LIBERTY UNIVERSITY

LIBERTY BAPTIST THEOLOGICAL SEMINARY

THE HOLINESS OF GOD

AN EXEGETICAL LOOK AT ISAIAH 6:1-13

A RESEARCH PAPER SUBMITTED TO DR. LEO PERCER

IN PARTIAL FULFILLMENT OF THE REQUIREMENTS FOR

THE COURSE NBST 652

BY

ELKE SPELIOPOULOS

DOWNINGTOWN, PA

SUNDAY, OCTOBER 11, 2009

 TABLE OF CONTENTS

THESIS AND OUTLINE................................................................................................................1

THESIS........................................................................................................................................1

OUTLINE....................................................................................................................................1

INTRODUCTION...........................................................................................................................2

CONTEXT.......................................................................................................................................3

HISTORICAL CONTEXT..........................................................................................................3

SCRIPTURAL CONTEXT.........................................................................................................4

ISAIAH’S VISION OF THE LORD...............................................................................................5

A VISION OF GOD IN THE TEMPLE (6:1-3).........................................................................5

VISION OF SELF (6:5-7).........................................................................................................10

ISAIAH’S COMMISSION FROM THE LORD...........................................................................12

A VISION OF SERVICE TO THE LORD (6:8-13).................................................................12

THE REMNANT (IS. 6:13)......................................................................................................14

CONCLUSION..............................................................................................................................15

APPLICATION.............................................................................................................................15

BIBLIOGRAPHY..........................................................................................................................17

BIBLIOGRAPHY

1
 THESIS AND OUTLINE

THESIS

Isaiah is allowed into the presence of God, immediately perceives his sinfulness in the

presence of such holiness, receives remission of his sin through one act of sovereign grace and

readily and gratefully receives a commission from God to become His prophet and to go preach

to His obstinate covenant people.

OUTLINE
A. Isaiah’s Vision of the LORD (Is 6:1-7)

1. Isaiah is allowed to see God in a vision (v.1-4)

2. Isaiah realizes his own sinfulness before a holy God and is cleansed of his sin (v.5-7)

B. Isaiah’s Commission from the LORD (Is 6:8-13)

1. The LORD issues a call, and Isaiah responds (v. 8)

2. God gives Isaiah a commission. (v.9-12)

a. They will not understand or perceive (v. 9b)

b.The people’s hearts will be dull, their ears heavy and their eyes blind, so they cannot

hear the message (v.10).

3. The length of this commission (v. 11-13)

a. Isaiah inquires of the length of this commission (v. 11a)

b.God responds by describing the desolation in the land (v. 11b-12)

c. God continues to describe the punishment (v. 13a)

d.God speaks of a remainder (v.13b)

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 INTRODUCTION

What does it mean to worship a holy God? Jesus calls us friend, but what does the

average believer understand this to mean as to who God is. Can He be the same as a close

buddy? Or is He, on the opposite end of the spectrum, an aloof God who demands complete

obedience?

Isaiah’s call is defined in one single moment when he steps into the unspeakable presence

of the Lord. In a vision, Isaiah sees the glory of God and immediately realizes his own

sinfulness. Yet in God’s infinite grace, Isaiah’s sinfulness is taken away, and he responds with

great excitement and urgency to set out to do the work of God. This passage shows the

consequences of the disobedience perpetrated by the people of Israel, but even more so the

immeasurable grace offered by God to allow His people to come back into fellowship with Him

again after they have strayed.

As Hustad describes, this “sets forth the dramatic experiences of true worship”.1 In its

simplest description, the reader of the sixth chapter of Isaiah sees a depiction of the one true and

holy God, whom Isaiah calls the “Holy One of Israel” in many passages in the book named after

him, but refers to Him here as ‫באֹות‬

ָ ‫( יהוה ְצ‬yhwh sābāôt, Lord of hosts) in Isaiah 6:3. This holy
God is He who through His simple presence causes instant recognition within Isaiah of his own

sinfulness and that of his people, yet who allows the cleansing regeneration of Isaiah by His

grace and offers an ensuing call of obedient service to Him to a willing Isaiah.2

Isaiah rejoices over the restored relationship with his Lord, yet he immediately realizes

what it entails. He knows it will not be an easy task to pronounce judgment on his own people,

yet Isaiah understands that obedience is what God demands, and so Isaiah responds and goes.

