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We have now come nearer home, for this chapter is "the burden of the valley of vision," Jerusalem; other places had their burden for the sake of their being concerned in some way or other with Jerusalem, and were reckoned with either as spiteful enemies or deceitful friends to the people of God; but now let Jerusalem hear her own doom. This chapter concerns, I. The city of Jerusalem itself and the neighbourhood depending upon it. Here is, 1. A prophecy of the grievous distress they should shortly be brought into by Sennacherib's invasion of the country and laying siege to the city (Isa 22:1-7). 2. A reproof given them for their misconduct in that distress, in two things: - (1.) Not having an eye to God in the use of the means of their preservation (Isa 22:8-11). (2.) Not humbling themselves under his mighty hand (Isa 22:12-14). II. The court of Hezekiah, and the officers of that court. 1. The displacing of Shebna, a bad man, and turning him out of the treasury (Isa 22:15-19, Isa 22:25). 2. The preferring of Eliakim, who should do his country better service, to his place (Isa 22:20-24).

INTRODUCTION TO ISAIAH 22 This chapter contains two prophecies, one concerning the invasion of Judah and Jerusalem, not by the Medes and Persians, but by the Assyrian army, under which they served; and the other of the removal of Shebna, an officer in Hezekiah's court, and of the placing of Eliakim in his stead. After the title of the former of these prophecies, the distress of the people, through the invasion, is described, by their getting up to the housetops, Isa 22:1 by the stillness of the city, having left both trade and mirth; by the slain in it, not by the sword, but through fear or famine, Isa 22:2 by the flight of the rulers, and by the lamentation of the prophet, Isa 22:3 the instruments of which distress were the Persians and Medes serving under Sennacherib, who are described by their quivers and shields, their chariots and horsemen, Isa 22:6 the methods the Jews took to defend themselves, and their vain confidence, are exposed; for which, with their disrespect to the Lord, and his admonitions, their carnal security and luxury, they are threatened with death, Isa 22:8 then follows the prophecy of the deposition of Shebna, who is described by his name and office, Isa 22:15 whose pride is exposed as the cause of his fall, Isa 22:16 and he is threatened not only to be driven from his station, but to be carried captive into another country, suddenly and violently, and with great shame and disgrace, Isa 22:17 and another put in his place, who is mentioned by name, Isa 22:20 and who should be invested with his office and power, and have all the ensigns of it, Isa 22:21 and should continue long in it, to great honour and usefulness to his family, Isa 22:23 yet not always, Isa 22:25.

And I will clothe him with thy robe,.... The same he wore, or rather one like unto it, which was a badge and token of his office. If he was a priest, as the Jews say, this was his priestly robe, by which the high priest was distinguished from others; but he rather seems to be a civil officer, who wore a garment suitable to it, and distinctive of it; in which he was a type of Christ, invested with the priestly, or rather with the kingly office, crowned with glory and honour; and who is seen among his churches, clothed with a garment down to the feet, Rev 1:13, and strengthen him with thy girdle: which was a symbol both of power and of strength; both priests and princes had their girdles. Christ's girdle, in the administration of his office, is faithfulness and righteousness, Isa 11:5; and I will commit thy government into his hand; the government of the king's house, typical of the government of the church, put into the hands of Christ by his Father, Isa 9:6, and he shall be a father to the inhabitants of Jerusalem, and to the house of Judah; have a fatherly care over them, and affection for them; and such an one is Christ, who stands in the relation of the everlasting Father to his church and people, and of whom the whole family in heaven and earth is named; he provides for them, takes care of them, is tenderly affected towards them, pities and sympathizes with them, and affords them all supply and support. Kimchi interprets it of a faithful counsellor, and a good leader. So Ben Melech.

For all these things will work for your destruction [i.e., Shebna’s], since you have been deposed and rejected from the high priesthood, of which you showed yourself unworthy, God being a just judge who gives to each according to his worth. On you, then, he will bring these things; but on the other, Eliakim, whom he has assessed as his good servant and slave, he will invest with your robe and will honor by placing on him the crown of the high priesthood, whose ministry you had hitherto been entrusted with. For he is a man worthy of it. And since he has been promoted by God, unlike you he will not be proud and boastful. He will hold the place of a father toward all those who are going to be governed by him. Therefore, as to one who is soothing and gentle, [God] will give the glory of David, the most just and gentle king, in order to rule the people with great authority, so that none will gainsay his deeds. He will be rooted, established and placed securely at his ministry, so that no glorious member of the people shall contend or contrive envy, nor shall jealousy ever come into being on his account, but they shall “trust in him as in a father.”

