Catholic Commentary on Isaiah 6

“Woe to me! I am ruined! For I am a man of unclean lips, and my eyes have seen the King, the LORD Almighty.” (Isaiah 6:5)

Isaiah's Call

In the year King Uzziah died, Isaiah sees the Lord seated on a throne, high and exalted, the train of his robe filling the temple. Seraphim cry to one another: holy, holy, holy is the LORD Almighty; the whole earth is full of his glory. The doorposts shake and the temple fills with smoke. Woe to me! I am ruined! For I am a man of unclean lips, and I live among a people of unclean lips, and my eyes have seen the King, the LORD Almighty. A seraph flies to him with a live coal from the altar: your guilt is taken away and your sin atoned for. Then: whom shall I send? Isaiah answers: here am I. Send me.

The Catechism identifies Isaiah's call as the paradigm of every prophetic vocation: the vision of the holy God produces recognition of personal unworthiness, which is met by divine purification, which enables the response of availability (CCC 2584).

Living the Word

Brothers and sisters, the coal on the lips precedes the commission. The purification is the preparation that makes volunteering possible. You cannot say here am I and mean it until the guilt is taken away and the sin atoned for. Receive the coal. Then answer.

Prayer

Holy, holy, holy is the LORD Almighty. Touch our lips with the coal of your purification. Then ask: who will go? We want to answer: here am I. Send me. Through Christ our Lord. Amen.

6
Isaiah’s Commission
(Matthew 13:10-17; Mark 4:10-12; Acts 28:16-31)
1 In the year that King Uzziah died, I saw the Lord seated on a throne, high and exalted; and the train of His robe * 6:1 Or the hem of His robe filled the temple. 2 Above Him stood seraphim, each having six wings: With two wings they covered their faces, with two they covered their feet, and with two they were flying. 3 And they were calling out to one another:
 
“Holy, holy, holy is the LORD of Hosts;
all the earth is full of His glory.”
 
4 At the sound of their voices the doorposts and thresholds shook, and the temple was filled with smoke.
 
5 Then I said:
 
“Woe is me,
for I am ruined,
because I am a man of unclean lips
dwelling among a people of unclean lips;
for my eyes have seen the King,
the LORD of Hosts.”
 
6 Then one of the seraphim flew to me, and in his hand was a glowing coal that he had taken with tongs from the altar. 7 And with it he touched my mouth and said:
 
“Now that this has touched your lips,
your iniquity is removed
and your sin is atoned for.”
 
8 Then I heard the voice of the Lord saying:
 
“Whom shall I send?
Who will go for Us?”
 
And I said:
 
“Here am I. Send me!”
 
9 And He replied:
 
“Go and tell this people,
‘Be ever hearing, but never understanding;
be ever seeing, but never perceiving.’† 6:9 Hebrew; LXX ‘You shall be ever hearing, but never understanding; you shall be ever seeing, but never perceiving.’ Cited in Matthew 13:14, Mark 4:12, Luke 8:10, and Acts 28:26
10 Make the hearts of this people calloused;
deafen their ears and close their eyes.
Otherwise they might see with their eyes,
hear with their ears,
understand with their hearts,
and turn and be healed.‡ 6:10 Hebrew; LXX For this people’s heart has grown callous; they hardly hear with their ears, and they have closed their eyes. Otherwise they might see with their eyes, hear with their ears, understand with their hearts, and turn, and I would heal them. Cited in Matthew 13:15, Mark 4:12, John 12:40, and Acts 28:27”
 
11 Then I asked:
 
“How long, O Lord?”
 
And He replied:
 
“Until the cities lie ruined
and without inhabitant,
until the houses are left unoccupied
and the land is desolate and ravaged,
12 until the LORD has driven men far away
and the land is utterly forsaken.
13 And though a tenth remains in the land,
it will be burned again.
As the terebinth and oak leave stumps when felled,
so the holy seed will be a stump in the land.”

*6:1 6:1 Or the hem of His robe

†6:9 6:9 Hebrew; LXX ‘You shall be ever hearing, but never understanding; you shall be ever seeing, but never perceiving.’ Cited in Matthew 13:14, Mark 4:12, Luke 8:10, and Acts 28:26

‡6:10 6:10 Hebrew; LXX For this people’s heart has grown callous; they hardly hear with their ears, and they have closed their eyes. Otherwise they might see with their eyes, hear with their ears, understand with their hearts, and turn, and I would heal them. Cited in Matthew 13:15, Mark 4:12, John 12:40, and Acts 28:27

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