Isaiah 23:2 - Exposition

Be still ; rather, be silent , as in the margin. It would be idle to complain or lament. Ye inhabitants of the isle . Tyro was situated on a small isle, which Alexander joined to the mainland by means of a mole (Arrian, 'Exp. Alex.,' 2.23). It is uncertain, however, whether this isle is meant here, or the strip of Phoenician coast, since the Hebrew ' i has both meanings. Thou whom the merchants of Zidon … have replenished . During the flourishing period of Tyro, Zidon, though it had generally kings of its own, played a secondary part to Tyre, and for the most part acquiesced in Tyrian supremacy. Its best sailors served in the Tyrian fleet ( Ezekiel 27:8 ), and its merchants were content to enrich the recognized "chief city."