1. Donald P. Hustad, “A Spiritual Ministry of Music: Part III: Music for Worship, Evangelism, and
Christian Education,” Bibliotheca Sacra 117 (1960; 2002), under "117:302."
2. Ibid.

2
 CONTEXT

HISTORICAL CONTEXT

With King Uzziah’s death, either in 739 or 740 B.C., an extended period of living in

prosperity and expanding the kingdom comes to an end for Judah. 3 While King Uzziah’s reign

had been a rather long one beginning at age 16 and spanning fifty-two years, towards the end of

his leading Judah, trouble was brewing on the international scene with the coming to power of

Tiglath-Pileser III as king in the Assyrian kingdom in 745 B.C. Building his empire, he fought

ruthless battles, eventually threatening the sovereignty of both Israel and Judah.4

With Tiglath-Pileser driving his first campaign towards the west, a significant military

danger had arisen. Based on his victories in kingdoms to the east and north of the Israelite states,

the kings of Israel and Judah faced a great threat, one which would ultimately result in the

collapse of the northern kingdom under the onslaught of the Assyrian troops. In addition,

Tiglath-Pileser’s troops conquered the capital of Samaria. As a war strategy, large portions of the

residents of these areas were deported.5

It is during this phase that Isaiah received the call to his prophetic ministry. Unlike other

prophets, who began their letters with their call (e.g. Jeremiah 1), Isaiah did not place this calling

until chapter 6. In addition, he is the only prophet to date his calling by a king’s death. But in

Isaiah’s thinking, this was a critical event in history, and God was using it to speak to his people.

Isaiah had observed the years during which King Uzziah was living in a separated and alienated

state from God, during which God’s displeasure was becoming visible. From Isaiah’s vantage

3. Robert B. Hughes, and J. Carl Laney, Tyndale Concise Bible Commentary, Rev. Ed. of: New Bible
Companion. 1990; Includes Index., The Tyndale reference library ed. (Wheaton, IL: Tyndale House Publishers,
2001), 260.
4. J. A. Motyer, The Prophecy of Isaiah: An Introduction & Commentary (Downers Grove, Ill: InterVarsity
Press, 1993), under "Is 6:1."
5. Victor Harold Matthews, Mark W. Chavalas and John H. Walton, The IVP Bible Background
Commentary: Old Testament, electronic Ed. ((Downers Grove, IL: InterVarsity Press, 2000), under "Is 6:1."

1
point, Uzziah remained uncleansed and had become a symbol to Isaiah of the state of the nation

and its problems.6

SCRIPTURAL CONTEXT

Since the early days of the Christian church, the book of Isaiah has been known as “The

Fifth Gospel” due to its high content of messianic prophecies.7 Within the direct context of

Isaiah, chapter six arrives on the heels of Isaiah 1-5, which contain God’s “judgment against all

the ‘proud and lofty’ men and women, humbling them so that the Lord alone will be exalted”,

contrasting the coming doom and destruction with the surpassing future glory of Mt. Zion.8 In

Isaiah 6, Isaiah encountered the Lord and was both cleansed and commissioned as the mouth

piece of the Lord to prophecy to his people. As Schultz describes, Isaiah then followed up with

the prophecies of three tests, which begin following in chapter seven. These are King Ahaz’ test

with the object of trust being the oncoming Assyrian assault (Isaiah 7-11), an unnamed king with

the object of trust being the danger posed by Egypt (Isaiah 28-33), and finally King Hezekiah’s

test of placing his trust in God (Isaiah 36-39). Briefly, though not exhaustively, the rest of the

book provides a change in chapter forty paralleling the one in chapter six, with Isaiah being

commissioned afresh to pronounce God’s comfort to His people. The Servant Songs of Isaiah

pronounce further insights into future salvation coming through the hand of God. As Schultz

writes,

the book develops along a redemptive-historical trajectory, beginning with a portrait of

