Isaiah 6

Isa 6:1-13.

VISION OF

JEHOVAH IN

HIS

TEMPLE.

Isaiah is outside, near the altar in front of the temple. The doors are

supposed to open, and the veil hiding the Holy of Holies to be

withdrawn, unfolding to his view a vision of God represented as an

Eastern monarch, attended by seraphim as His ministers of state

(1Ki 22:19),

and with a robe and flowing train (a badge of dignity in the East),

which filled the temple. This assertion that he had seen God was,

according to tradition (not sanctioned by

Isa 1:1;

see

Introduction),

the pretext for sawing him asunder in Manasseh's reign

(Heb 11:37).

Visions often occur in the other prophets: in Isaiah there is only this

one, and it is marked by characteristic clearness and simplicity.

1. In . . . year . . . Uzziah died--Either literal death, or

civil when he ceased as a leper to exercise his functions as king

[Chaldee],

(2Ch 26:19-21).

754 B.C. [CALMET] 758

(Common Chronology). This is not the first beginning of Isaiah's

prophecies, but his inauguration to a higher degree of the prophetic

office:

Isa 6:9,

&c., implies the tone of one who had already experience of the people's

obstinacy.

Lord--here Adonai, Jehovah in

Isa 6:5;

Jesus Christ is meant as speaking in

Isa 6:10,

according to

Joh 12:41.

Isaiah could only have "seen" the Son, not the divine essence

(Joh 1:18).

The words in

Isa 6:10

are attributed by Paul

(Ac 28:25, 26)

to the Holy Ghost. Thus the Trinity in unity is implied; as also

(Isa 6:3).

Isaiah mentions the robes, temple, and seraphim, but not the form of

God Himself. Whatever it was, it was different from the usual Shekinah:

that was on the mercy seat, this on a throne; that a cloud and fire, of

this no form is specified: over that were the cherubim, over this the

seraphim; that had no clothing, this had a flowing robe and train.

2. stood--not necessarily the posture of standing; rather,

were in attendance on Him [MAURER],

hovering on expanded wings.

the--not in the Hebrew.

seraphim--nowhere else applied to God's attendant angels; but to

the fiery flying (not winged, but rapidly moving) serpents, which

bit the Israelites

(Nu 21:6),

called so from the poisonous inflammation caused by their bites.

Seraph is to burn; implying the burning zeal, dazzling

brightness

(2Ki 2:11; 6:17;

Eze 1:13;

Mt 28:3)

and serpent-like rapidity of the seraphim in God's service.

Perhaps Satan's form as a serpent (nachash) in his

appearance to man has some connection with his original form as a

seraph of light. The head of the serpent was the symbol of

wisdom in Egypt (compare

Nu 21:8;

2Ki 18:4).

The seraphim, with six wings and one face, can hardly be identified

with the cherubim, which had four wings (in the temple only two)

and four faces

(Eze 1:5-12).

(But compare

Re 4:8).

The "face" and "feet" imply a human form; something of a serpentine

form (perhaps a basilisk's head, as in the temples of Thebes) may have

been mixed with it: so the cherub was compounded of various animal

forms. However, seraph may come from a root meaning "princely," applied

in

Da 10:13

to Michael [MAURER]; just as cherub comes from a

root (changing m into b), meaning "noble."

twain--Two wings alone of the six were kept ready for instant flight

in God's service; two veiled their faces as unworthy to look on the holy

God, or pry into His secret counsels which they fulfilled

(Ex 3:6;

Job 4:18; 15:15);

two covered their feet, or rather the whole of the lower parts

of their persons--a practice usual in the presence of Eastern monarchs,

in token of reverence (compare

Eze 1:11,

their bodies). Man's service a fortiori consists in reverent

waiting on, still more than in active service for, God.

3.

(Re 4:8).

The Trinity is implied (on "Lord," see on

Isa 6:1).

God's holiness is the keynote of Isaiah's whole prophecies.

whole earth--the Hebrew more emphatically,

the fulness of the whole earth is His glory

(Ps 24:1; 72:19).

4. posts of . . . door--rather, foundations of the thresholds.

house--temple.

smoke--the Shekinah cloud

(1Ki 8:10;

Eze 10:4).

5. undone--

(Ex 33:20).

The same effect was produced on others by the presence of God

(Jud 6:22; 13:22;

Job 42:5, 6;

Lu 5:8;

Re 1:17).

lips--appropriate to the context which describes the praises of the

lips, sung in alternate responses

(Ex 15:20, 21;

Isa 6:3)

the prophet of God, about to be committed to Isaiah

(Isa 6:9).

seen--not strictly Jehovah Himself

(Joh 1:18;

1Ti 6:16),

but the symbol of His presence.

Lord--Hebrew, "JEHOVAH."

6. unto me--The seraph had been in the temple, Isaiah

outside of it.

live coal--literally, "a hot stone," used, as in some countries in

our days, to roast meat with, for example, the meat of the sacrifices.

