Bible Strands
Ezekiel 28:12
“Son of man, take up a lament for the king of Tyre and tell him that this is what the Lord GOD says: ‘You were the seal of perfection, full of wisdom and perfect in beauty.
Berean Standard Bible
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Study note
Setting — The Lord GOD commands Ezekiel to deliver a prophetic lament to the king of Tyre. This oracle follows a direct divine address and immediately precedes a description of the ruler's original state.
The words — The command uses שָׂ֥א (sa') for "take up" and קִינָ֖ה (ki.Nah) for "lamentation." These terms establish the required ritual response to the coming judgment.
The thread — This directive parallels the command to "take up a lament for the princes of Israel" (Ezekiel 19:1) and the future mourning for Tyre (Ezekiel 26:17). The concept of a divine "seal" also appears later as a pledge of the Spirit (2 Corinthians 1:22).
Why it lands — The text declares the king was created with perfection, wisdom, and beauty before his fall, demanding recognition of human origins and limits. It requires the reader to confront the gap between created excellence and subsequent corruption without romanticizing the ruler.
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
Son of man, take up a lamentation upon the king of Tyrus, and say unto him, Thus saith the Lord God; Thou sealest up the sum, full of wisdom, and perfect in beauty.
Cross-references
- Ezekiel 19:1 “As for you, take up a lament for the princes of Israel
- 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 peoples!
- 2 Corinthians 1:22 placed His seal on us, and put His Spirit in our hearts as a pledge of what is to come.
- Colossians 1:9 For this reason, since the day we heard about you, we have not stopped praying for you and asking God to fill you with the knowledge of His will in all spiritual wisdom and understanding,
- Colossians 2:3 in whom are hidden all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge.
- James 3:13 Who is wise and understanding among you? Let him show it by his good conduct, by deeds done in the humility that comes from wisdom.
- 2 Chronicles 35:25 Then Jeremiah lamented over Josiah, and to this day all the male and female singers recite laments over Josiah. They established them as a statute for Israel, and indeed they are written in the Book of Laments.
- Proverbs 21:30 There is no wisdom, no understanding, no counsel that can prevail against the LORD.
- Isaiah 10:13 For he says: ‘By the strength of my hand I have done this, and by my wisdom, for I am clever. I have removed the boundaries of nations and plundered their treasures; like a mighty one I subdued their rulers.
- Isaiah 14:4 you will sing this song of contempt against the king of Babylon: How the oppressor has ceased, and how his fury has ended!