Verse-by-Verse Bible Commentary
Isaiah 6:6

Clarke's Commentary

Verse Isaiah 6:6. A live coal — The word of prophecy, which was put into the mouth of the prophet.

From off the altar — That is, from the altar of burnt-offerings, before the door of the temple, on which the fire that came down at first from heaven (Leviticus 9:24; 2 Chronicles 7:1) was perpetually burning. It was never to be extinguished, Leviticus 6:12-13.

Bridgeway Bible Commentary

God’s call of Isaiah (6:1-13)

Isaiah has gone to some length to describe Judah’s spiritual and moral corruption before he mentions God’s call to him to be a prophet. His reason for doing this seems to be that he wants his readers to see why God called him. Their understanding of conditions in Judah will help them understand the sort of task that lay before him.
King Uzziah’s death marked the end of an era of prosperity unequalled in Judah’s history. Yet this era brought with it the corruption that Isaiah has just described, and left the people with no respect for God and no knowledge of what his holiness demanded of them. Isaiah sees that God is glorious and majestic, the supreme ruler over Judah and all other nations. Even God’s sinless heavenly servants dare not look on his glory, but busy themselves serving and praising him (6:1-4).
The vision of God’s holiness makes Isaiah realize that not only are the people among whom he lives sinful, but so too is he. Therefore, before he can be God’s messenger to others, his own sin must be cleansed. God graciously does this for him by removing his sin and transferring to him the benefits of God’s holiness, symbolized in the coals from the altar (5-7).
When God asks who will take his message to such a corrupt people, Isaiah volunteers; but God quickly tells him that his task is going to be difficult. The more he preaches, the more his hearers will reject his message. As a result they will sink deeper into sin, and so make it increasingly difficult for them ever to turn to God and be forgiven (8-10).
Isaiah asks God how long such hardness will last, and receives the reply that there is no hope for any rapid improvement. On the contrary the condition of the nation will worsen, till eventually judgment must fall. Judah’s cities will be destroyed and its people taken into captivity (11-12). But God will preserve the few who remain faithful to him, and from these will grow up a new people for God. To illustrate this destruction, apparent death and new life, God gives Isaiah the picture of a huge tree that is chopped down, so that only the stump remains; but from this stump springs new life (13).

Coffman's Commentaries on the Bible

"Then flew one of the seraphim unto me, having a live coal in his hand, which he had taken with the tongs from off the altar: and he touched my mouth with it, and said, Lo, this has touched thy lips; and thine iniquity is taken away and thy sin forgiven. And I heard the voice of the Lord saying, Whom shall I send, and who will go for us? Then I said, Here am I; send me."

The forgiveness of Isaiah's sin here was not final and absolute, because the ultimate price of all human redemption from sin had not at that time been paid in the bloody sacrifice of Jesus Christ himself. The meaning is simply that God "passed over" his sins as explained in Romans 3:23-26. Rawlinson observed that the symbolical "forgiveness" achieved here by means of the live coal from off the altar actually demonstrated that (1) sin could indeed be purged; but that the highest supernatural creatures, even one standing before God Himself could alone procure such a forgiveness.G. Rawlinson, The Pulpit Commentary, p. 108. If this should be allowed, then the live coal from off the altar would be a symbol of that greater and all-sufficient sacrifice in Christ that the ancient altar typified.

"And thy sin forgiven" "This forgiveness was not accomplished by any physical effect of fire to cleanse from sin, but in relation to that altar-sacrifice, of which Messiah in his death was to be the antitype."Robert Jamieson, Jamieson, Fausset, and Brown's Commentary, p. 435.

God's challenging question, "Whom shall I send, and who will go for us?" raises the problem of who is meant by "us." Some think that God here included members of his heavenly court; but our own view is that we have here exactly the plural that was used when God said, "Let us make man, etc." The Trinity is therefore the most logical answer to the question; but this is not absolutely certain. because, "The plural may merely indicate majesty."Ibid.

Barnes' Notes on the Whole Bible

Then flew - Isaiah is represented as standing out of the temple; the seraphim as in it.

Having a live coal - The Vulgate renders this, ‘A stone.’ This is, probably, the original meaning of the word; see 1 Kings 19:6. It at first denoted a hot stone which was used to roast meat upon. It may also mean a coal, from its resemblance to such a stone.

From off the altar - The altar of burnt-offering. This stood in the court of the priests, in front of the temple; see the notes at Matthew 21:12. The fire on this altar was at first kindled by the Lord, Leviticus 9:24, and was kept continually burning; Leviticus 6:12-13.

