Shebna () was the royal steward ( `asher `al ha-bayith, "he who is over the house"; the chief or prime minister of state)[ Easton's Bible Dictionary: Shebna]
Because of his pride he was ejected from his office, and replaced by Eliakim the son of Hilkiah as recorded in Book of Isaiah (). Shebna also appears to have been the leader of the party who favored an alliance with Egypt against Assyria.
Biblical accounts
Shebna may have been the same "Shebna the scribe" who was sent by Hezekiah to confer with the
ambassador recorded in the Books of Kings (; ; parallel accounts in , , ; ), although Easton's Bible Dictionary refers to them as being different people.
Tomb and inscription
A royal steward's rock-cut tomb discovered in
Silwan is conjectured to be Shebna's,
[ Jewish Magazine - Jerusalem Tombs] although only the term "-yahu" remains legible on the lintel from the tomb that is now kept in the
British Museum.
[ British Museum Collection] The partially preserved inscription was deciphered to read "...yahu who is over the house".
The assumption is that Shebna's name may have been pronounced 'Shebna-yahu', the missing name fitting onto the damaged portion of the inscription.
["Ancient Jerusalem's Funerary Customs and Tombs: Part Two," L. Y. Rahmani, The Biblical Archaeologist, Vol. 44, No. 4 (Autumn, 1981), pp. 229–235.]
See also
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Hezekiah
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Siloam Inscription
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List of artifacts significant to the Bible
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Related Bible parts: 2 Kings 18, 2 Kings 19, Isaiah 22, Isaiah 36, Isaiah 37, Nehemiah 9
