Isaiah 6 Devotional

Undone, Then Cleansed and Sent

“And they were calling out to one another: “Holy, holy, holy is the LORD of Hosts; all the earth is full of His glory.””Isaiah 6:3 (BSB)

In the year King Uzziah dies, Isaiah sees the King who does not die. The Lord sits enthroned, high and exalted, his robe filling the temple, while seraphim cover their faces and call out his holiness until the doorposts shake (6:1-4). Isaiah's response is not wonder but ruin. He knows his lips are unclean, and so are his people's (6:5). Holiness, seen clearly, exposes everything.

Then grace moves toward him. A seraph takes a burning coal from the altar, touches his mouth, and declares his guilt removed and his sin atoned for (6:6-7). Isaiah does nothing but receive. Only after he is cleansed does he hear the Lord ask who will go, and he volunteers (6:8). His hard message will harden hearts until the land is ruined and only a holy stump remains (6:9-13). John says Isaiah saw the glory of Jesus and spoke about him (John 12:41). The holy Lord who sends people into hard places first makes them clean, so your service can begin from forgiveness rather than fear.

To think about: How does seeing God's holiness first, and then his cleansing, change the way you approach whatever he is asking of you?