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NASB | Matthew 11:22 "Nevertheless I say to you, it will be more tolerable for Tyre and Sidon in the day of judgment than for you. |
AMPLIFIED 2015 | Matthew 11:22 "Nevertheless I say to you, it will be more tolerable for [the pagan cities of] Tyre and Sidon on the day of judgment than for you. |
Subject: Will there be degrees of judgment? |
Bible Note: Hello Steve. Tyre was situated on the coast of Palestine about half-way between Carmel and Beyrout. The narrow strip of land between the sea and the background of mountains was almost inaccessible owing to massive rocky promontories (the most famous being 'the Ladder of Tyre'), which barred the approach of invaders. The date of the foundation of Tyre is unknown. Herodotus suggests B.C. 2740 and Josephus about B.C. 1217.. Isaiah 23:7 calls her 'the joyous city whose antiquity is of ancient days'. But Tyre was not 'the most ancient.' Isaiah 23:2-12 calls her 'daughter of Sidon' (cf. Genesis 10:15). Homer mentions 'Sidonian wares', but ignores Tyre. Justin says Sidon suffered so severely at the hands of Ascalon that her trade passed to her daughter Tyre. The Tell el-Amarna letters (circa B.C. 1430) reveal Abi-milki, king of Tyre, sending appeals to his lord Amenhotep IV for assistance against the swarms of Khabiri, who were ravaging the land, while the citizens were dying of want on the islets off the coast. At the conquest of Canaan, Joshua assigned the Tyrian territory to Asher, though it was perhaps never occupied (Joshua 19:29, but compare to 2 Sam. 24:7). For the next 430 years, Tyre's history is a blank. It was Hiram, David's contemporary, who raised Tyre to fame. Old Tyre (Palaetyrus), on the mainland, he strongly fortified, its walls being 15 miles in circumference. They trafficked up the Nile as far as Memphis; worked copper mines in Cyprus and Crete (cf. Phenice, Acts 27:12); erected stations on the Bosporus, the Euxine, and the Crimea; becoming great explorers and looking for a special supply of shellfish that created a rare purple dye, used in trade. Hiram co-operated with David, sending cedars from Lebanon (1 Chr. 14:1). Under Solomon, Tyrian artizans built the Temple on Phoenician models (2 Chr. 2), and had joint maritime adventures (1 Kings 9:26,10:22).On the decline of Nineveh, Tyre again proclaimed her independence (B.C. 630), and after Nineveh fell (B.C. 606) she reached the zenith of her glory. Ezekiel 27-28 gives a marvelously vivid picture of the island city at this period, yet prophesies her fall on account of her colossal sins. Nebuchadnezzar II attacked Tyre and besieged it for 13 years. Old Tyre was destroyed (Ezek. 26:7-12), but the Babylonians wearied themselves in trying to subdue the island (Ezek. 29:18). Thus, Tyre was a poverty stricken town for 50 years. However, her humbled state did not change her people's temper. Their pride (Ezek. 28:2), their contempt for the right of man (Amos 1:9) and their slave trading (Joel 3:4-5) are all denounced by the Hebrew prophets. If you'd like to know more about the history of Tyre, just let me know. I have a special penchant for history. |