Isaiah 23:10

“Pass through thy land as a river, O daughter of Tarshish, &c.] Or, “of the sea”, as the Vulgate Latin; meaning Tyre, which was situated in the sea, and did, as it were, spring from it, and was fortified by it, and supported by ships of merchandise on it, from various places; but now, being about to be destroyed, the inhabitants of it are called upon to pass through it, and get out of it as fast as they could, even as swiftly as a river runs, and in great abundance or multitudes. Kimchi thinks the Tyrians are bid to pass to the daughter of Tarshish, that is, to Tarshish itself, to make their escape out of their own land, and flee thither for safety; this the accents will not admit of, there…”

“a river--Hebrew, "the river," namely, Nile. daughter of Tarshish--Tyre and its inhabitants (Isa 1:8), about henceforth, owing to the ruin of Tyre, to become inhabitants of its colony, Tartessus: they would pour forth from Tyre, as waters flow on when the barriers are removed [LOWTH]. Rather, Tarshish, or Tartessus and its inhabitants, as the phrase usually means: they had been kept in hard bondage, working in silver and lead mines near Tarshish, by the parent city (Eze 26:17): but now "the bond of restraint" (for so "strength," Margin, "girdle," that is, bond, Psa 2:3, ought to be translated) is removed, since Tyre is no more.”

“Pass through thy land as a river - This verse has been very variously understood. Vitringa supposes that it means that all that held the city together - its fortifications, walls, etc., would be laid waste, and that as a river flows on without obstruction, so the inhabitants would be scattered far and near. Everything, says he, would be leveled, and the field would not be distinguishable from the city. Grotius thus renders it: ‘Pass to some one of thy colonies; as a river flows from the fountain to the sea, so do you go to the ocean.’ Lowth understands it also as relating to the time of the destruction of Tyre, and to the escape which the inhabitants would then make. ‘Overflow thy land like…”

“Pass through - Tarry no longer in thy own territories, but flee through them, into other countries, for safety and relief. As a river - Swiftly, lest you be prevented. Tarshish - O Tyre, which might well be called daughter of Tarshish, that is, of the sea, as that word is used, Isa 23:1, and elsewhere, because it was an island, and therefore as it were, born of the sea, and nourished and brought up by it. Isaiah 23:11”

“23:10 Sweep over the land like the flooding Nile: This difficult phrase means either (1) that the sailors who had returned from Tarshish were being invited to loot ruined Tyre; or (2) that the people of Tarshish were forced to move back to their agricultural fields to make their living (instead of trading) now that Tyre had been destroyed.”

“O daughter: Isa 23:12 no more: Isa 23:14; Sa1 28:20; Job 12:21; Lam 1:6; Hag 2:22; Rom 5:6 strength: Heb. girdle, Psa 18:32 Isaiah 23:11”

“The consequence of the fall of Tyre is, that the colonies achieve their independence, Tartessus being mentioned by way of example. "Overflow thy land like the Nile, O daughter of Tarshish! No girdle restrains thee any longer." The girdle (mēzach) is the supremacy of Tyre, which has hitherto restrained all independent action on the part of the colony. Now they no longer need to wait in the harbour for the ships of the mother city, no longer to dig in the mines as her tributaries for silver and other metals. The colonial territory is their own freehold now, and they can spread themselves over it like the Nile when it passes beyond its banks and overflows the land. Koppe has already given this…”