is proud, and you have said, 'I am a god, I sit in the seat of the gods, in the heart of the seas,' yet you are but a man, and no god, though you consider yourself as wise as a god-- 3 you are indeed wiser than Daniel; no secret is hidden from you; 4 by your wisdom and your understanding you have gotten wealth for yourself, and have gathered gold and silver into your treasuries; 5 by your great wisdom in trade you have increased your wealth, and your heart has become proud in your wealth-- 6 therefore thus says the Lord GOD: "Because you consider yourself as wise as a god, 7 therefore, behold, I will bring strangers upon you, the most terrible of the nations; and they shall draw their swords against the beauty of your wisdom and defile your splendor. 8 They shall thrust you down into the Pit, and you shall die the death of the slain in the heart of the seas. 9 Will you still say, 'I am a god,' in the presence of those who slay you, though you are but a man, and no god, in the hands of those who wound you? 10 You shall die the death of the uncircumcised by the hand of foreigners; for I have spoken, says the Lord GOD."
11 Moreover the word of the Lord came to me: 12 "Son of man, raise a lamentation over the king of Tyre, and say to him, Thus says the Lord GOD: "You were the signet of perfection, full of wisdom and perfect in beauty.
Matthew Henry's Commentary on Ezekiel 28:2-12
Commentary on Ezekiel 28:1-19
(Read Ezekiel 28:1-19)
Ethbaal, or Ithobal, was the prince or king of Tyre; and being lifted up with excessive pride, he claimed Divine honours. Pride is peculiarly the sin of our fallen nature. Nor can any wisdom, except that which the Lord gives, lead to happiness in this world or in that which is to come. The haughty prince of Tyre thought he was able to protect his people by his own power, and considered himself as equal to the inhabitants of heaven. If it were possible to dwell in the garden of Eden, or even to enter heaven, no solid happiness could be enjoyed without a humble, holy, and spiritual mind. Especially all spiritual pride is of the devil. Those who indulge therein must expect to perish.