Ezek. 25:1 The word of the LORD came again unto me, saying, Ezek. 25:2 Son of man, set thy face against the Ammonites, and prophesy against them;
In this chapter of Ezekiel he records yet another message from the LORD, but this time it is to enemies of Israel. The first group of people singled out is the Ammonites. We have learned previously that the Ammonites were descended from Lot through his younger daughter. According to Easton’s dictionary, they lived in the land that is east of the Jordan River and north of Moab and the Dead Sea in part of what is today known as Jordan.
Ezekiel is told to set his face against the Ammonites and prophesy against them. Although the word against is not in the Hebrew, the context of the following verses shows that it is a message of judgment from God against the Ammonites.
Ezek. 25:3 And say unto the Ammonites, Hear the word of the Lord GOD; Thus saith the Lord GOD; Because thou saidst, Aha, against my sanctuary, when it was profaned; and against the land of Israel, when it was desolate; and against the house of Judah, when they went into captivity;
Ezek. 25:4 Behold, therefore I will deliver thee to the men of the east for a possession, and they shall set their palaces in thee, and make their dwellings in thee: they shall eat thy fruit, and they shall drink thy milk.
Ezek. 25:5 And I will make Rabbah a stable for camels, and the Ammonites a couchingplace for flocks: and ye shall know that I am the LORD.
Verse three states the reasons that the Ammonites have incurred God’s judgment.
They took smug pleasure at the defilement of the temple in Jerusalem, God’s chosen dwelling place on earth.
They took smug pleasure in the desolation of the land of Israel.
They took smug pleasure in the fact that the people of Judah were taken into captivity.
Although they were cousins of the Israelites, there was a history of animosity between the nations. In fact, 2Kings 24 identifies the Ammonites as being in league with the armies of Nebuchadnezzar. By taking delight in the misfortune of God’s people and the abuse of His temple, they were showing lack of respect and reverence for God. Their judgment is listed as four-fold.
They would fall captive to the men of the east.
Their land would be invaded and usurped by their captors.
The produce of the land would be taken and consumed by those of their captors who chose to make their homes in Ammon.
Rabbah was the capital city of Ammon. Verse 5 is basically saying that the land of the Ammonites would only be good as a place for taking care of camels and resting flocks.
Although they were in league with the Babylonians for a time, the Ammonites eventually fell captive to them as well.
God’s promise to Abraham clearly stated that He would bless those that blessed him (and his descendants) and curse those that cursed him. History is full of proofs of the fact that God keeps His word.
Again, the ultimate goal of all God’s working among the nations, as well as His people, is to cause them to KNOW that He is LORD.
Ezek. 25:6 For thus saith the Lord GOD; Because thou hast clapped thine hands, and stamped with the feet, and rejoiced in heart with all thy despite against the land of Israel;
Ezek. 25:7 Behold, therefore I will stretch out mine hand upon thee, and will deliver thee for a spoil to the heathen; and I will cut thee off from the people, and I will cause thee to perish out of the countries: I will destroy thee; and thou shalt know that I am the LORD.
Verse six reiterates the truth that the Ammonites rejoiced at the misfortunes of the people of Israel. Their arrogance led to judgment at the mighty hand of God. Although judgment came at the hands of men, God was in control.
Verse seven adds a fifth part to their judgment. Not only will they be conquered by another Gentile nation, they will lose their status as a nation.
Constable quoting Davidson: “Ammon no longer existed as a nation after Nebuchadnezzar destroyed it and Bedouins from the east plundered it.”
Israel has endured great judgment at the hand of God through the years, eviction from their land for thousands of years, and the attempt of many nations to wipe them out of existence. But God has faithfully preserved His people and reestablished them as a nation among the nations, with their original language—just as His word foretold (cf chapters 36-37).
Ezek. 25:8 Thus saith the Lord GOD; Because that Moab and Seir do say, Behold, the house of Judah is like unto all the heathen;
Ezek. 25:9 Therefore, behold, I will open the side of Moab from the cities, from his cities which are on his frontiers, the glory of the country, Bethjeshimoth, Baalmeon, and Kiriathaim,
Ezek. 25:10 Unto the men of the east with the Ammonites, and will give them in possession, that the Ammonites may not be remembered among the nations.
Ezek. 25:11 And I will execute judgments upon Moab; and they shall know that I am the LORD.
