1 The burden of Tyrus. Howle, yee shippes of Tarshish: for it is destroied, so that there is none house: none shall come from the lande of Chittim: it is reueiled vnto them. 2 Be still, yee that dwell in the yles: the marchantes of Zidon, and such as passe ouer the sea, haue replenished thee. 3 The seede of Nilus growing by the abundance of waters, and the haruest of the riuer was her reuenues, and she was a marte of the nations. 4 Be ashamed, thou Zidon: for the sea hath spoken, euen the strength of the sea, saying, I haue not trauailed, nor brought forth children, neither nourished yong men, nor brought vp virgins. 5 When the fame commeth to the Egyptians, they shall be sorie, concerning the rumour of Tyrus. 6 Goe you ouer to Tarshish: howle, yee that dwell in the yles. 7 Is not this that your glorious citie? her antiquitie is of ancient daies: her owne feete shall leade her afarre off to be a soiourner. 8 Who hath decreed this against Tyrus (that crowneth men) whose marchantes are princes? whose chapmen are the nobles of the worlde? 9 The Lord of hostes hath decreed this, to staine the pride of all glorie, and to bring to contempt all them that be glorious in the earth. 10 Passe through thy lande like a flood to the daughter of Tarshish: there is no more strength. 11 He stretched out his hand vpon the sea: he shooke the kingdomes: the Lord hath giuen a commandement concerning the place of marchandise, to destroy the power thereof. 12 And he saide, Thou shalt no more reioyce when thou art oppressed: O virgin daughter of Zidon: rise vp, goe ouer vnto Chittim: yet there thou shalt haue no rest. 13 Behold the lande of the Caldeans: this was no people: Asshur founded it by the inhabitantes of the wildernesse: they set vp the towers thereof: they raised the palaces thereof and hee brought it to ruine. 14 Howle yee shippes of Tarshish, for your strength is destroyed. 15 And in that day shall Tyrus bee forgotten seuentie yeeres, (according to the yeeres of one King) at the ende of seuentie yeeres shall Tyrus sing as an harlot. 16 Take an harpe and go about the citie: (thou harlot thou hast beene forgotten) make sweete melodie, sing moe songes that thou maiest be remembred. 17 And at the ende of seuentie yeres shall the Lord visite Tyrus, and shee shall returne to her wages, and shall commit fornication with all the kingdomes of the earth, that are in the world. 18 Yet her occupying and her wages shall bee holy vnto the Lord: it shall not be laied vp nor kept in store, but her marchandise shalbe for them that dwell before the Lord, to eate sufficiently, and to haue durable clothing.
A Message about Phoenicia
1 This is a message about Tyre.
Howl with grief, you sailors out on the ocean! Your home port of Tyre has been destroyed; its houses and its harbor are in ruins. As your ships return from Cyprus, you learn the news. 2 Wail, you merchants of Sidon! You sent agents 3 across the sea to buy and sell the grain that grew in Egypt and to do business with all the nations.
4 City of Sidon, you are disgraced! The sea and the great ocean depths disown you and say, “I never had any children. I never raised sons or daughters.”
5 Even the Egyptians will be shocked and dismayed when they learn that Tyre has been destroyed.
6 Howl with grief, you people of Phoenicia! Try to escape to Spain! 7 Can this be the joyful city of Tyre, founded so long ago? Is this the city that sent settlers across the sea to establish colonies? 8 Who was it that planned to bring all this on Tyre, that imperial city, whose merchant princes were the most honored men on earth? 9 The Lord Almighty planned it. He planned it in order to put an end to their pride in what they had done and to humiliate their honored ones.
10 Go and farm the land, you people in the colonies in Spain! There is no one to protect you any more. 11 The Lord has stretched out his hand over the sea and overthrown kingdoms. He has commanded that the Phoenician centers of commerce be destroyed. 12 City of Sidon, your happiness has ended, and your people are oppressed. Even if they escape to Cyprus, they will still not be safe.
13 (It was the Babylonians, not the Assyrians, who let the wild animals overrun Tyre. It was the Babylonians who put up siege towers, tore down the fortifications of Tyre, and left the city in ruins. )
14 Howl with grief, you sailors out on the ocean! The city you relied on has been destroyed.
15 A time is coming when Tyre will be forgotten for seventy years, the lifetime of a king. When those years are over, Tyre will be like the prostitute in the song:
16 Take your harp, go round the town,
you poor forgotten whore!
Play and sing your songs again
to bring men back once more.
17 When the seventy years are over, the Lord will let Tyre go back to her old trade, and she will hire herself out to all the kingdoms of the world. 18 The money she earns by commerce will be dedicated to the Lord. She will not store it away, but those who worship the Lord will use her money to buy the food and the clothing they need.