Authored By :
Bill Kochman
Published On :
December 2, 1998
Last Updated :
September 25, 2012
NOTE: This article or series has not been updated recently. As such, it may possibly contain some outdated information, and/or ideas and beliefs which I no longer embrace, or which have changed to some degree.
Trampling On The Trail Of Satan! The Truth Of The Beast Of The Book Of Revelation Revealed?
In the twenty-eighth chapter of the book of Ezekiel, we find the amazing description of the fall of Tyre, also known as Tyrus. The entire prophecy concerning Tyrus actually stretches from chapter twenty-six to chapter twenty-eight. Tyrus was a very wealthy island city and part of the ancient Phoenician Empire. The Phoenicians were noted for being a great seafaring people, and Tyrus was a maritime center of trade for many nations around the Mediterranean and in the Middle East. In Microsoft's Encarta we find the following definition of Tyre:
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"Tyre or Sur (Latin Tyrus; Hebrew Zor), town, southern Lebanon, on the Mediterranean Sea. Its name was first applied to a small island just off the coast, the site of the earliest settlement here. Tyre was the most important city of ancient Phoenicia. Herodotus, the Greek historian, records a tradition that traced the settlement of Tyre back to the 28th century BC. In the 7th century AD it came under the dominion of the Saracens. In the 12th century it was taken by the Crusaders, who kept it until 1291, when the town came under Muslim rule. It was badly damaged during Arab-Israeli Warfare in 1982. Population (1988 estimate) 12,000. "Tyre," Microsoft (R) Encarta. Copyright (c) 1994 Microsoft Corporation. Copyright (c) 1994 Funk and Wagnall's Corporation."
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What I find most amazing about the above description is that it includes absolutely nothing regarding the invasion and destruction of Tyrus, first by Nebuchadnezzar, and later by Alexander the Great. It is almost as if through a deliberate act of omission, someone is purposely trying to discredit God by not including a part of ancient history which would prove without a shadow of a doubt that the prophecies given by Ezekiel were fulfilled exactly as he had written them. Briefly, Ezekiel received his prophecies during the seventy-year captivity of Jerusalem by King Nebuchadnezzar. We are told that Ezekiel received his prophecy against Tyrus because the Phoenicians scoffed at Jerusalem when it was captured by Nebuchadnezzar:
"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: 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. 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. It shall be a place for the spreading of nets in the midst of the sea: for I have spoken it, saith the Lord GOD: and it shall become a spoil to the nations. And her daughters which are in the field shall be slain by the sword; and they shall know that I am the LORD. 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 26:2-7, KJV
In later Scriptures, the Lord again confirms that the destruction of Tyrus will be total, so much so that it will never be found again:
"And I will make thee like the top of a rock: thou shalt be a place to spread nets upon; thou shalt be built no more: for I the LORD have spoken it, saith the Lord GOD . . . For thus saith the Lord GOD; When I shall make thee a desolate city, like the cities that are not inhabited; when I shall bring up the deep upon thee, and great waters shall cover thee; When I shall bring thee down with them that descend into the pit, with the people of old time, and shall set thee in the low parts of the earth, in places desolate of old, with them that go down to the pit, that thou be not inhabited; and I shall set glory in the land of the living; I will make thee a terror, and thou shalt be no more: though thou be sought for, yet shalt thou never be found again, saith the Lord GOD."
Ezekiel 26:14, 19-21, KJV
In the above verses we are told in a figurative sense through the use of "the deep" and "great waters", that foreign nations would come upon Tyrus as the waves of the sea and destroy it. This is exactly what happened beginning with Nebuchadnezzar. However, if memory serves me correctly, -- I may have the facts a bit distorted -- Nebuchadnezzar only destroyed those people who dwelt in the suburbs, on the coast, and not those who dwelt on the main island out in the sea. From what I can recall from a study I read quite a few years ago, the coastal dwellers had sufficient notice so that some were able to escape to the island-city with the majority of their riches. Nebuchadnezzar was not a seafaring man; and it appears that in spite of his great power and might, he was limited to land-based conquests. Because of this half-victory, Ezekiel prophesies that in his wrath, Nebuchadnezzar would raze the coastal suburbs to the ground and throw the remains into the sea:
"And they shall make a spoil of thy riches, and make a prey of thy merchandise: and they shall break down thy walls, and destroy thy pleasant houses: and they shall lay thy stones and thy timber and thy dust in the midst of the water."