Calvin's Commentary on the Bible

6.Then flew one of the seraphim to me. The Prophet shows what kind of relief was brought to him, when he was so terrified as to think that he was a dead man; and this confirms what we have already said, that purity of lips comes from God alone; for men can produce nothing of themselves but what is filthy and abominable. If it be objected that it is absurd to say that the Lord now cleansed him, as if his tongue had formerly been impure and profane, though it had been the instrument employed by the Holy Spirit, I have already replied sufficiently to that objection. The Lord had already cleansed him, but according to his degree. The cleansing which is now added is greater; for it has its enlargements and additions, which no man can obtain all at once.

We must not conclude, therefore, that Isaiah’s lips were impure, because they are now cleansed; but we ought to inquire why it is done. It was because the Lord intended to enlarge and extend his favor towards him, and to raise him to higher dignity, that he might have greater influence over the people; and this was rendered necessary by the character of the times, and the change which had taken place in the state.

The fire was taken from the altar, to intimate that it was divine or heavenly; for the law forbade any strange fire to be brought to it, (Leviticus 10:1,) because in sacred things every human mixture is absolute profanation. By this figure, therefore, Isaiah was taught that all purity flows from God alone.

Smith's Bible Commentary

By Chuck Smith

Shall we turn now in our Bibles to Isaiah, chapter 6, as Isaiah records for us his commissioning by God for his ministry. Now you remember in chapter 1 that Isaiah tells us that his time of prophecy extended through the kingdom or through the kings of Uzziah, Jotham, Ahaz and Hezekiah. As we pointed out, it is thought that he was put to death by the evil son of Hezekiah, Manasseh. But his call to his ministry as a prophet is given to us in chapter 6, and it so happened that it came,

In the year that king Uzziah died I saw also the Lord sitting upon a throne, high and lifted up, and his train filled the temple ( Isaiah 6:1 ).

Uzziah was a very popular king. He had reigned over Israel for fifty-two years. He began his reign when he was just sixteen years old. Under his reign the nation, and actually I say Israel, but it was the Southern Kingdom of Judah over which he was reigning. And during this period, Judah had great military advancement and great prosperity. They developed a great water system, enlarged their agricultural area. They enlarged their territory by moving into the territory of the Philistines-something that they weren't able to do prior to this under the other kings. He tore down the walls of Gath and of Ashdod, the great Philistine stronghold. He planted settlements in the Philistine territory. He had a very strong and powerful standing army of 310,000 men. They set their scientists at work building new types of war weapons for those days, great slings to throw huge stones and to shoot arrows and so forth. And he overall strengthened the nation mightily, so that the people felt very secure and very comfortable during the reign of Uzziah. He was a popular man.

The name of Uzziah spread abroad throughout all the land, even to the going down to Egypt. Everybody heard of him. And not only that, everybody was talking about him. And the name Uzziah was on the lips of all the people. And very importantly we read, "And as long as he sought the Lord, God made him to prosper" ( 2 Chronicles 26:5 ). He was a prosperous king. He was a popular king, the kind of a man that you have great confidence in because of his accomplishments. And so the people had great confidence in Uzziah. They had come to trust in him and rely upon him, perhaps too much so, as is often the case with a good, popular leader.

People begin to rely upon them too much and you get your eyes on to man and off of the Lord. And you begin to put your trust in man rather than in the Lord. And so many times it is necessary when that becomes the case, that in order that we might get our eyes back on the Lord, God has to remove the man. And oftentimes God does take that man that you've been relying on and trusting in and removes him out of the scene, in order that you might get your eyes upon God. Such was the case with Uzziah. And so it's very significant that Isaiah would say, "In the year the king Uzziah died I saw the Lord." Prior to that his eyes were on Uzziah. Prior to that his trust was in Uzziah. He was a good, popular king. Things are going well. Things are prosperous. Yet you don't, it seems, unfortunately, think about the Lord so much in prosperity. It's when all of a sudden calamity strikes.

The throne is empty. What are we going to do? Uzziah's son is not the same as his dad. He's surely not capable as was his father. The Northern Kingdom is going down the tubes. Anarchy is reigning, actually. One king after another is being assassinated. There is confusion. And they are in danger of being wiped out. What are we going to go? Uzziah's dead. The throne is empty.

But Isaiah received a vision. A vision of the Lord in which he realized that the throne is not empty. "In the year king Uzziah died I saw the Lord sitting on the throne, high and lifted up, and His train filled the temple." So God having removed his idol, Isaiah got his eyes now upon the Lord, and he sees that the throne is not vacated. That God is upon the throne.

