The Fall of Tyre: A Warning Against Pride and False Security
Earthly kingdoms rise and fall, but only what is built upon the Lord remains forever.
Reflections on Ezekiel 26:1–21 with insights from the Grace and Truth Study Bible
Tyre, a powerful maritime city-state, rejoiced when Jerusalem fell, seeing it as an opportunity for greater trade and prosperity. But the Lord, who sees the motives of the heart, declared judgment upon Tyre for its arrogance and selfishness. Tyre saw Jerusalem as an obstacle removed, but God saw their pride and would bring them low. Just as He allowed Babylon to overtake Judah, He would send Babylon against Tyre, reducing it from a wealthy center of trade to mere ruins, a place where only fishermen would spread their nets. The city that had navigated the seas so skillfully would find itself overtaken by the very waters it once controlled. Tyre’s downfall would send shockwaves through the nations, a warning to those who place their trust in wealth, power, and human ingenuity rather than in the Lord.
Tyre’s story is a sobering reminder that no earthly success is secure apart from God. Those who exalt themselves will be humbled, and those who build their lives on the shifting sands of commerce and political power will see their foundation crumble. It is not prosperity itself that condemns, but the heart that trusts in prosperity over the Lord.
A Journal Entry in the Voice of the Holy Spirit Through Scripture
I am the Lord who sees the hearts of nations and men alike. Tyre boasted in its prosperity, believing its wealth would shield it from harm, but I bring low the proud and raise up the humble. The city that once gloried in its trade now lies silent, its harbors no longer filled with ships, its merchants no longer counting their profits. It did not recognize that I alone establish kingdoms and bring them down. I alone am the security of those who trust in Me.
Do not say in your heart, “My strength and my wisdom have gained me this.” For what is built apart from Me will not stand. I raise up nations and bring them low. I give breath, and I take it away. The riches of this world are fleeting, the strongholds of men are but dust in the wind. But the one who trusts in Me will never be put to shame. The nations rage, the kingdoms totter, but My word endures forever.
Where will you place your trust? In the shifting tides of wealth and power, or in Me, the Rock that cannot be moved? Let the one who boasts boast in this: that they understand and know Me, that I am the Lord who exercises steadfast love, justice, and righteousness in the earth. For in these things I delight.
(Scripture references: Isaiah 40:23; Proverbs 16:18; Psalm 46:6; Jeremiah 9:23-24; Matthew 7:24-27)
Prayer
Father, You alone are the foundation that cannot be shaken. The world builds and boasts, but without You, all is fleeting. I trust not in wealth, not in human wisdom, nor in the strength of my own hands, but in You alone. Thank You that in Christ, I stand secure, never to be cast down. Let my heart rest in Your unshakable kingdom, knowing that all things are upheld by Your power and for Your glory. Amen.