Bible Strands
Isaiah 23:6
Cross over to Tarshish; wail, O inhabitants of the coastland!
Berean Standard Bible
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Study note
Setting — The prophet speaks for YHWH to the coastal merchants and allies of Tyre at the moment the city’s destruction becomes imminent. The command redirects their attention from local mourning to distant exile.
The words — עִבְר֖וּ ('iv.Ru) literally means "pass over" or "cross over," and הֵילִ֖ילוּ (hei.Li.lu) literally means "wail" or "utter a lament." These two imperatives structure the verse’s direct address.
The thread — The command to cross borders appears in Isaiah 23:12 regarding Cyprus, while the call to wail echoes Isaiah 16:7 for Moab and Isaiah 21:15 describes fleeing the drawn sword. These passages trace a recurring pattern of displaced mourning and forced migration under judgment.
Why it lands — The text demands acknowledgment that coastal commerce and pride cannot withstand divine assessment. It requires the reader to accept flight and lament as the only concrete responses to fallen power.
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
Pass ye over to Tarshish; howl, ye inhabitants of the isle.
Cross-references
- 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.”
- Isaiah 16:7 Therefore let Moab wail; let them wail together for Moab. Moan for the raisin cakes of Kir-hareseth, you who are utterly stricken.
- Isaiah 21:15 For they flee from the sword—the sword that is drawn—from the bow that is bent, and from the stress of battle.
- Isaiah 23:10 Cultivate your land like the Nile, O Daughter of Tarshish; there is no longer a harbor.
- Isaiah 23:1 This is the burden against Tyre: Wail, O ships of Tarshish, for Tyre is laid waste, without house or harbor. Word has reached them from the land of Cyprus.