Once again God addresses Ezekiel as Son of man (International Children’s Bible “Human being”).

Say to the prince of Tyre: Although this prophecy is addressed to the ruler of Tyre, its message is for the people of Judah who were in exile with Ezekiel (see the introductory comments on 25.1–32.32). However, translators must retain the form and have the message addressed to the ruler. In this context the Hebrew word for prince means “king” (Contemporary English Version) or “ruler” (Good News Translation, New International Version, New International Reader’s Version, New Century Version, Revised English Bible, Die Bibel im heutigen Deutsch), not the son of a king.

Following the pattern used in the previous prophecies against the nations surrounding Israel, the message to the king of Tyre is structured as follows:

(1) The prophetic introduction (verse 2a)
(2) The sin (verses 2b-5)
(3) The punishment (verses 6-10a)
(4) The recognition formula (verse 10b)

However, within this pattern a lot of explanatory detail is added.

Thus says the Lord GOD is the prophetic introduction. Lord renders the Hebrew word ʾadonai, and GOD renders “Yahweh” (YHWH in Hebrew). New Century Version renders this clause as “This is what the Lord GOD says.”

Because your heart is proud …: The sin of the king of Tyre was “great pride” (New Living Translation) and “arrogance” (Revised English Bible), which was evident in his boasting. In Hebrew the heart is not the seat of a person’s emotions (as in English where love comes from the heart), but is like the “mind” in English, where a person thinks and makes decisions (see the comments on 3.7). Translators need to identify the most natural way of referring to pride in their culture. Some may use an equivalent idiomatic expression for your heart is proud, for example, “your head is big” or “your stomach is hot.” Others may say simply “you are proud” (New Century Version).

And you have said, ‘I am a god: The king of Tyre claimed to be a god. If a language does not have a generic word for a god, translators may have to use a comparative expression for I am a god, such as “I am the same as God,” or a descriptive expression, such as “I am what people worship [as if I were God].” Good News Translation uses indirect speech for the king, saying “you claim to be a god,” and so does Contemporary English Version with “you think you’re a god.” Translators may use direct or indirect speech here, whichever is more natural in their language.

Because your heart is proud, and you have said, ‘I am a god follows the Hebrew text closely. This rendering makes it seem like the king did two things: became proud and claimed to be a god. However, the second part is really an example of the first part, which New Century Version makes clear by saying “Because you are proud, you say, ‘I am a god.’ ” This is a good model.

I sit in the seat of the gods is another boast of the king. It means that he regards Tyre as his “divine throne” (New Living Translation; similarly Good News Translation, Contemporary English Version, New International Version, New International Reader’s Version, New Century Version), where he sits “enthroned like a god” (Revised English Bible, New Jewish Publication Society’s Tanakh). A “throne” is a seat from which a king rules (see the comments on 1.26). If there is no real equivalent for “throne” in a language, translators may render this line as “I sit on the seat where gods rule from” or “I rule from my seat as if I were God.”

Tyre stood in the heart of the seas (see 27.4), that is, surrounded by water. Die Bibel im heutigen Deutsch says “in the middle of the sea” (similarly New Century Version, New King James Version ). There is a play on the word heart in this verse. In the first instance it refers to the center of the king’s personality, where he thought and made decisions, but in the second instance it refers to the center of the sea. Although Hebrew can make this play on the word, other languages may not be able to do so, and translators should feel free to use terms that are natural in their language.

Yet you are but a man, and no god: Despite his claim to be a god, God tells the king of Tyre what he really is. The connector yet or “but” (Good News Translation) introduces this contrast with the king’s view of himself. A possible model for this line is “But you are only human. You are not a god” (similarly New International Reader’s Version).

Though you consider yourself as wise as a god is literally “and you make your heart as the heart of a god” (similarly King James Version / New King James Version, New American Standard Bible). Because of the comparison with wisdom in verse 3, many translations bring this idea back here (so Revised Standard Version). This is acceptable, but it is better to be more general and translate “heart” as the area of thought and knowledge (see the comments above); for example, New Revised Standard Version says “though you compare your mind with the mind of a god,” and New Jewish Publication Society’s Tanakh has “though you deemed your mind equal to a god’s.” Translators may also say “though you thought you were as intelligent as a god [or, as the gods that people worship].”

New Century Version reverses the order of the last two lines of this verse to make them more natural, saying “You think you are as wise as a god, but you are human, not a god.”

Quoted with permission from Gross, Carl & Stine, Philip C. A Handbook on Ezekiel. (UBS Helps for Translators). Miami: UBS, 2016. For this and other handbooks for translators see here .