Ezekiel

Ezekiel 26: God brings proud Tyre down

Begin in prayer

Before reading God's answer to Tyre's cruel joy, let us bring Him the desires we hide when others lose. Pray that the Lord would settle our hearts, draw near to our family and show us Christ in Ezekiel 26.

But with an overflowing flood, he will make a full end of her place, and will pursue his enemies into darkness.

Nahum 1:8

Father in heaven, please open our eyes as we read Your Word. Please teach us why You oppose cruel pride and show us Jesus, who saves sinners from the ruin they deserve. Make us more like Jesus. And please bless our family as we worship You together. In Jesus' name, Amen.

See where we're going

Tyre rejoices that Jerusalem is broken, expecting to gain from her destruction. God declares Himself against Tyre and will bring many nations like waves against her. He names Nebuchadnezzar and describes the siege, deaths, plunder and destruction of the city's walls and houses. God will silence her songs and make her bare rock where nets are spread, never to be rebuilt. The princes of the sea will leave their thrones and tremble as they mourn her fall. God will bring Tyre down with the dead, and she will be sought and never found again.

As you read Ezekiel 26, look for the answers:

Reflect together

Key truth

God brings down Tyre for rejoicing over Jerusalem and expecting gain from her ruin.

Tyre treats Jerusalem's broken gate as an opening for its own gain, making another city's destruction a reason to celebrate. God's answer reverses that expectation, for the merchant city will lose the prosperity it hopes to increase. The waves picture repeated nations coming against its walls, with the LORD Himself declaring that He is against it. Naming Nebuchadnezzar makes the siege concrete, while the battering, killing and plunder explain what that divine opposition means for the city. The silencing of music ends the sound of its flourishing life, and bare rock replaces its busy strength. Princes of the sea will leave their thrones and sit trembling, showing how the city's fall unsettles the surrounding world. Descent into the pit puts this famous city among the dead, where its former greatness gives no life. God's final word that it will be sought and never found removes the future of prosperity Tyre had claimed for itself.

How does Ezekiel 26 show us that God brings down Tyre for rejoicing over Jerusalem and expecting gain from her ruin?

God opposes delight in another city's ruin.

Tyre expects to be replenished because Jerusalem is laid waste (verses 1 to 6). God answers that He is against her. Nations will plunder her, and her daughters in the field will die by the sword.

God destroys Tyre’s strength and riches.

God brings Nebuchadnezzar with horses, chariots and an army against Tyre (verses 7 to 14). Walls, towers and pleasant houses fall. The people die, wealth is plundered and music falls silent.

God's judgment turns feared power into terror.

The sea princes tremble and mourn the city's destruction (verses 15 to 21). God brings Tyre down with those descending into the pit. The once renowned city will be sought and never found again.

Memorize

Behold, I am against you, Tyre, and will cause many nations to come up against you, as the sea causes its waves to come up.

Ezekiel 26:3

Looking to Jesus in my life

Ask yourself in your heart, do I want gain from others' loss? Have I asked Jesus to change me?

Tyre looks at broken Jerusalem and says, “I shall be replenished, now that she is laid waste”. Her cruel hope meets God's opposition. The riches she expects cannot rescue her from His judgment. Our eagerness to profit from another's hurt also needs His searching light.

Jesus gave His life to rescue His people from the ruin their sins deserved. He took their guilt upon Himself and died under God's judgment in their place. His redeeming work reached its goal at the cross, leaving no part of their salvation unpaid. God raised Him from the dead, and His completed work is enough for every sinner who comes to Him.

Turn from your sin and trust the Lord Jesus Christ. He grants forgiveness to everyone who comes to Him in faith. Bring Him the selfish desires you have excused. Please ask Him to teach you compassion for people in trouble and humility before the God who sees your heart.

Parent's note

Tell your children that God opposes cruel pride, and Jesus died and rose to save sinners who come to Him. Please do not tell them they are saved just because they grew up in a Christian home. Call each child to turn from sin and trust Jesus, and pray that God would give them a new heart.

Pray together

Now please close your time together in prayer. Thank God for opposing cruel pride and providing salvation in Christ, and bring the heart question to Him. Every child can pray, so let each one say a short prayer if they want to.

A mighty angel took up a stone like a great millstone and cast it into the sea, saying, “Thus with violence will Babylon, the great city, be thrown down, and will be found no more at all.

Revelation 18:21

Father, thank You for seeing the cruelty that hides beneath our desire for gain. Forgive us for welcoming another person's loss, and help each one turn from sin and trust Jesus. Please give us humble hearts before You and compassion for those whose lives are troubled. Amen.