Exegetical and Hermeneutical Commentary of Isaiah 22:16
What hast thou here? and whom hast thou here, that thou hast hewed thee out a sepulcher here, [as] he that heweth him out a sepulcher on high, [and] that graveth a habitation for himself in a rock?
16. We may imagine the meeting between Isaiah and the vizier to have taken place at the sepulchre which the latter, after the Eastern fashion, was having prepared in his lifetime. By this act the novus homo asserted his equality with the aristocracy of Jerusalem, a piece of presumption which evidently kindles the ire of the prophet.
What hast thou (to do) here? and whom (as kindred or descendants) hast thou here? ] i.e. “Thou neither hast the rights of a citizen, nor canst claim to be the founder of a family.” Shebna’s grave was simply the monument of his own vulgar and ostentatious vanity.
that thou hast hewed here ] (see below) in so conspicuous a position. That Shebna actually placed his tomb amongst those of the kings and princes of Judah is not to be assumed; but he had plainly chosen a pretentious situation.
as he that heweth ] Render: Hewing out his sepulchre on high! Graving in the rock an habitation for him! Ejaculations of unutterable scorn. The use of the third person suggests that there were bystanders.
Fuente: The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges
What hast thou here? – This verse contains a severe repoof of the pride and ostentation of Shebna, and of his expectation that he would be buried where be had built his own tomb. It also contains an implied declaration that he would not be permitted to lie there, but would be removed to a distant land to be buried in some less honorable manner. It is probable that Isaiah met him when he was at the sepulchre which he had made, and addressed this language to him there: What hast thou here? What right to expect that thou wilt be buried here, or why do you erect this splendid sepulchre, as if you were a holy man, and God would allow you to lie here? Probably his sepulchre had been erected among the sepulchres of holy people, and perhaps in some part of the royal burying place in Jerusalem.
And whom hast thou here? – Who among the dead that are entombed here are connected with you, that you should deem yourself entitled to lie with them? If this was the royal cemetery, these words might be designed to intimate that he had no connection with the royal family; and thus his building a tomb there was an evidence of vain glory, and of an attempt to occupy a place, even in death, to which he had no title.
That thou hast hewed thee out a sepulchre here – Sepulchres were hewn or cut out of rocks (see the note at Isa 14:9). It was usual also for princes and rich people to have their sepulchres or tombs constructed while they were themselves alive (see Mat 27:60). Shebna was doubtless a man of humble birth, none of whose ancestors or family had been honored with a burial in the royal cemetery, and hence, the prophet reproves his pride in expecting to repose with the royal dead.
He that heweth him out a sepulchre on high – On some elevated place, that it might be more conspicuous. Thus Hezekiah 2Ch 32:33 was buried in the chiefest of the sepulchres of the sons of David. Hebrew, bemaaleh – In the highest. Septuagint, en anabasei. Such sepulchres are still found in Persia. They consist of several tombs, each hewn in a high rock near the top, the front of the rock being adorned with figures in relievo. Sepulchres of this kind are remarkably exemplified in the very ancient tombs excavated in the cliffs of the mountain of sepulchres at Naksh-i-Roustan, a full description of which may be found in Sir Robert Ker Porters Travels. They are excavated in an almost perpendicular cliff of about 300 feet high. There are two rows, of which the uppermost are the most ancient and interesting, presenting highly sculptured fronts about fifty-three feet broad, crowned by a representation of an act of Sabean worship. To the lowest of them, which, however, he describes as not less than sixty feet from the ground, Sir Robert could gain access only by being drawn up by means of a rope fastened around his waist, by some active natives who had contrived to clamber up to the ledge in front of the tomb. These appear to be royal sepulchres, and probably not later than the time of the kings of Persia mentioned in Scripture. (Pict. Bible.) Two objects were probably contemplated by such sepulchres. One was security from desecration. The other was ostentation – sepulchres thus excavated furnishing an opportunity for the display of architectural taste in front, and being conspicuous objects. Such sepulchres are found at Petra (see the notes at Isa 16:1), and it is probable that Shebna sought this kind of immortality. – Many a man who has done nothing to deserve celebrity by his noble deeds while living, seeks it by the magnificence of his tomb.
Fuente: Albert Barnes’ Notes on the Bible
Verse 16. A sepulchre on high – in a rock] It has been observed before, on Isa 13:1, that persons of high rank in Judea, and in most parts of the east, were generally buried in large sepulchral vaults, hewn out in the rock for the use of themselves and their families. The vanity of Shebna is set forth by his being so studious and careful to have his sepulchre on high – in a lofty vault; and that probably in a high situation, that it might be more conspicuous. Hezekiah was buried, lemalah, Sept.: in the chiefest, says our translation; rather, in the highest part of the sepulchres of the sons of David, to do him the more honour, 2Ch 32:33. There are some monuments still remaining in Persia of great antiquity, called Naksi Rustam, which give one a clear idea of Shebna’s pompous design for his sepulchre. They consist of several sepulchres, each of them hewn in a high rock near the top; the front of the rock to the valley below is adorned with carved work in relievo, being the outside of the sepulchre. Some of these sepulchres are about thirty feet in the perpendicular from the valley, which is itself perhaps raised above half as much by the accumulation of the earth since they were made. See the description of them in Chardin, Pietro della Valle, Thevenot, and Kempfer. Diodorus Siculus, lib. xvii., mentions these ancient monuments, and calls them the sepulchres of the kings of Persia. – L.
