April 18, 2025

Tyre was considered an island city full of the arts. They were proud of their culture and the festivities of the opera, balls, plays, and all types of sports. They made their money from the things of the sea and were a seaport for ships and vessels. I took a minute and looked it up on the map. It is not an island; it’s more like a peninsula. It shows some of the ruins of that day but also has a Starbucks. Isaiah was given a prophecy and predicted their destruction, but it would only last seventy years and become a joyous city again. It made me think of the coastal cities in Florida where you can find food, music, artists, and sailors in a laid-back setting, watching the sunset and enjoying the rhythm of the waves lapping against the shore. That is the type of lifestyle I enjoy the most. However, Tyre became too proud of their culture and may have given themselves too much credit for their accomplishments, leaving out the fact that all things good come from God. God wants us to have nice things, but when we put too much emphasis on ourselves, He will remind us that it is He who gives and takes, and if we aren’t careful to honor Him in all we do, He will take it away as a lesson not to become too conceited.

Is this your joyous city, whose antiquity is of ancient days? her own feet shall carry her afar off to sojourn. Who hath taken this counsel against Tyre, the crowning city, whose merchants are princes, whose traffickers are the honourable of the earth? The LORD of hosts hath purposed it, to stain the pride of all glory, and to bring into contempt all the honourable of the earth. Isaiah 23:7-9