1 Isaiah showeth his vocation by the vision of the divine majesty. 9 He showeth the obstinacy of the people. 11 The destruction of the land. 13 The remnant reserved.

In the year of the death of king Uzziah, [a]I saw also the Lord sitting upon an [b]high throne, and lifted up, and the lower [c]parts thereof filled the Temple.

The [d]Seraphims stood upon it, every one had six wings: with twain he covered his [e]face, and with twain he covered his [f]feet, and with twain he did [g]fly.

And one cried to another, and said, [h]Holy, holy, holy is the Lord of hosts: the whole [i]world is full of his glory.

And the lintels of the door cheeks [j]moved at the voice of him that cried, and the house was filled with smoke.

Then I said, [k]Woe is me: for I am undone, because I am a man of polluted lips, and I dwell in the midst of a people of polluted lips: for mine eyes have seen the King, and Lord of hosts.

Then flew one of the Seraphims unto me with an hot coal in his hand, which he had taken from the [l]altar with the tongs:

And he touched my mouth, and said, Lo, this hath touched thy lips, and thine iniquity shall be taken away, and thy [m]sin shall be purged.

Also I heard the voice of the Lord, saying, Whom shall I send? and who shall go for us? Then I said, Here am I, send me.

And he said, Go, and say unto this people, [n]Ye shall hear indeed, but ye shall not understand: ye shall plainly see, and not perceive.

10 Make the heart of this people fat, make their ears heavy, and shut their eyes, lest they see with their eyes, and hear with their ears, and understand with their heart, and convert, and he heal them.

11 Then said I, Lord, [o]how long? And he answered, Until the cities be wasted without inhabitant, and the houses without man, and the land be utterly desolate,

12 And the Lord have removed men far away, and there be a great desolation in the midst of the land.

13 But yet in it shall be [p]a tenth, and shall return, and shall be eaten up as an elm [q]or an oak, which have a substance in them, when they cast their leaves: so the holy seed shall be the substance thereof.

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Footnotes

  1. Isaiah 6:1 God showeth not himself to man in his majesty, but according as man’s capacity is able to comprehend him, that is, by visible signs, as John Baptist saw the holy Ghost in the form of a dove.
  2. Isaiah 6:1 As a Judge ready to give sentence.
  3. Isaiah 6:1 Of his garment, or of his throne.
  4. Isaiah 6:2 They were Angels, so called, because they were of a fiery color, to signify that they burnt in the love of God, or were light as fire to execute his will.
  5. Isaiah 6:2 Signifying, that they were not able to endure the brightness of God’s glory.
  6. Isaiah 6:2 Whereby was declared that man was not able to see the brightness of God in them.
  7. Isaiah 6:2 Which thing declareth the prompt obedience of the Angels to execute God’s commandment.
  8. Isaiah 6:3 This oft repetition signifieth, that the Holy Angels cannot satisfy themselves in praising God, to teach us that in all our lives we should give ourselves to the continual praise of God.
  9. Isaiah 6:3 His glory doth not only appear in the heavens, but through all the world, and therefore all creatures are bound, to praise him.
  10. Isaiah 6:4 Which things were to confirm the Prophet, that it was not the voice of man: and by the smoke was signified the blindness that should come upon the Jews.
  11. Isaiah 6:5 He speaketh this for two causes: the one because he that was a mortal creature, and therefore had more need to glorify God than the Angels, did it not: and the other because the more near that man approacheth to God, the more doth he know his own sin and corruption.
  12. Isaiah 6:6 Of the burnt offerings, where the fire never went out.
  13. Isaiah 6:7 This declareth that man cannot render due obedience to God, till he have purged us.
  14. Isaiah 6:9 Whereby is declared that for the malice of man God will not immediately take away his word, but he will cause it to be preached to their condemnation, when as they will not learn thereby to obey his will, and be saved: hereby he exhorteth the ministers to do their duty, and answereth to the wicked murmurers, that through their own malice their heart is hardened, Matt. 13:14; Acts 28:26; Rom. 11:8.
  15. Isaiah 6:11 As he was moved with the zeal of God’s glory, so was he touched with a charitable affection toward the people.
  16. Isaiah 6:13 Meaning, the tenth part: or as some write, it was revealed to Isaiah for the confirmation of his prophecy, that ten Kings should come before their captivity, as were from Uzziah to Zedekiah.
  17. Isaiah 6:13 For the fewness they shall seem to be eaten up: yet they shall after flourish as a tree, which in winter loseth leaves, and seemeth to be dead, yet in Summer is fresh and green.

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