Ezekiel 26:5
in Ezekiel 26She will become a place to spread nets in the sea, for I have spoken, declares the Lord GOD. She will become plunder for the nations,
BSB
The same verse in ASV and KJV ▾
ASV
She shall be a place for the spreading of nets in the midst of the sea; for I have spoken it, saith the Lord Jehovah; and she shall become a spoil to the nations.
KJV
It shall be a place for the spreading of nets in the midst of the sea: for I have spoken it, saith the Lord God: and it shall become a spoil to the nations.
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This verse in Ezekiel 26
Commentary
6 notes on this verseIt shall be a place for the spreading of nets in the midst of the sea,.... Where only fishermen would be seen washing their nets, and then spreading them upon this rock, where Tyre stood, to dry them and this has been confirmed by travellers, who have seen fishermen spreading and drying their nets, and having no other habitations on it but the huts of these men.
This site's exposition
as the sea brings up its waves
on Ezekiel 26:3-6
The judgment is pictured as the sea Tyre lived by turned against it. Walls and towers fall, and it is made like the top of a rock, a place for the spreading of nets. Keil notes the recognition formula closing the unit, they shall know that I am the Lord.
This site's exposition
a place to spread nets in the sea
The words in the sea point to the island city itself. Tyre planned to be filled from Jerusalem's ruin in verse 2, and here it becomes plunder for other nations. The reversal is exact.
The record, by era
The Church Fathers1 voice
(Chapter 26) And it came to pass in the eleventh year, in the first month, on the first day of the month, the word of the Lord came to me, saying: Son of man, because Tyre (or Sidon) has said of Jerusalem: Aha, the gate of the peoples is broken, it is turned to me, I shall be filled, it has become desolate; therefore thus says the Lord God: Behold, I am against you, Tyre (or Sidon), and I will bring many nations against you, as the sea brings up its waves.
The Puritans and the Awakening1 voice
The utter ruin of Tyre is here represented in very strong and lively figures, which are exceedingly affecting. See how high, how great, Tyre had been, how little likely ever to come to this. The remembrance of men's former grandeur and plenty is a great aggravation of their present disgrace and poverty.
The Nineteenth Century1 voice
A place for the spreading of nets - A place for the habitation of some poor fishermen, who spent the fishing season there, and were accustomed to dry their nets upon the rocks. See on Eze 26:11 (note).
The words behind it
14 Hebrew wordsEvery Hebrew word of this verse in the order it stands, with what it means and the door to its own study. The last column counts the times a word stands in the whole Bible: the rarer the word, the more the places it appears belong together.
| Hebrew | Sound | Meaning | Word study | In the Bible |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| מִשְׁטַ֨ח | mishtach | a spreading place of | H4894 → | 3 times |
| חֲרָמִ֤ים | charamim | nets | H2764 → | 38 times |
| תִּֽהְיֶה֙ | tihyeh | it will be | H1961 → | 3559 times |
| בְּת֣וֹךְ | betokh | in [the] middle of | H8432 → | 418 times |
| הַיָּ֔ם | haiyam | the sea | H3220 → | 396 times |
| כִּ֚י | ki | for | H3588 → | 4482 times |
| אֲנִ֣י | ʾani | I | H589 → | 874 times |
| דִבַּ֔רְתִּי | dibarti | I have spoken | H1696 → | 1141 times |
| נְאֻ֖ם | neum | [the] utterance of | H5002 → | 376 times |
| אֲדֹנָ֣י | ʾadonai | [the] Lord | H136 → | 440 times |
| יְהוִ֑ה | yahweh | Yahweh | H3069 → | 306 times |
| וְהָיְתָ֥ה | vehayetah | and it will become | H1961 → | 3559 times |
| לְבַ֖ז | levaz | <into> spoil | H957 → | 25 times |
| לַגּוֹיִֽם׃ | lagoyim | for the nations | H1471 → | 561 times |
מִשְׁטַ֨חa spreading place of
mishtachH4894 →3 times
חֲרָמִ֤יםnets
charamimH2764 →38 times
תִּֽהְיֶה֙it will be
tihyehH1961 →3559 times
בְּת֣וֹךְin [the] middle of
betokhH8432 →418 times
הַיָּ֔םthe sea
haiyamH3220 →396 times
כִּ֚יfor
kiH3588 →4482 times
אֲנִ֣יI
ʾaniH589 →874 times
דִבַּ֔רְתִּיI have spoken
dibartiH1696 →1141 times
נְאֻ֖ם[the] utterance of
neumH5002 →376 times
אֲדֹנָ֣י[the] Lord
ʾadonaiH136 →440 times
יְהוִ֑הYahweh
yahwehH3069 →306 times
וְהָיְתָ֥הand it will become
vehayetahH1961 →3559 times
לְבַ֖ז<into> spoil
levazH957 →25 times
לַגּוֹיִֽם׃for the nations
lagoyimH1471 →561 times
A shaded row is a word that stands 400 times or fewer in the Bible.
The walk
8 stopsEach card is a verse this one points to, and under it the verses that one points to in turn. Where several paths arrive at the same place, that place is listed first: the text keeps returning to it.
Through
Ezekiel 29:19Therefore this is what the Lord GOD says: I will give the land of Egypt to Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon, who will carry off its wealth, seize its spoil, and remove its plunder. This…
it leads to
- Jeremiah 43:10–13
Then tell them that this is what the LORD of Hosts, the God of Israel, says: ‘I will send for My servant Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon, and I will set his throne over these…
- Ezekiel 30:24–25
I will strengthen the arms of Babylon’s king and place My sword in his hand, but I will break the arms of Pharaoh, who will groan before him like a mortally wounded man.
- Ezekiel 32:11
For this is what the Lord GOD says: ‘The sword of the king of Babylon will come against you!
- Jeremiah 43:10–13
Through
Ezekiel 47:10Fishermen will stand by the shore; from En-gedi to En-eglaim they will spread their nets to catch fish of many kinds, like the fish of the Great Sea.
it leads to
- Matthew 4:19
“Come, follow Me,” Jesus said, “and I will make you fishers of men.”
- Numbers 34:6
Your western border will be the coastline of the Great Sea; this will be your boundary on the west.
- Psalms 104:25
Here is the sea, vast and wide, teeming with creatures beyond number, living things both great and small.
- Matthew 4:19
Through
Ezekiel 27:32As they wail and mourn over you, they will take up a lament for you: ‘Who was ever like Tyre, silenced in the middle of the sea?
it leads to
- Ezekiel 26:17
Then they will lament for you, saying, “How you have perished, O city of renown inhabited by seafaring men—she who was powerful on the sea, along with her people, who imposed terror on all…
- Ezekiel 26:17
Through
Ezekiel 26:19For this is what the Lord GOD says: ‘When I make you a desolate city like other deserted cities, and when I raise up the deep against you so that the mighty waters cover…
it leads to
- Isaiah 8:7–8
the Lord will surely bring against them the mighty floodwaters of the Euphrates—the king of Assyria and all his pomp. It will overflow its channels and overrun its banks.
- Isaiah 8:7–8
About Ezekiel

This page draws on Adam Clarke, Commentary on the Bible; Carl Friedrich Keil, Biblical Commentary on the Prophecies of Ezekiel; Carl Friedrich Keil, Biblical Commentary on the Old Testament: Ezekiel; Jerome, Commentary on Ezekiel; John Gill, Exposition of the Old Testament (1748-1763); Matthew Henry, Commentary on the Whole Bible and Patrick Fairbairn, An Exposition of Ezekiel.