(Verse 15 onward) Thus says the Lord God of hosts: Go, go into him who dwells in the tabernacle, to Shebna, the overseer of the Temple, and say to him: What are you doing here? Or who are you here, because you have dug for yourself here a tomb? You have dug your memorial on high, diligently in the rock you have made a dwelling for yourself. Behold, the Lord will carry you away: like the lifting of a rooster or like a garment he will lift you up. He will surely overthrow you and throw you into a wide and spacious land: there you shall die, and there shall be the chariots of your glory; the disgrace of your Lord's house. And I will drive you out from your office, and I will remove you from your position. And on that day, I will call my servant Eliakim son of Hilkiah. And I will clothe him with your robe, and I will strengthen him with your sash, and I will give your authority into his hand. And he will be like a father to the inhabitants of Jerusalem and to the house of Judah. And I will place the key of the house of David on his shoulder, and he will open, and no one shall shut; and he will shut, and no one shall open. And I will fasten him as a nail in a sure place; and he shall be for a glorious throne to his father's house. And they shall hang upon him all the glory of his father's house, the offspring and the issue, all vessels of small quantity, from the vessels of cups, even to all the vessels of flagons. In that day, saith the Lord of hosts, shall the nail that is fastened in the sure place be removed, and be cut down, and fall; and the burden that was upon it shall be cut off: for the Lord hath spoken it. We have already mentioned that Shebna was a high priest who betrayed the city to the Assyrians. But because this is a Hebrew tradition and Scripture does not speak of it, let us understand him to be proud, arrogant, and indulgent, trampling on nations with his own feet. And because he did everything the Prophet describes, his priesthood was transferred to Eliakim son of Hilkiah, so that he would be expelled and a new high priest would be made. From this we understand that we must avoid pride with all diligence, which offends God, and even the privilege of the high priesthood cannot be considered secure. This is Shebna (as some think) and Eliakim, of whom the same Prophet says: The king of Assyria sent Rabshakeh from Lachish to Jerusalem to King Hezekiah with a heavy hand; and he stood near the conduit of the upper pool on the highway to the Fuller's Field. Then Eliakim son of Hilkiah, who was in charge of the palace, came out to him, as did the court secretary Shebna and the royal historian Joah son of Asaph (Isaiah 36:2-3). Therefore, the Prophet is ordered to go to the high priest, who lived, according to the Septuagint, in the sanctuary; according to Aquila, in the tabernacle. For this, Theodotion, following the Hebrew truth, says: Go to this Shebna, which can be interpreted as just and right (so that he may be understood in the opposite sense, as unjust and wicked), to the high priest of the temple, and say to him: You who live in the house of God, where wickedness is rampant in the whole city, why are you so secure in your works, as if you do not fear captivity? You have carved for yourself a tomb in a rock, and you have built so proudly that your ambition follows you even in death? Listen to what is the Lord's message to you: just as a rooster carrying a hen on its shoulder is taken away, and each of the men lifts his cloak on his shoulder, so will your easy capture be. You will have a crown not of gold sheets and the sanctification of the Lord, but of tribulation and distress. For just as a ball, if thrown on a slope, cannot stand, but rolls with swift speed, so will you be led to the broadest land, which we understand as either the fields of Egypt or Babylon, and there you will die. And there will be chariots of glory, all power and wealth, with which you now walk supported. There you will experience the shame of the house of your Lord: because of your evil deeds, and the violation of the Temple of your God, you will suffer these things. I will remove you from your position, and I will cast you out from the office of the priesthood, and I will clothe my servant Eliakim, the son of Hilkiah, with your garments, and I will adorn him with your sash, just as Eleazar was clothed in the garments of his father Aaron. I will give the authority of the Temple to him, who shall have a people not subject to him as a servant, but who loves him as a son. He himself will receive the key to my house, and he will carry it on his shoulder; he will have the authority over all the ceremonies. And just as a peg is fixed on the wall of the Temple, and placed in a secure place, all the vessels of the priests and Levites, both those necessary for sacrifices and all kinds of musical instruments, are suspended on it: so the entire people will depend on the authority of my servant Eliakim. But what he says: On that day the peg that was fixed in the faithful place will be removed, and it will be broken, and it will fall, and everything that was hanging on it will perish, because the Lord has spoken it, many attribute it to Shebna, that Eliakim, having fixed the peg, caused the previous peg to fall. But because it follows: And what hung on it will perish: we understand this to be said, that with Sobna deposed, it was by no means fulfilled, that Eliacim, who overturned the dignity of the priesthood, received the pontificate, and in the succession of Eliacim, which means God arising, the sacraments of the evangelical cult are shown: so that what follows may be understood: On that day, says the Lord of hosts, the peg that was firmly fastened in a secure place will be removed, broken and fallen, to the ruin of the former people. But there is no doubt, both according to history and according to allegory, that the flag, so to speak, signifies the suspension of vessels of different kinds; and that when the former are broken, others are suspended in their place.

