Ezekiel 27:24-25
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It's easy to skim over this verse, but notice how it emphasizes not just what was traded, but the quality and craftsmanship – "choice garments," "embroidered work," and "carpets of colored material." This detail highlights that Tyre's wealth wasn't just about quantity, but also about securing the most exquisite and finely made goods from across the known world. It’s a reminder that even in business, the pursuit of excellence and beauty has always been a significant part of human commerce.
In your market these traded with you in choice garments, in clothes of blue and embroidered work, and in carpets of colored material, bound with cords and made secure. The ships of Tarshish traveled for you with your merchandise. So you were filled and heavily laden in the heart of the seas.
English Standard Version (ESV)
The chapter describes Tyre as the grand queen of sea trade, detailing the vast array of goods from all corners of the world that passed through its markets. This verse specifically highlights the merchants who brought exquisite, colorful textiles and intricately crafted garments, packed in cedar chests, to be sold among Tyre’s other luxurious merchandise. It paints a picture of a bustling, wealthy global marketplace centered around Tyre, showcasing the diverse and valuable items fueling its prosperity.
Imagine a bustling marketplace, not just with local goods, but with treasures from across the known world. Ezekiel paints a vivid picture of Tyre as a hub where luxury items from distant lands converged.
Ezekiel 27 describes Tyre as a magnificent trading empire, a 'merchant of the peoples' (Ezekiel 27:3). This verse, Ezekiel 27:24, highlights the specific, high-value goods that flowed through its markets:
Exquisite Textiles
Securely Packaged Luxury
The Cedar Connection
Ask a follow-up
The items traded by Tyre weren't just products; they were symbols of wealth, status, and influence. What did these luxurious goods represent in the ancient world?
The specific mention of fine textiles and elaborately prepared goods in Ezekiel 27:24 goes beyond a simple inventory. It reveals something deeper about what these items signified:
Status and Prestige
Divine Judgment on Pride
The Foundation of Decline
Understand the original words
’ŏniyyôt taršîš · Hebrew Noun Phrase
A specific type of large, long-distance merchant ship, often associated with the transport of heavy luxury goods and precious metals across the seas.
ma`ărāḇ · Hebrew Noun
Goods, wealth, or cargo brought for exchange or profit; in a prophetic context, it can symbolize the abundance of a nation's resources and the focus on material prosperity.
This passage highlights the luxury trade goods, particularly fine textiles and carefully packed apparel, that flowed through Tyre. The mention of blue clothes and embroidered work points to the sophisticated textile industries of empires like Babylon, underscoring Tyre's role as a global marketplace connecting diverse cultures and their finest products.
c. 7th century BC
Height of Neo-Babylonian Empire
Under Nebuchadnezzar II, the Babylonian Empire reached its zenith, dominating the region and controlling vast trade routes. This period saw immense wealth and sophisticated industries, especially in textiles.
c. 6th century BC
Babylonian Textile Trade Flourishes
Babylon was renowned for its luxurious textiles, including vibrant blue and purple dyed fabrics, and intricately embroidered works. These goods were highly sought after across the ancient world.
c. 6th century BC
Tyre's Maritime Dominance
Tyre, a Phoenician city-state, was the leading maritime power, controlling extensive sea trade networks throughout the Mediterranean and beyond. Its port was a hub for exotic goods from across the known world.
Ezekiel's Prophetic Ministry (c. 593-571 BC)— this verse
Ezekiel Prophesies Against Tyre
Ezekiel delivers powerful oracles against the wealthy and proud city of Tyre, denouncing its arrogance and foretelling its utter destruction due to its exploitative trade practices and complicity with enemies of God's people.
586 BC
Fall of Jerusalem
Nebuchadnezzar II destroyed Jerusalem and its Temple, exiling many Judeans. Tyre profited from this disaster, allowing Babylonian exiles to pass through its territory and even seizing Judean property, further incurring God's judgment.
