Isaiah 22:20

20 And it shall be, in that day I shall call my servant Eliakim, the son of Hilkiah; (And it shall be, on that day I shall call for my servant Eliakim, the son of Hilkiah;)

Isaiah 22:20 Meaning and Commentary

Isaiah 22:20

And it shall come to pass in that day
At the same time that Shebna was deposed from his high station:

that I will call my servant Eliakim, the son of Hilkiah;
whom Kimchi thinks was the same with Azariah the son of Hilkiah, who might have two names, and was a ruler over the house of God in the times of Hezekiah, ( 1 Chronicles 6:13 ) ( 2 Chronicles 31:13 ) this man, by the character given him, was a good man, a faithful, diligent, and constant servant of the Lord, and therefore he delighted to raise him to great honour and dignity: he did not seek great things for himself, nor did he thrust himself into the office, but the Lord called him to it in his providence, and put him into it; he did, as Kimchi observes, put it into the heart of Hezekiah to appoint him governor in the room of Shebna. This man was a type of Christ; his name agrees with him which signifies, "my God will raise up"; that is, the dead by him, ( 1 Corinthians 6:14 ) and so does the character of a servant, frequently given to Christ in this book; see ( Isaiah 42:1 ) ( 49:3 ) ( 53:11 ) nor did Christ take any office to himself, but was called unto it by his Father, ( Hebrews 5:4 Hebrews 5:5 ) .

Isaiah 22:20 In-Context

18 He crowning shall crown thee with tribulation; he shall send thee as a ball into a large land and wide; there thou shalt die, and there shall be the chariot of thy glory, and the shame of the house of thy Lord. (He crowning shall crown thee with tribulation; he shall throw thee like a ball into a great wide land; and there thou shalt die, and thy glorious chariots shall be there, but now they shall be the shame of thy lord's house.)
19 And I shall cast thee out of thy standing, and I shall put thee down of thy service. (And I shall throw thee out of thy office, and I shall put thee down from thy service.)
20 And it shall be, in that day I shall call my servant Eliakim, the son of Hilkiah; (And it shall be, on that day I shall call for my servant Eliakim, the son of Hilkiah;)
21 and I shall clothe him in thy coat, and I shall comfort him with thy girdle, and I shall give thy power into the hands of him; and he shall be as a father to them that dwell in Jerusalem, and to the house of Judah. (and I shall clothe him in thy coat, and I shall strengthen him with thy girdle, and I shall give thy power into his hands; and he shall be like a father to those who live in Jerusalem, and to the house of Judah.)
22 And I shall give the key of the house of David on his shoulder (And I shall put the key of the house of David upon his shoulder); and he shall open, and none shall be that shall shut; and he shall shut, and none shall be that shall open.
Copyright © 2001 by Terence P. Noble. For personal use only.