Oh, how important it is for us to realize that God is on the throne. That God is ruling over the affairs of our lives and God is ruling over the affairs of the world. We are prone to tremble when we see the world conditions. As you just look at the things that are happening in the world today, it's enough to scare any sane man and give him a heart attack. But if you look beyond and realize hey, God is ruling, God is in control, then I can rest. I can sleep at night, only because I know that God is in control. I know that God is sitting upon the throne. So important that we realize that God is upon the throne. In our lives God rules, God reigns. That's the important thing. So because God does reign, whatever does come upon my path is there because God has allowed it to come upon my path. The Lord reigns. And it is so important that we have this as a mental concept constantly. God reigns.

Now he describes the throne of God. He sees the seraphim that are above the throne of God. And he describes the seraphim. Now we are told that there are also cherubim around the throne of God, and these are angelic beings. And evidently there is a great similarity between the cherubim and the seraphim. Now in Ezekiel, he also, and we'll be getting to that soon, he also had a vision of the throne of God in chapter 1 and chapter 10. And he described the cherubim, other angelic beings that are around the throne of God.

In John, chapter 4, he had a vision of the throne of God. And he saw the glassy sea in front of the throne. He saw the emerald around the throne of God, and then he also saw these living creatures. Whether the seraphim or the cherubim that John describes, we do not know. But basically their ministry is that of just worshipping and leading the worship of God around His throne, as the cherubim or the creatures in Revelation cry, "Holy, holy, holy, Lord God almighty, which is, which was, which is to come" ( Revelation 4:8 ), so here the seraphim. They are described as having six wings. With two of them they cover their face, with two of them they cover their feet and they use two of them to fly. Interesting looking creatures to be sure. They are not, though, to be mistaken as birds or some kind of an animal, because they are highly intelligent creatures.

And one cries to another, and says, Holy, holy, holy, is the LORD of hosts: the whole earth is full of his glory ( Isaiah 6:3 ).

Declaring the glory of God and the holiness of God.

And the posts of the door moved at the voice of him that cried, and the house was filled with smoke ( Isaiah 6:4 ).

And so he describes the heavenly scene, even as John described the heavenly scene in Revelation, chapter 4 and 5, and even as Ezekiel describes in chapter 1 and 10. Now I would recommend these chapters as important reading for any serious child of God. Because he is describing something that you're going to be seeing before very long. Events that you're going to be watching. And if you don't read about them and know what's going on, then you're going to look like some hick when you get to heaven, mouth open, and everybody will know you didn't do your homework. So these are interesting portions to study, so that when you get there and the whole thing is coming down and the cherubim are saying, "Holy, holy, holy, Lord God almighty which is, which was, which is to come," then you can say, "All right, now watch those twenty-four guys. Watch them, they're going to take their crowns and throw them on that glassy sea. Watch this now, you know." And you'll be able to really play it cool because you know the sequence of the worship there about the throne of God. So I highly recommend the reading of these portions where the throne of God is described. Always with each description there is that awesomeness of God, the Creator of the universe, as He sits upon His throne, as He rules and reigns over the universe, and that worship and acknowledgment of Him about the throne. Isaiah had the vision of the throne of God.

Then said I, Woe is me! ( Isaiah 6:5 )

Because now he sees himself in a whole new light. Up till now he had been looking at himself in the dim light of the world in which he lived. And in the dim light of the world around us we don't look too bad. In fact, we look pretty good. But I'll tell you, be careful of looking at yourself in a mirror in the sunshine. Nothing is hid. I mean, looking at yourself in that light is a whole different story. And so looking at ourselves in the light of God is a whole different story. I don't know, I don't know of a single man who has had a true vision of God who didn't more or less with Isaiah say, "Woe is me!"

When Peter realized it was the Lord, he said, "Depart from me, Lord. I'm a sinful man." When Daniel describes his vision of God and all, he said, "My beauty turned into ugliness." Seeing God, we see ourselves in the true light. And no man can be proud. You see a man who is proud, you see a man who has not yet seen God.

Jesus in the beatitudes, in His great manifesto in Matthew 5:1-48; Matthew 6:1-34; Mat 7:1-29 began the beatitudes. In fact, He began the whole sermon by saying, "Blessed are the poor in spirit: for theirs is the kingdom of heaven" ( Matthew 5:3 ). Now He begins the sevenfold description of the Christian in these beatitudes, the characteristics that mark the Christian. But the first characteristic is poor in spirit. From whence comes this poverty of spirit? It comes when I see God. That's the beginning of my walk with God. My vision of God begins my walk with Him, and in the vision of God, seeing God, I see myself. And as I see myself I say, "Hey, woe is me. I'm nothing." Poverty of spirit.

