Ezekiel 28:17 - Exposition

Thine heart was lifted up , etc. In yet another point Ezekiel sees the fall of Adam reproduced in that of the Tyrian king. He had forfeited his beauty and his wisdom through the pride which sought for a yet greater glory by a false and counterfeit wisdom ( Genesis 3:6 ). I will cast thee , etc. The words are better taken, as in the Revised Version, in the past tense, I have cast thee … I have laid thee before kings . Pride was to have its fall, as in Isaiah 23:9 . The very sanctuaries, the temples which made Tyre the "holy island," were defiled by the iniquities through which the wealth that adorned them had been gained. The "fire," instead of being a rampart of protection, should burst forth as from the center of the sanctuary to destroy him. Is there an implied allusion to the fiery judgment that fell on Nadab and Abihu (Le Isaiah 10:2 ) and on Korah and his company ( Numbers 16:35 )? The doom of Sic transit gloria mundi was already passed on her.