574-573 BC
Nebuchadnezzar's Siege of Tyre
Nebuchadnezzar laid siege to Tyre for thirteen years, eventually conquering its mainland city but failing to take the island fortress. This prolonged conflict weakened Tyre and foreshadowed its future vulnerability.
332 BC
Alexander the Great Conquers Tyre
Alexander the Great laid siege to the island city of Tyre and, after a seven-month struggle, finally conquered it, dismantling its naval power and ending its independent rule.
This passage describes Achan taking a 'splendid robe from Babylon,' highlighting Babylon's historical fame for its luxurious and intricately woven textiles, similar to the 'blue clothes and embroidered work' mentioned in Ezekiel.
Ezekiel 23:6This verse also mentions the 'blue clothes' that Oholibah desired, directly linking the color and quality of these garments to luxurious and worldly pursuits, mirroring the trade described in chapter 27.
Proverbs 31:22While the context is different, this verse describes a capable wife making 'fine linen and purple robes' for herself and her household, showing that such fine textiles were symbols of wealth and status recognized even in wisdom literature.
Luke 16:19The parable of the rich man and Lazarus contrasts extreme poverty with a life of 'magnificent and luxurious clothing' (often interpreted as purple or fine linen), illustrating the societal significance and conspicuous consumption associated with such valuable garments.
gillEzekiel 27:24: "These were thy merchants in all sorts of things, in blue clothes, and broidered work, and in chests of rich apparel, bound with cords, and made of cedar, among thy merchandise."
These were thy merchants in all sorts of things,.... Either all before mentioned throughout the chapter, or rather those only in the preceding verse; also these were merchants in various things after mentioned, and which were the best and most perfect of the kind, as the word (d) used signifies: in blue…
clarkeEzekiel 27:24: "These were thy merchants in all sorts of things, in blue clothes, and broidered work, and in chests of rich apparel, bound with cords, and made of cedar, among thy merchandise."
These were thy merchants in all sorts of things - The above people traded with the Tyrians in a great variety of the most valuable merchandise: blue or purple cloth, boxes of cedar, covered with skins, and bound with silken cords, and sealed with an engraved seal, finely cut, etc. See the Chaldee.
It's easy to skim over this verse, but notice how it emphasizes not just what was traded, but the quality and craftsmanship – "choice garments," "embroidered work," and "carpets of colored material." This detail highlights that Tyre's wealth wasn't just about quantity, but also about securing the most exquisite and finely made goods from across the known world. It’s a reminder that even in business, the pursuit of excellence and beauty has always been a significant part of human commerce.
The chapter describes Tyre as the grand queen of sea trade, detailing the vast array of goods from all corners of the world that passed through its markets. This verse specifically highlights the merchants who brought exquisite, colorful textiles and intricately crafted garments, packed in cedar chests, to be sold among Tyre’s other luxurious merchandise. It paints a picture of a bustling, wealthy global marketplace centered around Tyre, showcasing the diverse and valuable items fueling its prosperity.
The chapter describes Tyre as the grand queen of sea trade, detailing the vast array of goods from all corners of the world that passed through its markets. This verse specifically highlights the merchants who brought exquisite, colorful textiles and intricately crafted garments, packed in cedar chests, to be sold among Tyre’s other luxurious merchandise. It paints a picture of a bustling, wealthy global marketplace centered around Tyre, showcasing the diverse and valuable items fueling its prosperity.
"In your market these traded with you in choice garments, in clothes of blue and embroidered work, and in carpets of colored material, bound with cords and made secure. The ships of Tarshish traveled for you with your merchandise. So you we…" — It's easy to skim over this verse, but notice how it emphasizes not just what was traded, but the quality and craftsmanship – "choice garments," "embroidered work," and "carpets of colored mate…
Get the original Greek and Hebrew, verse-by-verse context, and related passages inside the app.
Last reviewed October 2026
