The Call Of Isaiah

Hello! and happy holy and family day to all of us, GUYS.  For our first-thing-first this Sunday:

THE GOOD NEWS (07 February 2016)

"In the year that King Uzziah died I saw the LORD seated on a throne, high and exalted; the train of HIS robe filled the Temple.  Above HIM were seraphs, each with six wings: two to cover the face, two to cover the feet, and two to fly with.

They were calling to one another: 'Holy, holy, holy is YAHWEH Sabaoth.  All the earth is filled with HIS Glory!'

At the sound of their voices the foundations of the threshold shook and the Temple was filled with smoke.  I said, 'Poor me!  I am doomed!  For I am a man of unclean lips living among a people of unclean lips, and yet I have seen the King, YAHWEH Sabaoth.'

Then one of the seraphs flew to me; in his hands was a live coal which he had taken with tongs from the altar.  He touched my mouth with it and said,

'See, this has touched your lips; your guilt is taken away and your sin is forgiven.'

Then I heard the voice of the LORD, 'Whom shall I send?  And who will go for us?  I answered, 'Here I am.  Send me!'." - Isaiah 6:1-8 

The Prophet, Isaiah

(On that day, in the year 740, Isaiah is in the Temple, or rather, he sees himself in the Temple, in spirit.  In the innermost room, where the Ark is kept, there is only the divine presence: YAHWEH seated as king, the train of HIS cloak filling the anteroom, as if to express the overflow of holiness and the power of GOD over the holy place and the city of Jerusalem.

During this brief moment, Isaiah encounters GOD in an intimate, authentic way, and this encounter will mark him for his entire life.  This cannot be expressed, nor can he try to describe YAHWEH who communicated with him in a spiritual way.  The vision he has, the images he sees and the words that he hears are like flashes emerging from this mysterious and unspeakable encounter. 

Isaiah speaks of the holy GOD, that is to say, totally other, infinitely different from any creature.  At the very moment of becoming present, HE is out of our reach.  HOLY GOD is a way of saying that GOD is mystery.  Isaiah continues to hold on to the presence of GOD and at the same time he is invaded by a fear which is not frightening.  In the presence of the Holy One we experience ourselves as sinners, not because of a particular sin, but because of our very nature; we feel incapable of placing ourselves in the hands of GOD who surrounds us with HIS presence.

Poor me!  I am doomed!  because GOD has said: 'No one can see ME and live' [Exodus 33:20].  GOD makes the first move and the Seraph purifies Isaiah through divine fire.  Isaiah is forgiven in the very instant he responds by an act of faith and completely accepts his mission.  From then on, Isaiah will know and will say that it is necessary to choose: either believe in the LORD or else be destroyed by contact with the Holy One.

Seraphim, that is, the burning ones.  The Israelites always believed in good and evil spirits.  From their time in the desert, they attribute to certain of these spirits the form of burning serpents.  These texts help us to understand why YAHWEH appears surrounded by fantastic Seraphim with human faces.  Being superior to humans, these beings can live close to GOD, but they must shield themselves from the splendor of HIS glory.

The glory of GOD is the radiance coming from GOD, who is present in the Jerusalem Temple, as in the center of the world, radiating HIS power from one end of the earth to the other.

The Splendor Of GOD's Glory 

Isaiah receives his mission:

     - He will be GOD's spokesman.

     - Instead of believing, the people will harden their hearts.

     -This will be the cause of Judah's ruin.  All that will remain will be the root from which something new will spring forth.)