Ezekiel 27:4

borders … midst of the seas lit. heartof the seas, a phrase which appears to mean not "far out at sea," but, in the deep waters of the sea, ch. Ezekiel 28:2; Ezekiel 28:8; Exodus 15:8; Jonah 2:3; Psalms 46:2. The term "borders" seems to mean station, moorings (Ezekiel 27:25). The proud ship was conscious of her beauty. The ship is a figure for the maritime city, the mistress of trade, built upon an ocean rock, as if moored in the sea. The city was without doubt beautiful (ch. Ezekiel 28:12); a similar phrase is used of Jerusalem, Psalms 50:2 (Psalms 48:2); Lamentations 2:15.

Ezekiel 27:5 the ship's timbers.

made thyship boards built thy planks. The word is dual, referring to the two ribs of the ship, corresponding to one another.

fir trees of Senir Or, cypresses. The tree is mentioned as furnishing, along with the cedar, the principal material for building the Temple, 1 Kings 5:8. Senir was the Amorite name of Hermon, which the Sidonians called Sirion (Deuteronomy 3:9). According to Schrader (KAT. on Deuteronomy 3:9; 1 Kings 5:13) both names were used by the Assyrians. The name Hermon possibly signifies "sacred" mountain, being due to its ancient sanctuary. Senir, and Sirion, is supposed to mean "coat of mail."

On "mast" cf. Isaiah 33:23. Whether an actual cedar was ever used to be the mast of "some great ammiral" may be uncertain; the prophet, though more exact than most prophets, is also a poet.