Introduction: A Lamentation over Tyre
Chapter 27 of Yechezkel is a direct continuation of the prophecies concerning Tyre. The Holy One, blessed be He, delivers another prophecy to Yechezkel, and now commands him to take up a lamentation over Tyre - to mourn its downfall. The central axis of the chapter is an answer to Tyre's arrogance, as it proclaimed, "I am the perfection of beauty": the prophet proceeds to demonstrate, detail by detail, that all of its beauty, wealth, wisdom, and power are not its own at all, but rather assembled from the nations and islands surrounding it. The parable employed by the prophet is that of a magnificent ship, where every single part was brought from somewhere else.
(א) וַיְהִי דְבַר־יְהֹוָה אֵלַי לֵאמֹר׃ (ב) וְאַתָּה בֶן־אָדָם שָׂא עַל־צֹר קִינָה׃ - (1) And the word of Hashem came to me, saying: (2) And you, son of man, take up a lamentation over Tyre.
"Merchant of the Peoples" - What is a Peddler?
(ג) וְאָמַרְתָּ לְצוֹר הַיֹּשֶׁבֶת עַל־מְבוֹאֹת יָם רֹכֶלֶת הָעַמִּים אֶל־אִיִּים רַבִּים, כֹּה אָמַר אֲדֹנָי יֱהֹוִה: צוֹר אַתְּ אָמַרְתְּ אֲנִי כְּלִילַת יֹפִי׃ - (3) And say to Tyre, who dwells at the entrances of the sea, merchant of the peoples unto many islands: Thus says the Lord God: O Tyre, you have said, "I am the perfection of beauty."
"Who dwells at the entrances of the sea" - Tyre sits like an entryway, an entrance gate, where all the ships arrive to unload their cargo. And what is meant by "merchant of the peoples" (rochelet ha'amim)? A rochel (peddler) is one who buys merchandise from the large-scale merchant and sells it from place to place, traveling through towns and selling to individuals - what we call today a retailer, as distinguished from a wholesaler who sells in large quantities. The rochel is a person who circulates. Hence also the connection between rochel (peddler) and rogel (scout/spy): "Do not go about as a talebearer (rachil)" refers to one who follows after people to hear what they say, and such is also the way of a spy (meragel) who goes about scouting. Rogel and rochel are related roots. The prophet says to her: You receive merchandise from the major merchants and sell it to the islands in the sea, like a traveling peddler.
"I am the Perfection of Beauty" - Arrogance Usurping Jerusalem's Title
"Perfection of beauty" derives from kalil, meaning absolute: complete beauty, entirely beautiful. In this, Tyre took pride. Rashi emphasizes the word "I": until now, everyone had spoken of Jerusalem as the perfection of beauty, as it is written in Eichah chapter 2 and in Tehillim chapter 48 - "the joy of the whole earth." But now Tyre boasts, saying: I am the perfection of beauty, not Jerusalem. This is tied to the statement of Chazal that Tyre was filled only through the destruction of Jerusalem.
Against this claim, all the subsequent verses come to prove that her beauty is not her own at all, but rather acquired from others or bestowed upon her by others.
(ד) בְּלֵב יַמִּים גְּבוּלָיִךְ, בֹּנַיִךְ כָּלְלוּ יָפְיֵךְ׃ - (4) In the heart of the seas are your borders; your builders have perfected your beauty.
"In the heart of the seas are your borders" - your beauty depends on your borders: what surrounds you is the sea. You are an island surrounded by the sea, and not only that, but the islands scattered in the sea around you are, as it were, her border markers, like a central island surrounded by satellite islands. Your beauty comes by virtue of the neighbors around you, all the islands of the sea to which you sell your wares - and from this you grew rich. Furthermore: "Your builders have perfected your beauty" - those who built you were the ones who took pains to make you beautiful. In simple terms: your beauty is not inherent. The builders and the materials from which you were constructed came from the surrounding nations. Now the prophet will detail how all her beauty was taken from her surroundings.
The Parable: A Ship Whose Parts Are All Imported
(ה) בְּרוֹשִׁים מִשְּׂנִיר בָּנוּ לָךְ אֵת כָּל־לֻחֹתָיִם, אֶרֶז מִלְּבָנוֹן לָקָחוּ לַעֲשׂוֹת תֹּרֶן עָלָיִךְ׃ - Cypresses from Senir they built for you all your planks; a cedar from Lebanon they took to make a mast over you.