Ezekiel 26:12, KJV
That this was the result of Nebuchadnezzar not being able to take as great a spoil as he had expected is confirmed a few chapters later where we read:
"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:"
Ezekiel 29:18, KJV
Notice that it says "yet he had no wages". In other words, his spoil was not nearly as great as he had expected it to be because the Phoenicians were aware of their imminent destruction and had thus carried off as much as they could to the island-city. It would be years later that Alexander the Great would come along and build upon that same rubble to construct a causeway in order to plunder and destroy the main island of Tyrus. So, just as the prophecies state, Tyrus was destroyed; first the coastal town, and then the main city. In a literal sense, to this day the original site of Tyrus the island-city remains submerged under the waves and is a place for casting fishing nets. Enemies of God claim that the prophecy was never fulfilled because Tyre still stands today. However, they fail to acknowledge that the new city, which was visited by both Jesus and Paul, was built on the coast a short distance south of the original site which was an island. God's word was indeed fulfilled. The prophets Isaiah, Amos and Zechariah also prophesied against Tyrus. In fact, Jesus likewise spoke of the destruction of both Tyre and Sidon -- which is another city of the Phoenicians that is prophesied against in Ezekiel 28 -- just as He had likewise used Sodom and Gomorrah as symbols of God's wrath against the wicked:
"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. But it shall be more tolerable for Tyre and Sidon at the judgment, than for you."
Luke 10:13-14, KJV
It is interesting to note that Jesus used these very same words with Sodom and Gomorrah just a verse before:
"But I say unto you, that it shall be more tolerable in that day for Sodom, than for that city."
Luke 10:12, KJV
This incident is recorded in two of the other Gospels as well:
"Verily I say unto you, It shall be more tolerable for the land of Sodom and Gomorrha in the day of judgment, than for that city."
Matthew 10:15, KJV
"And thou, Capernaum, which art exalted unto heaven, shalt be brought down to hell: for if the mighty works, which have been done in thee, had been done in Sodom, it would have remained until this day. But I say unto you, That it shall be more tolerable for the land of Sodom in the day of judgment, than for thee."
Matthew 11:23-24, KJV
"And whosoever shall not receive you, nor hear you, when ye depart thence, shake off the dust under your feet for a testimony against them. Verily I say unto you, It shall be more tolerable for Sodom and Gomorrha in the day of judgment, than for that city."
Mark 6:11, KJV
The reason Jesus is making this comparison with Tyre and Sidon and Sodom and Gomorrah is because they never received the Word, or witnessed the miracles of the Lord as these cities of Israel had. Thus, in God's eyes, despite their sins, God would be more merciful to them in the Day of Judgment. When the Lord sent the prophet Ezekiel, He specifically told him that He was sending him to deliver the Word to Israel, and not to people of foreign lands -- such as Tyre and Sidon -- whose languages he knew not. In fact, the Lord told Ezekiel that if he had been sent to them, they would have repented, which is exactly what Jesus said:
"For thou art not sent to a people of a strange speech and of an hard language, but to the house of Israel; Not to many people of a strange speech and of an hard language, whose words thou canst not understand. Surely, had I sent thee to them, they would have hearkened unto thee."
Ezekiel 3:5-6, KJV
So then, as I point out in the series entitled "The Gay and Lesbian Agenda: To the Point!", just as Jesus, Isaiah, Paul, Peter and Jude had said, these cities were destroyed to serve as a warning to future generations; a warning which has been sadly, blatantly and rebelliously disregarded by the current generation:
"And as Esaias said before, Except the Lord of Sabaoth had left us a seed, we had been as Sodoma, and been made like unto Gomorrha."
Romans 9:29, KJV
"And turning the cities of Sodom and Gomorrha into ashes condemned them with an overthrow, making them an ensample unto those that after should live ungodly;"
2 Peter 2:6, KJV
"Even as Sodom and Gomorrha, and the cities about them in like manner, giving themselves over to fornication, and going after strange flesh, are set forth for an example, suffering the vengeance of eternal fire."
Jude 1:7, KJV
If God was upset with Sodom and Gomorrah because of their sexual perversions, how much more must He be upset with current-day homosexuals and lesbians who not only have the example of these cities of the past, but who also have the Word of the Lord as well? In fact, they have the example of these destroyed cities, they have the words of Moses, they have the words of Isaiah, they have the words of Jesus, they have the words of Paul, they have the words of Peter, and they have the words of Jude; yet still they do not repent of their wickedness. In fact, some of them flaunt their sins in the Lord's Face by claiming to believe in Him. How can homosexuals and lesbians say they love and believe in Jesus and yet not do the things that He asks?:
"And why call ye me, Lord, Lord, and do not the things which I say?"