The next nations targeted for judgment from God are Moab, descendants of Lot though his older daughter, and Seir, synonymous with Edom and the descendants of Esau. They too were cousins of the Israelites; they too had a history of animosity with the Israelites. Their sin—not recognizing Judah as a people set apart by God and claiming that they were no different from any of the other heathen, Gentile nations before God. Their contempt of God’s people showed their contempt for the God of Israel.
“open the side…on his frontiers” – Utley notes that the three cities listed in verse nine were originally part of the land allocated to the tribe of Reuben. These important cities of defense would be “given” to the men of the east. Again, point is made that God’s sovereign hand is the authority that will bring this judgment to pass. The wording is difficult; but because the Lord is equating the judgment of Moab with the judgment of the Ammonites, it would seem that He is saying that Moab will also be abolished as a nation—and history seems to support that truth. Though there are people today who could, if possible, trace their ancestry to the Ammonites and Moabites, there is no longer a group of people or a nation that is identified with these names.
Again, the ultimate goal of all God’s working among the nations, as well as His people, is to cause them to KNOW that He is LORD.
Ezek. 25:12 Thus saith the Lord GOD; Because that Edom hath dealt against the house of Judah by taking vengeance, and hath greatly offended, and revenged himself upon them;
Ezek. 25:13 Therefore thus saith the Lord GOD; I will also stretch out mine hand upon Edom, and will cut off man and beast from it; and I will make it desolate from Teman; and they of Dedan shall fall by the sword.
Ezek. 25:14 And I will lay my vengeance upon Edom by the hand of my people Israel: and they shall do in Edom according to mine anger and according to my fury; and they shall know my vengeance, saith the Lord GOD.
As noted above, Edom was a nation descended from Esau. Both Moab and Edom were located south of Ammon in the area that is now known as Jordan. Along with their contempt for God’s people, and in turn God Himself, the Edomites had taken advantage of the Israelites when they were down.
God’s judgment for Edom was that they would suffer in the same way that Judah had suffered. The whole country would experience judgment—from Teman (in the south) to Dedan (in the north). Vengeance belongs to God; and He will avenge His people without mercy—with anger and fury. He doesn’t declare that Edom will know that He is LORD; He declares that Edom will know His vengeance. To know His vengeance is to know He is LORD.
“I will lay my vengeance…by the hand of my people Israel” – You can’t help but notice this phrase. This seemed to reference more than just being conquered by the men of the east. This seems to connect to a prophecy by Isaiah that, in context, is talking about the future in preparation for the kingdom of Messiah.
Is. 11:13-14 The envy also of Ephraim shall depart, and the adversaries of Judah shall be cut off: Ephraim shall not envy Judah, and Judah shall not vex Ephraim. But they shall fly upon the shoulders of the Philistines toward the west; they shall spoil them of the east together: they shall lay their hand upon Edom and Moab; and the children of Ammon shall obey them.
Ezek. 25:15 Thus saith the Lord GOD; Because the Philistines have dealt by revenge, and have taken vengeance with a despiteful heart, to destroy it for the old hatred;
Ezek. 25:16 Therefore thus saith the Lord GOD; Behold, I will stretch out mine hand upon the Philistines, and I will cut off the Cherethims, and destroy the remnant of the sea coast.
Ezek. 25:17 And I will execute great vengeance upon them with furious rebukes; and they shall know that I am the LORD, when I shall lay my vengeance upon them.
The Philistines lived on the western border of Israel on the Mediterranean coast—in the general area that we call the Gaza strip today. Although the wording is a bit difficult, the context of the chapter clarifies that the one the Philistines have dealt revenge with the intent to destroy references the people of Judah. It is very interesting that the same situation exists today. The focus of the Palestinians, who represent today’s Philistines, is on possession of Judah and Jerusalem; they want to eliminate Israel completely from the map. It seems that Israel’s main enemies from biblical times are some of their main enemies today.
“Cherethims” – The Hebrew for this word describes one who is a “life-guardsman.” Scripture indicates that they were among the bodyguards of David and were loyal men who left with David when he had to flee from Absalom.
2Sam. 15:18 And all his servants passed on beside him; and all the Cherethites, and all the Pelethites, and all the Gittites, six hundred men which came after him from Gath, passed on before the king.
I would think that they were singled out by the Lord because they were probably the mighty men upon whom the Philistines trusted for their protection. God is basically saying that your mighty men are nothing against me; they will be destroyed along with the rest of the Philistines.
