Isaiah sees the Lord sitting on a throne with seraphim above Him calling, “Holy, Holy, Holy, is the LORD of armies.” The foundations shake, the temple fills with smoke, and Isaiah is terrified. He says he is a man of unclean lips who has seen the King.
One of the seraphim takes a burning coal from the altar, touches Isaiah’s mouth with it, and tells him his guilt has been taken away and his sin forgiven.
Then Isaiah hears God ask:
“Whom shall I send, and who will go for Us?”
Isaiah answers, “Here am I. Send me!”
Send him where? Isaiah didn’t know yet. He volunteered before God told him the assignment.
God was sending Isaiah to speak to the people of Judah, and He warned Isaiah that they were not going to listen. He would speak to people who would hear without understanding and see without recognizing what they were seeing.
Isaiah first saw God. Then he saw himself clearly. His sin was forgiven. God asked for someone to go, and Isaiah said yes before he knew what he was signing up for.
Isaiah 6:1–13
God has more questions. See Let Me Ask You Something: When God Asks a Direct Question.