The prophet compares the entire island of Tyre to a ship at sea. This ship is constructed from an array of components, and it is beautiful and magnificent - and regarding this he says to her: Why do you boast of your ship? Everyone around you contributed a part to it, and you did not produce this beauty. The planks, meaning the ship's boards that enclose it on the outside, were made of cypresses - and from Senir, not from Tyre. That is, this is not part of you; it came from the outside. And the cedar from which they made a mast for you, the tree standing in the center of the ship, is also not yours, but was taken from Lebanon.
(ו) אַלּוֹנִים מִבָּשָׁן עָשׂוּ מִשּׁוֹטָיִךְ, קַרְשֵׁךְ עָשׂוּ־שֵׁן בַּת־אֲשֻׁרִים מֵאִיֵּי כִּתִּיִּם׃ - Of oaks from Bashan they made your oars; your rudder they made of ivory inlaid in boxwood, brought from the isles of Kittim.
They made the oars from oaks of Bashan - this, too, was not your own. And what is karshech ("your board")? The Malbim explains that this is the board by which the ship is steered. The textual proof for this is that it does not say kerashayich in the plural, but karshech in the singular, indicating one unique board used to guide the ship, and they made it out of ivory, meaning elephant tusk. The Malbim refers to it in Yiddish as der ruder, meaning the rudder. Rashi also explains along these lines: this is a single board located at the stern of the ship with which they steer it to the right and to the left. And where did that ivory come from? "Daughter of Ashurim" - it originated in Assyria, and they brought it "from the isles of Kittim." So we see that even this does not belong to you; rather, all the parts arrived to you from other places.
(ז) שֵׁשׁ־בְּרִקְמָה מִמִּצְרַיִם הָיָה מִפְרָשֵׂךְ לִהְיוֹת לָךְ לְנֵס, תְּכֵלֶת וְאַרְגָּמָן מֵאִיֵּי אֱלִישָׁה הָיָה מְכַסֵּךְ׃ - Embroidered fine linen from Egypt was your sail to serve as your banner; blue and purple from the isles of Elishah was your awning.
Now the prophet turns to the sails. The sail is what is called in the language of Rashi and the Sages the "curtain" of the ship, or its "banner" - the cloth that serves as a drape hanging upon the mast. "Embroidered fine linen," a magnificent embroidered fabric, was brought from Egypt - this, too, was not from you. Moreover, "blue and purple from the isles of Elishah was your covering." And what is this covering? Radak explains that this is the ship's awning, sheltering the people on board from downpours, rain, and scorching heat. And this awning was made of blue and purple wool, extremely grand and beautiful - yet brought from the isles of Elishah, not of your own manufacture.
Come and see, then, that all the wealth, honor, and splendor of Tyre were not of its own making, but came about through commerce with many nations and distant islands. This is what the prophet means to say: You developed immensely, but only through the power of the nations that came around you to trade with you. There is nothing here of your own essence or strength that brought you to this greatness.
Even the Crew Is Not Your Own: Rowers and Sailors
(ח) יֹשְׁבֵי צִידוֹן וְאַרְוַד הָיוּ שָׁטִים לָךְ, חֲכָמַיִךְ צוֹר הָיוּ בָךְ הֵמָּה חֹבְלָיִךְ׃ - The inhabitants of Zidon and Arvad were your rowers; your wise men, Tyre, who were within you, they were your sailors.
After describing the ship itself and its equipment, and how it was entirely crafted by many nations with nothing belonging to Tyre herself, the prophet moves to the human aspect: the ship's officers and crew also come from other nations. Just as the wealth and trade came from outside, so too the wise men and leaders guiding you as a nation came from outside. "The inhabitants of Zidon and Arvad were your rowers" - they are the ones who row the ship. And the wise men found within you were "your sailors," who steer and command the ship, and from whom kings and princes emerged - yet they too were not of your own stock.
And why is the captain called a rav hachovel? Because he was responsible for spreading the sails, and the spreading of sails is done by means of ropes (chavalim). Anyone who has seen depictions of sailing ships sees this clearly: sail upon sail, all operated in a sophisticated manner with pulleys pulling ropes to unfurl the sails, and pulling other ropes to fold them. Since he was in charge of the ropes and sails, he was called rav hachovel. There is another explanation: it is because he needed many stratagems (tachbulot) to steer the ship. Navigating a ship is no simple task; often one must sail directly against a headwind, and one must know how to steer the ship so the wind does not blow it in the opposite direction of its destination.