Again, the mantra—They will KNOW that I AM LORD when God acts on behalf of his people against them.
In studying prophecy one has to remember that sometimes the message applies to more than one situation. I think that is true in this instance. According to Eerdman’s Dictionary, “the end for the Philistines came in 604 with the attack of Nebuchadnezzar II and subsequent deportation.” Just as surely as the Philistines were destroyed by God’s vengeance in ancient times, the Palestinians of today will also experience God’s vengeance because they have sought to destroy God’s people.
The truth that stands out in this chapter:
God is a covenant-keeping God.
He has purposed that everyone will have to acknowledge Him as LORD.
He will avenge His people.
Those that curse the children of Abraham through Isaac and Jacob, the Israelites, will be cursed.
The mightiest of men on earth are not capable of thwarting the will of God.
Ezek. 26:1 And it came to pass in the eleventh year, in the first day of the month, that the word of the LORD came unto me, saying,
This message comes a little over a year after the message from chapter 24. Adam Clarke makes note that this is the same year that Jerusalem was destroyed.
Halfway through this chapter I realized I needed to back up and make note that the next three chapters are directed to Tyre and its king. This chapter seems to be sort of a summary, and more detail is given in the coming two chapters. I think the study will also reveal that we are dealing with prophecy that applies to the near future of Tyre according to Ezekiel and reaches on into a future application to the city and its spiritual king.
Ezek. 26:2 Son of man, because that Tyrus hath said against Jerusalem, Aha, she is broken that was the gates of the people: she is turned unto me: I shall be replenished, now she is laid waste:
This message is directed to the people of Tyre, an ancient Phoenician port city that was located in the country of Lebanon about 20 miles north of Acre in Israel. It is about 100 miles from Jerusalem and 35 miles from the Sea of Galilee.
I remember in my study of Isaiah 23 noting that Tyre had positioned itself as the Super Walmart of the nations. We know that the land of Israel is strategically centered as a trade route between Africa and Europe and between eastern countries and the Mediterranean. The people of Tyre rejoiced at the fall of Israel because it opened up the possibility of their obtaining more control of the trade routes in the region than they already possessed. The wording of the NLT stated it best: “Son of man, Tyre has rejoiced over the fall of Jerusalem, saying, ‘Ha! She who controlled the rich trade routes to the east has been broken, and I am the heir! Because she has been destroyed, I will become wealthy!’”
Other interesting facts about Tyre:
Hiram, King of Tyre, was an ally of King David and supplied cedar and workmen to help him build his palace.
Tyre also supplied timber, masons and a skilled coppersmith to help in the construction of the Temple.
They supplied expert seamen to serve in Solomon’s navy and help train his sailors.
Jezebel was the daughter of a king of Tyre/Sidon.
Ezek. 26:3 Therefore thus saith the Lord GOD; Behold, I am against thee, O Tyrus, and will cause many nations to come up against thee, as the sea causeth his waves to come up.
Ezek. 26:4 And they shall destroy the walls of Tyrus, and break down her towers: I will also scrape her dust from her, and make her like the top of a rock.
Ezek. 26:5 It shall be a place for the spreading of nets in the midst of the sea: for I have spoken it, saith the Lord GOD: and it shall become a spoil to the nations.
Ezek. 26:6 And her daughters which are in the field shall be slain by the sword; and they shall know that I am the LORD.
The prophecy from God was that Tyre would be attacked by many nations, which the prophet pictures as the continual waves that roll up on the seashore. Tyre was attacked by Egypt, Assyria, and the armies of Nebuchadnezzar; and that finally forced the people to relocate the city to an island offshore during a siege that lasted 13 years. The island city was eventually conquered by the armies of Alexander the Great by means of a mole, a huge ramp that they built from the mainland to the island city. They built the mole by taking the remains of the original city and tossing them into the sea until they formed a foundation for a bridge to the island city. This, in effect, scraped the dust off the original location of Tyre and made it a place fit only for fishermen to spread their nets to dry. Tyre was later conquered by the Romans, the Crusaders and the Ottoman Turks.
Ezek. 26:7 For thus saith the Lord GOD; Behold, I will bring upon Tyrus Nebuchadrezzar king of Babylon, a king of kings, from the north, with horses, and with chariots, and with horsemen, and companies, and much people.
