Ezekiel 28:4 kjv
With thy wisdom and with thine understanding thou hast gotten thee riches, and hast gotten gold and silver into thy treasures:
Ezekiel 28:4 nkjv
With your wisdom and your understanding You have gained riches for yourself, And gathered gold and silver into your treasuries;
Ezekiel 28:4 niv
By your wisdom and understanding you have gained wealth for yourself and amassed gold and silver in your treasuries.
Ezekiel 28:4 esv
by your wisdom and your understanding you have made wealth for yourself, and have gathered gold and silver into your treasuries;
Ezekiel 28:4 nlt
With your wisdom and understanding you have amassed great wealth ?
gold and silver for your treasuries.
Ezekiel 28 4 Cross References
| Verse | Text | Reference |
|---|---|---|
| Ezekiel 28:4 | "By your great wisdom and by your trade you have increased your wealth..." | Judgment on Tyre, Pride, Wealth |
| Isaiah 14:13 | "You said in your heart, ‘I will ascend to heaven...'" | Satan's rebellion, Pride |
| Ezekiel 28:2 | "Son of man, say to the prince of Tyre, ‘Thus says the Lord GOD...'" | Pronouncement against Tyre |
| Ezekiel 28:14 | "You were the anointed guardian cherub..." | Cherubic imagery, Fallen angel |
| Luke 10:18 | "And he said to them, ‘I saw Satan fall like lightning from heaven.’" | Fall of Satan |
| Revelation 18 | Description of Babylon's fall due to wealth and pride | Parallel to Tyre's fall |
| Jeremiah 51:9 | "We would have healed Babylon, but she is not healed..." | Futile attempts to save from pride |
| Proverbs 16:18 | "Pride goes before destruction, and a haughty spirit before a fall." | The consequences of pride |
| 1 Timothy 6:10 | "For the love of money is a root of all kinds of evils." | Dangers of love for wealth |
| Romans 1:22 | "Claiming to be wise, they became fools..." | False wisdom, Self-deception |
| Ezekiel 27:3 | Description of Tyre's maritime and trade prosperity | Tyre's commercial might |
| Deuteronomy 8:18 | "You shall remember the LORD your God, for it is he who gives you power...'" | Source of power and wealth |
| Psalm 73:3 | "For I was envious of the arrogant when I saw the prosperity of the wicked." | Prosperity of the wicked |
| 1 Corinthians 10:12 | "Therefore let anyone who thinks that he stands take heed lest he fall." | Warning against overconfidence |
| Romans 11:18 | "Do not be arrogant toward the branches." | Warning against boasting |
| Genesis 11:6 | "And the LORD said, ‘Behold, they are one people, and have all one language, and this is only the beginning of what they will do...'" | Tower of Babel, Human pride |
| Job 1:7 | "Satan came also among them." | Satan's presence in heavenly council |
| Isaiah 23:8 | "Who has planned this against Tyre..." | Judgment initiated by God |
| John 8:44 | "When he lies, he speaks out of his own character, for he is a liar..." | Satan as the father of lies |
| 1 Peter 5:8 | "Be sober-minded; be vigilant. Your adversary the devil prowls around..." | The vigilance required against Satan |
Ezekiel 28 verses
Ezekiel 28 4 Meaning
This verse describes a pronouncement of judgment against the king of Tyre. It declares that his supposed wisdom and understanding have led him to believe he possesses divine power and authority. This self-aggrandizement stems from his wealth and perceived cleverness in trade and prosperity.
Ezekiel 28 4 Context
Chapter 28 of Ezekiel contains two distinct oracles. The first (verses 1-19) is directed against the prince of Tyre, focusing on his arrogance and pride stemming from his wealth and influence. The second part of this oracle (verses 11-19) seems to expand this judgment to include a symbolic figure often understood as Lucifer or Satan, due to the description of a high, fallen angelic being. This verse, specifically, targets the ruler of Tyre, highlighting the source of his downfall: his exceptional wisdom and extensive trade that inflated his ego to a divine level. Historically, Tyre was a wealthy and powerful Phoenician city-state known for its maritime trade and extensive commercial network.
Ezekiel 28 4 Word Analysis
"By your great wisdom":
- "By": Preposition indicating means or cause.
- "your": Possessive pronoun.
- "great": (Hebrew: rab - רַב) Denotes abundance, muchness, significance, greatness.
- "wisdom": (Hebrew: chochmah - חָכְמָה) Refers to skill, knowledge, prudence, understanding. In this context, it likely refers to the political and commercial shrewdness for which Tyre was famous.
"and by your trade":
- "and": Conjunction linking clauses.
- "by": Again, indicating the means or cause.
- "your": Possessive pronoun.
- "trade": (Hebrew: rekulah - רְכֻלָּה) Means merchandise, traffic, wares. It emphasizes Tyre's extensive commercial activities and the wealth derived from it.
"you have increased your wealth":
- "you": Pronoun.
- "have increased": (Hebrew: gadal - גָּדַל) Verb meaning to grow great, become powerful, increase, magnify.
- "your": Possessive pronoun.
- "wealth": (Hebrew: hon - הוֹן) Means possessions, property, riches, abundance.
Words-Group Analysis:
- "By your great wisdom and by your trade": This phrase links two key factors contributing to Tyre's success: intellectual prowess (wisdom) and commercial enterprise (trade). The parallelism underscores that both these earthly strengths led to an overestimation of self. The Hebrew structure implies these were the very tools or methods God enabled, yet they became avenues for self-exaltation.
- "you have increased your wealth": This highlights the consequence of his wisdom and trade—a vast accumulation of riches. This prosperity, rather than leading to humility or acknowledgment of God, became the foundation of his pride and self-deification. The verb "increased" suggests a continuous growth and expansion of power and possessions.
Ezekiel 28 4 Bonus Section
The identification of the "king of Tyre" in this chapter often carries a dual meaning in theological interpretation. While undeniably referring to a historical human ruler, many scholars and biblical expositors see in the escalating language, particularly in verses describing his splendor and fall, a symbolic representation of Satan's original rebellion. The attributes ascribed to him—great wisdom, dwelling in Eden, being anointed, a guardian cherub—parallel descriptions found elsewhere concerning Lucifer before his fall (e.g., Isaiah 14). This dual application allows the prophecy against Tyre to serve as a parabolic illustration of the archetypal pride and rebellion that led to the fall of the adversary of God and man. His wealth and influence became the very instruments that led to his condemnation.
Ezekiel 28 4 Commentary
The verse establishes a causal link between Tyre's profound wisdom, its extensive trade networks, and the resultant massive wealth. This prosperity, however, became the fertile ground for crippling pride. The king of Tyre, blinded by his success and astute business acumen, began to believe that his own intelligence and efforts were the sole architects of his fortune, displacing God from his rightful place as the ultimate source of all power and provision. His worldly success fostered a dangerous self-reliance and inflated ego, setting the stage for his inevitable divine judgment. This verse is a stark warning about how earthly blessings can become a snare if not tempered by humility and a constant acknowledgment of dependence on God.