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Isaiah 22:23-24
God likens the role of a steward to a securely fastened peg or nail. At the time, houses and other buildings commonly had durable spikes or large pins affixed to the walls during the building process. They were attached in places strong enough to bear the weight of whatever would be hung on them: usually, all sorts of utensils and vessels. In contrast, God compares unfaithful Israel to a peg made of a flimsy vine branch—utterly unfit for the service He required (Ezekiel 15:3). Both the Tabernacle and Temple featured such pegs (Exodus 27:19; 38:20), and Ezra, reflecting on God's graciousness, refers to being given “a peg in His holy place” (Ezra 9:8). However, unless Eliakim was a priest—and there is no indication that he was—he would not have been serving in the Temple, so the “secure place” probably refers to something else. The word translated as “secure” (“sure,” KJV) is used to describe something that is well-supported, stable, assured, certain, and trustworthy—a thing in which a person can put his faith. Specifically, it is used to describe the house or dynasty of David (I Samuel 25:28; II Samuel 7:16; I Kings 11:38), a house that is assured because God continues to support it. Thus, the meaning is that God fastened Eliakim like a nail into the “secure place” of the house of David, and he would serve as a trustworthy implement in supporting the many “vessels”—people—who were part of that house. The NKVJ reads that Eliakim would be “a glorious throne to his father's house.” The New English Translation renders this, “he will bring honor and respect to his father's family.” This detail, too, is reminiscent of Joseph, who brought great honor to his father, Jacob, through the glory given to him by God in Egypt (Genesis 45:9-13). Both ideas of being “fastened in a secure place” and bringing glory to the house of one's father are, however, even more applicable to Jesus Christ, who is so steadfast and certain that He does not merely support “vessels” but is now “upholding all things by the word of His power” (Hebrews 1:3). All of the members of His Father's house—all His brothers and sisters—can confidently look to Him for stability and support, yet one of His main purposes has been to glorify His—our—Father.
David C. Grabbe
The 'Open Door' of Philadelphia
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