Week 2: Prophet Isaiah
The Prophet Isaiah lived around the end of the 8th century BC into the beginning of the 7th century BC.
At this time, Israel was divided into Northern and Southern kingdoms. Isaiah was active in the Southern Kingdom, Judah, during the period leading up to the Assyrian Exile of the land. Isaiah probably came from an essential family of the priesthood. He had access to the ruling class and could be in the King's court. When Isaiah 6 starts with "in the year King Uzziah died," this would have been a personal loss for the Prophet.
Some scholars consider that chapter 6 contains the second calling of Isaiah to ministry as it follows five chapters of intense prophecy. But most likely, the calling will be placed later to validate previous statements. Isaiah could be focusing on the message to the nation and bringing up his calling to emphasize the source's holiness further. Much of his early writing deals extensively with the judgment of foreign countries, especially Israel, which had turned away from God. Because of this, much of Isaiah's words use poetic language to describe the extent of this corruption. However, despite their current position, God still shows Isaiah hope for what the nation will become one day. From these opening chapters and later ones, Isaiah will even begin to prophesy about a remnant of the people who will survive the coming judgment and a Messiah from this.
Calling of Isaiah:
Judgement and Grace
Readings for Today:
Isaiah 1:10-17
Isaiah 6:1-13
Isaiah's Calling is a dramatic one. He sees the Lord sitting on a throne in the Temple, being worshiped and guarded by substantial angelic creatures. What comes before this chapter is five chapters of judgment. By this, Isaiah has poetically invited us into pondering what it means for God to be a judge. What does it mean for a loving God to be "wrathful"? That's a word that might make many of us uncomfortable. "Wrath" denotes "anger" or "in a rage"; it feels like an emotional reaction and not a logical or measured one. The question then comes as to how a patient God could be described as "wrathful" or even a judge.
Let's walk through some of the specific passages of Scripture that deal with God's character. The problem we often encounter with the idea of God's wrath is that it feels like a concept powered by fear. It presents a view of God where the Divine is against us, and we should feel threatened. Popular culture and some historical eras of the church have leaned into this idea of the angry God. Famously, theologian Jonathan Edwards preached a sermon in 1741 titled "Sinners in the Hands of an Angry God" that became wildly popular and the basis for the First Great Awakening in America. Suffice it to say, it was very influential. Exodus 34:6-7 is the central verse used to describe God's character throughout the Bible. It says,
“The Lord, the Lord, the compassionate and gracious God, slow to anger, abounding in love and faithfulness, maintaining love to thousands, and forgiving wickedness, rebellion and sin. Yet he does not leave the guilty unpunished; he punishes the children and their children for the sin of the parents to the third and fourth generation.”
God speaks this verse amid his establishment of a Covenant with the Israelites. God had rescued them from slavery in Egypt and established Israel's identity as people who were to be ambassadors of his love into the world. However, while God is doing this, the Israelites worship a golden idol of a calf, causing Moses to smash the Ten Commandments in anger. This angers God, and in this verse, we see the tension between the rebellious nature of the people and God's mercy and forgiveness. In this verse, God emphasizes his compassion and love, forgiving the thousands. But one thing God won't do is allow the guilty and corrupt (perhaps even the prideful) to continue patterns of harm and evil.
The word "compassionate" in Hebrew translates to "rechum". The root of this Hebrew word is "rechem" or the masculine noun "womb ." A womb is an environment geared towards development. The compassion and forgiveness in this passage are only as practical as God's justice; the anger in this passage and the opening chapters of Isaiah center around the injustice God sees in his people. For example, in Isaiah 1:10-15, God describes how empty worship in the Temple had become. It had become offensive that the rituals and festivals would continue when the hearts of the people were oriented towards other gods and overlooking the poor. God even compares how Israel is acting with "Sodom" and "Gomorrah," places destroyed for their lack of hospitality and selfishness. Isaiah later records what God truly desires more than empty religion in verse 17: "Learn to do right; seek justice. Defend the oppressed. Take up the cause of the fatherless; plead the case of the widow."
By the time we get to Isaiah's dramatic Calling in Chapter 6, we have received a greater context for this vision. The nation's corruption is being compared to the glory of a perfect God in the Temple. In the year the earthly King Uzziah died, the true ruler God was still on the throne. The mention of his robe's train filling the Temple is an image of victory. When ancient kings defeated another kingdom, they would take a trophy of the conquered land and attach it to their clothing. God's robe filling the Temple is a vision of his victory and power. Even the seraphim, gigantic and otherworldly angelic figures, cover themselves in God's overwhelming holiness. At the announcement of what God this is, the ground shakes.
Isaiah shrinks back. At this point in the sermon, we usually discuss human depravity. It's the theological spiel about how we are not good enough, or everything we do is like dirty rags. But that is not the point of this story. Isaiah is aware of his shortcomings in the presence of a holy God. He also knows how the people and himself have turned from God. But God appears to Isaiah anyway. God called him to this specific purpose because God made him for a particular purpose. In essence, God doesn't make trash! In this entire passage, God doesn't bring up Isaiah's sin. Isaiah is the one who says he has "unclean lips." This is likely also referring to Isaiah's lack of human language for what he is witnessing. (Our human language being too unclean and ineffective to capture the scope of God). But what does holiness do in response to Isaiah's acknowledgment? Bridge the gap! When Isaiah makes this statement to disqualify himself from his calling, the Divine immediately squashes this excuse.
“See, this touched your lips; your guilt is taken away and your sin is atoned for?”
The goal of this vision was for Isaiah to realize that what he was seeing in the Temple was inside of him. God had designed and equipped him with everything he needed to fulfill his purpose. The rest of the passage is strange because, on the surface. It sounds like a backward mission to purposely make the heart calloused and ears dull. Many scholars theorize that this passage could be a later Isaiah commenting on how impossible his mission felt. Israel didn't dodge Exile. They didn't turn to God until after they returned to their land. There comes a time when the mission you feel sent out on doesn't feel like a success. You can ask, "What difference does what I am doing make?" But the outcome is for God to handle. You are being asked to be faithful, show up, and trust God.
Parsons, John J. “Hebrew Word of the Week - Rachem.” Hebrew4Christians.Com, hebrew4christians.com/Glossary/Word_of_the_Week/Archived/Rechem/rechem.html#:~:text=The%20masculine%20noun%20rechem%20(the,to%20show%20compassion%20(racham). Accessed 22 Feb. 2024.
Mackie, Tim, and Jon Collins. “Visual Commentary of Exodus 34:6-7: The Character of God.” BibleProject.Com, bibleproject.com/explore/video/character-of-god-exodus/. Accessed 22 Feb. 2024.
Nearny, Sis. Catherine. CAC.Org, 19 Sept. 2023, https://cac.org/daily-meditations/gods-compassion-and-the-prophets-2023-09-19/. Accessed 22 Feb. 2024.
