“Then out of the smoke, one of the angels of fire flew to me. He had in his hands a burning coal he had taken from the altar with tongs. He touched my lips with it and said, ‘See? The burning coal from the altar has touched your lips. Your guilt is taken away; your sin is blotted out.’”
— Isaiah 6:6–7 (TPT)
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There are moments in Scripture that stop time. Verses that read like divine interruptions—where heaven breathes through ink and pierces you with something eternal. Isaiah 6 is one of those passages. But this time, it wasn’t the majesty, the robe, or the seraphim that arrested me.
It was one word.
“See?”
The angel, sent from the altar with a coal of burning fire, pauses—not to declare, not to command—but to invite perception. “See?” he says.
Not know.
Not hear.
Not even believe.
“See?”
As if to say, “What just happened is greater than what you can feel. Look deeper. Let this moment open your spiritual eyes.”
The fire touched Isaiah’s lips, but the transformation required more than contact—it required revelation.
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The Atmosphere of Awe: Isaiah’s Heavenly Encounter
The scene is majestic. The prophet finds himself in the throne room of Yahweh, immediately after the death of King Uzziah. A transition on earth has opened a portal in the heavens. God is seated high and lifted up. The hem of His robe fills the temple. Burning ones—seraphim (שְׂרָפִים)—cry out with unceasing holiness. Smoke thickens. Foundations tremble. Glory vibrates through the space.
And Isaiah doesn’t respond with worship or wonder.
He collapses.
“Woe is me! I am undone… I am a man of unclean lips.”
This is not self-pity. It’s prophetic exposure. In the radiance of God’s purity, the area of Isaiah’s gifting—his mouth—is the very place that feels most defiled. He confesses it not to excuse himself, but to lay bare his greatest need. And in that moment, Heaven moves.
An angel flies. A coal burns. And a mouth is about to be marked.
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The Hebrew Revelation: What Did the Angel Really Say?
Let’s enter the original text of Isaiah 6:7.
וַיַּגַּע עַל־פִּ֖י וַיֹּאמֶר הִנֵּ֣ה נָגַ֤ע זֶה֙ בִּשְׂפָתֶ֔יךָ וְסָ֛ר עֲוֺנֶ֖ךָ וְחַטָּאתְךָ֥ תְּכֻפָּֽר׃
(Vayyagaʿ al-pi, vayomer: hineh nagaʿ zeh bisfatecha; vesar avonecha, vechatat’cha tekhupar.)
Each word drips with holy purpose:
• הִנֵּה (Hinneh) — “See? Behold!”
A divine wake-up call. Used when heaven is breaking in, when perception must shift. Not casual observation—divine awareness.
• נָגַע (Nagaʿ) — “Touched”
This is sacred contact. Intentional. Transformative. The same word used when Jacob’s hip is touched by the angel—forever marked.
• שְׂפָתֶיךָ (Sefatecha) — “Your lips”
Symbol of speech, covenant, identity. The gateway of prophetic authority. The instrument Isaiah thought was disqualified.
• וְסָר עֲוֺנֶךָ (V’sar avonecha) — “Your iniquity is removed”
Avon refers to moral failure, internal twisting—deep sin, not surface error.
• תְּכֻפָּר (Tekhupar) — “It is atoned for”
From the same root as Yom Kippur. A term of priesthood. A divine covering. A cancellation of sin’s claim.
The angel’s statement isn’t descriptive—it’s declarative. It marks the shift not just in Isaiah’s status, but in his spiritual authority. And it begins with one word:
“Hinneh.”
“See?”
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Not Just Fire—A Divine Transaction
This wasn’t just a ceremonial act. It was the activation of destiny.
The coal came from the מִזְבֵּחַ (mizbeach)—the altar, where sacrifices are accepted and lives are exchanged. It was too holy to be touched by angelic hands—he used tongs.
And yet, it touched human flesh.
It didn’t destroy Isaiah.
It transformed him.
This was not destruction.
It was distinction.
This was not judgment.
It was justification.
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Why the Lips?
Because the lips carry language. And language carries life or death.
