Isaiah 22:19
19 And I will drive [Hadaph] thee from thy station [matstsab], and from thy state [ma`amad] shall he pull thee down [harac]. KJV-Interlinear
19 I will thrust you from your office, and
you will be pulled down from your station.
ESV
The change to
the third person indicates that even though Isaiah is speaking of himself, he
is in fact speaking of the actions that God will take. Shebna is then a symbol of evil, as well as
an actual person. He moved into
Jerusalem, with evil intentions, thinking that he could take over the truth of
God and make it a home of his own choosing and design.
He is the
example of any and all who pursue their own understanding and thus replace and betray
truth and God.
But evil cannot
accomplish its own purpose. And so here
evil is fired from its place in this universe.
Prophesied from long ago, and when the end of the Tribulation is completed,
the command will be fulfilled. And at
the end of the Millennium, it will be sealed permanently and forever.
This also
indicates that throughout history, no matter what evil lurks in the nations or
empires or even individuals, its designs will never succeed.
Evil will rise
and fall as humanity turns away from, or turns toward, Christ. But its life cycle will always be short. And eventually in the end, it will cease
altogether.
Siding with evil,
compromising, flirting with sin, trying to keep both sides appeased, are always
a bad choices.