Zion in Isaiah’s day as it weathers several political-military crises. Then it moves ahead
through the Babylonian exile and restoration under Cyrus to the renewal and glorification
of Zion in the context of the new heaven and the new earth.9

6. Motyer, Is 6:1.
7. Richard L. Schultz, Theological Interpretation of the Old Testament: A Book-by-Book Survey, ed. Kevin
J. Hoozer, Craig G. Bartholomew, and Daniel J. Treier (Grand Rapids, MI: Baker Academic, 2005, 2008), 194.
8. Ibid., 199.
9. Ibid., 204.

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 ISAIAH’S VISION OF THE LORD

A VISION OF GOD IN THE TEMPLE (6:1-3)

Isaiah saw the Lord; indeed he himself stated this in the very first verse of chapter six. In

other words, Isaiah experienced a theophany. Buksbazen defines a theophany as “God’s

manifestation of Himself to man, … a voluntary limitation on the part of God of His divine

nature in order that men might be able to experience His awesome presence without perishing.”

In this case, according to Buksbazen, God chose to reveal Himself to Isaiah in such a way that he

could recognize Him.10 Isaiah saw the Lord, and ultimately the Lord commissioned him as His

prophet and as a voice to pronounce impending doom.

There is some debate among scholars whether Isaiah experienced his original call as a

prophet in the sixth chapter of Isaiah or whether this represented a commissioning of a prophet

already working in his ministry. According to Buksbazen, this cannot be answered with

certainty, however most commentators agree that this is Isaiah’s initial call. He believes that the

first five chapters serve as an introduction to the book as well as a retelling of Isaiah’s early

prophetic messages while Uzziah and Jotham reign, dating them to about 740-735 B.C.11

Isaiah’s vision, according to the Gospel of John, was one that showed him Jesus’ glory.

In John 12:41, John wrote: “Isaiah said these things because he saw his glory and spoke of him“

(ESV). The referent here is Jesus, as becomes clear from the preceding verses.12 John cited Isaiah

6:10 in John 12:40, the second quote from Isaiah by John as he closed the first part of his Gospel.

Isaiah thus became the tool, which John used to pronounce a verdict on his fellow Jews for their

10. Victor Buksbazen, The Prophet Isaiah: A Commentary (Bellmawr, NJ: The Friends of Israel Gospel
Ministry, Inc., 2008), 135.
11. Ibid.,136.
12. James E. Smith, The Major Prophets (Joplin, MO: College Press, 1992), under "Is 6:1-3."

1
rejection of Jesus as both Messiah and God’s Son. John tried to show that the willful conduct of

the Jews actually brought about the fulfillment of Scripture.13

Since only the robes, the temple and the seraphim are mentioned, Jamieson believes that

Isaiah could not have seen God per se, but could have “seen” the Son. Exodus 33:20 states:

“’But,’ he said, ‘you cannot see my face, for man shall not see me and live.’” (ESV), so how

could Isaiah have seen God? As Jamieson points out, Isaiah saw something different than the

Shekinah on the mercy seat in the tabernacle or the temple: there was a lack of a cloud or fire,

rather Isaiah perceived a different form. In addition, instead of the cherubim above the mercy

seat, Isaiah saw seraphim. The form in the tabernacle or temple had no clothing described in

Scripture, yet here Isaiah described a robe and train.14

Motyer also points out that while Isaiah described majestic elements, such as a throne, a

kingly robe and attendants, God Himself is not described, yet his presence, power and authority

are clearly visible through the attributes ascribed, high and exalted.15

One interesting side note here is the language Isaiah chose within Isaiah 6:1. The term

