Note: For clarity the Kings of Israel are coded in Orange and Kings of Judah are coded in Blue.
God chose Isaiah to deliver a challenging message to the rebellious people of Judah. Isaiah served as a prophet to Judah during the reigns of Uzziah, Jotham, Ahaz and Hezekiah. Judah was going through times of revival and times of rebellion. They were threatened with destruction by Assyria and Egypt, but were spared because of God’s mercy. Isaiah brought a message of repentance and deliverance from God. Chapters 1-39 tell of events during Isaiah’s lifetime. Chapters 40-66 give prophecies of the future. This book is filled with many prophecies of the Messiah that was to come.
The following verses point to major themes throughout Isaiah’s prophecy.
Isaiah 6 – Mission and Message
Isaiah had a vision from the Lord. He saw the Lord sitting on a throne. The train of His robe filled the temple. The throne was surrounded by angels known as seraphim with six wings. They cried out “Holy, holy, holy is the Lord Almighty; the whole earth is full of his glory.” – Isaiah 6:3.
Why did they say holy three times? Perhaps it was because there are Three Person in the One God we call the Trinity or maybe it was to declare His holiness in the highest possible degree. They cried out that the whole earth is full of His glory. We are often blind to the obvious glory of God all around us.
He saw the temple was filled with a cloud of smoke. The cloud marks the presence of the Lord. The smoke reminds us of the pillar of cloud that represented the presence of the Lord in Exodus 13:21-22; 19:18 and 1 Kings 8:10-12.
Isaiah’s immediate response to seeing God in His glory was “Woe is me!” – Isaiah 6:5a. He was overwhelmed with his unworthiness to be in such a place. He was reminded of the kind of man he was. He realized he was unlike the Lord God and unlike the angels. He saw his sinfulness and as having unclean lips. A seraphim flew to him and touched his lips with a hot coal which took away his sins. Once he had met with the Lord, been convicted of his sin, cleansed from guilt and sin, and was humbled, then he was ready to serve God.
The first step in coming to Christ is to recognize your sin. Sin is transgression of the law of God and rebellion against God. You have to know your sin in order to fight it. Knowing sin reveals your need for salvation. You need to know just why Jesus died for you. Then you rely on the Holy Spirit to overcome sin as you become a believer.
Then Isaiah heard the voice of the Lord saying, “Whom shall I send? And who will go for us?” – Isaiah 6:8a. Here we see another reference to the Trinity by the word ‘us’. Isaiah answered God’s call without hesitation. “Here am I! Send me.” – Isaiah 6:8b. Now that Isaiah was cleansed he is ready to fulfill God’s mission and speak for Him.
God then described Isaiah’s mission in verses 9-13, which can be a difficult passage to interpret. God told him to go and preach to a people even though they won’t hear him or respond. This would prove their guilt. God was warning His people of what was to come if they didn’t listen and stop the foolishness. Isaiah was to continue to preach until destruction comes. He should preach in hope the remnant of Israel would be restored.
God promised that after everything is destroyed a ‘holy seed’ would remain. This seed is referring to when the Messiah will come and bring salvation to the world (Isaiah 6:13).
Isaiah wasn’t given an easy job. He was to warn of the coming judgment and would be in constant rejection by the people. Isaiah’s message was for his day and it’s also for our day. People are just like the people of Judah. They reject God daily. God had a heart for those who rebelled and rejected Him as He has a heart for those kind of people today. He desires and seeks sinners to come to Him. He continues to warn us, convict us, and continues to give us second chances. He is not obligated to forgive, but we should rejoice in the fact that we serve a God of multiple chances. We have all failed God in some way. us. Every moment of your life is a second chance so don’t waste it.
We should never give up being a witness for Jesus. People may not listen. They may insult and reject you, but you should never give up. You are planting seeds and you may not see the results in your lifetime, but maybe one day they will surrender to Him. When you see little visible fruit and get discouraged, go the His Word and go to Him in prayer. He will give you strength, encouragement and hope to continue.
Principles:
This week’s attribute of God is He is Holy. Isaiah saw God’s holiness and glory. There is no one like God. He is perfect in goodness and righteousness. “Holy, holy, holy is the Lord Almighty; the whole earth is full of his glory.” – Isaiah 6:3
Next time we will continue our study of Kingdom Divided in Isaiah. Hope to see you here. – I encourage you to trust in Jesus.
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