The Meaning of Isaiah 6:7 Explained

Isaiah 6:7

KJV: And he laid it upon my mouth, and said, Lo, this hath touched thy lips; and thine iniquity is taken away, and thy sin purged.

YLT: and he striketh against my mouth, and saith: 'Lo, this hath stricken against thy lips, And turned aside is thine iniquity, And thy sin is covered.'

Darby: and he made it touch my mouth, and said, Behold, this hath touched thy lips; and thine iniquity is taken away, and thy sin expiated.

ASV: and he touched my mouth with it, and said, Lo, this hath touched thy lips; and thine iniquity is taken away, and thy sin forgiven.

KJV Reverse Interlinear

And he laid  [it] upon my mouth,  and said,  Lo, this hath touched  thy lips;  and thine iniquity  is taken away,  and thy sin  purged. 

What does Isaiah 6:7 Mean?

Verse Meaning

God"s purging agent touched Isaiah"s mouth, and the angelic messenger assured the prophet that he had been completely cleansed of his uncleanness. We might call this Isaiah"s conversion experience. Compare Acts 9:3-11, which records the Apostle Paul"s conversion and call.

Context Summary

Isaiah 6:1-13 - A Call To Heroic Service
Kings die; Jesus lives. See John 12:41. We are here reminded of Acts 22:17-18. How great the contrast between the worship of these seraphim in the Unseen-Holy and man's perfunctory rites! Six wings-two for meditation, two for humility, and two for service. Service should take only a third of our energy. One cried unto another-one inspired spirit will awaken others. The threefold repetition of the word holy, implies the Trinity. If door-posts tremble, much more should the hearts of sinful men! Isaiah, in the previous chapter, had uttered six woes against others, but his seventh and sorest woe is against himself. The sinner, like the leper, cries, Unclean! Leviticus 13:45. The seraph did not wait to be told; he knew that there was only one cure for such need as the prophet's, Isaiah 6:9-13. When men refuse God's offered grace, every refusal hardens. It is either "the savour of death unto death" or of "life unto life," 2 Corinthians 2:16. The life of the oak and the terebinth only seems to become extinct in winter; there is revival in the spring. Is it winter with you? Pray for the springtime! [source]

Chapter Summary: Isaiah 6

1  Isaiah, in a vision of the Lord in his glory
5  Being terrified, has apprehensions removed
8  He offers himself, and is sent to show the obstinacy of the people
13  A remnant shall be saved

What do the individual words in Isaiah 6:7 mean?

and he touched [with it] on my mouth and said behold has touched this upon your lips and is taken away Your iniquity and your sin purged
וַיַּגַּ֣ע עַל־ פִּ֔י וַיֹּ֕אמֶר הִנֵּ֛ה נָגַ֥ע זֶ֖ה עַל־ שְׂפָתֶ֑יךָ וְסָ֣ר עֲוֺנֶ֔ךָ וְחַטָּאתְךָ֖ תְּכֻפָּֽר

וַיַּגַּ֣ע  and  he  touched  [with  it] 
Parse: Conjunctive waw, Verb, Hifil, Consecutive imperfect, third person masculine singular
Root: נָגַע  
Sense: to touch, reach, strike.
פִּ֔י  my  mouth 
Parse: Noun, masculine singular construct, first person common singular
Root: פֶּה  
Sense: mouth.
וַיֹּ֕אמֶר  and  said 
Parse: Conjunctive waw, Verb, Qal, Consecutive imperfect, third person masculine singular
Root: אָמַר 
Sense: to say, speak, utter.
הִנֵּ֛ה  behold 
Parse: Interjection
Root: הִנֵּה  
Sense: behold, lo, see, if.
נָגַ֥ע  has  touched 
Parse: Verb, Qal, Perfect, third person masculine singular
Root: נָגַע  
Sense: to touch, reach, strike.
זֶ֖ה  this 
Parse: Pronoun, masculine singular
Root: זֶה  
Sense: this, this one, here, which, this … that, the one … the other, another, such.
עַל־  upon 
Parse: Preposition
Root: עַל 
Sense: upon, on the ground of, according to, on account of, on behalf of, concerning, beside, in addition to, together with, beyond, above, over, by, on to, towards, to, against.
שְׂפָתֶ֑יךָ  your  lips 
Parse: Noun, fdc, second person masculine singular
Root: שָׂפָה  
Sense: lip, language, speech, shore, bank, brink, brim, side, edge, border, binding.
וְסָ֣ר  and  is  taken  away 
Parse: Conjunctive waw, Verb, Qal, Conjunctive perfect, third person masculine singular
Root: סוּר 
Sense: to turn aside, depart.
עֲוֺנֶ֔ךָ  Your  iniquity 
Parse: Noun, common singular construct, second person masculine singular
Root: עָוֹן  
Sense: perversity, depravity, iniquity, guilt or punishment of iniquity.
וְחַטָּאתְךָ֖  and  your  sin 
Parse: Conjunctive waw, Noun, feminine singular construct, second person masculine singular
Root: חַטָּאָה 
Sense: sin, sinful.
תְּכֻפָּֽר  purged 
Parse: Verb, Pual, Imperfect, third person feminine singular
Root: כָּפַר 
Sense: to cover, purge, make an atonement, make reconciliation, cover over with pitch.