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Dear Heavenly Father, Praise The seraphim who stood around your throne called out to each other in worship of your majesty. I join with them and cry, “Holy, holy, holy is the Lord of hosts; the whole earth is full of his glory!” You are “high and lifted up,” and yet you long to have a personal relationship with me! You are worthy of all praise, and I worship you today! All glory to the Lord of hosts! Hallelujah! Today in Your Word Today you told me about the death of Uzziah and the reign of his son Jotham and grandson Ahaz. In the year that Uzziah died, Isaiah had a vision of “the Lord sitting upon a throne, high and lifted up” (Isa 6:1b). The king of Judah was dead, but you, Father, the King of kings—you were alive and well, seated in glory on your heavenly throne! You are sovereign over all, yet you desire to dwell in the midst of your people: “The train of his robe filled the temple” (Isa 6:1c). Your holiness made Isaiah aware of his sinful state, and he responded in humility and repentance. You took away his iniquity and atoned for his sin, and then you asked “Who will go for us?” Isaiah said eagerly, “Here I am! Send me,” and you gave him a message and a mission. The mission was not a joyous one, for you knew that his attempts to bring about repentance would fail. He would be scorned and rejected by the Jews, and his preaching would be the cause of a further hardening of their hearts. In this way Isaiah’s ministry prefigured that of your Son, Jesus Christ, who preached the Kingdom of God many years later. John said, “Though he had done so many signs before them, they still did not believe in him…For again Isaiah [6:10] said, ‘He has blinded their eyes and hardened their heart, lest they see with their eyes, and understand with their heart, and turn, and I would heal them’” (John 12:37, 39b–40). Isaiah was not the only prophet speaking to Judah in those days. Micah also called on Judah to repent and warned them of a coming invasion. Jotham, at the least, seemed to heed Micah’s warning: “He ordered his ways before the Lord his God” (2 Chr 27:6). The people, however, did not follow Jotham’s godly example, and when Jotham’s son Ahaz came to the throne, he had no difficulty in leading them after the Baals. You moved Syria and Israel against Judah to discipline them, but rather than trusting you, Ahaz turned to Assyria. You told Ahaz that you would give him a sign that Syria and Israel would not conquer Judah. Instead, it would be Assyria, whom Ahaz had trusted, that would harm them. The sign? “Behold, the virgin shall conceive and bear a son, and shall call his name Immanuel” (Isa 7:14). Matthew later said that this OT prophecy was “filled up” by Jesus (Matt 1:21–23). He is the full embodiment of the wonderful news: “God is with us!” Praise the Lord! Reflection Ahaz said, “I will not put the Lord to the test” (Isa 7:12), but his actions told quite a different tale (cf. 2 Kgs 16:8). Do I say one thing and do another? Is my heart truly faithful to you alone? Request Father, keep my heart focused on the beauty of your holiness and the majesty of your glory. Let my eyes always behold you high and lifted up, and let my lips receive a touch of your cleansing coal! Thanksgiving Thank you for the atoning blood of Jesus Christ! How wonderful to be united with the Immanuel! In Jesus’ name, Amen. Suggested Hymn: “Holy, Holy, Holy” — Reginald Heber. Meditation Verse: Isaiah 8:13. |