Isaiah 22:25 February 5, 2023 A.M.
“When God Yanks the Nail Out”
This morning I want to start off by reading just one Verse. The last Verse of Isaiah 22. Verse 25.
“In that day, saith the Lord of hosts, shall the nail that is fastened in the sure place be removed, and be cut down, and fall; and the burden that was upon it shall be cut off: for the Lord hath spoken it.”
In this passage, Isaiah is prophesying about the coming Judgment for the Nation of Judah. The Babylonian Empire would invade their land, they would lay siege to the City of Jerusalem, many people would die from starvation and eventually the MAJORITY of the people, who were still living, would be taken away to the Nation of Babylon.
At the time this Chapter was written, Hezekiah was the king. And by his LEADERSHIP, the coming judgment was put off until after he died. 2 Kings 18:5 and 6 tell us,
“He trusted in the LORD God of Israel; so that after him was none like him among all the kings of Judah, nor any that were before him. For he clave to the LORD, and departed not from following him, but kept his commandments, which the LORD commanded Moses.”
But in the CABINET of King Hezekiah, there was a man by the name of Shebna. He held a very important job. He basically was the Household Treasurer for the King. He had been given this job during the reign of King Ahaz, Hezekiah’s father. And as we’ll see in this passage, Shebna was a wicked, deceitful, and proud man and some Jewish historians believe he was actually a TRAITOR who conspired with Assyria when they attacked Jerusalem.
Before I get started this morning I want to say something. I believe as a PREACHER of the Gospel, it is my JOB to bring to you the Word of God. Without the Word of God we would ALL be lost. But, more than that, it is my JOB to RELATE THIS WORD to our LIVES. I could stand up here and read some scriptures. Maybe read a POEM. But I believe this passage that was written around 2800 years ago has a MESSAGE for you and I. So I want to bring a message this morning that I have entitled, “When God PULLS the NAIL OUT”.
Before we get into this message let’s go to the Lord in Prayer. Brother _____, would you lead us in Prayer.
When I built our house 15 years ago, I ordered a FRAMING KIT that was a lot like a GIANT ERECTOR SET. It was ALL METAL and it ALL SCREWED together. There are very few NAILS in our house. It’s a little stronger and has a better FIRE RATING being metal.
Now that’s fine and dandy until you want to hang something on the wall. You can find a stud but you’re NOT gonna drive a NAIL into it. So most of the time we use a sheetrock anchor. You know, you poke a hole into the sheetrock and then you push one of those pieces of plastic into it and then you run a screw into the plastic. That works fine until you get just a little bit too much weight on it and then .... everything falls to the ground. Yeah, we’ve broke a few picture frames through the years.
And basically that’s how this Chapter ends. We read Verse 25 earlier.
“In that day, saith the Lord of hosts, shall the nail that is fastened in the sure place be removed, and be cut down, and fall; and the burden that was upon it shall be cut off: for the Lord hath spoken it.”
This Verse is speaking about the LIFE of that wicked fellow SHEBNA. And I want us to see what led up to this Verse.
I. Look at Verses 15 and 16.
“Thus saith the Lord God of hosts, Go, get thee unto this treasurer, even unto Shebna, which is over the house, and say,
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?”
This fellow Shebna thought he had it made. He was making plans for the future dwelling place of his MORTAL REMAINS. In other words, he had built himself a TOMB for his body to be laid in when he died. But this wasn’t just a PLOT out at the local CEMETERY. No, this was a PLOT there among the HIGH SOCIETY. In that day, this was a display of significant power and wealth. Old SHEBNA was somebody and he wanted everyone to know it.
It’s amazing to me that in the first 7 Verses of this Chapter, Isaiah is PROPHESYING to ALL the people that JUDGMENT is coming and what is SHEBNA doing? Making plans for the future just like all the other people. He’s building a MEMORIAL to HIMSELF so that people will remember him and honor him for CENTURIES to come. But it never happened. Why? God was fixing to pull the nail out.
I’m amazed at the MENTALITY that we see today. Wayne and I were on our way to Claremore the other day and we were talking about the STATE of the world. How that our SOCIETY is getting worse and worse. And NO ONE seems to care. MORALS are NON-EXISTENT. Just common DECENCY and RESPECT are GONE. People don’t respect the RULE of LAW. They don’t respect police officers and judges. Another thing, HONESTY is a thing of the PAST.
ILLUS: I watch a show on Youtube called Border Security International. They follow Canadian Border Agents as they try to enforce the Laws of Canada. Imagine that, enforcing Border Laws. What a NOVEL IDEA. Maybe we should try it!!!
But anyway, a lot of the people they deal with are from the U.S.A. People coming from our country to their country. And I’m amazed at how many people just flat out LIE. These little old granny’s have prohibited food items or whatever and they try to SNEAK THEM in. HONESTY is a thing of the PAST.
