The Three-Fold Vision
Isaiah 6:1-13
In the year that king Uzziah died I saw also the LORD sitting on a throne, high and lifted up, and his train filled the temple.…


I. A VISION OF GOD. This can only come to us in our present state indirectly, parabolically, or as here, symbolically. It will include a conception of God's —

1. Authority: "a throne high and lifted up."

2. Glory: "His train filled the temple."

3. Holiness: seraphic action and seraphic tones proclaimed Him as the Thrice Holy.

II. A vision OF SPIRITUAL INTELLIGENCE. Just as the prophet came to understand that there was a vast spiritual universe behind and beyond the material, and of which the material was but the hint and type, so must we. He saw in the seraphim a revelation of the existence of spiritual beings.

III. A VISION OF SELF. There is a vision of his —

1. Own individuality. The right use of the pronouns "I" and "me," is a lesson worth learning, he finds.

2. Relationship to others: "I dwell among a people," etc.

3. Sinfulness. To this —

(1)  The vision of God as holy;

(2)  The vision of spiritual beings as pure; and

(3)  The consciousness of his own condition, all contributed.

4. Possible purification. Here we have —

(1)  The supernatural means of this purification. "A seraph."

(2)  The connection of these means with sacrifice. "From off the altar," etc.

5. Life mission. Here we note —

(1)  God's care for the world. It is He who cries "Who will go for us?"

(2)  The godly man's response. It is for him eagerly, obediently, loyally to cry, "Here am I, send me." — In Isaiah, in Paul, in every godly man, the vision of God leads to unselfish consecration to the good of others.

(U. R. Thomas, B. A.)



Parallel Verses
KJV: In the year that king Uzziah died I saw also the Lord sitting upon a throne, high and lifted up, and his train filled the temple.

WEB: 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.




The Symbolism of Isaiah's Vision
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