22 1 He prophesieth of the destruction of Jerusalem by Nebuchadnezzar. 15 A threatening against Shebna. 20 To whose office Eliakim is preferred.

The burden of the [a]valley of vision. What [b]aileth thee now that thou art wholly gone up unto the house tops?

Thou that art full of [c]noise, a city full of brute, a joyous city, thy slain men shall not be slain [d]with sword, nor die in battle.

All thy princes shall flee together from the bow: they shall be [e]bound: all that shall be found in thee, shall be bound together, which have fled from [f]far.

Therefore said I, Turn away from me, I will weep [g]bitterly: labor not to comfort me for the destruction of the daughter of my people.

For it is a day of trouble, and of ruin, and of perplexity by the Lord God of hosts in the valley of vision, breaking down the city: and a [h]crying unto the mountains.

¶ And Elam [i]bare the quiver in a man’s chariot with horsemen, and Kir uncovered the shield.

And thy chief valleys were full of chariots, and the horsemen set themselves in array against the gate.

And he discovered the [j]covering of Judah: and thou didst look in that day to the armor of the house of the forest.

And ye have seen [k]the breaches of the city of David: for they were many, and ye gathered the waters of the lower pool.

10 And ye numbered the houses [l]of Jerusalem, and the houses have ye broken down to fortify the wall,

11 And have also made a ditch between the two walls, for the [m]waters of the old pool, and have not looked unto the maker [n]thereof, neither had respect unto him that formed it of old.

12 And in that day did the Lord God of hosts call unto weeping and mourning, and to baldness and girding with sackcloth.

13 And behold, joy and gladness, slaying oxen and killing sheep, eating flesh, and drinking wine, [o]eating and drinking, for tomorrow we shall die.

14 And it was declared in the ears of the Lord of hosts. Surely this iniquity shall not be purged from you, till ye die, saith the Lord God of hosts.

15 Thus saith the Lord God of hosts, Go, get thee to that [p]treasurer, to Shebna, the steward of the house, and say,

16 What hast thou to do here? and whom hast thou [q]here? that thou shouldest here hew thee out a sepulcher, as he that heweth out his sepulcher in a high place, or that graveth an habitation [r]for himself in a rock?

17 Behold, the Lord will carry thee away with a great captivity, and will surely cover thee.

18 He will surely roll and turn thee like a ball in a large country: there shalt thou die, and there the chariots of thy glory shall be the [s]shame of thy lord’s house.

19 And I will drive thee from thy station, and out of thy dwelling will he destroy thee.

20 And in that day will I [t]call my servant Eliakim the son of Hilkiah,

21 And with thy garments will I clothe him, and with thy girdle will I strengthen him: thy power also will I commit into his hand, and he shall be a father of the inhabitants of Jerusalem, and of the house of Judah.

22 And the [u]key of the house of David will I lay upon his shoulder: so he shall open, and no man shall shut: and he shall shut, and no man shall open.

23 And I will fasten him as a [v]nail in a sure place, and he shall be for the throne of glory to his father’s house.

24 And they shall hang upon him all the glory of his father’s house, even of the nephews and posterity [w]all small vessels, from the vessels of the cups, even to all the instruments of music.

25 In that day saith the Lord of hosts, shall the [x]nail that is fastened in the sure place, depart and shall be broken and fall, and the burden that was upon it, shall be cut off: for the Lord hath spoken it.

Footnotes

  1. Isaiah 22:1 Meaning, Judea, which was compassed about with mountains, and was called the valley of visions, because of the Prophets, which were always there, whom they named Seers.
  2. Isaiah 22:1 He speaketh to Jerusalem, whose inhabitants were fled up to the housetops for fear of their enemies.
  3. Isaiah 22:2 Which was wont to be full of people and joy.
  4. Isaiah 22:2 But for hunger.
  5. Isaiah 22:3 And led into captivity.
  6. Isaiah 22:3 Which have fled from other places to Jerusalem for succor.
  7. Isaiah 22:4 He showeth what is the duty of the godly, when God’s plagues hang over the Church, and especially of the ministers, Jer. 9:1.
  8. Isaiah 22:5 That is, the shout of the enemies whom God had appointed to destroy the city.
  9. Isaiah 22:6 He putteth them in mind how God delivered them once from Sennacherib, who brought the Persians and Cyrenians with him, that they might by returning to God avoid that great plague which they should else suffer by Nebuchadnezzar.
  10. Isaiah 22:8 The secret place where the armor was: to wit, in the house of the forest, 1 Kings 7:2.
  11. Isaiah 22:9 Ye forfeited the ruinous places which were neglected in times of peace: meaning, the whole City, and the City of David, which was within the compass of the other.
  12. Isaiah 22:10 Either to pull down such as might hurt, or else to know what men they were able to make.
  13. Isaiah 22:11 To provide if need should be of water.
  14. Isaiah 22:11 To God that made Jerusalem: that is, they trusted more in these worldly means, than in God.
  15. Isaiah 22:13 Instead of repentance ye were joyful and made great cheer, contemning the admonitions of the Prophets, saying, Let us eat and drink for our Prophets say, that we shall die tomorrow.
  16. Isaiah 22:15 Because the Hebrew word doth also signify one that doth nourish and cherish, there are of the learned that think that this wicked man did nourish secret friendship with the Assyrians and Egyptians to betray the Church, and to provide for himself against all dangers: in the mean season he packed craftily, and got of the best offices into his hand under Hezekiah, ever aspiring to the highest.
  17. Isaiah 22:16 Meaning, that he was a stranger, and came up of nothing.
  18. Isaiah 22:16 Whereas he thought to make his name immortal by his famous sepulcher, he died most miserably among the Assyrians.
  19. Isaiah 22:18 Signifying that whatsoever dignity the wicked attain unto, at length it will turn to the shame of those princes, by whom they are preferred.
  20. Isaiah 22:20 To be steward again, out of the which office he had been put, by the craft of Shebna.
  21. Isaiah 22:22 I will commit unto him the full charge and government of the king’s house.
  22. Isaiah 22:23 I will establish him, and confirm him in his office: of this phrase, read Ezra 9:9.
  23. Isaiah 22:24 Meaning that both small and great that shall come of Eliakim, shall have praise and glory by his faithful officer.
  24. Isaiah 22:25 He meaneth Shebna, who in man’s judgment should never have fallen.