The BIBLE, the Word of God, tells us exactly what’s coming just as Isaiah told these people exactly what was coming. And just like them, we continue down the same road towards destruction. But let me tell you something. God is fixing to PULL that NAIL OUT. Things are fixing to fall. 1 Thessalonians 5:1-4,
“But of the times and the seasons, brethren, ye have no need that I write unto you.
2 For yourselves know perfectly that the day of the Lord so cometh as a thief in the night.
3 For when they shall say, Peace and safety; then sudden destruction cometh upon them, as travail upon a woman with child; and they shall not escape.
4 But ye, brethren, are not in darkness, that that day should overtake you as a thief.”
Listen, God has given us warning. In Matthew 24, Jesus gives us the SIGNS of the TIMES. We can see all of the PROPHECIES being fulfilled. The RAPTURE of the church is right around the corner. There’s NO OTHER PROPHECIES that need to be fulfilled for Jesus to RAPTURE the church out of here. When will it happen? I don’t know the exact date but I believe it won’t be long.
II. Now look at Verses 8-13.
“And he discovered the covering of Judah, and thou didst look in that day to the armour of the house of the forest.
9 Ye have seen also the breaches of the city of David, that they are many: and ye gathered together the waters of the lower pool.
10 And ye have numbered the houses of Jerusalem, and the houses have ye broken down to fortify the wall.
11 Ye made also a ditch between the two walls for the water of the old pool: but ye have not looked unto the maker thereof, neither had respect unto him that fashioned it long ago.
12 And in that day did the Lord God of hosts call to weeping, and to mourning, and to baldness, and to girding with sackcloth:
13 And behold joy and gladness, slaying oxen, and killing sheep, eating flesh, and drinking wine: let us eat and drink; for to morrow we shall die.”
The people of Judah had begun to see how bad the situation was. The COVERING of Judah was NO MORE.
Jerusalem and the other WALLED CITIES of the land could no longer protect the countryside after the Assyrians had invaded the land.
All of the FOOD and AMMUNITION they had stored away in the FOREST ARMORY that Solomon had built in 1 Kings 10 would no longer be accessible.
The WALLS of Jerusalem were WEAK and they had HOLES in them.
And because of these problems, the people had started doing what they could to PREPARE for WAR.
They created a POOL so that they would have WATER in case of a SIEGE.
They tore down houses to use the material in rebuilding the WALL.
They built a MOAT arond the city between the OUTER and INNER WALLS to make it harder to get in.
All of this was fine and dandy except for ONE THING. Look at the last part of Verse 11. “but ye have not looked unto the maker thereof, neither had respect unto him that fashioned it long ago.”
They had forgotten God. “And in that day did the Lord God of hosts call to weeping, and to mourning, and to baldness, and to girding with sackcloth:”
God was calling on them to REPENT and turn back to Him. But instead Verse 13 ...
“And behold joy and gladness, slaying oxen, and killing sheep, eating flesh, and drinking wine: let us eat and drink; for to morrow we shall die.”
“Well, we’ve done our best. Now let’s just live it up.”
And you know what, God was fixing to PULL the NAIL OUT.
The Assyrians would first invade in 701 B.C. and then a little over a 100 years later, in 597 B.C., the Babylonians. Yeah, instead of turning back to God and letting Him be their protection, they did their best and decided to LIVE IT UP.
You know, I believe there’s a lot of people who REALIZE what a mess their life is. They know that DRUGS and ALCOHOL are going to destroy their bodies.
They know there are some things in their lives that need fixing.
They know that the Bible is True.
But here’s what they do. They try to fix it themselves. They try their best to patch up the HOLES in their LIFE. You all know somebody like that don’t you? I do. You can talk to them until you’re blue in the face and they just keep doing the same thing over and over. Instead of TRUE and REAL REPENTANCE they just play a GAME. They FIX what they CAN and HOPE that it’s GOOD ENOUGH. Man, I’ll tell you, there are people I would love to just GRAB AHOLD of and SHAKE them good. Just get their ATTENTION.
Why? Because God is fixing to PULL the NAIL OUT. In Daniel 5, Old Belshazzar is having himself a BIG PARTY. They bring the CONSECRATED VESSELS that had been used in the worship of the True and Living God and they begin to use those in their IDOLATROUS WORSHIP. But it wasn’t long until a HAND APPEARED and wrote on the WALL, THE PARTY’S OVER!!!
“God hath numbered thy kingdom, and finished it.
Thou art weighed in the balances, and art found wanting.
Thy kingdom is divided, and given to the Medes and Persians.”
And that very night GOD YANKED the NAIL out of the wall, and Old Belshazzar was MURDERED.
So many people are trying to live life THEIR OWN WAY. Not caring that God sent His Only Son to DIE on the Cross for their SINS. So many CHURCH GOERS, probably some here today, trying to RIDE the FENCE. Never really SELLING OUT to God. Trying to keep one TOE in GOD’S WILL and the other TOE in the WORLD. Jesus Himself told us in Matthew 6:24,
“No man can serve two masters: for either he will hate the one, and love the other; or else he will hold to the one, and despise the other. Ye cannot serve God and mammon.”
