Location
Overview
Tyre was the foremost city of Phoenicia, a wealthy merchant seaport famed for its purple dye, cedar, and far-flung trade. It was Israel's ally under David and Solomon, and later a target of the prophets.
Hiram and the temple
Hiram king of Tyre, "ever a lover of David," supplied cedar, gold, and skilled workers for Solomon's temple and palace (1 Kings 5:1–12), and his sailors joined Solomon's fleet (1 Kings 9:27).
The prophets against Tyre
For its pride and cruelty, Tyre drew some of Scripture's most vivid oracles. Ezekiel laments the "renowned city" as a glorious ship that would sink (Ezekiel 26–28), and foretold its scraping bare "like the top of a rock."
Tyre in the Gospels
Jesus withdrew to the region of Tyre and Sidon and healed the Syrophoenician woman's daughter (Mark 7:24–30), and said Tyre would fare better in judgment than the unrepentant towns of Galilee (Matthew 11:21–22).
Events Here
Hiram of Tyre supplies cedar and craftsmen for the temple
Scripture References
56 versesJoshua1 verse
Joshua 19:29
And then the coast turneth to Ramah, and to the strong city Tyre; and the coast turneth to Hosah; and the outgoings thereof are at the sea from the coast to Achzib: Tyre: Heb. Tzor
2 Samuel2 verses
2 Samuel 5:11
And Hiram king of Tyre sent messengers to David, and cedar trees, and carpenters, and masons: and they built David an house. masons: Heb. hewers of the stone of the wall
2 Samuel 24:7
And came to the strong hold of Tyre, and to all the cities of the Hivites, and of the Canaanites: and they went out to the south of Judah, even to Beersheba.
1 Kings5 verses
1 Kings 5:1
And Hiram king of Tyre sent his servants unto Solomon; for he had heard that they had anointed him king in the room of his father: for Hiram was ever a lover of David.
1 Kings 7:13
And king Solomon sent and fetched Hiram out of Tyre.
1 Kings 7:14
He was a widow's son of the tribe of Naphtali, and his father was a man of Tyre, a worker in brass: and he was filled with wisdom, and understanding, and cunning to work all works in brass. And he came to king Solomon, and wrought all his work. a widow's: Heb. the son of a widow woman
1 Kings 9:11
(Now Hiram the king of Tyre had furnished Solomon with cedar trees and fir trees, and with gold, according to all his desire,) that then king Solomon gave Hiram twenty cities in the land of Galilee.
1 Kings 9:12
And Hiram came out from Tyre to see the cities which Solomon had given him; and they pleased him not. pleased: Heb. were not right in his eyes
1 Chronicles2 verses
1 Chronicles 14:1
Now Hiram king of Tyre sent messengers to David, and timber of cedars, with masons and carpenters, to build him an house.
1 Chronicles 22:4
Also cedar trees in abundance: for the Zidonians and they of Tyre brought much cedar wood to David.
2 Chronicles3 verses
2 Chronicles 2:3
And Solomon sent to Huram the king of Tyre, saying, As thou didst deal with David my father, and didst send him cedars to build him an house to dwell therein, even so deal with me. Huram: or, Hiram
2 Chronicles 2:11
Then Huram the king of Tyre answered in writing, which he sent to Solomon, Because the LORD hath loved his people, he hath made thee king over them.
2 Chronicles 2:14
The son of a woman of the daughters of Dan, and his father was a man of Tyre, skilful to work in gold, and in silver, in brass, in iron, in stone, and in timber, in purple, in blue, and in fine linen, and in crimson; also to grave any manner of graving, and to find out every device which shall be put to him, with thy cunning men, and with the cunning men of my lord David thy father.
Ezra1 verse
Ezra 3:7
They gave money also unto the masons, and to the carpenters; and meat, and drink, and oil, unto them of Zidon, and to them of Tyre, to bring cedar trees from Lebanon to the sea of Joppa, according to the grant that they had of Cyrus king of Persia. carpenters: or, workmen
Nehemiah1 verse
Nehemiah 13:16
There dwelt men of Tyre also therein, which brought fish, and all manner of ware, and sold on the sabbath unto the children of Judah, and in Jerusalem.
Psalms3 verses
Psalms 45:12
And the daughter of Tyre shall be there with a gift; even the rich among the people shall intreat thy favour. favour: Heb. face
Psalms 83:7
Gebal, and Ammon, and Amalek; the Philistines with the inhabitants of Tyre;
Psalms 87:4
I will make mention of Rahab and Babylon to them that know me: behold Philistia, and Tyre, with Ethiopia; this man was born there.
