Zechariah 9:3 (ASV)

Passage

And Tyre did build herself a stronghold, and heaped up silver as the dust, and fine gold as the mire of the streets.

Nearby Context

Zechariah 9:1 The burden of the word of Jehovah upon the land of Hadrach, and Damascus [shall be] its resting-place (for the eye of man and of all the tribes of Israel is toward Jehovah);

Zechariah 9:2 and Hamath, also, which bordereth thereon; Tyre and Sidon, because they are very wise.

Zechariah 9:3 And Tyre did build herself a stronghold, and heaped up silver as the dust, and fine gold as the mire of the streets.

Zechariah 9:4 Behold, the Lord will dispossess her, and he will smite her power in the sea; and she shall be devoured with fire.

Zechariah 9:5 Ashkelon shall see it, and fear; Gaza also, and shall be sore pained; and Ekron, for her expectation shall be put to shame; and the king shall perish from Gaza, and Ashkelon shall not be inhabited.

Study Lenses

The verse centers on "tyre", "build", "herself", "stronghold", "heaped", "silver", "dust", and "fine". It is saying that the verse draws attention to "tyre" and "build", so its meaning should be read from those terms before moving to application.

The nearby context moves from verse 2's "and Hamath also which bordereth thereon Tyre..." into verse 4's "Behold the Lord will dispossess her and...", so "tyre" and "build" belong inside that flow. In Zechariah context, the local focus is covenant, worship, and faithfulness.

A plain takeaway is to answer the verse's own emphasis on "tyre" and "build" with trust shaped by these words, not by a vague optimism outside the passage.