Bible Strands
Ezekiel 27:6
Of oaks from Bashan they made your oars; of wood from the coasts of Cyprus they made your deck, inlaid with ivory.
Berean Standard Bible
Follow its threads on the canvas →
Study note
Setting — Ezekiel delivers a prophetic oracle to the exiled community, detailing the construction of a merchant vessel that symbolizes a wealthy trading city. The passage occurs within a broader lament describing the ship's assembly and provisions.
The words — אַלּוֹנִים ('a.lo.Nim) denotes oaks, while מִ/בָּ֔שָׁן (mi./Ba.shon) specifies the geographic source, Bashan. Together they identify the premium timber used for the vessel's oars.
The thread — Isaiah 2:13 and Zechariah 11:2 both reference the oaks of Bashan to symbolize towering, majestic trees destined for judgment or mourning. Ezekiel borrows this established prophetic imagery to describe the ship's craftsmanship.
Why it lands — The text catalogs specific, high-value materials to establish the vessel's former magnificence before its destruction. It asks the reader to measure the scale of the loss by the quality of the construction.
Drafted by a language model from the text, its original words and its cross-references, then checked against them. It can still be wrong: open the verse in the app to report it.
The Hebrew words
King James Version
Of the oaks of Bashan have they made thine oars; the company of the Ashurites have made thy benches of ivory, brought out of the isles of Chittim.
Cross-references
- Genesis 10:4 And the sons of Javan: Elishah, Tarshish, the Kittites, and the Rodanites.
- Isaiah 2:13 against all the cedars of Lebanon, lofty and lifted up, against all the oaks of Bashan,
- Zechariah 11:2 Wail, O cypress, for the cedar has fallen; the majestic trees are ruined! Wail, O oaks of Bashan, for the dense forest has been cut down!
- Jeremiah 2:10 Cross over to the coasts of Cyprus and take a look; send to Kedar and consider carefully; see if there has ever been anything like this:
- Numbers 21:33 Then they turned and went up the road to Bashan, and Og king of Bashan and his whole army came out to meet them in battle at Edrei.
- Numbers 24:24 Ships will come from the coasts of Cyprus; they will subdue Asshur and Eber, but they too will perish forever.”
- Isaiah 23:12 He said, “You shall rejoice no more, O oppressed Virgin Daughter of Sidon. Get up and cross over to Cyprus—even there you will find no rest.”
- Jeremiah 22:20 Go up to Lebanon and cry out; raise your voice in Bashan; cry out from Abarim, for all your lovers have been crushed.