בִּשְׁנַת מוֹת הַמֶּלֶךְ עֻזִּיָּהוּ וָאֶרְאֶה אֶת אֲדֹנָי יֹשֵׁב עַל כִּסֵּא רָם וְנִשָּׂא וְשׁוּלָיו מְלֵאִים אֶת הַהֵיכָל

In the year of the death of King Uziyahu, I saw the Lord sitting on a throne, high and exalted, and His mantle’s hem filled the Sanctuary. Isaiah may have seen God’s Presence residing in the Temple, or possibly the Sanctuary appeared in the vision as part of the background, with the divine throne rising above it.

שְׂרָפִים עֹמְדִים מִמַּעַל לוֹ שֵׁשׁ כְּנָפַיִם שֵׁשׁ כְּנָפַיִם לְאֶחָד — בִּשְׁתַּיִם יְכַסֶּה פָנָיו וּבִשְׁתַּיִם יְכַסֶּה רַגְלָיו וּבִשְׁתַּיִם יְעוֹפֵף

Seraphim were standing above Him to serve Him, each seraph had six wings; with two wings it would cover its face so it would not be able to see, with two wings it would cover its legs so that they would not be seen, and with two wings it would fly to perform its mission.

וְקָרָא זֶה אֶל זֶה וְאָמַר קָדוֹשׁ קָדוֹשׁ קָדוֹשׁ ה' צְבָאוֹת מְלֹא כָל הָאָרֶץ כְּבוֹדוֹ

And this one seraph called to that other one, and the latter said after him: Holy, holy, holy, is the Lord of hosts; that which fills the entire world is His glory. Each one called out in a manner unique to him, and all of them joined together in harmony.

וַיָּנֻעוּ אַמּוֹת הַסִּפִּים מִקּוֹל הַקּוֹרֵא וְהַבַּיִת יִמָּלֵא עָשָׁן

The doorposts of the Sanctuary’s entrance moved and shook at the voice of the caller and the house filled with smoke, representing the Divine Presence,

וָאֹמַר אוֹי לִי כִי נִדְמֵיתִי כִּי אִישׁ טְמֵא שְׂפָתַיִם אָנֹכִי וּבְתוֹךְ עַם טְמֵא שְׂפָתַיִם אָנֹכִי יוֹשֵׁב כִּי אֶת הַמֶּלֶךְ ה' צְבָאוֹת רָאוּ עֵינָי

and when I saw this, I said: Woe is me, for I am silenced, or: I am doomed, for I am a man of impure lips and I live in the midst of a people of impure lips, and I am unworthy to see visions of God; for my eyes have seen the King, the Lord of hosts. As a prophet, Isaiah was keenly aware of his own imperfection and felt unworthy to speak of God or to speak in His name, all the more so to experience such an explicit vision of Him.

וַיָּעָף אֵלַי אֶחָד מִן הַשְּׂרָפִים וּבְיָדוֹ רִצְפָּה בְּמֶלְקַחַיִם לָקַח מֵעַל הַמִּזְבֵּחַ

One of the seraphim attending God in the Temple flew to me, and in his hand there was a coal; he took it from upon the altar in the Temple Courtyard with tongs.

וַיַּגַּע עַל פִּי וַיֹּאמֶר הִנֵּה נָגַע זֶה עַל שְׂפָתֶיךָ וְסָר עֲוֹנֶךָ וְחַטָּאתְךָ תְּכֻפָּר

He touched it, the coal, to my mouth, and he said: Behold, this has touched your lips, and by its extreme heat, it has purified you: Your iniquity is removed and your sin atoned.

וָאֶשְׁמַע אֶת קוֹל אֲדֹנָי אֹמֵר אֶת מִי אֶשְׁלַח וּמִי יֵלֶךְ לָנוּ וָאֹמַר הִנְנִי שְׁלָחֵנִי

I heard the voice of the Lord, saying: Whom will I send, and who will go to speak the words of the prophecy to the people for us? I said: Here I am, ready for the mission. Send me.

וַיֹּאמֶר לֵךְ וְאָמַרְתָּ לָעָם הַזֶּה שִׁמְעוּ שָׁמוֹעַ וְאַל תָּבִינוּ וּרְאוּ רָאוֹ וְאַל תֵּדָעוּ

He said: Go, tell this people: You may be able to hear a message, but it does not matter because you do not understand it; perhaps you can see a sight, but it does not matter because you do not comprehend its meaning. Rather, the people were warned so that they would recall the warning sometime later.

הַשְׁמֵן לֵב הָעָם הַזֶּה וְאָזְנָיו הַכְבֵּד וְעֵינָיו הָשַׁע פֶּן יִרְאֶה בְעֵינָיו וּבְאָזְנָיו יִשְׁמָע וּלְבָבוֹ יָבִין וָשָׁב וְרָפָא לוֹ

Speak, and bloat the heart of this people, so that it will be imperceptive to nuances; encumber its ears, so that it will not absorb the message; and stop up its eyes so that it will not see correctly, lest it see with its eyes and hear with its ears, and then its heart will understand, and then, in turn, it will repent and be healed. It is necessary to ensure that the prophecy will not have any effect on them, lest they all be spiritually healed.

וָאֹמַר עַד מָתַי אֲדֹנָי וַיֹּאמֶר עַד אֲשֶׁר אִם שָׁאוּ עָרִים מֵאֵין יוֹשֵׁב וּבָתִּים מֵאֵין אָדָם וְהָאֲדָמָה תִּשָּׁאֶה שְׁמָמָה

I said: Until when must I warn them of the terrible future without anyone heeding my words, my Lord? He answered: Until the cities are devastated without remaining inhabitant, houses will lie empty without a person, and the land itself will be devastated to desolation,

וְרִחַק ה' אֶת הָאָדָם וְרַבָּה הָעֲזוּבָה בְּקֶרֶב הָאָרֶץ

and the Lord will banish man from his abode, and the forsaken will be many in the midst of the land.

וְעוֹד בָּהּ עֲשִׂרִיָּה וְשָׁבָה וְהָיְתָה לְבָעֵר כָּאֵלָה וְכָאַלּוֹן אֲשֶׁר בְּשַׁלֶּכֶת מַצֶּבֶת בָּם זֶרַע קֹדֶשׁ מַצַּבְתָּהּ

And after all of this, there will still be a tenth of the population remaining in it, the land, who will be willing to listen. Some interpret this statement as a prophecy concerning the situation in Judah during the days of King Hizkiyahu, when Sennacherib conquered all the cities of Judah except Jerusalem, and the majority of the Judean population was wiped out. And it, the remainder of the population, shall continue to be subject to elimination, like the mighty terebinth and like the leafy oak,when their leaves fall in the autumn and only their bare trunk remains. The prophecy concludes on an encouraging note: The holy descendants will be its trunk. The people who will ultimately survive will be holy. They will have endured everything that was necessary, and they will not fall into decline again.