(Verse 15, 16, etc.) Thus says the Lord, the God of hosts: Go, enter to him who dwells in the tabernacle, to Shebna, the overseer of the temple, and say to him: What are you doing here? or who are you here? for you have carved out a sepulchre here for yourself. You have carved out a lofty memorial for yourself diligently in the rock for your tent. Behold, the Lord will cast you down as one is cast down, like a cockerel; and he will lift you up like a cloak. The one who crowns will crown you with tribulation: he will throw you like a ball onto a vast and spacious land. There you will die, and there will be the chariot of your glory, the disgrace of the house of your Lord. I will remove you from your position and take away your authority. And on that day, I will call my servant Eliakim, son of Hilkiah, and clothe him with your robe and strengthen him with your belt. I will give him your authority, and he will be like a father to the inhabitants of Jerusalem and the house of Judah. And I will place the key of the house of David upon his shoulder; and he shall open, and none shall shut; and he shall shut, and none shall open. And I will fasten him as a peg in a sure place, and he shall be for a throne of glory to his father's house. And they shall hang upon him all the glory of his father's house, diverse kinds of vessels, from the smallest to the largest. In that day, says the Lord of hosts, the peg that was fastened in a sure place shall be removed; and it shall be cut down and fall, and the burden that was upon it shall be removed; for the Lord has spoken. LXX: Thus says the Lord of hosts: Go to the treasurer in Somna's temple and say to him, What are you doing here? Or what have you gained here? For you have dug a grave for yourself and made a memorial for yourself on high; you have carved out a dwelling place for yourself in the ground. Behold, the Lord of hosts will cast you out and bring low the man, and he will take away your glorious robe and crown, and throw you into a vast and measureless place, and there you will die. And he will bring your finest chariot to shame, and the house of your prince to trampling. And you shall be removed from your office, and from your position. And it shall be on that day, I will call my servant Eliakim son of Hilkiah, and I will clothe him with your robe, and I will strengthen him with your belt, and I will give your authority into his hand. And he shall be a father to the inhabitants of Jerusalem and to the house of Judah. And I will place the glory of the house of David on him, and he will rule as prince, and there will be no one to oppose him. And I will give him the key of the house of David; he will open, and no one will shut; he will shut, and no one will open. And I will appoint him as a faithful ruler, and on the throne of glory in the house of his father. And every glorious one will have confidence in him, from the least to the greatest, in the house of his father. All vessels, from the smallest to the largest, will hang upon him. In that day, says the Lord of hosts, the man who was firmly established in a faithful place will be shaken and removed, and he will fall, and the glory that was in him will perish, because the Lord has spoken. The prophet Isaiah is commanded to enter into the one who dwells in the tabernacle, which in Hebrew is called Sochen, to Sobna, the overseer of the temple, or as the Septuagint translated, the treasurer, that is, the treasurer and steward of the treasures of the house of God. But Sochen interprets either tabernacle or pastophorion, that is, a chamber, in which the overseer of the temple dwells. But who else dwelt in the tabernacle of the Jews and in the former house of God, if not the word and reason of the Jewish law, which is revealed in the reading of the Old Testament? So it is said to this tradition and teaching: what are you doing here? Why do you want to build a house with the letter O in the west, and to fix your tent, which does not have a foundation, on a solid rock, which should not be called a tent or a house, but rather a tomb and a memory? Therefore, I tell you not to labor in the excavation of a tomb, because the Lord will transfer your priesthood; just as Geber (), which all men have interpreted, is usually transferred. But the Hebrew, who instructed us in the reading of the Old Testament, translated the rooster to be a chicken. Just as, he says, a rooster is transferred from one place to another on the shoulder of a porter, so the Lord will lightly take you from your place. And those who once had the crown of the high priest, and the sanctification in the golden plate, on which the name of God was written (Exodus 28), you will be crowned with tribulation and distress. And just as if a ball is thrown on a sloping and spacious place, it cannot stand, but rolls into the vastness: so all your people will be scattered to the ends of the earth. There you will die with your letter, and all your glory, and the chariots by which you were previously renowned; and the splendor of the house of God will be turned into ignominy. For the Lord will remove you from your position and from your ministry, that is, the ceremonies of the sacrifices, so that that which is written to the Hebrews may be fulfilled: For a change of the priesthood necessitates a change of the law (Hebrews 7:12). But when you are expelled from your ministry, I will call my servant Eliakim, to whom I have said also in another place: It is a great thing for you to be called my servant (Isaiah 49:6, according to the Septuagint). Eliacim is interpreted as God rising, or the resurrection of God. Therefore, this rising God, who is the son of Helcia, that is, a part of the Lord, will assume your place and will be clothed with your robe, and he will be strengthened by your belt, so that what you had in the letter, he may possess in the spirit, and he will be the father of those dwelling in Jerusalem, that is, in the vision of peace, which is interpreted as the Church, and of the house of Judah, where true faith is confessed. Where He Himself speaks to the Apostles: Little children, I am with you for a little while longer (John 13:33). And to another: Son, your sins are forgiven (Matthew 9:2). And to another: Daughter, your faith has saved you (Luke 7:50). I will give, He says, the key of the house of David, which opens and no one shuts; who shuts and no one opens (Revelation 3). And this same key will be upon His shoulder, that is, in His passion, according to what is written in another place: His dominion is upon His shoulder (Isaiah 9:6). For whatever he has loosed in his suffering, it cannot be closed; and whatever he has closed in the ceremonies of the Jews, it will be opened by no other. For I will fix the standard in a faithful place, where the assembly of the faithful is. Hence believers in Christ are called faithful. And he will be on the throne of the glory of his father's house, that is, the Church; and they will hang all the glory of his father's house upon him. Hence it is written in the Gospel: All the people were hanging upon him (Luke 19). And indeed, this was not done only at that time, but is fulfilled even to this day, so that different vessels of God, wisdom and justice, and everything by which Christ is called, hang from him. Different kinds of vessels, for which Aquila interpreted as Sasaim and Sephoth, which Symmachus translates as grandsons and mixed: so that both the Apostles and all believers, that is, the sons of sons, and mixed from all the nations, hang upon him. From the vessels of the craterae, which Theodotius Aganoth set up, both small and great are believed to be in the Lord. And I think that the craterae are the Apostles, full of vital waters. Of which it is said: Bless God from the fountains of Israel (Ps. 67:27), in which fountains He mixed His wisdom with wine. And everything, he says, musical, of those who at all times sing praises to God. What follows seems to be contrary to our understanding, how this peg, which had been fixed in a faithful place, is removed and broken, and falls and perishes what had depended on it, and this happens because the Lord has spoken. This can be solved if we read that Gospel, which in the last days the charity of many shall wax cold (Matt. 24); and the Lord Himself says: 'When the Son of man cometh, think you that he shall find faith on earth?' (Luke 18:8) Therefore, the pillar will not be broken and fall and perish, which is impious to say, but the pillar will be taken away from a faithful place, that is, from the Church, through the impiety that grows daily, and those who had previously hung on it with faith will afterwards be broken by unfaithfulness and fall and perish. But this will happen in the last days, because the Lord has spoken. As for the sparrow, which is called Jathed in Hebrew, and is pronounced the same by everyone, the Seventy above all have interpreted it as referring to a person. And what almost passed us by in the haste of dictation, Sobnas interprets as meaning conversion now, or turning back. Therefore, it is said to the leader of the Jews to convert from the Law to the Gospel: and forsaking the images of victims, to turn to the truth of spiritual sacrifice.

