Read Isaiah 1:2–4
The ox knows his master, the donkey his owner’s manger, but Israel does not know, my people do not understand. Isaiah 1:3

Isaiah was a man in touch with God. He foresaw God’s Son and revealed God’s glory; he heard God’s message, and sought to bring the people back to God before it was too late. Isaiah was a patriot with a true love for his country, pleading with Judah to return to God and warning kings when their foreign policy was contrary to God’s will. He also hated sin and sham religion. His favorite name for God was “the Holy One of Israel,” and he used it twenty-five times in his book. He looked at the crowded courts of the temple and cried out, “They have forsaken the LORD; they have spurned the Holy One of Israel and turned their backs on him” (v. 4).

Isaiah called the people to repent. Isaiah was a courageous man. Unafraid to denounce kings and priests, and unwavering when public opinion went against him, he boldly declared the Word of God. He was skilled in communicating God’s truth. Not content with merely declaring facts, Isaiah clothed those facts in striking language that would catch the attention of a people blind and deaf to spiritual truth. Like our Lord Jesus Christ, Isaiah knew how to stir the imagination of his listeners so that he might arouse their interest.

Something to Ponder
Which of the qualities that describe Isaiah also describe you?