Isaiah 6:1-7: Cleansed: the Response to Divine Holiness

Isaiah’s vision of God is one of the most powerful passages in scripture. People are not meant to see God and survive, but He does show Himself, or a glimpse of Himself to some. Isaiah sees Him in the Holy of Holies (whether literally, or in a vision is not clarified). Where the Arc of Testimony should be, there is a throne. As Isaiah tries to grapple with what he is witnessing, words (and capacity) fail him. He can talk about the throne, the robe, and the Seraphim unclearly, but the vision of God leaves him speechless. “High and lifted up” is about as good as he can manage. This description is only seen two more times (52:13; 57:15) where it describes God (57) and the Servant of God (52).

Beings are around the throne. They are the Seraphim, who are mysterious heavenly beings. We don’t really have much information about these heavenly beings. Some call them angels, but that is a title meaning messenger. While heavenly messengers (angels) exist, it does not seem that they are Seraphim. Isaiah 6 is the only time we see these beings. Similar “Cherubim” are described slightly more, but again, very little is known about them. Seraphim literally means “burning,” “glowing,” or “fiery ones.” It is a word used elsewhere in the Old Testament to refer to the serpents God sent among the people in judgement.

(Some speculate that, even though the words for “snake” are different in Genesis and Numbers, the serpentine similarity might indicate that Satan was not just a fallen angel, but one of these burning-ones.)

The Seraphim ceaselessly proclaim that God is “Holy, Holy, Holy.” The holiness of God is a very important aspect of Isaiah’s ministry, and based on this, his calling, we can see why that might be. In any case, at this point, Isaiah comes to remember himself amidst this overwhelming vision of God’s might, glory, holiness, and power, and he is undone. He might have already been a prophet. He might have already been calling out people’s sins, but he is now painfully aware of his own filthiness. “Woe is me!” He confesses his sins, and his unworthiness to be in the presence of such a holy God.

At this point, God sends a Seraph to him with a coal from the burning hot sacrificial fires in front of the throne. The Seraph touches the coal to Isaiah’s lips, and he is declared justified. His sin is taken away. His sin has been atoned for.

This is a beautiful description of salvation. We are hopeless in our sin. We have no right to be in God’s presence, let alone a relationship with Him. Yet when we recognize our inadequacies and acknowledge our need, God is ready to step up and cover our sin. He has the sacrifice we need at the ready and it is applied to our lives, and we are forgiven through God’s grace. Isaiah has seen God up to this point, but once he is cleansed he begins to hear God…