Bible Commentaries

The prophecy concerning Tyre ended with a message to its prince and a lamentation for its king. A distinction must be drawn between these two. Most evidently the prince was the then reigning king, Ithobal. Great difficulty has been felt with regard to the remarkable description of the king which follows. It is most likely that from his height of inspired vision the prophet saw behind the actually reigning prince the awful personality of Satan, whose instrument Ithobal was. All the language used in reference to the king perfectly falls in with this interpretation of the prophet's meaning. Ezekiel declared that the sin of the prince was pride of heart, expressing itself finally in that he thought of himself as a god, and boasted accordingly. That he was a remarkable person is revealed by Ezekiel's declaration that he was wiser than Daniel. By this wisdom he had achieved the successes already described, and on account of it his heart had become lifted up. His judgment was to be that by humiliation and destruction, even to the pit, he would learn that he was a "man, and not God."

The prophet then took up his lamentation over the king of Tyre, of whom he declared that he sealed up the sum, being full of wisdom and perfect in beauty. He described his original appointment by God in poetic language full of suggestiveness. He then declared that his sin began in the day when unrighteousness was found in him, and violence became his method. On account of this unrighteousness he was cast out of the mountain of God. Because of his pride he was cast down in the presence of kings. For the multitude of his iniquities a fire devoured him, and he was burnt to ashes.

In this passage we have the prophet's message to Satan, and a brief parenthesis in which he declared the ultimate restoration of Israel. Satan would be involved in the overthrow of Tyre, and in the midst of her Jehovah would be glorified. All this was in order that there should be no more "a pricking brier*' to the house of Israel.

This final declaration led the prophet to utter the brief word concerning the ultimate restoration of Israel. He declared in the name of Jehovah that the scattered ones would be gathered and set apart in the midst of the nations, dwelling securely there, and that in order that the people should know that Jehovah was their God.