He told us in Revelations 3:15 and 16,
“I know thy works, that thou art neither cold nor hot: I would thou wert cold or hot.
16 So then because thou art lukewarm, and neither cold nor hot, I will spue thee out of my mouth.”
Listen, we all have a choice today. “A” We can SERVE GOD or “B” NOT SERVE GOD. That’s it, there’s NO “C”. Choosing not to decide is a choice to NOT SERVE GOD.
III. And so let’s see how this is all going to come about. What is going to happen to Shebna in the very near future? Look at Verses 17-19.
“Behold, the Lord will carry thee away with a mighty captivity, and will surely cover thee.
18 He will surely violently turn and toss thee like a ball into a large country: there shalt thou die, and there the chariots of thy glory shall be the shame of thy lord's house.
19 And I will drive thee from thy station, and from thy state shall he pull thee down.”
Yeah, Old Shebna would be gone. He would be PULLED DOWN. He was gonna be tossed out just like a BALL. He would never OCCUPY the beautiful TOMB he had built. He would be taken away to a foreign land and there he would die with NO HONOR or POSTERITY.
So what was gonna happen now? Who would take care of the Treasury? Well, God had a plan. Right in the middle of PROCLAIMING the JUDGMENT upon Shebna, God gives HOPE for the Nation of Judah. Look at Verses 20-25.
“And it shall come to pass in that day, that I will call my servant Eliakim the son of Hilkiah: (Those words, “In that Day” are important.
21 And I will clothe him with thy robe, and strengthen him with thy girdle, and I will commit thy government into his hand: and he shall be a father to the inhabitants of Jerusalem, and to the house of Judah.
22 And the key of the house of David will I lay upon his shoulder; so he shall open, and none shall shut; and he shall shut, and none shall open.
23 And I will fasten him as a nail in a sure place; and he shall be for a glorious throne to his father's house.
24 And they shall hang upon him all the glory of his father's house, the offspring and the issue, all vessels of small quantity, from the vessels of cups, even to all the vessels of flagons.
25 In that day, saith the Lord of hosts, shall the nail that is fastened in the sure place be removed, and be cut down, and fall; and the burden that was upon it shall be cut off: for the Lord hath spoken it.
Some have said that Verse 25 is speaking of ELIAKIM instead of SHEBNA. But I believe it’s SHEBNA because Verse 20 says, “In that day, that I will call my servant Eliakim” And then Verse 25 starts out with “In that Day” In other words, we’re back to speaking about SHEBNA. The same day that ELIAKIM will be called, will be the same day SHEBNA’S NAIL is PULLED OUT.
“And the burden that was upon it shall be cut off” All of those who had HUNG their HOPES and DREAMS on SHEBNA would fall.
You see, there would be someone who would take his place. Someone who would be STABLE and STRONG.
Someone who was like a NAIL that had been driven into HARDWOOD. His name was Eliakim. In these Verses, God says 5 times “I WILL” or “WILL I”. God would give Eliakim ALL of the HONOR that SHEBNA once had. And in Verse 22 it tells us that he would be given the KEY of the House of David. He would have TOTAL CONTROL over who could come and go. He would be THE DOOR for those who wanted to come in.
There is someone else in the Bible who HOLDS the KEYS to the DOOR. His name is Jesus. In Revelations 3:7 and 8 He tells us,
“And to the angel of the church in Philadelphia write; These things saith he that is holy, he that is true, he that hath the key of David, he that openeth, and no man shutteth; and shutteth, and no man openeth;
8 I know thy works: behold, I have set before thee an open door, and no man can shut it: for thou hast a little strength, and hast kept my word, and hast not denied my name.”
Jesus holds the KEYS to Heaven. He is the only way. And He’s waiting for you to come in. Going on down in Revelations Chapter 3, Verse 20 tells us, “Behold, I stand at the door, and knock: if any man hear my voice, and open the door, I will come in to him, and will sup with him, and he with me.”
The Lord really spoke to MY HEART through Verse 25 because it seems so many people that I know are just hanging on to something that will not last. Something that’s gonna fall.
Maybe it’s their HEALTH. They eat healthy foods. They exercise. They get regular check ups with their doctor. And that’s great but someday, they’re gonna fall ... LITERALLY. Nobody lives forever.
Maybe it’s their money. The DOLLAR is worth LESS everyday. Back in the late 1800’s and early 1900’s the U.S. Mint produced the St Gardens $20 gold piece. Do you know how much cash a $20 gold piece was worth back then? $20. Do you know what that same $20 gold piece is worth today? $2100. Your money is worth less now than it was yesterday. People sack away their money for it to become worthless.
There’s only one thing that’s gonna last. And that’s what we invest in eternity. If you’re trusting in ANYTHING but Jesus, no matter what it is, someday THAT NAIL will be PULLED OUT and YOU will be LOST.
Let’s Pray
