The Chaldeans Will Despoil Her

Which political power will execute Jehovah's judgment upon Tyre?  Isaiah proclaims:  "Look! The land of the Chaldeans.  This is the people-Assyria did not prove to be the one-they founded her for the desert haunters.  They have erected their siege towers; they have stripped bare her dwelling towers; one has set her as a crumbling ruin. Howl, you ships of Tarshish, for your stronghold has been despoiled."  (Isaiah 23:13, 14) The Chaldeans -not the Assyrians-will conquer Tyre.  They will erect their siege towers, level the dwelling places of Tyre, and make that stronghold of the ships of Tarshish a crumbling heap of ruins. 

 True to the prophecy, not long after the fall of Jerusalem, Tyre rebels against Babylon, and Nebuchadnezzar lays siege to the city.  Believing herself impregnable, Tyre resists.  In the course of the siege, the heads of Babylon's soldiers are "made bald"  from the chafing of their helmets and their shoulders are "rubbed bare" from carrying materials used in the construction of siege works.   (Ezekiel 29:18) The siege is costly to Nebuchadnezzar. The mainland city of Tyre is destroyed, yet its spoil eludes him..  The bulk of the treasures of Tyre have been transferred to a small island about half a mile from the shore. Lacking a fleet of ships, the Chaldean king is unable to take the island. After 13 years, Tyre capitulates, but she will survive and see the fulfillment of further prophecies. 

Next time: "She Must Return to Her Hire"

From the Book Isaiah's Prophecy Light for all Mankind, 2000