Meaning of TYRE

"rock".
Phoenician city whose origin is lost in the most remote antiquity (Is. 23:5-18; Ant. 8:3, 1). According to biblical data, the founding of Tire is later than that of Sidon, although it surpassed it in importance. A text by Herodotus allows us to place the founding of Tire around the year 2750 BC. (Herodotus 2:44).

Ancient historians and geographers claim that the ancient city was located on the continent. To protect itself against invaders, it was moved to a rocky island separated from the ancient city by an arm of the sea. That's where the name Tire comes from: rock.

Ancient authors frequently allude to their position in the midst of the waters (Ex. 26:17; 27:32). The continental city was then named Palaetyrus: ancient Tyre. The sacred texts that mention Tire and Sidon simultaneously place Tire before its rival; Israel was closer to Tire than to Sidon, and Tire continued to become more and more important.

It was already a strong city in the time of Joshua (Joshua 19:29), located on the border with Asher. It was not assigned to any tribe of Israel. Hiram, also called Huram, king of Tyre, maintained friendly relations with David and Solomon.

He supplied materials for the construction of David's palace (2 Sam. 5:11; 1 Kings 5:1; 1 Chron. 14:1); also for the construction of Solomon's Temple and other buildings (1 Kings 9:10-14; 2 Chron. 2:3-16). A very skilled foundry craftsman, also named Hiram, the son of an Israelite mother and a Tyrian father, carried out the artwork of the Temple (1 Kings 7:13, 14, 40, 45).

The Tyrians, a peaceful nation, manufactured purple dyes, metal and glass objects, and became rich from maritime trade with the most remote peoples (cf. 1 Kings 9:28). Tyrian merchants were comparable to princes (Isa. 23:8). In the 9th century BC, a colony of Tyrians founded Carthage, which for a long time rivaled Rome.

Despite its peaceful spirit, Tire suffered the rigors of war. Around the year 724 BC, Shalmansar V, king of Assyria, received the submission of the continental city and besieged the maritime one. He died in the year 722 without having been able to take possession of it (Ant. 9:14, 2).

His successor, Sargon, managed to take it. At this time there were no longer friendly relations between Tire and Israel. The wicked Jezebel, wife of Et-baal, king of Tyre, had married Ahab, king of Israel. She did everything in her power to introduce into Israel the corrupt paganism of her homeland (1 Kings 16:31-33; 18:4, 19, see BAAL, PAGAN DIVINITIES), and was killed by order of Jehu, who He also had all his descendants exterminated (2 Kings 9:30-37, 14-26; 10:1-14 ff.).

On the other hand, the prophets accuse Tire of having handed over Israelites to the Edomites (Am. 1:9), having stolen their property, and sold Israelites as slaves to the Greeks (Jel. 3:5, 6). Esarhaddon besieged Tyre, and made it tributary. In the year 664 B.C. he submitted to Assurbanipal. A century later, prosperous Tyrian merchants were trading with every region of the known world (Ex. 27).

Jeremiah prophesied that Nebuchadnezzar, king of Babylon, would take over Tire (Jer. 27:1-11). The prophet Ezekiel launched a famous prophecy against Tire (Ez. 26:1-28:19; 29:18-20). These predictions of Jeremiah and Ezekiel have especially to do with the siege of Tire by Nebuchadnezzar, which lasted thirteen years, from 585 to 573 BC. (Against Apion 1:21). It is unknown whether Nebuchadnezzar actually took over the two cities.

He possibly did manage to seize the sea (cf. Is. 26), but only after the Tyrians had safe their wealth by sea (cf. Ez. 29: 18-20). In 332 BC, after a seven-month siege, the island city fell into the power of Alexander the Great, who built a dam joining the city to land. The continental city completely disappeared, since all its ruins were used for the construction of this dam. The island city was recovered after this conquest, and is later mentioned as a "free city" in various works from later times.

The Lord Jesus once went to the territories of Tire and Sidon (Mt. 15: 21-28; Mark 7: 24-31), whose inhabitants sought to benefit several times from his ministry (Mark 3: 8; Luke . 6:17). Jesus claimed that the pagan cities were less guilty than the Galilean localities, which had had so many opportunities to hear his preaching and see his miracles (Mt. 11:21, 22; Luke 10:13, 14).

A Christian community emerged in Tire, which was visited by Paul (Acts 21:3-6). The famous Origen, who died around 254 AD, was buried in the Christian basilica of Tyre. In 323, Eusebius, church historian and bishop of Caesarea, delivered the sermon at the consecration of the new great basilica erected by Bishop Paulinus.

The Muslims took control of Tire in 638; the Crusaders, in 1124. Emperor Barbarossa was buried there. When the Crusaders lost the city, there was hardly anything left except loose stones, which were used for the constructions of Beirut, Acre and Jafa.

Tire had two ports: one to the northeast of the island, called Sidonian because it looked towards Sidon; the other, to the south, was called the Egyptian port. The breakwater built by Alexander continues to exist. It measures around 800 m. Most of the ruins, including those of the cathedral, date from the time of the Crusades.

An aqueduct brought water from the mainland to the island of Tyre, coming from the sources of Ras-el-Aîn. The prophecies of Jeremiah and Ezekiel about Tire were fulfilled. The site of the ancient city is uninhabited.

The Alexander breakwater and the accumulation of sand have transformed the primitive island into a peninsula. There is a small town that bears the Arabic name of Sour, which stands at the junction of the island with the isthmus. Palaetyrus, the mainland city, has almost entirely disappeared. There are hardly any hypogeums left. The monument that bears the name of Hiram, although very ancient, is surely not the tomb of the sovereign contemporary of Solomon.