When Isaiah Was Called by the Lord

Isaiah’s Vision of the Lord He saw the Lord in his majestic glory The Lord’s robe filled the entire room Though he saw God in his glory, the sight must have been indescribable, or the prophet could not reveal what he saw John tells us he saw the glory of the Lord Jesus (12:41) This vision is similar to the experience of Paul, which he could not fully reveal (2 Corinthians 12:1-4)

The Angels Served the Lord The saraphim were celestial beings, an angelic order, who stood above God ready to serve at his call, along with the cherubim They covered their faces in God’s presence They constantly worshiped him by singing, “Holy, holy holy is the Lord of hosts” Isaiah repeatedly refers to God as “the Holy One of Israel” (29 times versus 6 in the rest of the Bible) While they stood ready to serve, the awesome majesty of God is seen in the posts shaken at his voice and the house filled with smoke

Isaiah Saw Himself Isaiah 6:5 Isaiah recognized his own spiritual poverty, which was doubled by his nation’s sinfulness, when he stood in the presence of the Lord Like the leper who must cry a warning to those approaching, Isaiah saw himself as a man of unclean lips (Leviticus 13:45), which may explain why he did not join in the song Later, he recognized we are like filthy rags despite all our righteousness (Isaiah 64:6) Compare Matthew 5:3; Acts 22:6-10

Isaiah’s Cleansing Isaiah 6:6-7 One of the seraphim touched a coal from the altar to Isaiah’s lips so he could be cleansed Likely, the lips are cleansed because this is the part of his body the prophet had specifically mentioned Interestingly, seraph means fire, which here is the fire of God’s love from his altar

Isaiah’s Calling Isaiah 6:8 Having been cleansed, Isaiah readily responded to the Lord’s call Those who have been cleansed of their sins feel a debt to God that compels them to carry out the will of God (1 Corinthians 9:16; Titus 2:14; 1 Peter 2:9)

Isaiah’s Commission Isaiah 6:9-10 Isaiah was commissioned to go to a people who had rejected the Lord’s message These words are applied to others who rejected God’s word as a result of their own attitude (Mark 4:10-12; Acts 28:17-27; Romans 11:7-8) Paul told the Thessalonians about the deception of those who did not receive the love of the truth (2 Thessalonians 2:8-12)

Isaiah’s Sighing Isaiah 6:11a Isaiah wanted to know how long this hardening state would exist in Israel This sighing resulted from the prophet being a part of the very people God condemned and his knowledge that God’s promises would not allow him to cast off Israel forever (Exodus 32:9-14)

The Duration and the Remnant Isaiah 6:11b-13 God first told Isaiah that he would lay waste the towns, houses and land, while sending the inhabitants far away A remnant (10%) would return Likely God used the terebinth and oak trees to represent the returning remnant because they both can spring up again from the root