ISAIAH 6: “The Vision And Calling Of Isaiah”
By
1.
INTRO
1.1.
In our last study we looked
at how the Lord considers
1.1.1.
We saw the six woes that
Isaiah pronounces against the nation on account of their sins
1.1.2.
We revisited the fact that
when Isaiah was called to the prophetic office that the times were very similar
to the state that the church in America is in today, and as we looked at these
six woes we were grieved to see that each of these woes could be pronounced
upon the church in America today
1.2.
In our study today we are
going to look again at Isaiah’s calling to the prophetic office
1.2.1.
It was during the year of
king Uzziah’s death when the people had become lukewarm in their relationship
with the Lord
1.2.2.
Isaiah had a vision of the
Lord in the glory of His holiness
1.2.3.
Isaiah realized his own
sinfulness and the sinfulness of the people around him
1.2.4.
Isaiah volunteered to go as
the Lord’s representative
2.
VS 6:1-2 - “1 In the year of King Uzziah’s
death, I saw the Lord sitting on a throne, lofty and exalted, with the train of
His robe filling the temple.2 Seraphim stood above Him, each having six wings;
with two he covered his face, and with two he covered his feet, and with two he
flew.” -
Isaiah tells us that the vision and calling that he experienced happened
in the year that Uzziah died
2.1.
As I previously mentioned in this study, this
was Isaiah’s calling to the prophetic office in Judea, however it was probably
not his initial call for it would seem odd for him to prophesy so much before
mentioning this calling in chapter 6, if he had not received a prior calling as
a prophet.
2.1.1.
A prophet in the scriptures would typically
mention his calling at the beginning of his book.
2.2.
I previously also mentioned that Uzziah had
been king in
2.2.1.
Uzziah and the nation were looking for an
alliance of nations to join for their protection instead of trusting in the
Lord and He alone for their help and support, as they should have done.
2.2.2.
The nation had begun to have their religion
become only that which is on the external.
Like the Pharisees of the New Testament, the people just went through
the motions in their religion, and their prayers and rites were recited only
from rote memory, while their hearts were far away from the Lord.
2.2.3.
Isaiah was called to warn God’s people of
coming judgment from the Lord, followed by restoration and the establishment of
God’s kingdom.
2.3.
The period of Isaiah’s calling recorded in
this chapter was perhaps around 741BC, and it was not after Uzziah had died,
but rather it occurred within a year or so of Uzziah’s death.
2.4.
We don’t know where Isaiah was when he had
this vision of the Lord, though some have surmised that he might have actually
been in the temple worshipping with all of the people at this time.
2.5.
Isaiah’s vision of the Lord doesn’t seem to
be a vision of the Lord seated on a throne in the Holy of Holies of the temple,
but rather a vision perhaps of the heavenly temple of which the temple on earth
was a type or a symbol.
2.6.
The mighty kings of the earth would sit on a
throne that was lifted up high, and in fact Solomon’s throne was said to be
higher than that of any of the other kings in the world. The Lord is seen by Isaiah seated high upon a
throne.
2.7.
The train of the Lord’s robe was so large
that it filled the temple.
2.8.
The angels in the temple are called
‘Seraphim’, and they are seen to be above the Lord. Each one of them has six wings.
2.8.1.
With two they covered their face.
2.8.2.
With two they covered their feet.
2.8.3.
With two they flew.
2.9.
For whatever reason, Isaiah neglected to tell
us exactly what the Lord Himself looked like.
2.10.
I do not believe that this vision is meant to
reveal exactly what the Lord looks like, for He is mightier than this vision
describes, however this vision is I believe more of a representation to Isaiah
of what the Lord looks like.
3.
VS 6:3-4 - “3 And one called out to another
and said, “Holy, Holy, Holy, is the Lord of hosts, The whole earth is full of
His glory.” 4 And the foundations of the
thresholds trembled at the voice of him who called out, while the temple was
filling with smoke.” - The seraphim called out to each other the
threefold declaration of the Lord’s holiness
3.1.
We can only imagine the might of creatures
such as these seraphim who when they declare to each other the holiness of the
Lord that the ‘foundations of the thresholds trembled’.
3.2.
‘Holy’ is the attribute of the Lord which
most separates Him from all of the rest of creation, and thus this is the only
attribute of God that is mentioned with a threefold declaration.
3.3.
It has also been surmised by the church
throughout the ages that the threefold declaration of the Lord’s holiness
reveals the fact that the Lord is a Triune God, comprised of three distinct
persons, who are yet one in essence.
3.3.1.
The word “Trinity” which the church has used
for the Lord is not mentioned in the scriptures, however it is implied in
numerous places. In fact, it is the only
logical explanation for much of the scripture.
3.4.
The temple seems to have been filling with
the incense smoke from the
4.
VS 6:5 - “5 Then I said, “Woe is me, for I
am ruined! Because I am a man of unclean
lips, And I live among a people of unclean lips; For my eyes have seen the King, the Lord of
hosts.”” -
Seeing the vision of the Lord in the glory of His holiness makes Isaiah
realize his own unrighteousness
4.1.
This always happens when men see the Lord as
He is, for one glimpse of His holiness is enough to make any man feel as though
he is undone.
4.2.
It the Old Testament it was felt that to see
the Lord would bring about death. This
began at
4.2.1.
What comes out of our lips is an accurate
barometer of our spiritual state and/or maturity in Christ.
4.3.