Second, his consecration: and I will clothe him, for they were consecrated with pontifical garments, as is evident from Leviticus 18, concerning these garments, and Exodus 28. Third, he confers jurisdiction on him: and I will give your power into his hand. And first, as to the power which he had among the people, he sets out power: and your power, namely, I will give: may his days be few: and his bishopric let another take (Ps 108[109]:8); and he shall be as a father: I will give you pastors according to my own heart, and they shall feed you with knowledge and doctrine (Jer 3:15).

This section of prophecy, extending to the end of the eighth verse of the next chapter, is addressed to the king of Judah and his people. It enjoins on them the practice of justice and equity, as they would hope to prosper, Jer 22:14; but threatens them, in case of disobedience, with utter destruction, Jer 22:5-9. The captivity of Shallum, the son of Josiah, is declared to be irreversible, Jer 22:10-12; and the miserable and unlamented end of Jeconiah, contemptuously called Coniah, is foretold, Jer 22:13-19. His family is threatened with the like captivity, and his seed declared to be for ever excluded from the throne, Jer 22:20-30.

To the inhabitants - ליושבי leyoshebey, in the plural number, four of Dr. Kennicott's MSS., (two ancient), and two of De Rossi's, with the Septuagint, Syriac, and Vulgate.

PROPHECY AS TO AN ATTACK ON JERUSALEM. (Isa 22:1-14) of . . . valley of vision--rather, "respecting the valley of visions"; namely, Jerusalem, the seat of divine revelations and visions, "the nursery of prophets" [JEROME], (Isa 2:3; Isa 29:1; Eze 23:4, Margin; Luk 13:33). It lay in a "valley" surrounded by hills higher than Zion and Moriah (Psa 125:2; Jer 21:13). thee--the people of Jerusalem personified. housetops--Panic-struck, they went up on the flat balustraded roofs to look forth and see whether the enemy was near, and partly to defend themselves from the roofs (Jdg 9:51, &c.).

thy robe--of office. girdle--in which the purse was carried, and to it was attached the sword; often adorned with gold and jewels. father--that is, a counsellor and friend.