‫שא‬
ָּׂ ‫( ָרם ְוִנ‬rām weniśśā’, high and lifted up) is truly noteworthy. This terminology only occurs
two other times in the Old Testament, both times in Isaiah. While in Isaiah 6:116, this clearly

refers to the Lord God, in Isaiah 52:13, these attributes are given to the Servant of the Lord.17 In

the third passage (Isaiah 57:15), the attributes “high and lifted up” are again ascribed to God. 18

13. Andreas J. Köstenberger, “John”, Commentary on the New Testament Use of the Old Testament, ed. G.
K. Beale, and D. A. Carson (Grand Rapids, MI: Baker Academic, 2007), 479.
14. Robert Jamieson et al., A Commentary, Critical and Explanatory, on the Old and New Testaments (Oak
Harbor, WA: Logos Research Systems, Inc., 1997), under "Is 6:1."
15. Motyer, Is 6
16. In the year that King Uzziah died I saw the Lord sitting upon a throne, high and lifted up; and the train
of his robe filled the temple. (Is 6:1, ESV)
17. Behold, my servant shall act wisely; he shall be high and lifted up, and shall be exalted. (Is 52:13,
ESV)
18. For thus says the One who is high and lifted up, who inhabits eternity, whose name is Holy: “I dwell in
the high and holy place, and also with him who is of a contrite and lowly spirit, to revive the spirit of the lowly, and
to revive the heart of the contrite. (Is 57:15, ESV)

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As such, the Servant of the Lord passage, which from a post-cross perspective we can understand

to having been fulfilled through Jesus, thus appears to ascribe deity to the Servant.

The imagery Isaiah used seems to be one that would have resonated readily with his

audience, as it described “an Eastern monarch, attended by seraphim as His ministers of state”. 19

As such, all the elements described serve to underline the dignity of the scene filling the temple.

Isaiah may have put himself in danger by describing this scene, as according to tradition, this

served as the reason to saw him in two under Manasseh’s reign (possibly hinted at in Hebrews

11:37).20

The word ‫לי‬

ָ ‫שּו‬
ׁ (šûlai, train) is elsewhere translated “hem”, e.g. in Exodus 28:33, where it
describes the richly decorated border of the high priest’s garment. As Matthews points out, this

type of decoration was commonly signifying dignitaries, in the Israelite society the high priest,

but also high ranking other officials and kings. In other Near Eastern iconographical settings,

deities were assigned such ornamental garments.21

Isaiah came to recognize the temple as the place where God’s presence was not merely

symbolic, but had now become tangible reality for him. The ensuing encounter allowed Isaiah to

see “the point where heaven touches earth”, as Motyer describes it.22

As Isaiah would soon come to find out, the ministry of the seraphim was a burning one,

and the name given to them is appropriately one that recognizes this aspect. 23 As Matthews

describes, the root word for ‫שרף‬

ׂ (šrp, fiery, serpent) also has an association with “burning”. As
such, the link to the experience Isaiah would now have seems to be a close one. In Ancient Near

Eastern (ANE) writing, additional support for this can be found. In Egypt, e.g. there is evidence

19. Jamieson et al., Is 6:1.

20. Ibid.
21. Matthews, et al., Is 6:1.
22. Motyer, Is 6.

23. Ibid., Is 6:2

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in both literature and art for fiery serpents, and the serpent served as a sign of kingly authority.

This can be seen on the crowns of the pharaohs. Sometimes these serpents were depicted as

winged, so this is an imagery the Israelites would have been well familiar with. While many

depictions of winged serpents have been found, some with hand and feet, six-winged examples

are rare, however an archaeological find at Tell Halaf yielded just such a depiction on a relief, in

this case as part of a human figure.24 Jamieson observes that there may also be a connection to

Satan’s form as a serpent being related to his original form as such a “seraph of light”.25 Ryken

adds another thought to this imagery by drawing the analogy to the “fiery serpents” the Israelites

encountered in the desert (see Numbers 21:6-8 and Deuteronomy 8:15). As Ryken points out, the

only distinction between the two occurrences is the context, and thus he suggests that the fiery

beings may have had more of a similarity to our concept of a dragon than an angel.26

