Chapter 6
1. In the year that King Uzziah died, I saw the Lord sitting on a throne, high
and lifted up, and the train of His robe filled the temple.
2. Above it stood seraphim; each one had six wings: with two he covered his
face, with two he covered his feet, and with two he flew.
3. And one cried to another and said: "Holy, holy, holy is the Lord of hosts;
the whole earth is full of His glory!"
4. And the posts of the door were shaken by the voice of him who cried out, and
the house was filled with smoke.
5. Then I said: "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 my eyes have seen the
King, the Lord of hosts.''
6. Then one of the seraphim flew to me,having in his hand a live coal which he
had taken with the tongs from the altar.
7. And he touched my mouth with it, and said: "Behold, this has touched your
lips; your iniquity is taken away, and your sin purged.''
8. Also 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.''
Scoffers of God's Word are having more and more difficulty as archeologists
continue to prove the Bible true. In 1947 AD Jum’a Muhammed and Muhammed edh-Dhib, two Bedouin cousins
who herded goats,
were exploring a cave near the Dead Sea and found clay jars. Inside
were 7 scrolls containing the complete text of Isaiah and Habakkuk. Many
other scrolls were found later as more caves were explored. Scientific
methods of dating indicate that The 'Dead Sea Scrolls' were left in these
caves nearly 200 years before Christ. Those who want to convince believers
that the Bible is all make-believe mumble-jumble are having a tough time,
because the words written on these scrolls are miraculously identical to the
words we find in our Bibles today.
Isaiah records more visions of Jesus, than
any other prophet. He prophesizes Jesus' virgin birth: Isaiah
7:14. Therefore the Lord himself shall give you a sign; Behold, a virgin shall
conceive, and bear a son, and shall call his name Immanuel.
He gives us the familiar phrase heard sang at
Christmastime in Handel's Messiah: Isaiah 9:6. For unto us a child is born, unto us a son is given: and
the government shall be upon his shoulder: and his name shall be called
Wonderful, Counseller, The mighty God, the everlasting Father, The Prince of
Peace.
Jesus Himself uses a quote from Isaiah at the outset of his
ministry. Isaiah 61: 1-2 and Luke 4:18-19
"The Spirit of the Lord God is upon Me, because the Lord has
anointed Me to preach good tidings to the poor; He has sent Me to heal the
brokenhearted, to proclaim liberty to the captives, and the opening of the
prison to those who are bound; to proclaim the acceptable year of the
Lord. Isaiah 53
Isaiah also prophesizes Christ's suffering. This is not a message most of
Israel wanted to hear, nor would many accept it. They wanted a Messiah
that would defeat all Israel's enemies and restore the good times to their
nation - a glorious hero, like David. While a few stones and a
slingshot could defeat a giant, much more would be required to change men's
hearts and win men's souls. So we would see how serious and ugly
sin is, God's salvation plan included his Son's betrayal, rejection, hideous
torture, and cruel death on a wooden cross. Isaiah 54
1. Who hath believed our report? and to whom is the arm of the Lord revealed?
2. For he shall grow up before him as a tender plant, and as a root out of a dry
ground: he hath no form nor comeliness; and when we shall see him, there is no
beauty that we should desire him.
3. He is despised and rejected of men; a man of sorrows, and acquainted with
grief: and we hid as it were our faces from him; he was despised, and we
esteemed him not.
4. Surely he hath borne our griefs, and carried our sorrows: yet we did esteem
him stricken, smitten of God, and afflicted.
5. But he was wounded for our transgressions, he was bruised for our iniquities:
the chastisement of our peace was upon him; and with his stripes we are healed.
6. All we like sheep have gone astray; we have turned every one to his own way;
and the Lord hath laid on him the iniquity of us all.
7. He was oppressed, and he was afflicted, yet he opened not his mouth: he is
brought as a lamb to the slaughter, and as a sheep before her shearers is dumb,
so he openeth not his mouth.
8. He was taken from prison and from judgment: and who shall declare his
generation? for he was cut off out of the land of the living: for the
transgression of my people was he stricken.
9. And he made his grave with the wicked, and with the rich in his death;
because he had done no violence, neither was any deceit in his mouth.
10. Yet it pleased the Lord to bruise him; he hath put him to grief: when thou
shalt make his soul an offering for sin, he shall see his seed, he shall prolong
his days, and the pleasure of the Lord shall prosper in his hand.
11. He shall see of the travail of his soul, and shall be satisfied: by his
knowledge shall my righteous servant justify many; for he shall bear their
iniquities.
12. Therefore will I divide him a portion with the great, and he shall divide
the spoil with the strong; because he hath poured out his soul unto death: and
he was numbered with the transgressors; and he bare the sin of many, and made
intercession for the transgressors.
Isaiah also foresees that Jesus will be not only the
Messiah for Israel but the Savior of all mankind: Isaiah 49:6. ... I will
also give thee for a light to the Gentiles, that thou mayest be my salvation
unto the end of the earth.
Isaiah answers the Lord's question, "Whom shall I send?" saying, "Here am
I! Send me." God still asks that same question, "'Whom shall I
send?" to each of us today.
How do we answer? Do we answer, "Here am I! Send me." Or do we
just shrug and go about our daily business. Isaiah chapter
52:7 proclaims "How beautiful upon the mountains are the feet
of him who brings good news, who proclaims peace, who brings glad tidings of
good things, who proclaims salvation, who says to Zion, "Your God reigns!''
Do You have beautiful feet? Are you sharing the good news of Jesus
with others? I sincerely hope so. There is nothing more
important in this life than sharing Him.
Though scriptures record no great miracles
performed by Isaiah like those of Elijah and Elisha, still he was undoubtly a
great prophet used by God. So great that Jesus chooses Isaiah to
quote to begin his ministry. You and I may never perform the kind of
miracle that those seeking signs are always looking for either. But we can help
a miracle happen - the miracle of new life in Christ.
To find someone who has no hope and give them Jesus is the greatest miracle of
all. That
person's life will never be the same again. Neither will yours.