Fuente: Adam Clarke’s Commentary and Critical Notes on the Bible
What hast thou here? or, What dost thou here? what right hast thou to this place and office? Whom; either,
1. What friends, in whom thou canst confide? Thou hast so ill managed thyself and thy affairs, that thou art universally hated. Or,
2. What kindred or relations? For the Jews say he was a stranger by birth; which is the more probable, because his pedigree is not mentioned in any of those places of Scripture where he is named.
Hewed thee out a sepulchre, as great and ambitious men used to do. Here; not in thine own country, the proper place for such a monument; but in Jerusalem, which should not be defiled nor disparaged with it.
On high; in a high and eminent place, as Isa 57:7. An habitation; either,
1. A sepulchre, which is called a mans house, Job 30:23; or,
2. A dwelling-house. He erected, or is compared to one that doth erect, a stately house to live in, and a stately sepulchre to receive him when he dies. And these two are fitly joined together, because their sepulchres were commonly built in or near their houses. See Isa 14:18; Joh 19:41. In a rock; a fit place both for strength and state. Thus we read of a sepulchre hewed out of a rock, Mat 27:60.
Fuente: English Annotations on the Holy Bible by Matthew Poole
16. What . . . whomTheprophet accosts Shebna at the very place where he was building agrand sepulcher for himself and his family (compare Isa 14:18;Gen 23:1-20; Gen 49:29;Gen 50:13). “What(business) hast thou here, and whom hast thou (of thy family,who is likely to be buried) here, that thou buildest,“&c., seeing that thou art soon to be deposed from office andcarried into captivity? [MAURER].
on highSepulchres weremade in the highest rocks (2Ch32:33, Margin).
habitation forhimselfcompare “his own house” (Isa14:18).
Fuente: Jamieson, Fausset and Brown’s Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible
What hast thou here?…. In the king’s house, or in Jerusalem; what business hast thou here? thou art unworthy of such an office, nor shalt thou long continue in it; what inheritance hast thou here? thou art an alien from the commonwealth of Israel and hast no estate or possession in the land:
and whom hast thou here? of thy family and kindred; what ancestors hast thou? where did they live or die, and were buried? what children hast thou to succeed thee in honour and estate? or what relations to be interred, when deceased, in thy grave, that thou hast made such a provision as follows? and it may be observed, that wherever he is spoken of, the name of his father is never mentioned. Aben Ezra’s gloss is, who hast thou here of thy family that can help thee? his fall and ruin being at hand:
that thou hast hewed thee out a sepulchre here; in the city of Jerusalem, or near it; the Jews say x, among the sepulchres of the kings of the house of David; as if he thought to live and die here, and so had provided a sepulchre for himself and family, to lie in great pomp and splendour, like the kings and princes of the earth:
[as] he that heweth him out a sepulchre on high, [and] that graveth an habitation for himself in a rock; where sepulchres, as well as palaces, used to be built; see Mt 27:60 and great men, especially the Egyptians, used to build sepulchres like to palaces; though it may be observed, that the word “as” is not in the text; and the words may be understood of Shebna’s hewing out a sepulchre in some high place near Jerusalem, and building a fine house upon a rock there; and which may design either one and the same thing, a grave or sepulchre being called a house, Job 30:23 or two different things, a sepulchre to be buried in when dead, and a palace to dwell in while living; and so the words may be rendered thus y, “O he that heweth himself”, c. “O he that graveth an habitation”, c. so the Syriac version, “O thou that hewest thy sepulchre on high”, &c.
x T. Bab. Sanhedrin fol. 26. 2. y “O caedens, &c. O statuens”, &c. Junius & Tremellius.
Fuente: John Gill’s Exposition of the Entire Bible
16. What hast thou here? Shebna had built a sepulcher at Jerusalem, as if he were to live there continually, and to die there. The Prophet therefore asks why he built a splendid and costly sepulcher in a lofty and conspicuous place, as is commonly done by those who wish to perpetuate the memory of their name in the world. He appears to glance at the ambition of a foreigner and a stranger in longing to be so magnificently buried out of his country, and yet eagerly joining with enemies for the destruction of Judea. What could have been more foolish than to erect a monument in that country for whose ruin he was plotting? And therefore he adds —
Fuente: Calvin’s Complete Commentary
(16) What hast thou here? . . .The prophets indignation is roused by Shebnas last act of arrogance. He had no sepulchre of his fathers to deck with fresh stateliness, and, like the kings and great ones of the earth (the kings of Sidon, the Pharaohs of Egypt, the kings of Assyria), had built one for himself, hollowed out of the wells (probably on one of the hills of Jerusalem), to be his own everlasting habitation, his domus terna. So in Ecc. 12:5, the grave is the long home of man. Rock-hewn sepulchres of this type are found on the slopes of all the hills in the neighbourhood of the holy city.
