“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 laid it upon my mouth, and said, Lo, this hath touched thy lips; and thine iniquity is taken away, and thy sin purged” (Isa. 6:6, 76Then 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: 7And he laid it upon my mouth, and said, Lo, this hath touched thy lips; and thine iniquity is taken away, and thy sin purged. (Isaiah 6:6‑7)). Surprising mercy! a heavenly messenger, a holy seraphim, sent direct from the Lord Himself upon His throne, to tell Isaiah, a poor sinner on the earth, that his iniquity was taken away! But do not you imagine, dear reader, that you need a seraphim to come to you, ere you can know that your sin is gone. It is not by the action and testimony of a seraphim today, but by the sure action of the Holy Ghost, and the testimony of His everlasting Word, that we know (1 John 5:1313These things have I written unto you that believe on the name of the Son of God; that ye may know that ye have eternal life, and that ye may believe on the name of the Son of God. (1 John 5:13)).
But how came this all about? “In the year that king Uzziah died,” says Isaiah, “I saw also the Lord sitting upon a throne, high and lifted up, and his train filled the temple. Above it stood the seraphim: each one had six wings; with twain he covered his face, and with twain he covered his feet, and with twain he did fly. And one cried unto another, and said, Holy, holy, holy is the Lord of hosts; the whole earth is full of his glory. And the posts of the door moved at the voice of him that cried, and the house was filled with smoke” (Isa. 6:1-41In 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. 2Above it stood the seraphims: each one had six wings; with twain he covered his face, and with twain he covered his feet, and with twain he did fly. 3And one cried unto another, and said, Holy, holy, holy, is the Lord of hosts: the whole earth is full of his glory. 4And the posts of the door moved at the voice of him that cried, and the house was filled with smoke. (Isaiah 6:1‑4)).
No wonder Isaiah cried, “Woe is me!” &c. (vs. 5). This is the One, sinner, with whom you have to do, the Lord, above whose throne stood the seraphim. Such is His infinite holiness, that even these wondrous creatures, who have never known sin, veil their faces and their feet in His glorious presence. Though holy themselves, and ever dwelling in a scene of holiness, they can neither gaze upon Him, nor stand or walk before Him, without covering their faces and their feet. “Holy, holy, holy; Holy, holy, holy,” cries one to another unceasingly around His throne, “the whole earth is full of his glory.” He who sits thereupon, the Lord, Adonai, is “the high and lofty One that inhabiteth eternity, whose name is Holy” (Isa. 57:1515For thus saith the high and lofty One that inhabiteth eternity, whose name is Holy; I dwell in the high and holy place, with him also that is of a contrite and humble spirit, to revive the spirit of the humble, and to revive the heart of the contrite ones. (Isaiah 57:15)). And the posts of the door (or thresholds) moved at the voice of him that cried, and the house was filled with smoke. The glory of God in judgment is there (Rev. 15:88And the temple was filled with smoke from the glory of God, and from his power; and no man was able to enter into the temple, till the seven plagues of the seven angels were fulfilled. (Revelation 15:8)).
As Isaiah gazes upon this wondrous vision, beholding the enthroned One in His glory, and hears the attendant seraphim celebrating His holiness, whilst the house (or temple) is filled with smoke, he takes his right place before Him, the only place where mercy can reach a sin-stricken sinner in this world. “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” (vs. 5). Not a word issued from his lips in self-justification, or on behalf of the people to whom he belonged. Filled with awe at the holiness of God, and conscious of his sinfulness, and unfitness for His presence, he cries in the bitterness of his soul, “Woe is me! I am undone, I am unclean, I dwell amid the unclean.” ‘Tis enough. The sense of the holiness of the Judge has brought the sinner to self-judgment. His case is hopeless, he can do nothing, and naught but the awful woe of holy and just judgment looms before his soul. He owns he deserves it, crying, “Woe is me!”
Reader, have you ever taken the same place me Isaiah? Have you ever bowed your heart in self-judgment in the presence of infinite holiness? Have you ever seen yourself an undone, unclean, lost one in the presence of God? A sinner you are, for all have sinned; and if you come before Him thus in the day of judgment, eternal woe will be yours. “Woe unto the wicked!” says the scripture, “it shall be ill with him; for the reward of his hands shall be given him” (Isa. 3:1111Woe unto the wicked! it shall be ill with him: for the reward of his hands shall be given him. (Isaiah 3:11)). To meet the claims of holiness, you must be holy; and that you are not, but the very opposite. How then can you meet Him? You cannot. It is impossible. Own it then candidly and honestly before Him, and the mercy which reached Isaiah, as we shall see, shall meet you also from this day.
