¹⁵ Thus says the Lord God of hosts, “Come, go to this steward, to Shebna, who is over the household, and say to him: ¹⁶ What have you to do here, and whom have you here, that you have cut out here a tomb for yourself, you who cut out a tomb on the height and carve a dwelling for yourself in the rock? ¹⁷ Behold, the Lord will hurl you away violently, O you strong man. He will seize firm hold on you ¹⁸ and whirl you around and around, and throw you like a ball into a wide land. There you shall die, and there shall be your glorious chariots, you shame of your master's house. ¹⁹ I will thrust you from your office, and you will be pulled down from your station. ²⁰ In that day I will call my servant Eliakim the son of Hilkiah, ²¹ and I will clothe him with your robe, and will bind your sash on him, and will commit your authority to his hand. And he shall be a father to the inhabitants of Jerusalem and to the house of Judah. ²² And I will place on his shoulder the key of the house of David. He shall open, and none shall shut; and he shall shut, and none shall open. ²³ And I will fasten him like a peg in a secure place, and he will become a throne of honor to his father's house. ²⁴ And they will hang on him the whole honor of his father's house, the offspring and issue, every small vessel, from the cups to all the flagons. ²⁵ In that day, declares the Lord of hosts, the peg that was fastened in a secure place will give way, and it will be cut down and fall, and the load that was on it will be cut off, for the Lord has spoken.” (Isaiah 22:15-25)

So, what is a Steward - A steward is appointed by the ruling king or queen to represent them and help them to govern. Another word we could use to describe the steward is “prime minister.” In the Old Testament, the chief steward of the king was able to rule with the authority of the king when the king was unavailable. He would also handle the household finances for the king. So, the Chief Steward had a lot of responsibility and authority.

You might have never noticed this guy before, but I think it’s worth taking a moment to take a closer look, his name is Eliakim. We are introduced to him in Isaiah 22, although there are other Eliakims in Scripture. Take time to focus on his character. The one in Isaiah 22 is entrusted with Stewardship. The Lord God of Hosts says, that he will place on his shoulder the key of the house of David. He shall open, and none shall shut, and he shall shut and none shall open.

If these words sound familiar to you it’s probably because we will see them again in Revelation 3:7 when Christ is introduced to the Church at Philadelphia as the one who has the key of David. Who opens and no one will shut, who shuts and no one opens.

Let’s look closer at the language of Isaiah 22 – it will be placed on his shoulder, sound familiar? Of the greater Eliakim it said, “unto us a child is born, unto us a son is given, and the government will be upon his shoulder (Isaiah 9:6).”

Now back to the original Eliakim, they will hang on him the whole honor of his father’s house. The Hebrew word here for honor is Kaw-bode translated glory or honor and conveys a sense of weight or heaviness

The emphasis is on the weighty responsibility being placed on Eliakim, but sadly the chapter ends with his house being cut off and falling. What a contrast to the Greater Eliakim, who’s given the full honor of His Father’s house, and the name that is above every name, and of whom Isaiah wrote of the increase of his government and of peace there will be no end.

No surprise that Eliakim means “Whom God will raise up”, “God sets up”, or “the resurrection of God.” It’s hard to miss, right? This is so clearly points to the greater Eliakim Jesus Christ.