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Isaiah 6 Bible study: I saw the Lord
Only in Isaiah 6:3 does the Hebrew Bible say holy three times in a row. The coal touched the very lips Isaiah had called unclean (6:5, 6:7), and he was forgiven before he was sent (6:7-8). And John says Isaiah said these things "when he saw his glory, and spoke of him" (John 12:41).
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“I heard the Lord’s voice, saying, “Whom shall I send, and who will go for us?” Then I said, “Here I am. Send me!””
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“In Isaiah 6, Isaiah says his eyes have seen the King, the LORD of Armies.”
Is that in Isaiah 6, or not? Make your call.
What's really going on
In the year the king died
"In the year that King Uzziah died, I saw the Lord sitting on a throne, high and lifted up; and his train filled the temple" (6:1). The chapter dates what Isaiah saw by a king's death. Then, when Isaiah cries out, he names what he saw: "my eyes have seen the King, the LORD of Armies!" (6:5). Here is what almost everyone misses: in Hebrew King in 6:1 and the King in 6:5 are the same word with the same article, hammelekh, said first of Uzziah and then of the LORD of Armies. 2 Chronicles tells of this king's reign (2 Chronicles 26:1-23). Isaiah 6 names him only to say when Isaiah saw, and these notes set nothing from his story beside the chapter. High and lifted up are the two Hebrew words chapter 2 used of every height that "shall be brought low" (Isaiah 2:12); the chapter on Isaiah 2 sets them side by side.
Where it leads to Jesus
When he saw his glory
Isaiah 6:1leads toJohn 12:39-41
Isaiah says, "I saw the Lord sitting on a throne, high and lifted up" (Isaiah 6:1), and "my eyes have seen the King, the LORD of Armies!" (Isaiah 6:5). John writes, "Jesus said these things, and he departed and hid himself from them" (John 12:36), and "But though he had done so many signs before them, yet they didn’t believe in him" (John 12:37). After words of Isaiah 53:1 (John 12:38), he goes on, "For this cause they couldn’t believe, for Isaiah said again" (John 12:39), and gives the words of Isaiah 6:10: "He has blinded their eyes and he hardened their heart, lest they should see with their eyes, and perceive with their heart, and would turn, and I would heal them" (John 12:40). Then John writes, "Isaiah said these things when he saw his glory, and spoke of him" (John 12:41). In John's chapter the one they didn't believe in is Jesus (John 12:36-37). John doesn't say more of how Isaiah saw, and these notes don't either. The WEB words Isaiah 6:10 and John 12:40 differently: Make the heart of this people fat and he hardened their heart, be healed and I would heal them.
Honest questions
Questions people ask about Isaiah 6
That was a taste
The rest of Isaiah 6 is waiting in Favor
- Holy, holy, holy
- A coal from the altar
- A hard word to carry
- Taken away and forgiven, again
- Holy, holy, holy in Revelation
- The words given again
- 8 questions as you read
- 11 more Hebrew words
- A short check at the end
- Your notes, saved as you go
Favor reads the Bible in order, so you'll reach Isaiah 6 with everything before it in view. First week free, then $10 a month per person.
The Hebrew word behind it
קָדוֹשׁqadoshsay qa-DOSH
Brown-Driver-Briggs: "sacred, holy". Strong's: "sacred (ceremonially or morally)". "Holy, holy, holy, is the LORD of Armies!" (6:3): the seraphim say qadosh three times. This is the only place in the Hebrew Bible where the word stands three times in a row. It is the word of Isaiah's name for the LORD, "the Holy One of Israel" (Isaiah 1:4), and of "he who remains in Jerusalem shall be called holy" (Isaiah 4:3). The holy of "the holy seed" (6:13) is another word, qodesh.
For your group
Isaiah 6 Bible study questions
- 1"Woe is me! … for my eyes have seen the King, the LORD of Armies!" (6:5). Isaiah's first words after seeing the Lord were about himself. What has helped you see yourself more honestly?
- 2"your iniquity is taken away, and your sin forgiven" (6:7) comes before "Whom shall I send, and who will go for us?" (6:8). What difference does it make to hear you are forgiven before anything is asked of you?
- 3Given a hard word to carry, Isaiah asked, "Lord, how long?" (6:11). What helps you keep praying when an answer is slow or hard to hear?
Leading a group? In Favor, everyone reads Isaiah 6 during the week and answers these questions privately. Answers stay sealed until you meet, then appear together, and you can print the week's sheet.
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Questions
What is Favor?
Favor is a Bible study app that explains every chapter as you read: the Hebrew and Greek behind the words, the details most readers miss, and how each part of the Bible leads to Jesus. Read on your own, or start a Bible study with friends, family or your church.
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Can I read Isaiah 6 straight away?
Favor takes the Bible as one story, in order, so you'll reach Isaiah 6 with everything that leads up to it in view. Start from Genesis, or meet Jesus first in the Gospels. You can read the text of any chapter in Favor's Look up whenever you like.
Do I need a group?
No. Many people read on their own. If you'd like to read with others, start a Bible study and share one link. Everyone's answers stay private until you meet.
I've never really read the Bible. Is this for me?
Yes. Favor starts where you are and explains as it goes. The questions along the way aren't marked right or wrong: you answer, then see what the text shows.
Which Bible does Favor use?
The World English Bible, a modern, readable translation in the public domain. God's name appears as "the LORD", as in most English Bibles.
Is Favor tied to a church?
No. Favor is non-denominational. Where Christians read a passage differently, it shows the main views side by side and doesn't pick one.
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Scripture quotations are from the World English Bible, which is in the public domain. Hebrew and Greek words are checked against the original-language texts and public-domain lexicons. What we believe · Favor home