“Woe is me!” was Isaiah’s wail. “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 laid it upon my mouth, and said, Lo, this hath touched thy lips; and thine iniquity is taken away, and thy sin purged” (verses 6, 7). The moment Isaiah was self-judged, mercy met him. The seraphim are apparently the agents of mercy from the throne of the Lord; one flew immediately from the Lord to Isaiah. But it was mercy reaching him through righteousness. This is beautifully presented in the vision, and all-important for the sinner to apprehend today. Note carefully what the scripture says: “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.” Now the altar is the place of sacrifice, and it is here mentioned in the vision for the first time. But neither the seraphim nor Isaiah went to the altar to offer a sacrifice when the latter cried, “Woe is me!” The sacrifice had been offered. The claims of the holiness of God had been met. The fire had consumed the sacrifice. The seraphim had flown to the altar, had taken the live coal, and flown back again to the throne, and there waited till Isaiah cried, “Woe is me!” Immediately the heavenly messenger flashed like lightning through space, straight to the sin-stricken one. In perfect righteousness, the claims of holiness having been met and satisfied, mercy dispensed her bounteous store. The righteous Lord delighteth in mercy. And the seraphim laid the live coal on Isaiah’s mouth, and he heard the message from the Lord, high and lifted up upon His throne: “Lo, this hath touched thy lips; and thine iniquity is taken away; and thy sin purged.”
What a blessed picture of the simple Gospel! Are you crying, sinner, “Woe is me! I am undone, I am unclean, I am lost”? Ah, praised be the Lord’s name, you need no holy seraphim to offer a sacrifice, neither need you to bring one yourself; nay, you have none that you could bring. But more than eighteen hundred years ago, Jesus, the Son of the living God, offered Himself a sacrifice for sit upon the altar of God. On the true altar, Calvary’s cross, the Lamb of God’s providing, without blemish and without spot, was offered once for all. The holy fire of God’s judgment fell, but instead of consuming the sacrifice, the holy sacrifice consumed the fire and exhausted it. Jesus was judged; Jesus died and bled. In infinite holiness, God, before whom holy seraphim veil their faces and their feet, hid His face from His beloved, as the claims of righteousness were preferred and met. Enough! “It is finished!” God is glorified; Jesus is raised and exalted at His right hand, and mercy flows through righteousness. Mercy waits to pardon, justify, reconcile, and save.
Take then your place, sinner, whoever you may be, in true repentance before Him, and believe God’s testimony to the worth of the sacrifice of His Son, and, swifter than the swiftest seraphim ever flew through space from the Lord’s holy throne, He will forgive you all your sins for His name’s sake. The moment you believe His word concerning the finished work, its value will be applied to you, and He Himself say to you, “Thy sins and thine iniquities will I remember no more,” and, “Thine iniquity is taken away, thy sin purged” (or expiated). Have you bowed, and believed? Hear again His precious word to all such. Christ “was delivered for our offenses, and raised again for our justification. Therefore being justified by faith, we have peace with God, through our Lord Jesus Christ” (Rom. 4:25,25Who was delivered for our offences, and was raised again for our justification. (Romans 4:25) vs. 1).
Do you doubt it? Do you think that Isaiah for a single moment doubted whether he was cleared? Impossible! His lips were touched with the live coal, and he heard the seraphim’s voice assuring him of the canceling of his sin. And the Word of God assures you of forgiveness and justification the moment you believe. God cannot lie, and you dishonor him if you allow a single question as to the truth of His Word.
Forgiven, and justified, you are reconciled to God, and are His child. You belong to Him; you are the purchase of the precious blood of His dear Son. You are no longer your own, but bought with a price (1 Cor. 6:19, 2019What? know ye not that your body is the temple of the Holy Ghost which is in you, which ye have of God, and ye are not your own? 20For ye are bought with a price: therefore glorify God in your body, and in your spirit, which are God's. (1 Corinthians 6:19‑20)). Now, as soon as Isaiah’s sin was put away, he heard the Lord’s own voice, saying, “Whom shall I send, and who will go for us?” And we read, “Then said I, Here am I; send me” (Isa. 6:88Also 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. (Isaiah 6:8)). Two things are important to observe here. The Lord wanted a servant, and He said, “Whom shall I send?” and “Who will go for us?” Mark it well, for it brings before us His grace, and our responsibility. The Lord sends His servants; but we are not mere machines, and He wants willing ones. Hence He adds, “Who will go?” Isaiah, grateful for the immense mercy shown him, answers unhesitatingly, “Here am I; send me.” He fully recognizes the two points which come out in the Lord’s word. “Here am I,” showed his willingness to go; “send me,” recognized it was no good going unless the Lord sent him. Fellow-believer, we do well to weigh these words. Saved, we are saved to serve. And we can all serve in some way or other. But we need the same two willingness every whit as much as Isaiah.
E. H. C.