by Larry Ferrell | January 5, 2018
Chapter 6 towers like a majestic peak over the surrounding terrain and is clearly of central importance for the message of the book. It was in this encounter with the Lord that Isaiah’s understanding of both God and his own mission was crystallized. It stands centrally within chapters 1-12 and is intimately related to both what precedes and what follows. Chapters 1-5 as a whole have posed a bigger problem than the corruption that affluence bred and the judgment that this must entail. It is the question of how spiritual renewal can be affected, so that Israel may become the center of world blessing that it is destined to be (2:1-5). Chapter 6 moves from a vision of God (vv. 1-4), to confession of sin (v. 5), to cleansing (vv. 6-7) and finally to commissioning (vv. 8-13); that’s the path by which Isaiah enters into his servanthood, and it’s the path Israel must also take. Isaiah’s experience in this chapter shows them the way. Isaiah’s identification with the sinful nation is made clear by his confession in verse 5.

We see in the first four verses (vv. 1-4) an implied contrast between King Uzziah and “the King, the Lord Almighty” (v.5), and we are taken at once to the central theme of the chapter (divine kingship) and the root problem underlying Israel’s failure (trust in mere humans rather than trust in the Lord). As so often is the case, increased wealth had brought a diminished view of God, so that people felt secure in their sins as long as they performed the appropriate rituals. But Isaiah sees the Lord as He is, high and exalted, beyond manipulation, seated on His judgment throne. The time of reckoning has come. Heaven and earth merge in this blinding vision of the One who is above all Holy (v. 3), a term which includes transcendence and righteousness. The seraphs, by their words and actions, show that the appropriate response is reverence, service and praise.

In verse 5, the vision of God produces not rapture but sheer terror in the prophet. He knows himself to be utterly ruined, for two reasons: he is unclean and he has seen God. The belief that no-one could see God and live has its roots in the encounter with God at Sinai. A privileged few, both then and at other times had been permitted to see God. Isaiah is not proud at being admitted to the inner circle. He is aware only of being unclean, like his fellows. In the presence of God degrees of sin become irrelevant. It is the holiness of God which reveals to us our true condition, not comparison with others. Paradoxically, Isaiah’s confession of being unclean like his fellows has set him apart from them, for he, unlike them, has been willing to acknowledge his condition.

In verses 6-7, the altar from which the burning coal is taken by the seraphs to cleanse Isaiah is not named. But it doesn’t matter. The altar, whatever its identity, symbolizes the entire provision which God had made in the temple and its services for the sins of His people. Isaiah is cleansed, not by his own efforts, but purely by the grace of God. The same grace was available to Israel as a whole but by their arrogance they had cut themselves off from it.

It now becomes apparent why the ‘lips’ and ‘mouth’ have been so prominent in verses 5-7. The Lord seeks a messenger, and Isaiah, now cleansed, is ready and willing to be his mouthpiece. Verses 9-13 reveal that his message is to be essentially one of judgment, but it is described more in terms of its effects than its content: it will harden hearts (vv. 9-10) and lead to devastation of both land and people (vv. 11-12). There is a thread of hope however. Verse 13 likens the land and its people to a tree whose stump remains in the earth after it is felled, and speaks of a righteous remnant (holy seed) within the nation. The closing words of this chapter are a promise rather than a threat. The righteous remnant will not be destroyed, but survive and grow into a new people of God. As we shall see in chapters 7 and 8, Isaiah himself is the nucleus around which this righteous remnant begins to gather.

As well as giving us an awesome view of God, this chapter provides us with a succinct portrait of his servant Isaiah. He was a man with a big vision of God (v. 1), a deep awareness of his own sinfulness (v. 5), a profound experience of the grace of God (v. 7), and a willingness to spend and be spent in His service, whatever the cost (v. 8). May God help us to be more like him.

Isaiah 6:1-13 Reflection Questions:
Do you feel secure in your sins because of your spiritual rituals?
Do you put more trust in yourself and others than trusting in the Lord?
How willing are you to spend and be spent in God’s service, whatever the cost?

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