Pass ye over to Tarshish; howl, ye inhabitants of the isle.
Parallel translations
- WEB Pass over to Tarshish! Wail, you inhabitants of the coast!
- BSB Cross over to Tarshish; wail, O inhabitants of the coastland!
- NKJV Cross over to Tarshish; Wail, you inhabitants of the coastland!
- NASB Pass over to Tarshish; Wail, you inhabitants of the coastland.
- NLT Send word now to Tarshish! Wail, you people who live in distant lands!
Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
Scripture quotations taken from the (NASB®) New American Standard Bible®, Copyright © 1960, 1971, 1977, 1995, 2020 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission. All rights reserved. lockman.org
Scripture quotations are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.
Quick answer
The Phoenicians are told to flee as refugees to distant Tarshish, wailing in grief. Their coastland is no longer safe.
Overview
Once the senders of trading fleets, the inhabitants now flee across the sea as exiles. The call to wail underscores the reversal of fortune. God can turn a proud people's commerce into a scattering and a lament.
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 5
- Isa 23:12And he said, Thou shalt no more rejoice, O thou oppressed virgin, daughter of Zidon: arise, pass over to Chittim; there also shalt thou have no rest.
- Isa 23:10Pass through thy land as a river, O daughter of Tarshish: there is no more strength.
- Isa 21:15For they fled from the swords, from the drawn sword, and from the bent bow, and from the grievousness of war.
- Isa 16:7Therefore shall Moab howl for Moab, every one shall howl: for the foundations of Kirhareseth shall ye mourn; surely they are stricken.
- Isa 23:1–2The burden of Tyre. Howl, ye ships of Tarshish; for it is laid waste, so that there is no house, no entering in: from the land of Chittim it is revealed to them.
Themes, concepts, people & topics
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Christ at the center
Isaiah sees him most clearly: the virgin's son Immanuel, the child on David's throne, the shoot from Jesse, the light to the nations, and above all the Suffering Servant pierced for our transgressions (ch. 53).
How Isaiah 23:6 points to him is part of the one story that runs through all Scripture — meet Jesus at the heart of the web, or follow a trail that traces him from Genesis to Revelation.
Original language
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