"Blessed are they which mourn," the next characteristic, "for they shall be comforted" ( Matthew 5:4 ). My poverty of spirit leads me to weeping over my condition. How could I do those things? How could I have done that? And I see myself now in God's light and oh, what a revelation that is. "Then said I, 'Woe is me!'"

for I am undone ( Isaiah 6:5 );

I'm crooked and I dwell amongst.

and I have unclean lips, and I dwell amongst a people of unclean lips ( Isaiah 6:5 ):

So he saw one of the seraphim then that flew, and with his tongs he took a glowing coal from off the altar. Now the study of the tabernacle is extremely interesting, because the tabernacle is a model of heaven and the throne of God. And so if you want to really know what heaven is going to look like, that is the throne of God area of heaven, you can study the tabernacle and there you have a little model. And God said to Moses, "Make sure that you make it according to the specifications." Why? Because it's a model of heavenly things. So even in the earthly tabernacle they had the altar with the coals, so there in heaven is an altar with coals. And one of the seraphim went to the altar with tongs, took these coals and he brought it to Isaiah and he touched his lips with that glowing coal. And he said, "Your iniquity is taken away, or your crookedness is taken away." His cry, "Woe is me for I am crooked." Your crookedness is taken away. And your sin is cleansed. I'm a man of unclean lips. "Your sin is purged," he said, "or cleansed." So the cleansing by the work of God.

Notice it wasn't Isaiah's work. It was God's work. Isaiah's was the recognition of his condition. God's work was that of the cleansing then once he recognized his condition. All God wants you to do is acknowledge your condition. He doesn't ask you even to reform. That comes. But He asks you to just acknowledge, to confess. "If thou shall confess thy sins, He is faithful and just to forgive you your sins, and to cleanse you from all unrighteousness" ( 1 John 1:9 ). But you got to confess your sin. "Woe is me! I'm undone. I'm dwelling amongst the people of unclean lips. I have unclean lips." Your crookedness is taken way. Your uncleanness, your sin is cleansed. What a glorious thing, the work of God. And it comes immediately upon my acknowledgment and confession.

David in the thirty-second Psalm begins the psalm, "O how happy is the man whose transgression is forgiven, whose sin is covered" ( Psalms 32:1 ). And before I confess my sin, hey, I was just dried up inside. It was like the drought of summer. I was so dry and parched. My bones were aching. For the hand of God was heavy on me. Then I said, "I will confess my sin unto the Lord and Thou forgavest my sin" ( Psalms 32:5 ). Just before he got the words out of his mouth, the minute in his heart he said, "Oh, I'm so horrible, I'm just going to confess. I'm going to just turn it over to God," in that moment the cleansing and the forgiveness came. And that's just how anxious God is to cleanse and forgive you. The moment in your heart you say, "God, I have sinned. I'm sorry. Woe is me; I'm crooked. My lips are unclean." Just that quick the seraphim came and said, "Hey, your crookedness is taken away. Your sin is cleansed." Oh, the beautiful work of God's grace and the forgiveness in His love for us. All He asks is you just confess. He is willing and wanting to wash and cleanse you from all your sins.

But that isn't the end of it. God does want to work in your life. God will work in your life if you give Him the opportunity. But God never stops there. God wants to work through your life. There is a needy world out there. It's in darkness. You are dwelling in the midst of people of unclean lips. And they need to know that God will wash and cleanse them also. So the work of God in your life always ends up objectively. First of all subjective, what God can do for you. But then what God can do through you to touch others. And that's what it's all about.

So I saw God. When I saw God, I said, "Woe is me!" When he heard them declare, "Holy, holy, holy," declaring the holiness of God, then you see yourself and, "Woe is me, I'm crooked."

Then I heard the voice of the Lord, saying, Whom shall we send, who will go for us? Then said I ( Isaiah 6:8 ),

Now he's speaking again. But now this is a different, this is a man who is now being cleansed. This is a man whose life has been touched by the fire of God. And He said, "'Who shall we send?' 'Then said I,'"

Here am I [Lord]; send me ( Isaiah 6:8 ).