Isaiah5 verses
Isaiah 23:1
The 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.
Isaiah 23:5
As at the report concerning Egypt, so shall they be sorely pained at the report of Tyre.
Isaiah 23:8
Who hath taken this counsel against Tyre, the crowning city, whose merchants are princes, whose traffickers are the honourable of the earth?
Isaiah 23:15
And it shall come to pass in that day, that Tyre shall be forgotten seventy years, according to the days of one king: after the end of seventy years shall Tyre sing as an harlot. shall Tyre: Heb. it shall be unto Tyre as the song of an harlot
Isaiah 23:17
And it shall come to pass after the end of seventy years, that the LORD will visit Tyre, and she shall turn to her hire, and shall commit fornication with all the kingdoms of the world upon the face of the earth.
Jeremiah3 verses
Jeremiah 25:22
And all the kings of Tyrus, and all the kings of Zidon, and the kings of the isles which are beyond the sea, isles: or, region by the sea side
Jeremiah 27:3
And send them to the king of Edom, and to the king of Moab, and to the king of the Ammonites, and to the king of Tyrus, and to the king of Zidon, by the hand of the messengers which come to Jerusalem unto Zedekiah king of Judah;
Jeremiah 47:4
Because of the day that cometh to spoil all the Philistines, and to cut off from Tyrus and Zidon every helper that remaineth: for the LORD will spoil the Philistines, the remnant of the country of Caphtor. the country: Heb. the isle
Ezekiel12 verses
Ezekiel 26:2
Son of man, because that Tyrus hath said against Jerusalem, Aha, she is broken that was the gates of the people: she is turned unto me: I shall be replenished, now she is laid waste:
Ezekiel 26:3
Therefore thus saith the Lord GOD; Behold, I am against thee, O Tyrus, and will cause many nations to come up against thee, as the sea causeth his waves to come up.
Ezekiel 26:4
And they shall destroy the walls of Tyrus, and break down her towers: I will also scrape her dust from her, and make her like the top of a rock.
Ezekiel 26:7
For thus saith the Lord GOD; Behold, I will bring upon Tyrus Nebuchadrezzar king of Babylon, a king of kings, from the north, with horses, and with chariots, and with horsemen, and companies, and much people.
Ezekiel 26:15
Thus saith the Lord GOD to Tyrus; Shall not the isles shake at the sound of thy fall, when the wounded cry, when the slaughter is made in the midst of thee?
Ezekiel 27:2
Now, thou son of man, take up a lamentation for Tyrus;
Ezekiel 27:3
And say unto Tyrus, O thou that art situate at the entry of the sea, which art a merchant of the people for many isles, Thus saith the Lord GOD; O Tyrus, thou hast said, I am of perfect beauty. of perfect: Heb. perfect of beauty
Ezekiel 27:8
The inhabitants of Zidon and Arvad were thy mariners: thy wise men, O Tyrus, that were in thee, were thy pilots.
Ezekiel 27:32
And in their wailing they shall take up a lamentation for thee, and lament over thee, saying, What city is like Tyrus, like the destroyed in the midst of the sea?
Ezekiel 28:2
Son of man, say unto the prince of Tyrus, Thus saith the Lord GOD; Because thine heart is lifted up, and thou hast said, I am a God, I sit in the seat of God, in the midst of the seas; yet thou art a man, and not God, though thou set thine heart as the heart of God: midst: Heb. heart
Ezekiel 28:12
Son of man, take up a lamentation upon the king of Tyrus, and say unto him, Thus saith the Lord GOD; Thou sealest up the sum, full of wisdom, and perfect in beauty.
Ezekiel 29:18
Son of man, Nebuchadrezzar king of Babylon caused his army to serve a great service against Tyrus: every head was made bald, and every shoulder was peeled: yet had he no wages, nor his army, for Tyrus, for the service that he had served against it:
Hosea1 verse
Hosea 9:13
Ephraim, as I saw Tyrus, is planted in a pleasant place: but Ephraim shall bring forth his children to the murderer.
