The story of the call of Isaiah begins with these words: "In the year Uzziah died, I had a vision of the Lord, and I saw the Lord sitting on a throne high above me" (Isaiah 6:1). Isaiah further describes as part of this vision how the seraphim were singing and calling to each other, announcing the holiness of the Lord. The contemplation of this glory convicted Isaiah of his sinfulness, and he declared: "Woe is me, for I am lost. I am a man of unclean lips, and I dwell amidst unclean lips, but my eyes have seen the Lord" (Isaiah 6:5), in response to which God ordered that his tongue be purged clean. The Lord then asked: "Whom shall I send, and who is to go for us?" Isaiah replied, "Here I am Lord, send me" (Isaiah 6:8). The Lord then gave Isaiah a special mission to his people.
Why did Isaiah begin his vocation story with the words "in the year Uzziah died"? Who was this Uzziah anyway? Uzziah, King of Judah, was in his time reputed to be one of the greatest kings in the history of Judah. His long reign saw a dramatic increase in prosperity. He was loved, respected and honored all over Judah and beyond. He ruled with astuteness and thrift. He was a pillar of strength and pride for the entire kingdom. People looked to him for direction, guidance and faith. Uzziah was a god among people. Under his rule, the Jews felt a strong sense of security, of national pride, of identity and of direction. Life was good. But eventually Uzziah died. He was not God, just a man. And Isaiah saw it fitting to mention that it was in the year that the great and glorious Uzziah died that he, Isaiah, had the vision from the Lord.
It was in the year that the god among people died that Isaiah had a vision from the God of all people. It was in the year that the earthly security of people died that the Heavenly Security of all people shared a vision with Isaiah. It was in the year that the earthly source of Jewish pride died that the Pride of all Nations revealed himself to Isaiah, sitting not on an earthly throne, but on a "throne high above" Isaiah, with the fanfare of seraphim singing and calling to each other, announcing the glory, holiness and majesty of the Lord. In the year when the hope of Judah seemed to be in decline, the Hope of all the Ages reveals himself as a saving God, ready to interact once again in a mighty way with his people. The eyes of the people looking as they were away from the great spectacle of a glorious earthly king would now be trained on the Lord, who purges people clean that they may freely look upon him without "being lost."
Uzziah was mentioned in the Genealogy of Jesus according to Matthew. He is there mentioned as the father of Jotham, which is historically accurate, and the son of Jehoram, which is not quite historically factual. There are two people between Jehoram and Uzziah. Scholars say that the reason certain names are omitted in the genealogy of Jesus is in part due to the fact that the genealogy is not meant to be read as a historically factual account of the bloodline of Jesus, but as a didactic piece of Matthew-style evangelism, concerning the message of our collective salvation by a covenant keeping God. Matthew to this end divides the genealogy of Jesus as contained in the first chapter of his Gospel into 3 epochs of 14 generations. Now, in ancient Judah and many parts of the ancient world, and even in traditions we have today sourced from ancient times, numerology was a significant practice. The use of 3 epochs of 14 generations was no mistake.
14 multiplied by 3 is 42. Now, 42 is also 7 multiplied by 6. 7 is a perfect number used to represent God, or the Holy Spirit, or the Covenant. 6 on the other hand is an imperfect number, often used to represent humans. Now, 7 multiplied by 6 is analogy for the mingling of the divine (as depicted by 7) with the human (as depicted by 6), resulting in a genealogy that leads ultimately to Jesus the Messiah. The Covenant-keeping Holy Spirit, the creator God, enters into our human situation in order to save us and restore us to himself. He does this by working through generations of ancestors to Jesus, son of God and son of people. The perfection of God, entering the imperfection of our human state, co-opts imperfect humanity and perfects it to such an extent that even individuals who ordinarily seem irredeemable, unclean and profane, like the women mentioned in Matthew's genealogy: Tamar, Rahab, Ruth and Bathsheba, women who were seemingly outside the Covenant, outside the reach of God's saving arm, because they were either non-Jews, or otherwise public sinners with shame-inducing notoriety through their acts of adultery, prostitution or immodesty, ultimately bear fruit in perfection, Jesus Christ, by participating through Grace in the salvation story of God.
This sentiment and circumstance is shared by Isaiah, who protests that he is unclean and unworthy to be a recipient of the vision God shares of himself with him. He exclaims: "Woe is me for I am lost; I am a man of unclean lips, and I dwell amidst unclean lips, but my eyes have seen the Lord" (Isaiah 6:5). Many of us feel this same way. We know we are imperfect; we know that, compared to the independence and perfection of God, we are at best insignificant. Yet God stoops down to us and saves us. Psalm 8:4 puts it beautifully: "What is man that you keep him in mind, mortal man that you care for him (O Lord)?" And yet, God has charged us with the great responsibility of looking after all of creation. "Yet you have made him little less than the angels; with glory and honor you crowned him; gave him power over the works of your hands, and put all things under his feet; all of them, sheep and cattle, and the savage beats too; birds of the air and fish, which make their way through the waters" (Psalm 8:5-8). Indeed, God is so good to us.
So let us lift up our heads and our sights. Let us praise God who comes to us "in the year our own Uzziah dies," in the periods when we seem down and out. Recall the story of the man walking along the beach seeing two sets of footprints, his and the Lord's at every point in time, except at the toughest period, when instead he sees only one set. He complains to Jesus: "How is it that when things were relatively easier you walked beside me and there are obviously two sets of footprints to prove it; but when things get considerably bad there is only one set?" To which Jesus responded: "The one set of footprints you see is mine. When things were considerably bad for you, I carried you." Let us trust this eternal king, who still helps us when earthly security fails. Let us keep faith and trust in Jesus that insists: "In this world you will have trouble, but don't be frazzled, because I have overcome the world" (John 16:33).
When the Uzziah in our life dies; when the going gets tough; when we question wither to we are bound or whether there still is a "balm in Gilead" (Jer. 8:22), we must recall that it was in the year that Uzziah died that Isaiah saw a vision of the Lord. It was when things were considerably hardest that the fellow walking on the beach saw only one set of footprints. It is just after the darkest night that brightness comes. "Weeping may endure for the night, but joy comes with dawn" (Psalm 30:5). For those of you that have seen the movie, Annie, you very likely recall the song, Tomorrow: "The sun will come out tomorrow. O you better hang on till tomorrow, come what may. When I'm stuck with a day that's gray and lonely, I just lift up my chin and grin and say: Tomorrow, tomorrow, I love you tomorrow; you're only a day away!"
Amen.
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