Yea, and what have ye to do with me, O Tyre, and Zidon (Isaiah 23)

Isaiah chapter 23 is another prophecy, this one against Tyre and perhaps Sidon/Zidon (these two cities are about 20 miles from each other, and are often grouped together in the Bible), two ancient cities located in modern-day Lebanon. There were a lot of places named here, so I looked them up and Tarshish is probably in Spain, Chittim is Cyprus, Shihor/Sihor is a branch of the Nile River, and Chaldeans are people from lower Mesopotamia who were known for being astronomers/astrologers, so sometimes the name is used synonymously.

So, there's a lot of howling going on here, from "the ships of Tarshish" (probably just symbolic of western trading partners) and from "ye inhabitants of the isle" (part of the city Tyre was on a small island). I assume by howling, Isaiah means crying over Tyre's destruction, as that seems to be the topic of this prophecy, however, it's not clear why nor by what Tyre is destroyed. (It's possible that all the talk of "to stain the pride of all glory, and to bring into contempt all the honourable of the earth" is implying that there's a serious sin of pride at work here, with "glory" and "honourable" being sarcasm?) Furthermore, the end of the prophecy seems like a bit of a mixed message, as there's restoration, but Tyre is referred to as a "harlot" who "shall commit fornication with all the kingdoms of the world", but "her merchandise and her hire shall be holiness to the LORD." It's pretty strong language to talk about things supposedly being better after a comeback from 70 years of desolation, so I'm not sure what it all means. It does seem clear that "her merchandise shall be for them that dwell before the LORD, to eat sufficiently, and for durable clothing" indicates that Tyre eventually becomes a blessing to that part of the world, but still it's a little hazy as to how it happens.