The Call (Isaiah 6): Bible Study Questions

Isaiah 6:1-13

"I saw the Lord, high and exalted, seated on a throne..." "Woe to me!" I cried. "I am ruined! For I am a man of unclean lips ... and my eyes have seen the King, the Lord Almighty." Then I heard the voice of the Lord saying, "Whom shall I send? And who will go for us?" And I said, "Here am I. Send me!" (Isa 6:1, 5, 8, NIV).

Outline:

1. Confronting a vision of God (1-4).
2. Conviction and confession (5).
3. Cleansing and consecration (6-7).
4. Calling and commissioning (8-13).

Ponder and ask yourself:

• Have you heard "the call"?
• Have you "seen" God?
• Have you felt woe? Doomed by your sins?
• Do you have a sense of what your specific calling is?

Questions:

1. There are very few dates elsewhere in Isaiah, so why might Isaiah have dated his experience (1a)?
2. What does "high and lifted up," "sitting upon the throne" convey (1b)? What does this say about the identity of the Servant in 52:13 (57:14)? If the hem of his robe filled the temple (1c), how big was the Lord? Why do you think that this is the only description of God in the poem (cf. Ex 24:10)?
3. Why do you think the seraphim covered their faces and feet (2)? What is the appropriate attitude of worship?
4. 6:3 says two things about Yahweh. One has to do with his essence: The Holiest One. The other has to do with his relationship to creation. What is the point of this latter statement?
5. How loud was the cry of the seraphim (4; Ps 19:1–3)? What affect does "filling with smoke" convey?
6. Why do you think Isaiah reacted in such a strong way (5)? What does seeing the King have to do with it (Lk 5:8)? Why doesn't he say "a man of unclean heart"? Why does he include the people? Why does he repeat "Lord of Hosts" (Lord Almighty, Lord of Heaven's Armies) from the cry of the seraphim?
7. What is the significance of a coal from the altar touching Isaiah's lips (6–7)? How hot was the coal? What is the part of fire in all of this? What kind of an experience was it? Fun?
8. Why does Isaiah only now hear God speak (8)? Why doesn't God speak directly to Isaiah? Why does Isaiah respond so readily?
9. Why would God say such a thing (9–10)? Does he not want the people to be healed?
10. What does Isaiah's question say about the level of his commitment (11a)? (What questions might you/I have asked?!)
11. Why was the destruction to be so thorough (11b-13a)? What is God's intended last word (13b; Job 14:7–9)?