The seraphim are described as six-winged, covering their faces with two wings, their feet

with another two and flying with the final two. The description of the seraphim’s wings covering

their feet is also of interest here. As Motyer observes, to assign a euphemism to the covered feet

as serving to hide sexual organs is a completely inappropriate assignment of sexuality to the

seraphim. Instead, according to Motyer, the symbolism of the foot acting as an indication of

life’s direction should be what is observed in this scene, and therefore the seraphim’s behavior

indicated submission to God’s commands. 27 However, as Jamieson et al. point out, the practice

of covering feet was one common in the presence of Eastern kings, in order to show reverence, a

practice which seems the likelier association in this scene.28

24. Matthews et al., Is 6:2.

25. Jamieson et al., Is 6:2.
26. Leland Ryken et al., Dictionary of Biblical Imagery, electronic ed. (Downers Grove, IL: InterVarsity
Press, 2000, c1998, n.d.), 579.
27. Motyer, Is 6:2
28. Jamieson et al., Is 6:2.

4
 The scene Isaiah observes is “one of constant motion… at the divine bidding”.29 The

doorposts’ shaking can be viewed as a response of the earth to the presence of God. In Exodus

19:18, the mountain trembled in response to the divine presence, and Habakkuk described a

similar scene in Habakkuk 3:3-10 where God’s presence caused shaking in the earth.30 As such,

it was clear to Isaiah that he was was observing a theophany, augmented by the elements of

smoke and trembling doorposts.31 This alone would have certainly shaken Isaiah to the core of

his being, but what came next would do even more to leave no doubt in Isaiah’s mind of the

holiness he was encountering.

The seraphim’s threefold ‫ש‬

ׁ ‫( ָקדֹו‬qādôš, holy) leaves no doubt about the holiness of God.
While some scholars have seen a picture of the trinity in the thrice repeated “holy”, according to

the translation notes of the NET Bible, “this proposal has no linguistic or contextual basis and

should be dismissed as allegorical.”32 According to Chisholm, Hebrew repeats words for

emphasis. Motyer agrees that “Hebrew uses repetition to express superlatives or to indicate

totality.”33 While a threefold repetition is unusual in Old Testament writing, it serves as a very

strong emphasis.34 Another example of this is Ezekiel 21:27, which repeats the word ‫עָּוה‬
ַ (‘awwâ,
a ruin) thrice, meaning nothing will be left of the city but rubble. Jeremiah 7:4, which repeats

‫כל‬
ַ ‫הי‬
ֵ (hêkāl, temple) three times, may be another such example of emphasis.
The image of the seraphim’s voices in concert and yet with a back and forth of praise,

thus bouncing off each other as they cry out to each other to declare the holiness of God, is what

Keil and Delitzsch describe as “a continuous and unbroken antiphonal song” and call it the

“blessed employment” of the seraphim to deliver such “uninterrupted worship of God”.35 The

29. Motyer, Is 6:2

30. Ibid., 6:4.
31. Matthews et al., Is 6:4.
32. The NET Bible, New English Translation (Biblical Studies Press, LLC, 2006), 1273.
33. Motyer, Is 6.
34. Robert B. Chisholm Jr., Handbook on the Prophets (Grand Rapids, MI: Baker Academic, 2002), 24-28.
35. Carl Friedrich Keil, and Friedrich Delitzsch, Commentary on the Old Testament (Peabody, MA:
Hendrickson, 2002), under "7:123-33."

5
closest New Testament image of such unadulterated praise appears in Revelation 19 when great

multitudes join the twenty-four elders and the four living creatures in the praise of the Lamb.

This is the image conveyed here, if not in number, then in intensity of worship of this eternal

King seated on the throne.

