Isaiah sees a theophany in chapter 6 with God sitting on his throne “high and lifted up, and his train filled the temple.” The Hebrew word for train suggests He was wearing a robe similar to the high priest in the temple. Imagining that I can be dressed in robes of righteousness patterned after God’s clothing thrills my soul! There were “seraphim” standing above the throne of God. The Strong’s Bible Concordance tells us that these are majestic beings with six wings, human hands or voices in attendance upon God. The voices are important here, because they can speak for and represent the divine council. Like D&C Section 1, the word voice is repeated in this chapter. The Hebrew word saraph used here is the same as the fiery serpent that Moses raised up in Numbers 21 to represent Christ being lifted up on the cross and reminding us to “look to God and live” (Alma 37:47). The wings of the seraphim represent God’s power (see D&C 77:4).
One of the seraphim cried to the other, “Holy, holy, holy, is the Lord of hosts: the whole earth is full of his glory.” Anytime you see or hear something repeated three times, it represents celestial glory, being the very highest and best. It’s like President Oaks concept of good, better, and best. The fact that there is a door and the doorpost moved at the sound of the voice could suggest that we are on the threshold entering into a holier space. Isaiah is at the threshold of the Holy of Holies. Bible scholars call this “liminal space.” The temple filling with smoke represents the Shekinah glory and God’s divine presence that also filled Solomon’s Temple at its dedication. The priests could not stand to minister at that time due to the cloud of glory that filled the temple. It also reminds us of the cloud of incense protecting the high priest on Yom Kippur as he enters into the Holy of Holies and into the Lord’s presence. By the way, this year’s Yom Kippur begins this coming Sunday at sundown.
We can be grateful for Melchizedek Priesthood keys that allow us to symbolically come into the Father’s presence as we symbolically progress in our temple journey. The robe and other sacred temple clothing are symbols of power, which can one day allow us to stand in God’s presence without being consumed by His glory. Jewish tradition holds that Adam and Eve wore garments of light before the Fall.
Then Isaiah said, “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.” The Hebrew word for undone means to be cut off from God’s presence or perhaps even be destroyed. Then one of the seraphim (seraphim is the plural for seraph—I don’t know why it’s double pluralized in the King James Translation) took a burning fiery coal from this heavenly altar and laid it upon Isaiah’s lips. This is sacramental imagery and it purges Isaiah’s sins. This can be likened to the baptism of fire as a result of the law of sacrifice. Jesus said, “And ye shall offer for a sacrifice unto me a broken heart and a contrite spirit. And whoso cometh unto me with a broken heart and a contrite spirit, him will I baptize with fire and with the Holy Ghost” (3 Nephi 9:20).
Then, we get two more clues that this is a divine council in verse 8. The voice that moved the posts of the door in verse 4 speaks again. The idea that it’s the voice of angelic beings in verse 4 and the “voice of the Lord” in verse 8 reveals that these angelic beings are messengers sent from the Lord. Voice here is a Leitwort (theme word) to emphasize that it’s the voice of the divine council. The divine calling shifts from the singular (“Whom shall I send?”) to the plural (who will go for us?). The “us” are the members of the council, including the seraphim. This is the formula for a messenger. Isaiah answers the call: “Here am I; send me.” These should be familiar words as Jehovah (the “messenger of the covenant” in Malachi 3:1) answered the call to be our Savior in Abraham 3:27:
“And the Lord said: Whom shall I send? And one answered like unto the Son of Man: Here am I, send me.”
Then Isaiah gets his mission call. He’s going to the land of fat hearts, heavy ears, and closed eyes. Jesus confirms that He is speaking to the same audience in Matthew 13:14-15. The people aren’t ready yet. But a remnant will return and be gathered one day. The Lord likens the house of Israel to a teil tree. The Bible Dictionary defines this as a linden tree. My parents had two of these in their front yard. They looked quite dead in the early spring, but if you parked a car under one of them, you would see they are very much alive. They would drop a lot of sap. Isaiah called this the “substance” and “the holy seed.” The tree (of Israel) would come to life in the latter days.
Watch the video below. It has some interesting perspectives from Isaiah’s point of view, and it addresses the irony of something I had never thought of before. Isaiah sees this vision in the same year that King Uzziah died. So as the Judaic king vacates the throne, the Lord is still seated on His throne and is ready and able to save His future kings and queens on earth.