Then said I, Woe is me! for I am undone; because I am a man of unclean lips, and I dwell in the midst of a people of unclean lips: for mine eyes have seen the King, the LORD of hosts.

Isaiah 6:5

Explanation:
Isaiah sees this incredible vision of the glory of God in verses 1-4. The Holiness of God is declared, and the truth of His holiness shakes the place where Isaiah finds himself. I notice three factors in this verse.

First, notice his confession. His immediate response is to confess his own sinfulness. He declares that he is done for. “Woe is me!” He feels almost hopeless because he can do nothing to expiate his guilt or the guilt of his people on his own.

Next, notice the contrast. There was a significant contrast between the holiness of God and the sinfulness of Isaiah and his people.

Finally, notice the chasm. The contrast of God’s holiness and Isaiah’s sinfulness leads to an acknowledgement of the chasm between the perfect holiness of God and the sinful guilt of Isaiah and his people. He describes his vision of God as King. God is One in total authority. He describes him as “Lord of hosts.” The term “hosts” describes a mass of people, especially armies.

Isaiah’s proper and realistic view of God drove him to a fear of God, an understanding of the holiness of God, and then a confession of his own sinfulness.

Application:
We often excuse our own sin. We minimize it. We ignore it. When we do it is not good for us or those around us. Whenever we sin we are forgetting the holiness and glory of God. We need a higher view, a more biblical and realistic view, of who God is. Our fear of the Lord must grow, for as we learned in Proverbs, the fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom. For us to turn away from sin we must adopt God’s view of himself, and God’s view of our sin. We must confess our own sinfulness. We must stop ignoring, excusing and minimizing our guilt.

Response:
• Do you have a high view of God’s holiness? How does it show up in your life?
• Is there sin you are ignoring, minimizing, or excusing today? Confess it! “If we confess our sins He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and cleanse us from all unrighteousness!