This article is about keys. Keys opening up treasures in the depths of truth. Treasures that can be the find of a lifetime, of many lifetimes. The first key is the one to understanding the Word of God in Scripture. This is a key handed down to us through the sayings of Apostolic Fathers like Saint Augustine, who said "The Old Testament conceals the New, and the New Testament reveals the Old". Therefore the key he says, of understanding Holy Scripture is through the lens of unity, the all-encompassing, unifying vision of the giants of the past and present. Standing on the shoulder of giants, we can see several passages in Scripture which bring to light a deeper meaning when we view both Old and New Testaments, not as separate entities, but one unified whole, being weaved by none other than the hand of God, the ultimate author of the Bible.
Using this unified understanding of Scripture, I'd like to bring to your notice two mentions of keys in the -Bible, to reveal the deeper meaning of "handing the keys". The first, Isaiah 22:15-25,
Thus says the LORD to Shebna, master of the palace:
“I will thrust you from your office
and pull you down from your station.
On that day I will summon my servant
Eliakim, son of Hilkiah;
I will clothe him with your robe,
and gird him with your sash,
and give over to him your authority.
He shall be a father to the inhabitants of Jerusalem,
and to the house of Judah.
I will place the key of the House of David on Eliakim’s shoulder;
when he opens, no one shall shut
when he shuts, no one shall open.
I will fix him like a peg in a sure spot,
to be a place of honor for his family.”
I'd like to bring your attention to verse 22, easy to remember chapter 22 verse 22 - I will place the key of the House of David on his shoulder; when he opens, no one shall shut, when he shuts, no one shall open. . It reveals the Jewish understanding of certain key phrases which will reappear in the New Testament. What is happening here is that God is supplanting one Prime Minister with another, replacing Shebna with Eliakim son of Hilkiah. God is telling prophet Isaiah to go and tell Shebna that he will be replaced by Eliakim:
"I will place the key of the House of David on his shoulder; when he opens, no one shall shut, when he shuts, no one shall open"
Therefore, through these words, God indicates a transfer of authority - the authority of the House of David. In Jewish times, people were ruled by kings and the kings had a "butler" or Prime Minister, who had the authority of the king, who could act on behalf of the king. For example, when Joseph was in Egypt, he was invested with the authority of Pharaoh, the king of Egypt. Other passages of Scripture also talk about this. The second passage of interest is Matthew 16:13-20.
Jesus went into the region of Caesarea Philippi and
he asked his disciples,
“Who do people say that the Son of Man is?”
They replied, “Some say John the Baptist, others Elijah,
still others Jeremiah or one of the prophets.”
He said to them, “But who do you say that I am?”
Simon Peter said in reply,
“You are the Christ, the Son of the living God.”
Jesus said to him in reply,
“Blessed are you, Simon son of Jonah.
For flesh and blood has not revealed this to you, but my heavenly Father.
And so I say to you, you are Peter,
and upon this rock I will build my church,
and the gates of the netherworld shall not prevail against it.
I will give you the keys to the kingdom of heaven.
Whatever you bind on earth shall be bound in heaven;
and whatever you loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven.”
Here, Jesus tells Peter that he will be given the keys to the kingdom of heaven. This has two important implications, first that Jesus has the authority of the kingdom of heaven, or Divine Authority. Second, that Peter is actually being invested with this same authority - to act on behalf of Christ. It means that the very authority of Jesus Christ is given to Peter, who as the rock (Greek:Petrus) upon which Jesus would build his church, would have the power to bind and loose.
When Jews read the expression of handing the keys, when they heard the words of binding and loosing, they immediately understood a transfer of authority. This seems too much to fathom for many Christians, because today we find it hard to submit to an authority to interpret Scripture. Yet, to not do so would be to leave ourselves impoverished with a weak understanding of scripture. It would be a building without a foundation, because we would have no way to determine or confirm our interpretation of the Bible.
Using this unified understanding of Scripture, I'd like to bring to your notice two mentions of keys in the -Bible, to reveal the deeper meaning of "handing the keys". The first, Isaiah 22:15-25,
Thus says the LORD to Shebna, master of the palace:
“I will thrust you from your office
and pull you down from your station.
On that day I will summon my servant
Eliakim, son of Hilkiah;
I will clothe him with your robe,
and gird him with your sash,
and give over to him your authority.
He shall be a father to the inhabitants of Jerusalem,
and to the house of Judah.
I will place the key of the House of David on Eliakim’s shoulder;
when he opens, no one shall shut
when he shuts, no one shall open.
I will fix him like a peg in a sure spot,
to be a place of honor for his family.”
I'd like to bring your attention to verse 22, easy to remember chapter 22 verse 22 - I will place the key of the House of David on his shoulder; when he opens, no one shall shut, when he shuts, no one shall open. . It reveals the Jewish understanding of certain key phrases which will reappear in the New Testament. What is happening here is that God is supplanting one Prime Minister with another, replacing Shebna with Eliakim son of Hilkiah. God is telling prophet Isaiah to go and tell Shebna that he will be replaced by Eliakim:
"I will place the key of the House of David on his shoulder; when he opens, no one shall shut, when he shuts, no one shall open"
Therefore, through these words, God indicates a transfer of authority - the authority of the House of David. In Jewish times, people were ruled by kings and the kings had a "butler" or Prime Minister, who had the authority of the king, who could act on behalf of the king. For example, when Joseph was in Egypt, he was invested with the authority of Pharaoh, the king of Egypt. Other passages of Scripture also talk about this. The second passage of interest is Matthew 16:13-20.
Jesus went into the region of Caesarea Philippi and
he asked his disciples,
“Who do people say that the Son of Man is?”
They replied, “Some say John the Baptist, others Elijah,
still others Jeremiah or one of the prophets.”
He said to them, “But who do you say that I am?”
Simon Peter said in reply,
“You are the Christ, the Son of the living God.”
Jesus said to him in reply,
“Blessed are you, Simon son of Jonah.
For flesh and blood has not revealed this to you, but my heavenly Father.
And so I say to you, you are Peter,
and upon this rock I will build my church,
and the gates of the netherworld shall not prevail against it.
I will give you the keys to the kingdom of heaven.
Whatever you bind on earth shall be bound in heaven;
and whatever you loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven.”
Here, Jesus tells Peter that he will be given the keys to the kingdom of heaven. This has two important implications, first that Jesus has the authority of the kingdom of heaven, or Divine Authority. Second, that Peter is actually being invested with this same authority - to act on behalf of Christ. It means that the very authority of Jesus Christ is given to Peter, who as the rock (Greek:Petrus) upon which Jesus would build his church, would have the power to bind and loose.
When Jews read the expression of handing the keys, when they heard the words of binding and loosing, they immediately understood a transfer of authority. This seems too much to fathom for many Christians, because today we find it hard to submit to an authority to interpret Scripture. Yet, to not do so would be to leave ourselves impoverished with a weak understanding of scripture. It would be a building without a foundation, because we would have no way to determine or confirm our interpretation of the Bible.