Once God has touched your life, then God wants to use your life to touch others. God has a work that He wants to do. And the problem is always, who will go for us? Whom will we send? Jesus said, "Behold the fields are white unto harvest but the laborers are few" ( Matthew 9:37 ). Who will go for us? Whom shall we send? The man whose life has been touched by God becomes an available instrument for God. "Here am I, Lord. Send me." And his commission:

And so God said to him, Go, and tell this people ( Isaiah 6:9 ),

Now at this time Judah was on the road down. They have forsaken the living God. Idol worship had been introduced. There were times of spiritual reform, but they were usually surface. They never got into the real heart of the nation itself. And yet, God wasn't going to just let them be destroyed without still a witness. But they weren't going to really listen to the witness, but still God was going to be faithful and witness to them anyhow. And that is, to me, an interesting thing about God. Even though a person isn't going to respond, even though a person won't listen, yet God will still give them the chance. God will still speak to them. He doesn't cease talking. And so He said, "Go tell this people."

You may hear indeed, but you don't understand; you may see indeed, [but you're really not seeing,] you don't perceive ( Isaiah 6:9 ).

And so God said,

Make the heart of the people fat ( Isaiah 6:10 ),

That is, give them the word. Give them the message of God. That they'll have no excuse.

their ears heavy ( Isaiah 6:10 ),

Just hang the message on them.

shut their eyes; lest they see with their eyes, and hear with their ears, and understand with their heart, and be converted, and be healed. Isaiah responded to the Lord, How long? And he answered, Until the cities are wasted without inhabitant, and the houses without man, and the land be utterly desolate ( Isaiah 6:10-11 ),

Now God was going to continue to preach to these people and continue to warn these people and continue to give them opportunity until the whole land was desolate, till the last one was left. God will continue His witness. Even as God will continue His witness to the world today and is bearing witness to the world today, but the world today isn't listening. They're making fun of the witness of God. But still we are to witness. God will not leave Himself without a witness. Oh, the political cartoonists on the editorial pages are having a field day with the moral majority, and with creation and evolution.

I saw on Daily Pilot today in the editorial page a cartoon of some big, fat slob saying to his little son who's coming home from school with his books, "God made me in His own image, you know, and after His likeness. I didn't evolve." It's just dispersion that is cast against God, really. And still we're to preach. Still we're to bear witness. Still we're to warn. Though they don't listen, though they don't see, though their hearts are heavy, though their eyes are blinded, still God wants a witness left with them. Until the place is desolate there's nothing left, God will bear witness.

Now the church is the instrument by which God is bearing His witness to the world today. But the church will soon be taken out. The witness of the church is just about over. Once the church is taken out, it doesn't mean God's witness is over. Just the witness of the church is over. God's going to send two witnesses, powerful witnesses with all kinds of power, and He's sending them to Jerusalem. God will also seal 144,000 of the Jews that will be witnesses for Him during these dark, dark, dark hours that are coming upon the earth. And then God is even going to send angels flying through the midst of heaven orbiting the earth bearing witness and preaching the everlasting gospel and warning men not to take the mark of the beast. Even down to the end, even by angelic beings God is going to keep His witness going until the whole place is desolate, left without inhabitants. For God is faithful in bearing His witness to the people.

So how long, Lord? Till the whole thing is over. So the witnesses, God had His witnesses, His prophets, who were warning the people right up until and through the time that Nebuchadnezzar carried off the first captives. Jeremiah was still there bearing witness to the people. Telling them to repent and turn to God and get right with God.

And the LORD has removed people far away, and there be a great forsaking in the midst of the land. But yet it shall be that a tenth will return, and shall be eaten: as a teil tree, and an oak, whose substance is in them, when they cast their leaves: so the holy seed shall be the substance thereof ( Isaiah 6:12-13 ).

In other words, an oak tree cast its leaves. It looks like it's dead, but yet it comes back. The teil tree looks like it's so dead, but yet it comes back. So it will look like the nation Israel is dead. It will appear that way, but yet God said, "I'll bring them back. A tenth part, only one in ten will return. But I will bring them back." And so God's promise of bringing the people back from the captivity. "

Dr. Constable's Expository Notes

A. The prophet’s cleansing 6:1-8

Dr. Constable's Expository Notes

Isaiah only acknowledged his hopeless condition-he did not plead with God or make vows to God-and God then went into action. Confession must precede cleansing (cf. 1 John 1:9). The altar from which the seraph took the coal was probably the brazen altar in heaven, in which case the coal itself symbolizes substitute sacrifice. [Note: Motyer, p. 78.] Fire from the brazen altar lit the incense on the incense altar in Israel, so, whichever altar may be in view, the coal connects with sacrifice. Fire in the Old Testament symbolizes the wrath of God (Genesis 3:24; Numbers 11:1-3), the holiness of God (Exodus 3:2-6; Exodus 19:18-25), His purifying process (Numbers 31:22-23; Malachi 3:2-3), and the context of the Law (Deuteronomy 4:12; Deuteronomy 4:33; Deuteronomy 4:36).