VISION OF SELF (6:5-7)

Isaiah’s recognition of his sinfulness is an immediate one. As Motyer, writes, “Isaiah let

his audience know that before he pronounced his woes on others, he had first pronounced a woe

upon himself.”36 Certainly in the presence of such holiness and the praise emanating from holy

lips, Isaiah instantly knew that he was doomed due to his own sinfulness and gave voice to his

realization: “I am destroyed, for my lips are contaminated with sin” and instantly also recognized

God’s covenant people as such a sin-contaminated people. Isaiah realized that he was associated

with this “sinful society, which had rejected the ‘Holy One of Israel’”.37 Motyer describes

Isaiah’s experience very succinctly by citing from H.H. Rowley that “when people fear before

God … it ‘is not the consciousness of … humanity in the presence of divine power, but the

consciousness of … sin in the presence of moral purity’.38

As soon as Isaiah confessed his iniquity, a seraph flew to him and touched Isaiah’s lips

with burning coal. This imagery is also one that is found in other ANE writings, e.g. in

Mesopotamian writings, a ritual to purify the lips often symbolized the associated purification of

the person in question. 39 Likewise, Akkadian literature references such a “wiping away” of ritual

impurity, in particular in relationship to the person’s mouth. Similar examples can be found in

36. Motyer, Is 6.
37. Chisholm, 25.
38. Motyer, Is 6.
39. Matthews, et al., 7.

6
Babylonian prayers and incantations. 40 Jamieson adds here that fire served also as an image of

purification, as could be observed in its use to take dross out of metal.41

However, Motyer shows that the use of fire appears more so in the context of the wrath of

God or as an image of His “unapproachable holiness” and His perfect given law, and is not really

used as a cleansing agent in the Old Testament. Yet as the seraph brought a burning coal from

the altar, it symbolized not just the place of God’s wrath, but even more so the place where God

accepted blood sacrifice.42

As the seraph touched Isaiah’s lips after he confessed his need, God met this one sinner

in an instantaneous act of mercy and forgiveness. As Motyer points out, “the two verbs, has

touched and is taken away, are co-ordinate perfects, stressing that as soon as the one happened

the other happened also. Isaiah contributes nothing; all is of God.”43 Of importance here is also

the touching of the mouth as it indicates the tool the prophet would be using to speak to the

people God would send Isaiah out to. Jamieson also points out this oral imagery linking in that

tongues of fire are what indicated that the disciples in Acts 2:3-4 were enabled to speak in

different languages to the peoples represented.44

ISAIAH’S COMMISSION FROM THE LORD

A VISION OF SERVICE TO THE LORD (6:8-13)

God’s sovereign act of commissioning a seraph to touch Isaiah’s mouth with a burning

coal and thus pronouncing the remission of his sin has an immediate result: Isaiah is reconciled

to God and is now free to speak and to respond to God’s question about who would go for Him

40. Motyer, Is 6.
41. Jamieson et al., Is 6:6.
42. Ibid.
43. Motyer, Is 6.
44. Jamieson et al., Is 6:7.

2
and the heavenly court.45 Motyer quotes Alfred Martin who captures beautifully what happens to

Isaiah in response to God’s act of grace: “Martin observes that the woe of confession (v. 5) is

followed by the lo of cleaning (v. 7), and that in turn by the go of commission (v. 9).” 46

However, despite Isaiah’s clear turn from his sinfulness after the cleansing act of God, the people

would not return to God, as He already foresaw. As Motyer continues in describing what would

now follow, “the imperatives of these verses must, therefore, be seen as expressing an inevitable

outcome of Isaiah’s ministry. 47

Isaiah very willingly agrees to be the spokesman of God. His ‫חִני‬

ֵ ‫שָל‬
ְׁ ‫( ִהְנִני‬Hineni
šeläHëni, Here am I, send me) is a joyful and ready response to the God of the universe who

had expressed such undeserved mercy to Isaiah. The dire outcomes that Isaiah was to prophecy

to the people would for the most part find their realization in the captivity the people of Israel