Luke 6:46, KJV
Returning to our main discussion, the primary reason this prophecy of Tyrus is important to this current article is because it contains some very mysterious verses which are open to a number of understandings. In describing the prince of Tyrus, we read the following unusual verses:
"The word of the LORD came again unto me, saying, 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:"
Ezekiel 28:1-2, KJV
Notice that this prophecy is directed against the prince of Tyrus, and not against the king of Tyrus. This may possibly be implying that he is the son of the king of Tyrus -- who I will discuss shortly -- or it may mean something entirely different. While he is referred to as only a man, it should be noted that in certain places in the Bible, the word "prince" is used to denote both good and evil spiritual forces working on the Earth. For example, in the book of Daniel we find the angelic messenger being prevented for three weeks from coming to Daniel until Michael the archangel, also referred to as a prince, helps him in his battle against the evil prince of Persia:
"Then said he unto me, Fear not, Daniel: for from the first day that thou didst set thine heart to understand, and to chasten thyself before thy God, thy words were heard, and I am come for thy words. But the prince of the kingdom of Persia withstood me one and twenty days: but, lo, Michael, one of the chief princes, came to help me; and I remained there with the kings of Persia."
Daniel 10:12-13, KJV
In addition to the prince of Persia, this messenger also refers to the kings of Persia. Thus we see the mention of spiritual princes and kings all in the same verses. A few verses later, this angelic messenger tells Daniel that after he shares his message with Daniel, he must return to fight against the prince of Persia, and after that, against the prince of Greece as well. This is quite interesting because, just as the image in Daniel two predicted, following the Medo-Persian empire in the timeline of history was the Grecian empire! Thus it appears that this angelic messenger is saying that once he and Michael have finished fighting against the evil spiritual prince of Persia, they will then have to face the evil prince of Greece! This clearly shows evil Satanic forces moving through human time and history! Here are the verses in context:
"Then said he, Knowest thou wherefore I come unto thee? and now will I return to fight with the prince of Persia: and when I am gone forth, lo, the prince of Grecia shall come. But I will shew thee that which is noted in the scripture of truth: and there is none that holdeth with me in these things, but Michael your prince."
Daniel 10:20-21, KJV
What is also extremely interesting about this description of this prince of Tyrus is that it is almost identical to the "son of perdition" -- which may possibly be a reference to the Antichrist -- in the Apostle Paul's Epistle to the Thessalonians, as we see by these verses:
"That ye be not soon shaken in mind, or be troubled, neither by spirit, nor by word, nor by letter as from us, as that the day of Christ is at hand. Let no man deceive you by any means: for that day shall not come, except there come a falling away first, and that man of sin be revealed, the son of perdition; Who opposeth and exalteth himself above all that is called God, or that is worshipped; so that he as God sitteth in the temple of God, shewing himself that he is God."
2 Thessalonians 2:2-4, KJV
Just like this prince of Tyrus, the son of perdition will sit in the very seat of God claiming to be God. While both of these may be mortal men, it is clear in my view that they are either outwardly influenced by, possessed by, or in fact may be physical incarnations of evil spiritual beings! In the case of the Antichrist, it can be none other than Satan himself! Given the evidence thus far, could it be that this prophecy against the prince of Tyrus is not only directed against a physical man, but also against the spiritual prince or force which controls him? Let me now present the prophecy against the king of Tyrus which is even more bizarre, and even more clear regarding against whom these prophecies are really directed. As you will see, the human or humans involved here are only the tools being used by the true spiritual forces which control Tyrus:
"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. Thou hast been in Eden the garden of God; every precious stone was thy covering, the sardius, topaz, and the diamond, the beryl, the onyx, and the jasper, the sapphire, the emerald, and the carbuncle, and gold: the workmanship of thy tabrets and of thy pipes was prepared in thee in the day that thou wast created."
Ezekiel 28:12-13, KJV
Here we have a being, called the king of Tyrus, who is full of wisdom, perfect in beauty, who has been in the Garden of Eden, and who was created! As far as I am concerned, there can be no denying who this is talking about:
"Now the serpent was more subtil than any beast of the field which the LORD God had made. And he said unto the woman, Yea, hath God said, Ye shall not eat of every tree of the garden?"
