“Then 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!””ISAIAH 6:8 · BSB · READ THE CHAPTER →Hebrew: seraphim, “burning ones”
In the year that King Uzziah died, Isaiah saw the Lord. Uzziah had reigned for fifty-two years. When a long and strong king dies, a nation feels unsteady. Isaiah looked up and saw the throne that never empties.
Above the throne stood seraphim. Their name comes from the Hebrew word for burning. These burning ones covered their faces and their feet and called to one another, “Holy, holy, holy is the LORD of Hosts.” In Hebrew, repeating a word is how you make it as strong as language allows. Holiness is the attribute of God that Scripture raises to the third degree.
Isaiah's first response was not excitement. It was devastation: “Woe is me, for I am ruined, because I am a man of unclean lips.” Real holiness doesn't make us feel spiritual. It shows us how far we are from God.
Then one of the seraphim flew to the altar, took a live coal with tongs, and pressed it to Isaiah's lips. “Your iniquity is removed.” The fire that could have destroyed him cleansed him instead. That altar points to the cross, where Jesus took the fire of judgment so we could receive the fire of cleansing.
Only after the coal did Isaiah hear the call. “Whom shall I send?” And the man who had just cried “Woe is me” said, “Here am I. Send me!” Cleansed lips become willing lips. If you want to be sent, start by letting God touch the place you are most ashamed of.
- When did you last see God's holiness clearly enough to be undone by it?
- What part of your life needs the touch of the coal?
- Is your answer to God's call “Here am I” or “Here am I, but…”?
Read Isaiah 6 slowly. When you reach verse 8, answer God's question out loud in your own words.
The cross tells you what your sin cost. The empty tomb tells you it's paid in full.