Fuente: Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers (Old and New Testaments)
Isa 22:16 What hast thou here? and whom hast thou here, that thou hast hewed thee out a sepulchre here, [as] he that heweth him out a sepulchre on high, [and] that graveth an habitation for himself in a rock?
Ver. 16. What hast thou here? ] What inheritance, possession?
And whom hast thou here?
a Terrae filius. Son of the earth.
Fuente: John Trapp’s Complete Commentary (Old and New Testaments)
as he. rock = (as. rock). Figure of speech Parenthesis.
Fuente: Companion Bible Notes, Appendices and Graphics
What hast: Isa 52:5, Mic 2:10
hewed: There are some monuments still remaining in Persia, of great antiquity, says Bp. Lowth, called Naksi Rustam, which give a clear idea of Shebna’s pompous design for his sepulchre. They consist of several sepulchres, each of them hewn in a high rock near the top. The front of the rock to the valley below is adorned with carved work in relief, being the outside of the sepulchre. Some of these sepulchres are about thirty feet in the perpendicular from the valley, which is itself raised perhaps about half as much by the accumulation of the earth since they were made. Isa 14:18, 2Sa 18:18, 2Ch 16:14, Job 3:14, Mat 27:60
as he: or, O he
Reciprocal: Gen 50:5 – I have Jdg 18:3 – and what hast Isa 22:25 – the nail Mar 15:46 – hewn Luk 16:22 – and was buried Joh 11:38 – It was Joh 19:41 – and in
Fuente: The Treasury of Scripture Knowledge
Isa 22:16-19. What hast thou here? Or, What dost thou here? What right hast thou to this place and office? And whom hast thou here? What relations or family? That thou hast hewed thee out a sepulchre That thou art ambitious of raising a stately sepulchre for thyself and thine heirs? As he that heweth out a sepulchre on high In a high and eminent place; a habitation for himself in a rock A monument that shall preserve his memory to all succeeding times. The Lord will carry thee away with a mighty captivity Will cause thee to be carried into captivity by a strong hand, or by the hand of a mighty man, from which, therefore, thou shalt not be able to escape. The Hebrew, , is rendered by Dr. Waterland, will throw thee out hence with a mighty throw, and may also be rendered, will cast thee away with the casting of a mighty man, that is, with great force; and will surely cover thee Namely, with confusion, as is here implied, and as this phrase is more fully expressed Psa 109:29. Or, this may be an allusion to the condition of mourners in general, and particularly of condemned persons, whose faces were wont to be covered. He will violently turn and toss thee like a ball Hebrew, , rolling he will roll thee with the rolling of a ball; into a large country Like a ball which is cast into a large and plain spot of ground, where, being thrown with great force, it runs far and wide. Or, to a far country, meaning probably Assyria. There shalt thou die After having lived in obscurity. And the chariots of thy glory shall be the shame of thy lords house The honour thou didst arrive at, and the chariots in which thou didst ride with so much state at Jerusalem, shall turn to thy shame, and to the reproach of those who preferred so unworthy a person. Dr. Waterland translates the verse, He will toss and whirl thee, as he were whirling a ball, &c., and there shall be thy glorious chariots, O thou shame of thy lords house. And I will drive thee, &c. These are the Lords words; and from thy state shall he pull thee down Namely, the Lord shall; such sudden changes of persons being very usual in these writings.
Fuente: Joseph Bensons Commentary on the Old and New Testaments
22:16 What hast thou here? and whom hast thou here, that thou hast hewed thee out a sepulchre {r} here, [as] he that heweth him out a sepulchre on high, [and] that cut out an habitation {s} for himself in a rock?
(r) Meaning, that he was a stranger, and came up of nothing.
(s) While he thought to make his name immortal by his famous sepulchre, he died most miserably among the Assyrians.
Fuente: Geneva Bible Notes
Isaiah’s question is almost identical to the one in Isa 22:1, tying Shebna’s error to that of the people of Jerusalem. He had no personal right, or a right by reason of his position, to prepare a permanent and prominent tomb for himself. A person’s tomb made a statement about his importance, and Shebna wanted to guarantee his future recognition by building himself a respectable monument in Jerusalem (cf. Haman; Est 3:1-2). Archaeologists have found the remains of a grave hewn by one Shebna on the Mount of Olives east of Jerusalem. [Note: Dyer, in The Old . . ., p. 544.]
"In this episode (a scene which deserves to be remembered beside ’Nero fiddled while Rome burned’) the prime minister chooses the moment when Jerusalem’s citizens are frantically arming for a last-ditch stand against the invaders to visit the elaborate mausoleum he was preparing for himself in the royal cemetery. . . .
"Why should he be preoccupied with dignity in death, while most people in Jerusalem were still hoping to live?" [Note: Watts, p. 291.]