Genesis 3:1, KJV
To confirm this even further, consider what we are told next about this king of Tyrus:
"Thou art the anointed cherub that covereth; and I have set thee so: thou wast upon the holy mountain of God; thou hast walked up and down in the midst of the stones of fire. Thou wast perfect in thy ways from the day that thou wast created, till iniquity was found in thee."
Ezekiel 28:14-15, KJV
How can the king of Tyrus be an anointed cherub, that is, an angel? Could this be saying that Satan at one time hovered over the very Throne of God? Is this why he is so covetous of it? Could this be why both the prince of Tyrus and the son of perdition want to sit in the seat of God? Notice it says that he was upon the holy mountain of God. In previous articles I have amply described how Satan walked within the very Courts of God. And where are those Courts located? In the Holy Mountain of God! And what is that Holy Mountain? Is it Zion? Yes; but not the physical Zion, but rather the spiritual Zion! It is a mountain where the angel took John to see the Heavenly City of God, New Jerusalem, which also appears to be shaped like a mountain, descending from Heaven:
"And he carried me away in the spirit to a great and high mountain, and shewed me that great city, the holy Jerusalem, descending out of heaven from God . . . And the city lieth foursquare, and the length is as large as the breadth: and he measured the city with the reed, twelve thousand furlongs. The length and the breadth and the height of it are equal."
Revelation 21:10, 16, KJV
For the record, that is approximately one thousand five hundred miles on each side of the square base. Now, if the height is the same as the length and breadth -- or width -- either The City is a gigantic cube, or it is pyramidal or mountain-shaped! The point is, this King of Tyrus was there! How could he have been there unless it is referring, not just to the physical king, but rather to the spiritual force which controls him? Or as I already said, maybe the King of Tyrus was actually a physical incarnation of Satan, just as Jesus was a physical incarnation of the very Spirit of God! The prophecy then goes on to read:
"By the multitude of thy merchandise they have filled the midst of thee with violence, and thou hast sinned: therefore I will cast thee as profane out of the mountain of God: and I will destroy thee, O covering cherub, from the midst of the stones of fire. Thine heart was lifted up because of thy beauty, thou hast corrupted thy wisdom by reason of thy brightness: I will cast thee to the ground, I will lay thee before kings, that they may behold thee."
Ezekiel 28:16-17, KJV
Here again, we see this king of Tyrus being thrown out of the Mountain of God. Likewise we see him being referred to as the covering cherub. As to the stones of fire, the book of Enoch is literally full of references to fire; not just to destructive fire, but to fire around and under The Throne of God. Consider this verse:
"And it came to pass after this that my spirit was translated And it ascended into the heavens: And I saw the holy sons of God. They were stepping on flames of fire: Their garments were white [and their raiment], And their faces shone like snow."
Enoch 71:1, KJV
Notice also the fact that, just like the prince of Tyrus, just like the son of perdition, this king of Tyrus is lifted up in pride because of his beauty. And what is the cause of his beauty? His brightness! As you may know, Lucifer is often translated as "day star" or "light bearer". Some say that he was God's Lightbearer before his fall. Whether or not this is true, one thing we do know is that Satan can indeed appear as an angel of light:
"And no marvel; for Satan himself is transformed into an angel of light."
2 Corinthians 11:14, KJV
Please also keep in mind this reference to the king of Tyrus being cast to the ground as it will be explained as we continue in this study. In the final verses of this prophecy against the king of Tyrus, we read the following:
"Thou hast defiled thy sanctuaries by the multitude of thine iniquities, by the iniquity of thy traffick; therefore will I bring forth a fire from the midst of thee, it shall devour thee, and I will bring thee to ashes upon the earth in the sight of all them that behold thee. All they that know thee among the people shall be astonished at thee: thou shalt be a terror, and never shalt thou be any more."
Ezekiel 28:18-19, KJV
Here we have the total destruction of this king of Tyrus. Notice that he is destroyed by fire, and that he will be ashes upon the Earth for all to see. This is probably referring the physical destruction of the actual king of Tyrus.
At this point, allow me to ask you: Is it a coincidence that Satan, as the haughty king of Tyrus, is bedecked with brilliant scintillating jewels and gold? Is it a coincidence that he is known for his beauty? Recall again exactly how the prophet Ezekiel described him:
". . . full of wisdom, and perfect in beauty. Thou hast been in Eden the garden of God; every precious stone was thy covering, the sardius, topaz, and the diamond, the beryl, the onyx, and the jasper, the sapphire, the emerald, and the carbuncle, and gold . . ."
