Isaiah 6:1-13
Here I Am; Send Me
1In the year that King Uzziah died, I saw the Lord seated on a throne, high and exalted; and the train of His robe filled the temple.
2Above Him stood seraphim, each having six wings: With two wings they covered their faces, with two they covered their feet, and with two they were flying.
3And they were calling out to one another: “Holy, holy, holy is the LORD of Hosts; all the earth is full of His glory.”
4At the sound of their voices the doorposts and thresholds shook, and the temple was filled with smoke.
5Then I said: “Woe is me, for I am ruined, because I am a man of unclean lips dwelling among a people of unclean lips; for my eyes have seen the King, the LORD of Hosts.”
6Then one of the seraphim flew to me, and in his hand was a glowing coal that he had taken with tongs from the altar.
7And with it he touched my mouth and said: “Now that this has touched your lips, your iniquity is removed and your sin is atoned for.”
8Then I heard the voice of the Lord saying: “Whom shall I send? Who will go for Us?” And I said: “Here am I. Send me!”
9And He replied: “Go and tell this people, ‘Be ever hearing, but never understanding; be ever seeing, but never perceiving.’
10Make the hearts of this people calloused; deafen their ears and close their eyes. Otherwise they might see with their eyes, hear with their ears, understand with their hearts, and turn and be healed.”
11Then I asked: “How long, O Lord?” And He replied: “Until the cities lie ruined and without inhabitant, until the houses are left unoccupied and the land is desolate and ravaged,
12until the LORD has driven men far away and the land is utterly forsaken.
13And though a tenth remains in the land, it will be burned again. As the terebinth and oak leave stumps when felled, so the holy seed will be a stump in the land.”
Berean Standard Bible
In the year King Uzziah died, Isaiah sees the Lord seated on a high and exalted throne. The train of His robe fills the temple. Seraphim stand above Him, calling to one another that the LORD of Hosts is holy and that the whole earth is full of His glory.
The doorposts shake at the sound, and the temple is filled with smoke. Isaiah cries that he is ruined because he is a man of unclean lips living among a people of unclean lips, and his eyes have seen the King.
One of the seraphim flies to Isaiah with a burning coal from the altar. He touches Isaiah's mouth and says that his guilt is taken away and his sin is atoned for. Cleansing comes before the commission.
The Lord asks whom He should send. Isaiah answers, “Here I am. Send me!” The message will be difficult: the people will hear without understanding and see without perceiving. Isaiah asks how long, and the answer reaches through devastation toward a holy seed that remains.
How We Know
John 12 identifies Isaiah's vision with seeing Jesus' glory and uses the passage to explain Israel's response to Jesus. That connection belongs to the Gospel's interpretation of Isaiah; it does not erase the prophet's original temple vision or the hard commission given to Isaiah's own generation.
Questions
1 What did the seraphim proclaim?
AnswerThey proclaimed that the LORD of Hosts is holy and that the whole earth is full of His glory.
2 Why did Isaiah cry out?
AnswerHe cried out because he was a sinful man among a sinful people and had seen the King.
3 What touched Isaiah's lips?
AnswerA seraph touched his lips with a burning coal from the altar.
4 What did Isaiah answer when God asked whom to send?
AnswerIsaiah answered, “Here I am. Send me!”
What This Means for Us
Isaiah's calling begins with a vision of holiness, an honest confession, and cleansing. He is not sent because he has mastered the message or because he feels naturally brave.
Receive responsibility in that order. Tell the truth about your need for mercy, let God correct and cleanse you, then serve without assuming that obedience guarantees an easy response.
Prayer
Holy Lord, give us a true view of your greatness and an honest view of ourselves. Cleanse our speech, forgive our sin, and make us willing to serve even when the work is difficult. Amen.