"Who Makes a Way in the Sea" - Two Ships and Two Prayers
A story is told of one of the Gedolei Yisrael - I believe it was cited in the name of Rav Shach - who was once visited by a prime minister, president, or minister, who asked him: "Tell me, how can this be? You Jews are here praying for the welfare of our country, yet in the enemy country, with whom we are at war, Jews there are also praying for the welfare of their country! Which prayer is accepted? Seemingly, there is a clash between these prayers!"
He replied: "Notice that we open the prayer for the welfare of the government with the verse, 'Who makes a way in the sea and a path in mighty waters.' What does that have to do with anything? At sea, a wonder occurs: one ship travels from east to west, and another travels from west to east. Seemingly, each requires an opposing wind to reach its destination - yet ultimately, thank God, both ships arrive safely. He Who 'makes a way in the sea and a path in mighty waters,' charting a unique course for each ship so it arrives even when the wind blows against it, is 'He Who gives salvation to kings.' The Holy One, blessed be He, knows how to arrange matters, just as He guides two ships heading in opposite directions so both reach their destination." And what does "arrange matters" mean? Between us, it means that in the end, the Jews will not be harmed. That is our primary concern: we pray for the welfare of the country in which we live because, ultimately, we are part of it, and we do not want to suffer harm should the state be harmed.
The Elders of Geval, Repairers of Leaks, and Guarantors of Trade
(ט) זִקְנֵי גְבַל וַחֲכָמֶיהָ הָיוּ בָךְ מַחֲזִיקֵי בִּדְקֵךְ, כָּל־אֳנִיּוֹת הַיָּם וּמַלָּחֵיהֶם הָיוּ בָךְ לַעֲרֹב מַעֲרָבֵךְ׃ - "The elders of Geval and its wise men were in you to repair your leaks; all the ships of the sea and their sailors were in you to guarantee your merchandise."
The elders of Geval and its wise men were skilled in construction, as we find: "And Solomon's builders and the men of Geval chiseled." They were "the repairers of your leaks" - those appointed to maintain and repair the ship. In the nimshal (allegory): it was from them that Tyre took sages to enact ordinances and institute civic customs in the state.
"To guarantee your merchandise [la'arov ma'araveich]" - even in commerce, you needed a guarantor. A person who goes to purchase merchandise does not always have ready cash, so he buys on credit. Who guarantees that he will repay the money? Guarantors are brought in. The prophet tells Tyre: the ships of the sea and their sailors served as your guarantors. Because all their trade went through you, the security that allowed merchants to extend you credit did not stem from your own power, but from theirs. This is a poetic expression: those who came to trade here were willing to vouch for you and guarantee that you would repay the loans you took. Thus, even your commercial success did not stem from your own might, but from an external force.
What is the root of the word mallah (sailor)? Rashi explains in the Chumash that it is related to "well-mixed [memulach], pure and holy." What does a sailor do with his oars? He stirs up the sea water. Memulach means mixed, and therefore mallah derives from the concept of stirring and mixing. Others explain that mallah derives from melach (salt / salinity), because he knows the seawater - as it were, tasting it - and from its taste he can discern where to sail and in which direction.
Mercenaries and Military Might: "They Bestowed Your Splendor"
(י) פָּרַס וְלוּד וּפוּט הָיוּ בְחֵילֵךְ אַנְשֵׁי מִלְחַמְתֵּךְ, מָגֵן וְכוֹבַע תִּלּוּ־בָךְ הֵמָּה נָתְנוּ הֲדָרֵךְ׃ - "Paras, Lud, and Put were in your army, your men of war; shield and helmet they hung in you, they bestowed your splendor."
Even your soldiers who fought your battles were not from your own people, but a hired army, mercenaries: Paras (Persia), Lud, and Put. And what does tilu vach mean? The Malbim explains that it derives from tel, a high, steep mound: they erected towering mounds of shields and helmets, which are weapons of war. Through their strength and might, they endowed Tyre with the power to withstand conquest, and this is the meaning of "they bestowed your splendor" - for when a nation possesses military might, it is a source of splendor and formidable prestige.
We see the same phenomenon in our own times: the little "rocket man" of North Korea - who we briefly thought might grow, but it turns out he remained small - is immensely powerful. Who is he, and what is he? What is the true strength of his nation? Yet the moment he possesses nuclear weapons, no one pays attention to the size of his country, its condition, or its economy. People there are starving for bread, but that no longer matters. The moment a nation possesses warfare capabilities and military power - that is its splendor. When he speaks, people are gripped by fear; world powers like China and Japan dread anyone who holds such destructive weapons.