Joel1 verse
Joel 3:4
Yea, and what have ye to do with me, O Tyre, and Zidon, and all the coasts of Palestine? will ye render me a recompence? and if ye recompense me, swiftly and speedily will I return your recompence upon your own head;
Amos2 verses
Amos 1:9
Thus saith the LORD; For three transgressions of Tyrus, and for four, I will not turn away the punishment thereof; because they delivered up the whole captivity to Edom, and remembered not the brotherly covenant: the brotherly: Heb. the covenant of brethren
Amos 1:10
But I will send a fire on the wall of Tyrus, which shall devour the palaces thereof.
Zechariah2 verses
Zechariah 9:2
And Hamath also shall border thereby; Tyrus, and Zidon, though it be very wise.
Zechariah 9:3
And Tyrus did build herself a strong hold, and heaped up silver as the dust, and fine gold as the mire of the streets.
Matthew3 verses
Matthew 11:21
Woe unto thee, Chorazin! woe unto thee, Bethsaida! for if the mighty works, which were done in you, had been done in Tyre and Sidon, they would have repented long ago in sackcloth and ashes.
Matthew 11:22
But I say unto you, It shall be more tolerable for Tyre and Sidon at the day of judgment, than for you.
Matthew 15:21
Then Jesus went thence, and departed into the coasts of Tyre and Sidon.
Mark3 verses
Mark 3:8
And from Jerusalem, and from Idumaea, and from beyond Jordan; and they about Tyre and Sidon, a great multitude, when they had heard what great things he did, came unto him.
Mark 7:24
And from thence he arose, and went into the borders of Tyre and Sidon, and entered into an house, and would have no man know it: but he could not be hid.
Mark 7:31
And again, departing from the coasts of Tyre and Sidon, he came unto the sea of Galilee, through the midst of the coasts of Decapolis.
Luke3 verses
Luke 6:17
And he came down with them, and stood in the plain, and the company of his disciples, and a great multitude of people out of all Judaea and Jerusalem, and from the sea coast of Tyre and Sidon, which came to hear him, and to be healed of their diseases;
Luke 10:13
Woe unto thee, Chorazin! woe unto thee, Bethsaida! for if the mighty works had been done in Tyre and Sidon, which have been done in you, they had a great while ago repented, sitting in sackcloth and ashes.
Luke 10:14
But it shall be more tolerable for Tyre and Sidon at the judgment, than for you.
Acts3 verses
Acts 12:20
And Herod was highly displeased with them of Tyre and Sidon: but they came with one accord to him, and, having made Blastus the king's chamberlain their friend, desired peace; because their country was nourished by the king's country. was highly: or, bare an hostile mind, intending war the king's chamberlain: Gr. that was over the king's bedchamber
Acts 21:3
Now when we had discovered Cyprus we left it on the left hand, and sailed into Syria, and landed at Tyre: for there the ship was to unlade her burden.
Acts 21:7
And when we had finished our course from Tyre, we came to Ptolemais, and saluted the brethren, and abode with them one day.
Archaeology & History
Tyre (modern Sour in Lebanon) was built partly on the mainland and partly on a rocky island — hence its name, "rock." Its merchants founded colonies across the Mediterranean, including Carthage. Alexander the Great's famous causeway-siege of 332 BC fulfilled the prophetic image of its stones cast into the sea; the city's ruins are a UNESCO World Heritage Site.
People who appear here
Frequently asked about Tyre
Where is Tyre today?
Today, Tyre corresponds to Tyre (Sour), Lebanon.
What does the name Tyre mean?
The name Tyre means “Rock”.
What happened at Tyre in the Bible?
Key biblical events at Tyre include hiram of tyre supplies cedar and craftsmen for the temple.
Where is Tyre first mentioned in the Bible?
Tyre is first mentioned in Joshua 19:29.
How often is Tyre mentioned in the Bible?
Tyre is mentioned in 56 verses across 19 books: Joshua, 2 Samuel, 1 Kings, 1 Chronicles, 2 Chronicles, Ezra, Nehemiah, Psalms, Isaiah, Jeremiah, Ezekiel, Hosea, Joel, Amos, Zechariah, Matthew, Mark, Luke, Acts.
How was Tyre connected to Solomon’s temple?
King Hiram of Tyre supplied cedar from Lebanon, gold, and expert craftsmen, and his sailors served in Solomon’s fleet — Phoenician skill built much of Israel’s temple and trade.
What did the prophets say about Tyre?
They pronounced its downfall for pride and greed; Ezekiel’s lament pictures it as a magnificent ship that sinks, and its being scraped "like the top of a rock."