Well, every important man has a woman in his life. In this case, in a symbolic sense, this gloriously-attired demonic king has a queen who is also his delight. Just take a look at any postcard containing a nighttime aerial view of one of your favorite cities and you will see one of the king's lovely wives arrayed in all of her glory! Notice the necklace of pearly lights which span her long bridges. Notice the scintillating red rubies which adorn the tops of her skyscrapers and tall towers. Notice the golden gleam which reflects off of her sheer walls as the sun rises or sets. Notice the many diamonds which give off their radiance as dusk turns to night and lights are turned on. After you have gazed at that postcard, read Revelation chapters seventeen and eighteen concerning Babylon the Great Whore! She sits upon the King/Beast herself riding him in wild drunken fornication with all of her other lovers just waiting in line for their turn! As I have pointed out in my companion article "Who is Babylon the Great?", this "lovely lady" of the night is none other than Jerusalem herself, the spiritual mother of harlots:
"How is the faithful city become an harlot! it was full of judgment; righteousness lodged in it; but now murderers."
Isaiah 1:21, KJV
"For of old time I have broken thy yoke, and burst thy bands; and thou saidst, I will not transgress; when upon every high hill and under every green tree thou wanderest, playing the harlot."
Jeremiah 2:20, KJV
The Prophets Isaiah and Jeremiah and others uttered many amazing prophecies which were two-fold in nature. Not only were they fulfilled by the destruction of literal cities and empires ages ago, but they will also be fulfilled again in their modern day spiritual counterparts. While I shared quite a few verses on the Babylon the Great Whore/Jerusalem connection in the previously-mentioned article, consider the following verses which also expose the sins of and speak of the destruction of the spiritual Queen Babylon, the wife of Satan, the King of Tyrus:
"Sit thou silent, and get thee into darkness, O daughter of the Chaldeans: for thou shalt no more be called, The LADY OF KINGDOMS. I was wroth with my people, I have polluted mine inheritance, and given them into thine hand: thou didst shew them no mercy; upon the ancient hast thou very heavily laid thy yoke. And thou saidst, I SHALL BE A LADY FOR EVER: so that thou didst not lay these things to thy heart, neither didst remember the latter end of it. Therefore hear now this, thou that art given to pleasures, that dwellest carelessly, that sayest in thine heart, I AM, AND NONE ELSE BESIDE ME; I SHALL NOT SIT AS A WIDOW, NEITHER SHALL I KNOW THE LOSS OF CHILDREN: But these two things shall come to thee in a moment in ONE DAY, the loss of children, and widowhood: they shall come upon thee in their perfection for the multitude of thy sorceries, and for the great abundance of thine enchantments. For thou hast trusted in thy wickedness: thou hast said, None seeth me. Thy wisdom and thy knowledge, it hath perverted thee; and thou hast said in thine heart, I AM, AN NONE ELSE BESIDE ME."
Isaiah 47:5-10, KJV
Does all of the above sound a bit familiar to you? Notice the words I have capitalized. About eight hundred years later, the Apostle John would prophesy the very same things against the modern spiritual Babylon, Jerusalem herself!:
"How much she hath glorified herself, and lived deliciously, so much torment and sorrow give her: for she saith in her heart, I SIT A QUEEN, AND AM NO WIDOW, and shall see no sorrow. Therefore shall her plagues come in ONE DAY, death, and mourning, and famine; and she shall be utterly burned with fire: for strong is the Lord God who judgeth her."
Revelation 18:7-8, KJV
When Isaiah described the destruction of the ancient city of Babylon, consider what he said:
"And, behold, here cometh a chariot of men, with a couple of horsemen. And he answered and said, Babylon is fallen, is fallen; and all the graven images of her gods he hath broken unto the ground."
Isaiah 21:9, KJV
If you are familiar with Endtime prophecy, then you will know that John wrote down the very same words describing the fall of the spiritual Babylon, Jerusalem:
"And there followed another angel, saying, Babylon is fallen, is fallen, that great city, because she made all nations drink of the wine of the wrath of her fornication."
Revelation 14:8, KJV
"And he cried mightily with a strong voice, saying, Babylon the great is fallen, is fallen, and is become the habitation of devils, and the hold of every foul spirit, and a cage of every unclean and hateful bird."
Revelation 18:2, KJV
Please go to part two for the continuation of this series.
⇒ Go To The Next Part . . .