Why does the Seraphim refer to lips?
(Isaiah 6; Eze. 1:1-28; Rom. 3:13-14; Rev. 11:13) Blog Jan. 03-09, 2021
Prepared by Richard A. Marin: Present Truth PO Box 700, Fallbrook CA 92088-0700 USA
REVIEW: Isaiah was a prophet to God’s people during the reign of four kings of Judah that ruled from Jerusalem. God used him to portray the hypocrisy of his covenant bride whom he had rescued out of Egyptian bondage and planted as a choice vine on the hills of Judea. Isaiah foretold the utter destruction of God’s people unless they repented and sought forgiveness and he foretold that “a very small remnant” would be eternally delivered through God ’s act of deliverance I final judgment.
God’s Temple (Isaiah 6:1-4; 2 Chron. 26:1-23; Eze. 1:1-28; Dan. 7:9-10; Rev. 4:2-8)
1. What was unique about King Uzziah’s reign? Uzziah did that which was right in the eyes of the Lord, he reigned longer than any other king over God’s people, he maintained peace & prosperity during his reign, he loved husbandry, & he got Leprosy near the end of his reign.
2. What should we learn from the fact that Isaiah saw God? That God is a visible Person & not just some ethereal essence.
3. What are we told by the fact that God is seated on a high, sublime throne? That he is a sovereign ruler over all.
4. What is the significance of the position of the angel’s wings? Those covering their face represent humility, those covering their feet represent modesty, & those used to fly represent active service for their Lord.
5. What characteristic of God do the angels continually emphasize? His utter holiness.
6. What are we told by the shaking door posts? That God’s angels are mighty creatures & their praise to God is vigorous.
7. What does the smoke that filled God’s temple represent? The prayers of his subjects who look to him for all their needs.
8. Where else in the Bible are we given a view of God’s throne? In Ezequiel 1, Daniel 7, & Revelation 4.
9. What must we conclude about God’s throne from the description given in Ezequiel and Daniel? That it has wheels & can move from place to place within his sanctuary temple.
Man’s Encounter (Isaiah 1:5-7; Job 42:5-6; Dan. 10:8; Matt. 5:3; 15:18; Luke 5:8; Rom. 3:13-14; James 3:2-8; Rev. 1:17)
10. How did Isaiah react to his view of God “high and lifted up”? He like Peter, Daniel, John, & Job when given a view of God reacted with abject humility, confessing his unworthiness.
11. Why do both Isaiah and the Seraphim sent to him refer to lips? Because out of the mouth come the thoughts of the heart & poison is under all our lips.
12. When the angel touched Isaiah’s lips with a live coal from off the altar what type of cleansing did Isaiah receive? He received a legal cleansing, the forgiveness of sins & the justification of his person.
13. If God’s messengers were to wait for complete moral cleansing when would they go forth to minister for him? Never in this life.
14. Why is it important for us to enter God’s presence as Isaiah did? Only thus can we get a glimpse of God’s holiness & our sinfulness producing the humility & repentance necessary for entrance into his service & into his kingdom. Self-esteem will vanish!
God’s Commission (Isaiah 1:8-13; Matt. 28:19-20; Acts 26:15-18; Rev. 11:13)
15. Once a person’s sins are forgiven and they are declared righteous before God what are they then prepared to do? They are then prepared to answer God’s call to service.
16. What did God ask Isaiah to do? To confront God’s people, his covenant bride, concerning their departure from keeping their covenant promises.
17. How intense was Isaiah’s message to be to his people? So intense that their ears would be weighed down with & filled with his message, so intense that their hearts would have room for nothing else, so intense that they could see nothing else, leaving them without excuse for not repenting of their sins.
18. When God’s message is proclaimed with such intensity as Isaiah was to proclaim it what two possible results would be produced? Either the people would harden their hearts like Pharaoh before the overwhelming evidence of God’s superiority to the Gods of Egypt or they would repent & lift the eye of faith to God in heaven like King Nebuchadnezzar when God sent him out to eat grass.
19. How long was Isaiah to proclaim God’s message to a rebellious people? Until there was no one left to preach to except God’s remnant.
20. What symbolic number does God use to refer to his saved, remnant people? “A tenth” because that is the Lord’s portion (the tithe of one’s earnings), here called “the holy seed” & in Revelation as a picture of the eternally saved.