Isaiah 23

All 18 verses in the Clear Bible Translation. Tap a verse to compare the KJV and read what it means.

Read Isaiah 23 in the Bible reader, with audio →

1. 1A prophecy against Tyre. Howl, you ships of Tarshish, for it is laid waste, with no house and no way to enter. It is revealed to them from the land of Kittim.
2. 2Be silent, you inhabitants of the coast; you whom the merchants of Sidon, who cross the sea, have supplied.
3. 3Her income came from grain shipped across the great waters — the crops of the Shihor, the harvest of the Nile. She was the marketplace of nations.
4. 4Be ashamed, Sidon! For the sea has spoken — the fortress of the sea has declared: "I have never been in labor or given birth. I have never raised young men or brought up young women."
5. 5When the news reaches Egypt, they will be in agony over what has happened to Tyre.
6. 6Cross over to Tarshish; wail, you inhabitants of the island.
7. 7Is this really your celebrated city, the one founded in ancient times? Her own feet will carry her far away to live as a stranger.
8. 8Who planned this against Tyre, the crowning city, whose merchants were princes, whose traders were honored throughout the earth?
9. 9The LORD of hosts planned it, to stain the pride of all glory and to bring into contempt all the honorable of the earth.
10. 10Flow through your land like a river, O people of Tarshish; there is no more strength.
11. 11He stretched out his hand over the sea and shook the kingdoms: the LORD has given a commandment against the merchant city, to destroy its strongholds.
12. 12He said, "You will never celebrate again, you crushed virgin daughter of Sidon. Get up and flee to Kittim — but even there you will find no rest."
13. 13Look at the land of the Chaldeans; this people did not exist until the Assyrians established it for those who live in the wilderness. They built its towers, raised its palaces, and he brought it to ruin.
14. 14Howl, you ships of Tarshish, for your strength is laid waste.
15. 15When that day comes, Tyre will be forgotten for seventy years, like the days of one king. After seventy years, Tyre will sing like a harlot.
16. 16Take a harp and go around the city, you forgotten prostitute. Play sweet melodies and sing many songs, so that you may be remembered.
17. 17After those seventy years are over, the LORD will turn His attention back to Tyre, and she will return to her trade and commit fornication with all the kingdoms of the world on the face of the earth.
18. 18Her profits and earnings will be holiness to the LORD. They will not be hoarded or stored away, but will be for those who serve the LORD, providing them with enough food and durable clothing.