A Prophecy About Jerusalem

22 A prophecy(A) against the Valley(B) of Vision:(C)

What troubles you now,
    that you have all gone up on the roofs,(D)
you town so full of commotion,
    you city of tumult(E) and revelry?(F)
Your slain(G) were not killed by the sword,(H)
    nor did they die in battle.
All your leaders have fled(I) together;
    they have been captured(J) without using the bow.
All you who were caught were taken prisoner together,
    having fled while the enemy was still far away.
Therefore I said, “Turn away from me;
    let me weep(K) bitterly.
Do not try to console me
    over the destruction of my people.”(L)

The Lord, the Lord Almighty, has a day(M)
    of tumult and trampling(N) and terror(O)
    in the Valley of Vision,(P)
a day of battering down walls(Q)
    and of crying out to the mountains.
Elam(R) takes up the quiver,(S)
    with her charioteers and horses;
    Kir(T) uncovers the shield.
Your choicest valleys(U) are full of chariots,
    and horsemen are posted at the city gates.(V)

The Lord stripped away the defenses of Judah,
    and you looked in that day(W)
    to the weapons(X) in the Palace of the Forest.(Y)
You saw that the walls of the City of David
    were broken through(Z) in many places;
you stored up water
    in the Lower Pool.(AA)
10 You counted the buildings in Jerusalem
    and tore down houses(AB) to strengthen the wall.(AC)
11 You built a reservoir between the two walls(AD)
    for the water of the Old Pool,(AE)
but you did not look to the One who made it,
    or have regard(AF) for the One who planned(AG) it long ago.

12 The Lord, the Lord Almighty,
    called you on that day(AH)
to weep(AI) and to wail,
    to tear out your hair(AJ) and put on sackcloth.(AK)
13 But see, there is joy and revelry,(AL)
    slaughtering of cattle and killing of sheep,
    eating of meat and drinking of wine!(AM)
“Let us eat and drink,” you say,
    “for tomorrow we die!”(AN)

14 The Lord Almighty has revealed this in my hearing:(AO) “Till your dying day this sin will not be atoned(AP) for,” says the Lord, the Lord Almighty.

15 This is what the Lord, the Lord Almighty, says:

“Go, say to this steward,
    to Shebna(AQ) the palace(AR) administrator:(AS)
16 What are you doing here and who gave you permission
    to cut out a grave(AT) for yourself(AU) here,
hewing your grave on the height
    and chiseling your resting place in the rock?

17 “Beware, the Lord is about to take firm hold of you
    and hurl(AV) you away, you mighty man.
18 He will roll you up tightly like a ball
    and throw(AW) you into a large country.
There you will die
    and there the chariots(AX) you were so proud of
    will become a disgrace to your master’s house.
19 I will depose you from your office,
    and you will be ousted(AY) from your position.(AZ)

20 “In that day(BA) I will summon my servant,(BB) Eliakim(BC) son of Hilkiah. 21 I will clothe him with your robe and fasten your sash(BD) around him and hand your authority(BE) over to him. He will be a father to those who live in Jerusalem and to the people of Judah. 22 I will place on his shoulder(BF) the key(BG) to the house of David;(BH) what he opens no one can shut, and what he shuts no one can open.(BI) 23 I will drive him like a peg(BJ) into a firm place;(BK) he will become a seat[a] of honor(BL) for the house of his father. 24 All the glory of his family will hang on him: its offspring and offshoots—all its lesser vessels, from the bowls to all the jars.

25 “In that day,(BM)” declares the Lord Almighty, “the peg(BN) driven into the firm place will give way; it will be sheared off and will fall, and the load hanging on it will be cut down.” The Lord has spoken.(BO)

Footnotes

  1. Isaiah 22:23 Or throne