Ezek. 26:8 He shall slay with the sword thy daughters in the field: and he shall make a fort against thee, and cast a mount against thee, and lift up the buckler against thee.
Ezek. 26:9 And he shall set engines of war against thy walls, and with his axes he shall break down thy towers.
Ezek. 26:10 By reason of the abundance of his horses their dust shall cover thee: thy walls shall shake at the noise of the horsemen, and of the wheels, and of the chariots, when he shall enter into thy gates, as men enter into a city wherein is made a breach.
Ezek. 26:11 With the hoofs of his horses shall he tread down all thy streets: he shall slay thy people by the sword, and thy strong garrisons shall go down to the ground.
These verses refer directly to Nebuchadnezzar and the destruction wrought upon Tyre by his armies. Although the majority of the citizenry was able to relocate to the island location during his thirteen-year siege, many were killed during that time; and the city they left behind was completely destroyed by his armies.
v8 “buckler” = a large shield
Utley: “‘raise up a large shield against you’ - This is a technical term for what was known as ‘the roof,’ which was raised as a shield to protect the attacking soldiers from being pelted by stones from the walls of citadels.
v11 “garrisons” = something stationed, i.e. a column…pillar
Utley: “‘your strong pillars - From the historian, Heroditus (II. 44), we understand there were two famous obelisks in the city of Tyre. One was gold and the other was emerald and they were dedicated to the god Melqart ("King of the City"), probably the Ba'al brought into Israel by Jezebel (cf. 1 Kgs. 16:21-32).”
We learn in chapter 29 that Nebuchadnezzar never reaped a great reward from his siege of Tyre, so God gave him Egypt in payment for his services in destroying the mainland city of Tyre.
The following is an excerpt from my journal for Isaiah 23 referencing this area of scripture.
Is. 23:15-17 And it shall come to pass in that day, that Tyre shall be forgotten seventy years, according to the days of one king: after the end of seventy years shall Tyre sing as an harlot. Take an harp, go about the city, thou harlot that hast been forgotten; make sweet melody, sing many songs, that thou mayest be remembered. And it shall come to pass after the end of seventy years, that the LORD will visit Tyre, and she shall turn to her hire, and shall commit fornication with all the kingdoms of the world upon the face of the earth.
This seems to be a confirmation of the message of Jeremiah:
Jer. 25:11-12 And this whole land shall be a desolation, and an astonishment; and these nations shall serve the king of Babylon seventy years. And it shall come to pass, when seventy years are accomplished, that I will punish the king of Babylon, and that nation, saith the LORD, for their iniquity, and the land of the Chaldeans, and will make it perpetual desolations.
The one king being referenced is Nebuchadnezzar regarding his kingdom. Evidently, after the fall of the Babylonian empire, Tyre was safe to set up her business and advertise once again. [end excerpt]
Ezek. 26:12 And they shall make a spoil of thy riches, and make a prey of thy merchandise: and they shall break down thy walls, and destroy thy pleasant houses: and they shall lay thy stones and thy timber and thy dust in the midst of the water.
Ezek. 26:13 And I will cause the noise of thy songs to cease; and the sound of thy harps shall be no more heard.
Ezek. 26:14 And I will make thee like the top of a rock: thou shalt be a place to spread nets upon; thou shalt be built no more: for I the LORD have spoken it, saith the Lord GOD.
I didn’t pick up on it, but the NIV Commentary noted that the pronoun switches to “they” in reference to the nations instead of “he” in reference to Nebuchadnezzar in verse 12.
“they shall lay thy stones...midst of the water” – This is a reference to the mole that Alexander the Great and his armies built in order to conquer the island city.
These verses seem to be an emphasis to verse 4. Obviously, a city without people will have no sounds of music to fill the air. The fact that Tyre (which means “strength; rock”) was going to be completely destroyed is pictured as “the top of a rock”—smooth and firm.
Ironside: “Millenniums have gone by since these words were uttered and the fulfilment began to take place, but Tyre of the ancients is still as though it had never been. It is true that on the mainland another city bearing the same name has risen up, but it is poor and squalid indeed, as compared with the great seafaring city that was built upon the island at some distance from the shore.”
Ezek. 26:15 Thus saith the Lord GOD to Tyrus; Shall not the isles shake at the sound of thy fall, when the wounded cry, when the slaughter is made in the midst of thee?
