Three officials of King Hezekiah are introduced by name in this verse: Eliakim, Shebnah, and Joah. They should not be confused with the three Assyrian military officers mentioned in the previous verse since the proper names do not refer to those officers.

Eliakim, the first official mentioned, was over the household; that is, he was in charge of the household of the king or the royal palace. For a more detailed discussion of this office, see the discussion at 1 Kgs 4.6, where the same Hebrew expression is used of Ahishar, who “was in charge of the palace” (Revised Standard Version). This is the same Eliakim that is also mentioned in Isa 22.20.

Hilkiah is literally “Hilkiyahu” (so La Bible Pléiade).

The name Shebnah appears again in verse 26 with the same spelling, but in verse 37 it is spelled “Shebna” without the final “h.” This reflects the Hebrew original, but may be confusing to some readers since the same person is referred to. Translators are advised to use the same form in all three cases. Since the form without the final consonant is more common, it is preferred.

The second official Shebnah is described as the secretary (see the comments at 2 Kgs 12.10) and the third official Joah as the recorder (see the detailed discussion on these two offices at 1 Kgs 4.3). The task of the secretary was to write whatever the king wanted written, while the recorder had the responsibility of communicating the king’s decisions to the people. In some languages these two terms may have to be translated “the writing person” and “the herald” (New Jerusalem Bible, Peregrino), “the royal herald,” or “the spokesman.” Since the Hebrew term translated recorder does not refer primarily to someone who kept official records, the Contemporary English Version translations of secretary as “assistant to the prime minister” and recorder as “keeper of the government records” are not recommended as models. Nor is “royal historian” (New Living Translation) recommended as a translation of the third official’s title.

Quoted with permission from Omanson, Roger L. and Ellington, John E. A Handbook on 1-2 Kings, Volume 2. (UBS Helps for Translators). New York: UBS, 2008. For this and other handbooks for translators see here .