“Out of the abundance of the heart, the mouth speaks.” — Luke 6:45
“Death and life are in the power of the tongue.” — Proverbs 18:21
The lips are the launchpad of divine decree.
They form the words that frame atmospheres.
They echo heaven or empower hell.
And when God calls a person—especially a prophet—He often starts by touching their mouth:
Moses: “I can’t speak.” God replies, “I will be with your mouth.”
Jeremiah: “I am only a youth.” God touches his lips and says, “I have put My words in your mouth.”
Isaiah: “Woe is me.” God answers with fire.
So when the coal comes, it does more than forgive—it commissions. It reassigns what was once disqualified. The very thing you were ashamed of becomes the platform of your calling.
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“See?” — What We Must Perceive Today
That whisper—See?—isn’t just for Isaiah.
It’s for us.
How many of us stand trembling, painfully aware of our unworthiness? How many of us disqualify ourselves before God ever gets the chance to mark us?
But heaven is still sending coal.
Fire still falls.
Altars still burn.
And God still speaks through mouths that once stammered, doubted, or cursed.
“See?”
The Spirit whispers.
“This is the moment I mark your mouth with My flame.
This is where guilt is removed.
This is where shame is consumed.
This is where your voice becomes Mine.”
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The Transferable Revelation
You’re Not Being Consumed. You’re Being Commissioned.
The fire doesn’t come to destroy you. It comes to distinguish you. To set you apart. To purify the part of you that hell tried to silence.
Divine Encounters Require Spiritual Sight.
Experiences are common. Revelation is rare. The angel didn’t say “Feel.” He said “See.” Ask the Holy Spirit to help you perceive what shifted. Don’t walk away from the fire unchanged.
God Uses the Very Place You Thought Disqualified You.
Isaiah’s lips were the source of shame. They became the source of God’s glory. What’s your version? Your past? Your weakness? That’s the altar He’s aiming for.
Heaven Still Records the Moment.
Your wilderness is not forgotten. Your cry is not lost. There is a moment when fire touches lips and history changes. Don’t miss it.
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How to Respond
Ask for the coal.
Dare to pray: “God, touch my mouth. Purify my voice. Burn away every word that was not from You.”
Perceive the shift.
Pause. Listen. Journal what changes after divine encounters. Let your spiritual senses be trained.
Guard your lips.
Once touched, your voice carries weight. Don’t use it carelessly. You’re no longer ordinary. Speak as one who bears the fire.
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Final Thought: What the Fire Says
The coal came from the altar,
by the angel,
to the prophet,
for the people.
And so it is with you.
Your life is not just a testimony of grace.
It is a carrier of holy fire.
“See? The coal has touched your lips.”
“Your guilt is taken away.”
“Your sin is covered.”
“Your voice is Mine now.”
You were not just cleansed. You were claimed.
Now go…
And speak with fire.
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I Hear the Spirit Say…
“See?
I didn’t just cleanse you.
I claimed you.
I did not send My fire to consume you, but to confirm you—
To burn away the lie that says you’re unworthy,
To silence the voice of shame that says you’re not ready,
To touch the very part of you the enemy tried to twist—
and reframe it as holy ground.
You asked for a sign,
but I sent a coal.
You longed to be seen,
but I said, See?
Can you feel the shift?
Not in your feelings, but in your spirit?
Can you discern the weight of what I’ve done?
I came for your mouth because I’m calling for your sound.
I came for your lips because I’m raising a voice.
Your voice.
One that carries not echo, but essence.
Not just language, but fire.
You were waiting for permission,
but I have already extended My hand.
I have touched you.
I have chosen you.
I have cleared the debris from your altar.
Now, let the flame speak.
Don’t retreat back into silence when I’ve marked your sound.
Don’t second-guess what I’ve already settled.
Don’t let unworthiness resurrect what My coal has already burned away.
Speak now—not in fear, but in fire.
Declare now—not in doubt, but in devotion.
Prophesy now—not with trembling lips, but with sanctified ones.
See?
Your voice is Mine.
And I always speak through what I purify.
Go.
Speak.
Burn.”