"A seraph peels off from his flight path around the throne, diving straight for Isaiah. He’s holding a burning coal that he took from the altar with tongs, but not because it is hot. After all, a seraph himself is a burning one. He took this coal with tongs because it is a holy thing. It belongs to the place of sacrifice and atonement and forgiveness. But this holy thing touches Isaiah’s dirty mouth, and it does not hurt him, it heals him. What we must see, in the context of the whole Bible, is that this burning coal symbolizes the finished work of Christ on the cross." [Note: Ortlund, pp. 79-80.]

Gill's Exposition of the Whole Bible

Then flew one of the seraphim unto me,.... When the prophet had confessed his sin; for upon that follows the application of pardon; and when the seraph, or minister of the Gospel, had an order from the Lord to publish the doctrine of it: it is God's act alone to forgive sin; it is the work of his ministers to preach forgiveness of sin, and that to sensible sinners; who when they are made sensible of sin, and distressed with it, the Lord takes notice of them, and sends messengers to them, to comfort them, by acquainting them that their iniquity is forgiven; who go on such an errand cheerfully and swiftly; and though they do not know the particular person, yet the Lord directs their ministration to him, and makes it effectual.

Having a live coal in his hand: by which is meant the word of God, comparable to fire, and to a burning coal of fire, Jeremiah 23:29 for the light and heat which it gives both to saints and sinners, and for its purity and purifying nature:

[which] he had taken with the tongs from off the altar; of burnt offering, where the fire was always burning; which was a type of Christ, and his sacrifice; and this shows what particular doctrine of the word it was the seraph or Gospel minister took, and delivered in this visionary way; it was the doctrine of pardon, founded upon the sacrifice and satisfaction of Christ. To this sense of the words the Targum agrees, which paraphrases them thus,

"and there flew to me one of the ministers, and in his mouth a word which he received from his Shechinah, upon the throne of glory, in the highest heavens, above the altar,''

See Revelation 14:6.

Henry's Complete Commentary on the Bible

      5 Then said I, Woe is me! for I am undone; because I am a man of unclean lips, and I dwell in the midst of a people of unclean lips: for mine eyes have seen the King, the LORD of hosts.   6 Then flew one of the seraphims unto me, having a live coal in his hand, which he had taken with the tongs from off the altar:   7 And he laid it upon my mouth, and said, Lo, this hath touched thy lips; and thine iniquity is taken away, and thy sin purged.   8 Also I heard the voice of the Lord, saying, Whom shall I send, and who will go for us? Then said I, Here am I; send me.

      Our curiosity would lead us to enquire further concerning the seraphim, their songs and their services; but here we leave them, and must attend to what passed between God and his prophet. Secret things belong not to us, the secret things of the world of angels, but things revealed to and by the prophets, which concern the administration of God's kingdom among men. Now here we have,

      I. The consternation that the prophet was put into by the vision which he saw of the glory of God (Isaiah 6:5; Isaiah 6:5): Then said I, Woe is me! I should have said, "Blessed art thou, who hast been thus highly favoured, highly honoured, and dignified, for a time, with the privilege of those glorious beings that always behold the face of our Father. Blessed were those eyes which saw the Lord sitting on his throne, and those ears which heard the angels' praises." And, one would think, he should have said, "Happy am I, for ever happy; nothing now shall trouble me, nothing make me blush or tremble;" but, on the contrary, he cries out, "Woe is me! for I am undone. Alas for me! I am a gone man; I shall surely die (Judges 13:22; Judges 6:22); I am silenced; I am struck dumb, struck dead." Thus Daniel, when he heard the words of the angel, became dumb, and there was no strength, no breath, left in him,Daniel 10:15; Daniel 10:17. Observe,