Ezek. 26:16 Then all the princes of the sea shall come down from their thrones, and lay away their robes, and put off their broidered garments: they shall clothe themselves with trembling; they shall sit upon the ground, and shall tremble at every moment, and be astonished at thee.
Ezek. 26:17 And they shall take up a lamentation for thee, and say to thee, How art thou destroyed, that wast inhabited of seafaring men, the renowned city, which wast strong in the sea, she and her inhabitants, which cause their terror to be on all that haunt it!
Ezek. 26:18 Now shall the isles tremble in the day of thy fall; yea, the isles that are in the sea shall be troubled at thy departure.
These verses are describing the response of other port cities that were trading partners with Tyre. It would be like the effect of the destruction of one of the major trading nations and/or great naval powers today on the economy of the world and/or the military balance of power. They are pictured as going into mourning. The effect on the economy of their nations would be significant.
I can’t help but make a comparison of the fall of Tyre to the fall of Babylon, the kingdom of Antichrist.
Rev. 18:9-11 And the kings of the earth, who have committed fornication and lived deliciously with her, shall bewail her, and lament for her, when they shall see the smoke of her burning, Standing afar off for the fear of her torment, saying, Alas, alas, that great city Babylon, that mighty city! for in one hour is thy judgment come. And the merchants of the earth shall weep and mourn over her; for no man buyeth their merchandise any more….
I believe chapter 28 will show that the fall of the prince of Tyre foreshadows the fall of the Antichrist and in turn the fall of the power behind these evil rulers—Satan himself.
Ezek. 26:19 For thus saith the Lord GOD; When I shall make thee a desolate city, like the cities that are not inhabited; when I shall bring up the deep upon thee, and great waters shall cover thee;
Ezek. 26:20 When I shall bring thee down with them that descend into the pit, with the people of old time, and shall set thee in the low parts of the earth, in places desolate of old, with them that go down to the pit, that thou be not inhabited; and I shall set glory in the land of the living;
Ezek. 26:21 I will make thee a terror, and thou shalt be no more: though thou be sought for, yet shalt thou never be found again, saith the Lord GOD.
These verses speak of a time of destruction for Tyre that results in her disappearance for good on the world scene—“shalt thou never be found again.” I don’t believe that has happened yet. Tyre is a thriving city in Lebanon today.
The following information was taken from www.lebanonembassy.net: “Three areas of ruins beckon the visitor. The first is located on what was the ancient walled island city. Colonnades, mosaic streets, Roman baths, and a rectangular arena occupy this seaside site. The ruins of a Crusader church dominate the second site. The third and most extensive area of ruins includes a Roman-Byzantine necropolis and the largest Roman hippodrome ever found. Uniquely built of stone, not brick, it hosted chariot races in its heyday.”
Tyre is also referenced as alive and well during the time of Jesus and was identified as a point of arrival for Paul during one of his journeys.
Mark 3:8 And from Jerusalem, and from Idumaea, and from beyond Jordan; and they about Tyre and Sidon, a great multitude, when they had heard what great things he did, came unto him.
Luke 6:17 And he came down with them, and stood in the plain, and the company of his disciples, and a great multitude of people out of all Judaea and Jerusalem, and from the sea coast of Tyre and Sidon, which came to hear him, and to be healed of their diseases.
Acts 21:3 Now when we had discovered Cyprus, we left it on the left hand, and sailed into Syria, and landed at Tyre: for there the ship was to unlade her burden.
And the following article is from Reuters at www.alertnet.org for September 2, 2006: “TYRE, Lebanon, Sept 2 (Reuters) - An advance contingent of an expanded U.N. force set up to keep the peace between Israel and Hizbollah guerrillas landed in south Lebanon on Saturday. Italian marines, with rifles and wearing blue U.N. berets, came ashore in Tyre in rubber dinghies and helicopters from the aircraft carrier Garibaldi, the flagship of the Italian fleet.”
I believe this judgment will probably take place during the events of the tribulation period.
re verse 20, Ironside: “This is in accord with the verse in the Psalms that declares, ‘The wicked shall be turned into hell’ (that is, into Sheol), ‘and all the nations that forget God.’ Tyre had forgotten God, therefore the desolation that was to come upon her with the eternal doom of her people by casting them into the outer darkness in the depths of Sheol.”
Psalm 9:17 “The wicked shall be turned into hell, and all the nations that forget God.”