would experience at the hand of Babylon, and in an even fuller sense of fulfillment in the

dispersion experienced under the Roman Titus.48

Of note is that God proclaimed Isaiah’s nation “this people” in a clear condemnation of

their sinful behavior. Now the associative link of a covenant relationship had been broken due to

the enormous sin committed by the people of Judah and also Israel. Köstenberger also comments

on God’s addressing His covenant people as “this people” as contrasting sharply with the more

tender term “my people” used in other parts of the Old Testament.49

As Köstenberger observes, “just as an obedient response by a receptive audience is

success, so also is a rejection of the prophetic message with resulting judgment, if success is

understood as fulfillment of God’s purposes in and through this spokesperson”, an outcome that

45. Motyer, Is 6.
46. Smith, Is 6:1-3.
47. Motyer, Is 6.
48. Jamieson et al., Is 6:11.
49. Köstenberger, 480.

2
points to Israel’s unyieldingness as both without reason and reprehensibly full of sin.50 Isaiah

6:10 is cited in various other biblical and extra-biblical texts, but interestingly in one of the

Qumran scrolls (1QIsaa col. VI:2-5), the accent is changed from a spoken word of judgment to a

warning of the elect and an aiding against evil.51

Here again, in an examination of the plural used in God’s speech, the attempt should

probably not be made to find a depiction of the Trinity in the text, but rather one should note that

the concept of the heavenly council can be shown in Ugaritic texts, such as the Epic of Keret. A

key difference, of course, is the inclusion of other deities in the pantheon of such a council,

whereas the people of Israel would have viewed the other participants of the heavenly council as

spirits or angels, or the “sons of God or the heavenly host”.52

THE REMNANT (IS. 6:13)

The most difficult verse in Isaiah 6 is the final verse, which scholars have found hard to

translate. As the NET translation notes for Isaiah 6:13 describe, the discussion centers on one

issue: “Some take ‫בת‬

ֶ ‫( ַמֶּצ‬mäcevet) as ‘stump,’ and translate, ‘which, when chopped down, have
a stump remaining in them.’ But elsewhere ‫בת‬
ֶ ‫ ַמֶּצ‬refers to a memorial pillar (2 Sam 18:18) and
the word resembles ‫בה‬
ָ ‫( ַמֶּצ‬mäcevetäh, ‘sacred pillar’)”53. Leaving this discussion aside, the
following focuses on the most common interpretation and the theological impact.

God shares with Isaiah that even after the horrendous suffering brought about by exile

and dispersion, a remaining tenth who had survived this judgment would suffer even more

hardship and persecution. Motyer describes this as “a colossal tragedy proceeding from a single

50. Ibid.
51. Ibid.
52. Matthews, et al., 8.
53. The NET Bible, 1274.

3
cause—they heard and refused the word of the Lord.” 54 While Isaiah was told what would

happen, he was not told the timing of it.

Isaiah described that only a remnant, elect by God, would be destined for salvation. This

is in line with the seriousness God displays towards sin. Yet it also give great credence to the

eternal character of the covenantal promises to always preserve a remnant of the Israelites.55 If

the decision is made to textually agree with “stump” as the correct translation, the direct promise

associated is that of a shoot coming out of this tree, depicting the Israelites, thought virtually

dead. Here is the promised fulfillment of another promise found in Isaiah 11:1 that there

“shall come forth a shoot from the stump of Jesse, and a branch from his roots shall bear fruit”

(ESV). As Motyer points out, “typically of Isaiah, hope is the unexpected fringe attached to the

garment of doom.”56

CONCLUSION

The sixth chapter of Isaiah paints a picture of God’s holiness like few other passages in

Scripture. Here is an image of the perfect sense of justice and at the same time the absolute love

displayed by the King of the universe. Man’s sinfulness is immediately apparent in all its

ugliness. Jonathan Edwards writes in “Sinners in the Hands of an Angry God”:

The God that holds you over the pit of hell, much as one holds a spider, or some loathsome
insect, over the fire, abhors you, and is dreadfully provoked; his wrath towards you burns
like fire; he looks upon you as worthy of nothing else, but to be cast into the fire; he is of
purer eyes than to bear to have you in his sight; you are ten thousand times so abominable
in his eyes as the most hateful venomous serpent is in ours.57

Yet, as Isaiah found out, in the very instance that a person confesses his or her

unrighteousness before this very same God, He is willing to expunge all the wrongdoings and to
54. Motyer, Is 6:11.
55. Ibid., Is 6:13.
56. Ibid.
57. The Jonathan Edwards Center at Yale University, “Sinners in the Hands of an Angry God,”
Retrieved from http://edwards.yale.edu/archive?
path=aHR0cDovL2Vkd2FyZHMueWFsZS5lZHUvY2dpLWJpbi9uZXdwaGlsby9nZXRvYmplY3QucGw/Yy4yMT
o0Ny53amVv (accessed October 11, 2009).

2
welcome him or her into His family. Even when unregenerate people continue to sin, God

always reminds Himself of promises made and is not completely unwilling to relent. This is the

great beauty depicted in this passage of Isaiah. It is a message both of warning and of promise.

APPLICATION

Our 21st century thinking has been shaped by modern worship music and styles, which

many people of an older age criticize as being to “me” focused and not enough God focused. As

Oswalt points out, we risk seeing the Lord as too much of a “good buddy” and not enough of the

holy God He deserves to be worshipped as. Due to this, God’s grace has become something that

is not nearly as precious to us as it should be. Oswalt writes,

How we need a vision of the blazing holiness of God. How we need to be crushed under
the awareness of a Being who is greater than the entire known universe (which is one
meaning of ‘the whole earth is full of his glory,’ 6:3). How we need to come face to face
with a white-hot moral perfection in the presence of which sin cannot exist.58

As the bride of Christ, Isaiah’s writing needs to remind us of our calling to be a holy

people. In Leviticus 19:2 God tells the Israelites: “Speak to all the congregation of the people

of Israel and say to them, You shall be holy, for I the LORD your God am holy” (ESV). This is

repeated in 1 Peter 1:16 in the New Testament. We can be certain that this meaning still applies

unchanged. God demands a holy people. We are well advised to view Him not just as our friend,

but also as our sovereign Lord.

A good follow-up study to this passage in Isaiah might be Romans 12:9-21, which gives

tangible advice on what holy living looks like to a New Testament believer. By discipling

believers and teaching them about the indescribable value of being in the Word every day, this

holiness aspect will undoubtedly grow as worldly views are transformed into a biblical world

view through the exposure to the expressed will of God through the pages of the Scriptures.

58. Oswalt, The NIV Application Commentary: Isaiah, 131.

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 BIBLIOGRAPHY

Buksbazen, Victor. The Prophet Isaiah: A Commentary. Bellmawr, NJ: The Friends of Israel
Gospel Ministry, Inc., 2008.

Chisholm, Robert B., Jr. Handbook on the Prophets. Grand Rapids, MI: Baker Academic, 2002.

Hughes, Robert B., and J. Carl Laney. Tyndale Concise Bible Commentary. Rev. Ed. of: New
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Tyndale House Publishers, 2001.

Hustad, Donald P. “A Spiritual Ministry of Music: Part III: Music for Worship, Evangelism, and
Christian Education.” Bibliotheca Sacra 117 (1960; 2002).

Jamieson, Robert et al. A Commentary, Critical and Explanatory, on the Old and New
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Matthews, Victor Harold, Mark W. Chavalas, and John H. Walton. The IVP Bible Background
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Motyer, J. A. The Prophecy of Isaiah: An Introduction & Commentary. Downers Grove, Ill:
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The NET Bible, New English Translation. Biblical Studies Press, LLC, 2006.

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Smith, James E. The Major Prophets. Joplin, MO: College Press, 1992.