Isaiah was aware of having ‘unclean lips’,
and James pointed out in James 3:2 that if you can master what comes out of
your mouth you can master your whole body, “2 For we
all stumble in many ways. If anyone does not stumble in what he says, he is a
perfect man, able to bridle the whole body as well.”
4.4.
An interesting speculation is worth
considering here. We know that when king
Uzziah died he was white with leprosy.
Some have speculated that at the same moment when Isaiah saw the Lord in
His glory and holiness, and was subsequently convicted of his own utter
sinfulness (and the Lord then forgave him of his sins ) that king Uzziah
likewise developed his leprosy. Leprosy
remember is a symbol of sin in the scriptures, and king Uzziah the leader of
the nation of
4.5.
Isaiah was also aware of the fact that he
lived amongst a sinful people of ‘unclean lips’.
4.6.
No man or woman is ready to serve the Lord
until he or she first realizes the sinfulness of his own heart, and how
unrighteousness he truly is. God does
not call the righteous, but rather sinners.
But sinners are soon turned into saints by His touch, and saints are
turned into ambassadors for the King of all kings.
5.
VS 6:6-7 - “6 Then one of the seraphim flew
to me, with a burning coal in his hand which he had taken from the altar with
tongs.7 And he touched my mouth with it and said, “Behold, this has touched
your lips; and your iniquity is taken away, and your sin is forgiven.” - One of the seraphim took a burning coal in
his hand and touched Isaiah’s lips and declared that his iniquity was taken
away and his sin forgiven
5.1.
The altar where the coal burned must have
been the brazen altar where the animal sacrifices were burned, and the fire of
a coal from the altar burned the sin away from the life of Isaiah, however it
was the blood of the sacrifice itself which held the power to atone for
Isaiah’s sin.
5.2.
The fact that the angel touched the lips of
Isaiah, the lips which Isaiah had just confessed to be ‘unclean’, indicates
that the Lord had sanctified those lips and that now Isaiah would speak from
the throne of the Lord Almighty Himself, for Isaiah was being called to the
prophetic office.
6.
VS 6:8 - “8 Then I heard the voice of the
Lord, saying, “Whom shall I send, and who will go for Us?” Then I said, “Here
am
6.1.
The Lord is looking out all across the earth
for someone who is willing to go and to be His representative for Him, and yet
it is Isaiah who volunteers.
6.2.
In Ezekiel
22:30-31, we see that Ezekiel records that the Lord was
seeking at that time for a man who would be willing to stand in the gap for the
people as an intercessor for them, yet there was no one who was willing to do
so, “30 “And I searched for a man among them who
should build up the wall and stand in the gap before Me for the land, that I
should not destroy it; but I found no one.31 “Thus I have poured out My
indignation on them; I have consumed them with the fire of My wrath; their way
I have brought upon their heads,” declares the Lord God.”
6.3.
I believe that in every generation and
amongst every people that the Lord is calling out for someone who is willing to
do His will and to be His representative.
6.3.1.
How we ought to be people like Isaiah who are
willing to confess our unrighteousness before the Lord and allow Him to forgive
our sin and cleanse us, and then even go so far as to be willing to be that
vessel of the Lord and go as His representative.
6.3.2.
God is not looking for people with ability,
He is looking for availability. Who is
willing to go and to be His man or woman and walk as He would have him walk and
carry the message that He would have him to carry? The Lord will put the words in his mouth and
empower his witness if he will just be the one who is willing to volunteer to
go.
6.3.3.
Isaiah was not pressed into service, He did
not go against His will, He did not go feeling that someone was twisting his
arm behind him. He freely volunteered to
go, and he did so knowing the state of the people and thus how rough of a road
it would be that he would have to travel as God’s representative to His people.
7.
VS 6:9-10 - “9 And He said, “Go, and tell
this people: ‘Keep on listening, but do not perceive; Keep on looking, but do not understand.’ 10 “Render the hearts of this people insensitive,
Their ears dull, And their eyes dim, Lest they see with their eyes, Hear with
their ears, Understand with their hearts, And return and be healed.”” - Isaiah tells us what the
message was that the Lord was calling him to declare
7.1.
As we look at this message we see that it is
what we might call “an odd message”, for the message is that the people will
not understand nor perceive God’s will from this point forth.
7.2.
God is planning on hardening the hearts of
the people of Judea and
7.2.1.
If a person is really intent upon going his
own way, the Lord will eventually give him over to the choice that he has made.
7.2.2.
God is not willing that any perish, but that
all come to repentence, therefore it is not His desire to harden hearts yet He
must honor the choice that people make.
8.
VS 6:11-13 - “11 Then I
said, “Lord, how long?” And He answered, “Until cities are devastated and
without inhabitant, Houses are without people, And the land is utterly
desolate, 12 “The Lord has removed men far away, And the forsaken places are
many in the midst of the land. 13 “Yet
there will be a tenth portion in it, And it will again be subject to
burning, Like a terebinth or an oak
Whose stump remains when it is felled.
The holy seed is its stump.”” - Isaiah asks the Lord how long he will have to
proclaim this depressing message
8.1.
The people of
8.2.
It is sad to see that the land will become
desolate because of the sins of the people who refuse to acknowledge their sin
and repent.
8.2.1.
Isaiah even tells us that a tenth of the land
will be burned up in the devastation.
8.3.
The Lord tells Isaiah that a stump will be
left, for this is the remnant, the ‘holy seed’ who will be restored to the
land. Again, we see that though the Lord
will judge the people, He also plans to restore them again.