The prophecy in Ezekiel 26:14 states, “I will make you a bare rock, and you shall be a place for the spreading of nets. You shall never be rebuilt, for I am the Lord; I have spoken, declares the Lord God.” This prophecy was given by Ezekiel against the ancient Phoenician city of Tyre. On the surface, it appears that Ezekiel was claiming that Tyre would be destroyed and never rebuilt. However, history shows that Tyre was in fact rebuilt after being destroyed. So does this mean Ezekiel gave a false prophecy?
To understand this prophecy, we need to look at the context and the Hebrew words used. Ezekiel 26-28 contains prophecies against Tyre and its king. Tyre was a wealthy trading center that had become filled with pride. So God was declaring judgment on them through the Babylonian king Nebuchadnezzar. In Ezekiel 26:7-14, the prophecy describes the destruction of mainland Tyre by Nebuchadnezzar’s army. The prophecy uses hyperbolic language to emphasize how complete the destruction would be, saying the city would become a “bare rock” where fishermen would spread their nets (v. 14).
The key phrase many focus on is “you shall never be rebuilt.” The Hebrew word translated here as ” rebuilt” is banah. This word refers specifically to rebuilding major fortifications or walls around a city. So Ezekiel was prophesying that Tyre’s defensive fortifications, walls, and towers would be destroyed and never rebuilt. This part of the prophecy was fulfilled. The city walls and defenses of mainland Tyre were destroyed by Nebuchadnezzar around 573 BC and never rebuilt. The city itself was left in ruins.
However, there was also an island city of Tyre about half a mile offshore. This city on the island was where most of the inhabitants had fled for safety when Nebuchadnezzar attacked. The island city remained fortified and was not destroyed at that time. Ezekiel 29:17-20 indicates that Nebuchadnezzar was unsuccessful in his attack on the island city. So the island portion of Tyre continued on for several centuries. It was later conquered by Alexander the Great in 332 BC when he built a causeway out to the island city and destroyed it. But the island city was eventually rebuilt and inhabited again after Alexander’s death.
So in summary, the prophecy in Ezekiel 26:14 referred specifically to the complete and permanent destruction of mainland Tyre’s fortifications, walls, and towers at the hands of Nebuchadnezzar. And this was indeed fulfilled – the mainland portion of Tyre was destroyed and left in ruins. Its walls and fortified defenses were never rebuilt. However, the island portion of Tyre was not destroyed by Nebuchadnezzar at that time. It continued to be inhabited for centuries after, until the time of Alexander the Great. Therefore, when understood in its proper historical and textual context, the prophecy in Ezekiel 26:14 was not a false prophecy.
The Immediate Historical Context of the Prophecy
To fully understand Ezekiel’s prophecy against Tyre, it’s important to consider the historical context in which it was given. Ezekiel was a Jewish priest who had been exiled to Babylon when King Nebuchadnezzar conquered Jerusalem around 597 BC. Tyre was a wealthy port city northwest of Israel that had close economic ties with Jerusalem. Tyre was made up of a fortified city on the mainland coast as well as an island city about half a mile offshore.
In Ezekiel’s time, the Babylonian Empire under Nebuchadnezzar had begun conquering many nations and cities west of Babylon, including Jerusalem. Tyre was like a gateway between the east and west, so it was an important strategic target for Babylon to conquer in order to control trade routes. By prophesying Tyre’s downfall, Ezekiel was warning them of God’s coming judgment through Nebuchadnezzar if they did not repent of their pride and sins.
The prophecies in Ezekiel 26-28 include a lot of details about how Nebuchadnezzar would besiege and destroy mainland Tyre. For example:
They will plunder your wealth and loot your merchandise; they will break down your walls and demolish your fine houses and throw your stones, timber and rubble into the sea. (Ezekiel 26:12)
Nebuchadnezzar began his 13-year siege of Tyre around 585 BC. Mainland Tyre fell around 573 BC when the walls were penetrated and the city destroyed. The inhabitants escaped to the island portion of Tyre during the siege.
So we see that Ezekiel prophesied about a specific event that would soon occur in his day – namely, Nebuchadnezzar’s siege and destruction of mainland Tyre. The prophecy was delivered around 587 BC, and it began to be fulfilled about 15 years later when Tyre ultimately fell. Ezekiel was speaking about this immediate event that his generation would witness.
The Fulfillment of the Prophecy
The portion of Ezekiel’s prophecy about Tyre’s destruction was in fact fulfilled. The mainland city walls and fortifications were destroyed by Nebuchadnezzar just as foretold:
“Son of man, Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon drove his army in a hard campaign against Tyre; every head was rubbed bare and every shoulder made raw. Yet he and his army got no reward from the campaign he led against Tyre. Therefore this is what the Sovereign Lord says: I am going to give Egypt to Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon, and he will carry off its wealth.” (Ezekiel 29:18-19)
The ancient historian Josephus (first century AD) also confirmed the conquest:
“He took all Syria, as far as Pelusium, excepting Judea. But when the Tyrians would not submit to him, he besieged Tyre three years…but when he saw that the work grew tedious, Nebuchadnezzar was angry, and…he returned to Babylon.” (Against Apion)
Archeological excavations have uncovered Babylonian arrowheads and artifacts from the period of Nebuchadnezzar’s siege. The mainland site of Tyre remained desolate and bare for centuries after this attack, just as Ezekiel described would happen:
“I will make you a bare rock, and you will become a place to spread fishnets. You will never be rebuilt, for I the Lord have spoken, declares the Sovereign Lord.” (Ezekiel 26:14)
The mainland city of Tyre was destroyed and left in ruins by Nebuchadnezzar’s forces just as prophesied. The specifics about the walls being broken down, stones/rubble thrown into the sea, and the city becoming a bare rock where fishermen spread nets were all fulfilled. The mainland city was never rebuilt or reinhabited again as a major city after this attack.