      1. What the prophet reflected upon in himself which terrified him: "I am undone if God deal with me in strict justice, for I have made myself obnoxious to his displeasure, because I am a man of unclean lips." Some think he refers particularly to some rash word he had spoken, or to his sinful silence in not reproving sin with the boldness and freedom that were necessary--a sin which God's ministers have too much cause to charge themselves with, and to blush at the remembrance of. But it may be taken more generally; I am a sinner; particularly, I have offended in word; and who is there that hath not? James 3:2. We all have reason to bewail it before the Lord, (1.) That we are of unclean lips ourselves; our lips are not consecrated to God; he had not had the first-fruits of our lips (Hebrews 13:15), and therefore they are counted common and unclean, uncircumcised lips,Exodus 6:30. Nay, they have been polluted with sin. We have spoken the language of an unclean heart, that evil communication which corrupts good manners, and whereby many have been defiled. We are unworthy and unmeet to take God's name into our lips. With what a pure lip did the angels praise God! "But," says the prophet, "I cannot praise him so, for I am a man of unclean lips." The best men in the world have reason to be ashamed of themselves, and the best of their services, when they come into comparison with the holy angels. The angels had celebrated the purity and holiness of God; and therefore the prophet, when he reflects upon sin, calls it uncleanness; for the sinfulness of sin is its contrariety to the holy nature of God, and upon that account especially it should appear both hateful and frightful to us. The impurity of our lips ought to be the grief of our souls, for by our words we shall be justified or condemned. (2.) That we dwell among those who are so too. We have reason to lament not only that we ourselves are polluted, but that the nature and race of mankind are so; the disease is hereditary and epidemic, which is so far from lessening our guilt that it should rather increase our grief, especially considering that we have not done what we might have done for the cleansing of the pollution of other people's lips; nay, we have rather learned their way and spoken their language, as Joseph in Egypt learned the courtier's oath, Genesis 42:16. "I dwell in the midst of a people who by their impudent sinnings are pulling down desolating judgments upon the land, which I, who am a sinner too, may justly expect to be involved in."

      2. What gave occasion for these sad reflections at this time: My eyes have seen the King, the Lord of hosts. He saw God's sovereignty to be incontestable--he is the King; and his power irresistible--he is the Lord of hosts. These are comfortable truths to God's people, and yet they ought to strike an awe upon us. Note, A believing sight of God's glorious majesty should affect us all with reverence and godly fear. We have reason to be abased in the sense of that infinite distance that there is between us and God, and our own sinfulness and vileness before him, and to be afraid of his displeasure. We are undone if there be not a Mediator between us and this holy God, 1 Samuel 6:20. Isaiah was thus humbled, to prepare him for the honour he was now to be called to as a prophet. Note, Those are fittest to be employed for God who are low in their own eyes and are made deeply sensible of their own weakness and unworthiness.

      II. The silencing of the prophet's fears by the good words, and comfortable words, with which the angel answered him, Isaiah 6:6; Isaiah 6:7. One of the seraphim immediately flew to him, to purify him, and so to pacify him. Note, God has strong consolations ready for holy mourners. Those that humble themselves in penitential shame and fear shall soon be encouraged and exalted; those that are struck down with the visions of God's glory shall soon be raised up again with the visits of his grace; he that tears will heal. Note, further, Angels are ministering spirits for the good of the saints, for their spiritual good. Here was one of the seraphim dismissed, for a time, from attending on the throne of God's glory, to be a messenger of his grace to a good man; and so well pleased was he with the office that he came flying to him. To our Lord Jesus himself, in his agony, there appeared an angel from heaven, strengthening him,Luke 22:43. Here is, 1. A comfortable sign given to the prophet of the purging away of his sin. The seraph brought a live coal from the altar, and touched his lips with it, not to hurt them, but to heal them--not to cauterize, but to cleanse them; for there were purifications by fire, as well as by water, and the filth of Jerusalem was purged by the spirit of burning,Isaiah 4:4; Isaiah 4:4. The blessed Spirit works as fire, Matthew 3:11. The seraph, being himself kindled with a divine fire, put life into the prophet, to make him also zealously affected; for the way to purge the lips from the uncleanness of sin is to fire the soul with the love of God. This live coal was taken from off the altar, either the altar of incense or that of burnt-offerings, for they had both of them fire burning on them continually. Nothing is powerful to cleanse and comfort the soul but what is taken from Christ's satisfaction and the intercession he ever lives to make in the virtue of that satisfaction. It must be a coal from his altar that must put life into us and be our peace; it will not be done with strange fire. 2. An explication of this sign: "Lo, this has touched thy lips, to assure thee of this, that thy iniquity is taken away and thy sin purged. The guilt of thy sin is removed by pardoning mercy, the guilt of thy tongue-sins. Thy corrupt disposition to sin is removed by renewing grace; and therefore nothing can hinder thee from being accepted with God as a worshipper, in concert with the holy angels, or from being employed for God as a messenger to the children of men." Those only who are thus purged from an evil conscience are prepared to serve the living God,Hebrews 9:14. The taking away of sin is necessary to our speaking with confidence and comfort either to God in prayer or from God in preaching; nor are any so fit to display to others the riches and power of gospel-grace as those who have themselves tasted the sweetness and felt the influence of that grace; and those shall have their sin taken away who complain of it as a burden and see themselves in danger of being undone by it.

