“The heavens declare the glory of God; and the firmament sheweth handiwork. Day unto day uttereth speech, and night unto night sheweth knowledge.” Psalm 19:1
The dominant world power during the life of Isaiah was Assyria, whose king was Sennacherib. The Assyrians were the enemies of Israel, and had the reputation of being ruthless in their conquests of the then known world. With such a dark shadow cast by the Assyrians over Israel, there is no doubt as to what preoccupied Israel, survival. In spite of this very present danger, God gave a revelation, or vision, to Isaiah, which changed his life, and the lives of countless others since. In that vision Isaiah saw the Lord, “…high and lifted up, and His train filled the temple.” (Is. 6:1) There were times in Isaiah’s life when there was prosperity in Israel, but also, times of great distress because of the enemies at the gate. However, the vision of God, as sovereign and almighty, eclipsed all of this. Indeed, that vision was essential to faith in order to overcome all that would militate against that which was of God, the testimony not only of His presence, but the fact that He was the only true and living God. During the times of prosperity of the kingdom, and even during the times of Jerusalem being under siege by the Assyrians, God was constantly speaking to all mankind, specifically to any and all that would be quietly look and listen. It would be a never-ending quiet, and powerful declaration of His glory, His attributes, His nature, even the unveiling of His ways in dealing with men. The Psalmist would write that this declaration would be every day, all day, and every night, all night. There would not be a moment when this “speech” would not be present to be heard, the knowledge of which would give life, and hope to the soul. What was this declaration?
In Isaiah’s vision, he saw not only the Lord in His exalted glory, but also the seraphim, these heavenly creatures designed to worship God and then declare His holiness to all creation. It is then that not only the message of God’s holiness is declared as being of primary importance, but there is also the revelation of what God was using also as a means of communicating the wonders of His person. The seraphim, as they were flying and worshipping God, were saying: “Holy, Holy, Holy, is the Lord of hosts: the whole earth is full of His glory.” (Is. 6:3) This was the great message to Isaiah, and the people of his time, in their circumstances. It is also the message of God to us, first of all, that God has not changed, and that which is preeminent in the revelation of His nature to man is His holiness, His uniqueness, His entire separation from all that is of sin, self, and Satan. This message is emphasized by the declaration of the word “holy” three times, certainly referring to the three persons of the Trinity, but emphasizing that God is unique, the only God, and that He is the opposite of all that is unholy. Then there is the wondrous declaration that, “…the whole earth is full of His glory.” How is this to be? We have only to consider the illustration of Jesus when He spoke of “…the lilies of the field.” (Matt. 6:28) He went on to say that “…even Solomon in all his glory was not arrayed (clothed in beauty) like one of these.” What is Jesus saying? He is making a comparison between that which is man-made and that which is of God. There is no comparison in beauty, in perfection, purity, and goodness between the two. And this application is true, not only of a flower and the royal clothing of Solomon, but of things in heaven and in earth. The Psalmist would speak of the heavens declaring (constantly) the glory of the Lord, and this regardless of the Assyrian empire. He would go on to speak of the things of the earth, revealing God’s handiwork.
Dear Father, Grant us Your thoughts. In Jesus’ name, Amen.