Fire was a symbol of purification, as it takes the dross out of metals

(Mal 3:2, 3).

the altar--of burnt offering, in the court of the priests before the

temple. The fire on it was at first kindled by God

(Le 9:24),

and was kept continually burning.

7. mouth . . . lips--(See on

Isa 6:5).

The mouth was touched because it was the part to be used by

the prophet when inaugurated. So "tongues of fire" rested

on the disciples

(Ac 2:3, 4)

when they were being set apart to speak in various languages of

Jesus.

iniquity--conscious unworthiness of acting as God's messenger.

purged--literally, "covered," that is, expiated, not by any physical

effect of fire to cleanse from sin, but in relation to the

altar sacrifices, of which Messiah, who here commissions Isaiah, was

in His death to be the antitype: it is implied hereby that it is only by

sacrifice sin can be pardoned.

8. I . . . us--The change of number indicates the Trinity (compare

Ge 1:26; 11:7).

Though not a sure argument for the doctrine, for the plural

may indicate merely majesty, it accords with that truth

proved elsewhere.

Whom . . . who--implying that few would be willing to bear the

self-denial which the delivering of such an unwelcome message to the

Jews would require on the part of the messenger (compare

1Ch 29:5).

Here am I--prompt zeal, now that he has been specially qualified for

it

(Isa 6:7;

compare

1Sa 3:10, 11;

Ac 9:6).

9. Hear . . . indeed--Hebrew, "In hearing hear," that is,

Though ye hear the prophet's warnings again and again, ye are

doomed, because of your perverse will

(Joh 7:17),

not to understand. Light enough is given in revelation to guide

those sincerely seeking to know, in order that they may

do, God's will; darkness enough is left to confound the wilfully

blind

(Isa 43:8).

So in Jesus' use of parables

(Mt 13:14).

see . . . indeed--rather, "though ye see again and

again," yet, &c.

10. Make . . . fat--

(Ps 119:17).

"Render them the more hardened by thy warnings" [MAURER]. This effect is the fruit, not of the

truth in itself, but of the corrupt state of their hearts,

to which God here judicially gives them over

(Isa 63:17).

GESENIUS takes the imperatives as futures.

"Proclaim truths, the result of which proclamation will

be their becoming the more hardened"

(Ro 1:28;

Eph 4:18);

but this does not so well as the former set forth God as

designedly giving up sinners to judicial hardening

(Ro 11:8;

2Th 2:11).

In the first member of the sentence, the order is, the heart, ears,

eyes; in the latter, the reverse order, the eyes, ears,

heart. It is from the heart that corruption flows into the

ears and eyes

(Mr 7:21, 22);

but through the eyes and ears healing reaches the heart

(Ro 10:17),

[BENGEL].

(Jer 5:21;

Eze 12:2;

Zec 7:11;

Ac 7:57;

2Ti 4:4).

In

Mt 13:15,

the words are quoted in the indicative, "is waxed gross"

(so the Septuagint), not the imperative, "make fat";

God's word as to the future is as certain as if it were already

fulfilled. To see with one's eyes will not convince a will that

is opposed to the truth (compare

Joh 11:45, 46; 12:10, 11).

"One must love divine things in order to understand them"

[PASCAL].

be healed--of their spiritual malady, sin

(Isa 1:6;

Ps 103:3;

Jer 17:14).

11. how long--will this wretched condition of the nation being hardened

to its destruction continue?

until--

(Isa 5:9)

--fulfilled primarily at the Babylonish captivity, and more fully at

the dispersion under the Roman Titus.

12.

(2Ki 25:21).

forsaking--abandonment of dwellings by their inhabitants

(Jer 4:29).

13. and it shall return, and . . . be eaten--Rather,

"but it shall be again given over to be consumed": if even a

tenth survive the first destruction, it shall be destroyed by a second

(Isa 5:25;

Eze 5:1-5, 12),

[MAURER and HORSLEY]. In

English Version, "return" refers to the poor remnant left in the

land at the Babylonish captivity

(2Ki 24:14; 25:12),

which afterwards fled to Egypt in fear

(2Ki 25:26),

and subsequently returned thence along with others who had fled

to Moab and Edom

(Jer 40:11, 12),

and suffered under further divine judgments.

tell--rather, "terebinth" or "turpentine tree"

(Isa 1:29).

substance . . . when . . . cast . . .

leaves--rather, "As a terebinth or oak in which, when

they are cast down (not 'cast their leaves,'

Job 14:7),

the trunk or stock remains, so the holy seed

(Ezr 9:2)

shall be the stock of that land." The seeds of vitality still

exist in both the land and the scattered people of Judea, waiting for

the returning spring of God's favor

(Ro 11:5, 23-29).

According to Isaiah, not all Israel, but the elect remnant

alone, is destined to salvation. God shows unchangeable severity

towards sin, but covenant faithfulness in preserving a remnant, and to

it Isaiah bequeaths the prophetic legacy of the second part of his book

(the fortieth through sixty-sixth chapters).