27¹ The word of the Lord came to me: ² "Son of man, take up a lament concerning Tyre. ³ Say to Tyre, situated at the gateway to the sea, merchant of peoples on many coasts, 'This is what the Sovereign Lord says: " 'You say, Tyre, "I am perfect in beauty." ⁴ Your domain was on the high seas; your builders brought your beauty to perfection. ⁵ They made all your timbers of juniper from Senir[1] ; they took a cedar from Lebanon to make a mast for you. ⁶ Of oaks from Bashan they made your oars; of cypress wood[2] from the coasts of Cyprus they made your deck, adorned with ivory. ⁷ Fine embroidered linen from Egypt was your sail and served as your banner; your awnings were of blue and purple from the coasts of Elishah. ⁸ Men of Sidon and Arvad were your oarsmen; your skilled men, Tyre, were aboard as your sailors. ⁹ Veteran craftsmen of Byblos were on board as shipwrights to caulk your seams. All the ships of the sea and their sailors came alongside to trade for your wares. ¹⁰ " 'Men of Persia, Lydia and Put served as soldiers in your army. They hung their shields and helmets on your walls, bringing you splendor. ¹¹ Men of Arvad and Helek guarded your walls on every side; men of Gammad were in your towers. They hung their shields around your walls; they brought your beauty to perfection. ¹² " 'Tarshish did business with you because of your great wealth of goods; they exchanged silver, iron, tin and lead for your merchandise. ¹³ " 'Greece, Tubal and Meshek did business with you; they traded human beings and articles of bronze for your wares. ¹⁴ " 'Men of Beth Togarmah exchanged chariot horses, cavalry horses and mules for your merchandise. ¹⁵ " 'The men of Rhodes[3] traded with you, and many coastlands were your customers; they paid you with ivory tusks and ebony. ¹⁶ " 'Aram[4] did business with you because of your many products; they exchanged turquoise, purple fabric, embroidered work, fine linen, coral and rubies for your merchandise. ¹⁷ " 'Judah and Israel traded with you; they exchanged wheat from Minnith and confections,[5] honey, olive oil and balm for your wares. ¹⁸ " 'Damascus did business with you because of your many products and great wealth of goods. They offered wine from Helbon, wool from Zahar ¹⁹ and casks of wine from Izal in exchange for your wares: wrought iron, cassia and calamus. ²⁰ " 'Dedan traded in saddle blankets with you. ²¹ " 'Arabia and all the princes of Kedar were your customers; they did business with you in lambs, rams and goats. ²² " 'The merchants of Sheba and Raamah traded with you; for your merchandise they exchanged the finest of all kinds of spices and precious stones, and gold. ²³ " 'Harran, Kanneh and Eden and merchants of Sheba, Ashur and Kilmad traded with you. ²⁴ In your marketplace they traded with you beautiful garments, blue fabric, embroidered work and multicolored rugs with cords twisted and tightly knotted. ²⁵ " 'The ships of Tarshish serve as carriers for your wares. You are filled with heavy cargo as you sail the sea.

²⁶ Your oarsmen take you out to the high seas. But the east wind will break you to pieces far out at sea. ²⁷ Your wealth, merchandise and wares, your mariners, sailors 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. ²⁸ The shorelands will quake when your sailors cry out. ²⁹ All who handle the oars will abandon their ships; the mariners and all the sailors will stand on the shore. ³⁰ They will raise their voice and cry bitterly over you; they will sprinkle dust on their heads and roll in ashes. ³¹ They will shave their heads because of you and will put on sackcloth. They will weep over you with anguish of soul and with bitter mourning. ³² As they wail and mourn over you, they will take up a lament concerning you: "Who was ever silenced like Tyre, surrounded by the sea?" ³³ When your merchandise went out on the seas, you satisfied many nations; with your great wealth and your wares you enriched the kings of the earth. ³⁴ Now you are shattered by the sea in the depths of the waters; your wares and all your company have gone down with you. ³⁵ All who live in the coastlands are appalled at you; their kings shudder with horror and their faces are distorted with fear. ³⁶ The merchants among the nations scoff at you; you have come to a horrible end and will be no more.' "

False Prophets Condemned

13¹ The word of the Lord came to me: ² "Son of man, prophesy against the prophets of Israel who are now prophesying. Say to those who prophesy out of their own imagination: 'Hear the word of the Lord! ³ This is what the Sovereign Lord says: Woe to the foolish[6] prophets who follow their own spirit and have seen nothing! ⁴ Your prophets, Israel, are like jackals among ruins. ⁵ You have not gone up to the breaches in the wall to repair it for the people of Israel so that it will stand firm in the battle on the day of the Lord. ⁶ Their visions are false and their divinations a lie. Even though the Lord has not sent them, they say, "The Lord declares," and expect him to fulfill their words. ⁷ Have you not seen false visions and uttered lying divinations when you say, "The Lord declares," though I have not spoken? ⁸ " 'Therefore this is what the Sovereign Lord says: Because of your false words and lying visions, I am against you, declares the Sovereign Lord. ⁹ My hand will be against the prophets who see false visions and utter lying divinations. They will not belong to the council of my people or be listed in the records of Israel, nor will they enter the land of Israel. Then you will know that I am the Sovereign Lord.

¹⁰ " 'Because they lead my people astray, saying, "Peace," when there is no peace, and because, when a flimsy wall is built, they cover it with whitewash, ¹¹ therefore tell those who cover it with whitewash that it is going to fall. Rain will come in torrents, and I will send hailstones hurtling down, and violent winds will burst forth. ¹² When the wall collapses, will people not ask you, "Where is the whitewash you covered it with?" ¹³ " 'Therefore this is what the Sovereign Lord says: In my wrath I will unleash a violent wind, and in my anger hailstones and torrents of rain will fall with destructive fury. ¹⁴ I will tear down the wall you have covered with whitewash and will level it to the ground so that its foundation will be laid bare. When it[7] falls, you will be destroyed in it; and you will know that I am the Lord. ¹⁵ So I will pour out my wrath against the wall and against those who covered it with whitewash. I will say to you, "The wall is gone and so are those who whitewashed it, ¹⁶ those prophets of Israel who prophesied to Jerusalem and saw visions of peace for her when there was no peace, declares the Sovereign Lord." '

¹⁷ "Now, son of man, set your face against the daughters of your people who prophesy out of their own imagination. Prophesy against them ¹⁸ and say, 'This is what the Sovereign Lord says: Woe to the women who sew magic charms on all their wrists and make veils of various lengths for their heads in order to ensnare people. Will you ensnare the lives of my people but preserve your own? ¹⁹ You have profaned me among my people for a few handfuls of barley and scraps of bread. By lying to my people, who listen to lies, you have killed those who should not have died and have spared those who should not live. ²⁰ " 'Therefore this is what the Sovereign Lord says: I am against your magic charms with which you ensnare people like birds and I will tear them from your arms; I will set free the people that you ensnare like birds. ²¹ I will tear off your veils and save my people from your hands, and they will no longer fall prey to your power. Then you will know that I am the Lord. ²² Because you disheartened the righteous with your lies, when I had brought them no grief, and because you encouraged the wicked not to turn from their evil ways and so save their lives, ²³ therefore you will no longer see false visions or practice divination. I will save my people from your hands. And then you will know that I am the Lord.' "