Sheba, and Dedan, and the merchants of Tarshish, with all the young lions thereof, shall say unto thee, Art thou come to take a spoil? hast thou gathered thy company to take a prey? to carry away silver and gold, to take away cattle and goods, to take a great spoil?
The traders from Sheba, Dedan, and Tarshish, along with all their business partners, are going to call you out: 'So you're really here just to rob everyone? You brought this whole army together to steal everything valuable, the silver, gold, livestock, and anything else worth taking?'
Even the merchants can see through fake motives, greed always shows itself.
📚 Historical Context
Ezekiel was a prophet in the 6th century BC, speaking to the Jewish exiles in Babylon during a time of great upheaval and foreign domination. In this chapter, he foretells a massive invasion led by Gog of Magog against Israel, with nations like Sheba and Dedan, ancient trading kingdoms in Arabia, and the merchants of Tarshish, likely a distant seafaring power such as in the western Mediterranean, questioning the invaders' motives of plunder and greed. This reflects the historical reality of ancient Near Eastern conflicts driven by economic interests and alliances.
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