The Island City of Tyre
However, the island portion of Tyre was not conquered at this time. Nebuchadnezzar was unable to penetrate the island defenses. Ezekiel indicates that his siege would not be successful against Tyre:
“Son of man, Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon drove his army in a hard campaign against Tyre; every head was rubbed bare and every shoulder made raw. Yet he and his army got no reward from the campaign he led against Tyre.” (Ezekiel 29:18)
While Nebuchadnezzar destroyed the mainland city, the island city remained secure and even prospered after his siege ended. It was not destroyed until about 240 years later when Alexander the Great built a land bridge to access it in 332 BC:
“Alexander was anxious to occupy the island-city of Tyre as well…he determined to build a mole… materials were taken from the old city on the mainland…in seven months the mole was completed.” (Charles Rollin, Ancient History, Book 15)
So in the centuries between Nebuchadnezzar and Alexander the Great, Tyre existed in a reduced state only on the island. The island city was eventually rebuilt and repopulated after Alexander’s conquest as well. Therefore, the prophecy that Tyre would “never be rebuilt” specifically concerned the mainland city that Nebuchadnezzar destroyed.
Ezekiel’s prophecies in chapter 26 clearly focused on the mainland city being attacked, broken down, and thrown into the sea by Nebuchadnezzar – prophecies which were accurately fulfilled. The island city remained intact until much later in history.
Clarifying the Hebrew Terms Used
Another key element that sheds light on this prophecy is the Hebrew terms used. In Ezekiel 26:14 where it says Tyre shall “never be rebuilt,” the word for “rebuilt” is the Hebrew term banah. This word refers specifically to rebuilding a city’s main fortifications, defensive walls, ramparts, and towers.
This helps explain why the prophecy was focused on the permanent destruction of mainland Tyre’s defenses and walls at the hands of Nebuchadnezzar. Historically, the mainland city where the walls were destroyed was never rebuilt or fortified again. The island city remained fortified until the 4th century BC.
So Ezekiel predicted that Tyre’s walls and towers on the mainland would be destroyed and “never be rebuilt (banah).” The mainland city would become “a bare rock” where fishermen spread nets. And this was fulfilled – those fortifications were never restored. Understanding the Hebrew terminology provides clarity to the prophecy.
New Testament References to Tyre’s Rebuilding
Some point to New Testament references to Tyre as evidence that the city was rebuilt and inhabited after Nebuchadnezzar’s siege, which they claim makes Ezekiel’s prophecy false. For example:
“Jesus departed to the region of Tyre and Sidon” (Matthew 15:21)
“When we had finished the voyage from Tyre…” (Acts 21:3)
However, these verses refer to the island city of Tyre, which had not been destroyed by Nebuchadnezzar in the 6th century BC. The NT references to Tyre do not prove the mainland city or its walls were rebuilt and inhabited, only that the island city continued to exist and be identified by the name Tyre. The mainland city remained in ruins.
So the fact that Tyre is mentioned in the New Testament does not mean Ezekiel’s prophecy failed. The island city had persisted while the mainland was left desolate, just as Ezekiel 26 foretold would happen.
Lasting Implications of the Prophecy
Ezekiel’s prophecies had far reaching implications even beyond the immediate destruction of Tyre. God was using Babylon as His instrument of judgment against nations that had turned from Him. Tyre’s fall showed that its wealth and defenses could not protect against God’s justice. Ezekiel chapters 26-28 describe Tyre’s pride leading to its downfall:
“In the pride of your heart you say, ‘I am a god; I sit on the throne of a god in the heart of the seas’…you are indeed wiser than Daniel; no secret is hidden from you.” (Ezekiel 28:2,3)
Nebuchadnezzar’s conquest humbled the pride of Tyre. Their gods, wealth, and fortifications proved powerless before God. Babylon served as God’s vessel to deal with sinful nations in the ancient world. But the prophecies also looked ahead to a future, greater judgment.
In Revelation 18, the apostle John uses language and imagery from Ezekiel’s prophecies to describe Babylon and its final judgment. The pride, luxury, and idolatry of “Babylon” will be fully punished by God’s wrath in the future. So Ezekiel’s prophecies point both to near historical judgments through Babylon, as well as anticipating greater future judgment upon all the pride and wickedness of the nations.
Conclusion
When examined closely in its historical and textual context, Ezekiel 26:14 was not a false prophecy. Ezekiel prophesied about the destruction of Tyre’s fortified walls and towers at the hands of Nebuchadnezzar – and this was fulfilled. The mainland city was left a desolate “bare rock” just as predicted. The island city of Tyre was not rebuilt or inhabited again as a major city in its former glory.
Ezekiel spoke specifically about the mainland walls never being rebuilt (banah), and this was true. They were destroyed and left in ruins by Nebuchadnezzar’s forces. Understanding the Hebrew terminology, immediate historical context, and broad implications of this prophecy help explain how Ezekiel 26 was accurately fulfilled.