Radak, on the other hand, explains that tilu vach does not derive from mounds (telim) and heaps of shields and helmets, but from hanging (teliya): it was customary to hang shields and helmets atop the watchtowers and along the city walls, driving a peg into the wall and hanging the shield and helmet from it. According to this view, the verse means that Tyre was garrisoned by numerous warriors who hung their helmets and shields along its battlements.
The Men of Arvad and the Gammadim in the Towers
(יא) בְּנֵי אַרְוַד וְחֵילֵךְ עַל־חוֹמוֹתַיִךְ סָבִיב וְגַמָּדִים בְּמִגְדְּלוֹתַיִךְ הָיוּ, שִׁלְטֵיהֶם תִּלּוּ עַל־חוֹמוֹתַיִךְ סָבִיב הֵמָּה כָּלְלוּ יָפְיֵךְ׃ - (11) The men of Arvad with your army were upon your walls all around, and the Gammadim were in your towers; they hung their shields upon your walls all around; they perfected your beauty.
The men of Arvad are the soldiers who guarded your walls - and they too were not your own, but from another nation. And just as we saw earlier that they repaired her breaches, so too they guarded her against an enemy attacking from outside.
And who are the "Gammadim"? Targum Yonatan explains that this is the name of a nation, the Cappadocians, and they are called Gammadim. Rashi cites an additional explanation in the name of Rabbi Menachem: they are called Gammadim because they descend into the sea down to the depths and measure its depth in cubits (*gomadim*). Some explain that the Gammadim were divers - *amodaim* in the language of Chazal, a term meaning diver that is still used in Hebrew, though less common today. And why were they called Gammadim? Because a *gomed* is the measure of a cubit, and they would measure the depth of the sea. And why did they dive into the sea? Usually to harvest pearls. Thus, according to this explanation, these Gammadim were divers.
Others interpret, as Rashi brings, that they were literal dwarfs or midgets, whose height was the measure of a cubit (*gomed*), and therefore they were called *gammadim*. And why were they stationed specifically in the towers? Metzudat David explains: so that they would not be seen, for if they were visible, the enemy could strike them. They took such compact men and placed them there, where they could conceal themselves without being noticed and without the enemy shooting arrows at them.
However, the Malbim explains differently: it is not that they took literal dwarfs and stationed them on the towers, but rather that when men ascended the towering heights, they appeared from below like dwarfs only a cubit tall. Because of the vast distance, they looked as small as dwarfs. They tell of someone who was up on the hundredth floor in New York and looked down out the window. Later, he went down to the street, and suddenly someone approached him, hugging and kissing him. He asked him: "What happened? Where do I know you from?" The man answered: "What do you mean? I have known you since you were this small!" - just fifteen minutes earlier he had seen him looking tiny from high above. So says the Malbim: the towers were so high that those looking up from below saw those stationed above as small as dwarfs.
"They hung their shields upon your walls all around" - *shilteihem* refers to quivers holding arrows, while others say it means shields. According to the Malbim, *tilu* is related to heaps upon heaps (*tilei tilim*): they placed piles of their armor on the walls all around. And this is the meaning of "they perfected your beauty" - they were the ones who provided you with your extraordinary beauty. It was not, as you claimed, "I am perfect in beauty," for your beauty did not truly originate from you at all, but was assembled from diverse nations all around.
Summary:
The prophet laments over Tyre, which sits at the gateways of the sea and trades with the nations, which boasted and said, "I am perfect in beauty" - a title previously reserved for Jerusalem - and enriched herself from Jerusalem's destruction. Against this arrogance, Yechezkel portrays Tyre as a magnificent ship, proving that not a single detail of hers is truly her own: her planks are of cypresses from Senir, her mast of cedars of Lebanon, her oars of oaks from Bashan, her deck inlaid with ivory brought from the isles of Kittim, her sail of fine Egyptian linen, and her awning of blue and purple from the isles of Elishah. And so it was with the people: the rowers were from Tzidon and Arvad, the repairers of breaches from the elders of Geval, the commercial guarantees from the ships of the sea and their sailors, and the warriors were mercenaries from Paras, Lud, and Put, who bestowed upon her splendor and power. All of Tyre's wealth, wisdom, and might were merely borrowed from the nations around her, leaving her nothing of which to boast - and the timeless message endures: one whose entire glory is borrowed will ultimately see it taken away.