      III. The renewing of the prophet's mission, Isaiah 6:8; Isaiah 6:8. Here is a communication between God and Isaiah about this matter. Those that would assist others in their correspondence with God must not themselves be strangers to it; for how can we expect that God should speak by us if we never heard him speaking to us, or that we should be accepted as the mouth of others to God if we never spoke to him heartily for ourselves? Observe here,

      1. The counsel of God concerning Isaiah's mission. God is here brought in, after the manner of men, deliberating and advising with himself: Whom shall I send? And who will go for us? God needs not either to be counselled by others or to consult with himself; he knows what he will do, but thus he would show us that there is a counsel in his whole will, and teach us to consider our ways, and particularly that the sending forth of ministers is a work not to be done but upon mature deliberation. Observe, (1.) Who it is that is consulting. It is the Lord God in his glory, whom he saw upon the throne high and lifted up. It puts an honour upon the ministry that, when God would send a prophet to speak in his name, he appeared in all the glories of the upper world. Ministers are the ambassadors of the King of kings; how mean soever they are, he who sends them is great; it is God in three persons (Who will go for us? as Genesis 1:26, Let us make man), Father, Son, and Holy Ghost. They all concur, as in the creating, so in the redeeming and governing of man. Ministers are ordained in the same name into which all Christians are baptized. (2.) What the consultation is: Whom shall I send? And who will go? Some think this refers to the particular message of wrath against Israel, Isaiah 6:9; Isaiah 6:10. "Who will be willing to go on such a melancholy errand, on which they will go in the bitterness of their souls?" Ezekiel 3:14. But I rather take it more largely for all those messages which the prophet was entrusted to deliver, in God's name, to that people, in which that hardening work was by no means the primary intention, but a secondary effect of them, 2 Corinthians 2:16. Whom shall I send? intimating that the business was such as required a choice and well-accomplished messenger, Jeremiah 49:19. God now appeared, attended with holy angels, and yet asks, Whom shall I send? For he would send them a prophet from among their brethren,Hebrews 2:17. Note, [1.] It is the unspeakable favour of God to us that he is pleased to send us his mind by men like ourselves, whose terror shall not make us afraid, and who are themselves concerned in the messages they bring. Those who are workers together with God are sinners and sufferers together with us. [2.] It is a rare thing to find one who is fit to go for God, and carry his messages to the children of men: Whom shall I send? Who is sufficient? Such a degree of courage for God and concern for the souls of men as is necessary to make a man faithful, and withal such an insight into the mysteries of the kingdom of heaven as is necessary to make a man skilful, are seldom to be met with. Such an interpreter of the mind of God is one of a thousand, Job 33:23. [3.] None are allowed to go for God but those who are sent by him; he will own none but those whom he appoints, Romans 10:15. It is Christ's work to put men into the ministry, 1 Timothy 1:12.

      2. The consent of Isaiah to it: Then said I, Here am I; send me. He was to go on a melancholy errand; the office seemed to go a begging, and every body declined it, and yet Isaiah offered himself to the service. It is an honour to be singular in appearing for God, Judges 5:7. We must not say, "I would go if I thought I should have success;" but, "I will go, and leave the success to God. Here am I; send me." Isaiah had been himself in a melancholy frame (Isaiah 6:5; Isaiah 6:5), full of doubts and fears; but now that he had the assurance of the pardon of his sin the clouds were blown over, and he was fit for service and forward to it. What he says denotes, (1.) His readiness: "Here am I, a volunteer, not pressed into the service." Behold me; so the word is. God says to us, Behold me (Isaiah 65:1; Isaiah 65:1), and, Here I am (Isaiah 58:9; Isaiah 58:9), even before we call; let us say so to him when he does call. (2.) His resolution; "Here I am, ready to encounter the greatest difficulties. I have set my face as a flint." Compare this with Isaiah 50:4-7; Isaiah 50:4-7. (3.) His referring himself to God: "Send me whither thou wilt; make what use thou pleasest of me. Send me, that is, Lord, give me commission and full instruction; send me, and then, no doubt, thou wilt stand by me." It is a great comfort to those whom God sends that they go for God, and may therefore speak in his name, as having authority, and be assured that he will bear them out.