Prophet who served four kings of Judah, called through a vision of God's throne, warned Ahaz to trust God rather than foreign alliances, and wrote Scripture's clearest Old Testament portrait of a coming Suffering Servant pierced for others' transgressions.
For younger readers
Isaiah was a prophet who had an amazing vision of God sitting on His throne, with angels singing "Holy, holy, holy!" Isaiah felt unworthy, but God made him clean and Isaiah bravely said, "Here I am, send me!" Isaiah gave messages to several kings of Judah, telling them to trust God instead of being afraid or making bad alliances. He promised a sign that God would send Immanuel, which means "God with us" — a promise the New Testament says came true when Jesus was born. Isaiah also wrote beautiful, detailed prophecies about a suffering servant who would be hurt for other people's wrongdoing, which Christians believe describes Jesus dying for our sins hundreds of years later. Isaiah's story shows how God can use someone who feels unworthy to deliver His most important messages.
Interpretive note: Isaiah 7:14's sign of a child born to an "almah" (young woman/virgin) is read by most Christian interpreters as ultimately fulfilled in Christ's virgin birth (Matthew 1:22-23), though the Hebrew term and the balance between a near, immediate fulfillment and a later one are discussed; some critical scholars also argue the book's 66 chapters come from multiple authors across centuries, a view most evangelical scholars reject in favor of single authorship.
Life Story
Isaiah's prophetic call came through an overwhelming vision of the LORD enthroned in the temple, surrounded by seraphim crying "Holy, holy, holy"; overwhelmed by his own sinfulness, Isaiah was purified when a seraph touched his lips with a burning coal, then volunteered, "Here am I. Send me!" (Isaiah 6:1-8). He ministered across four reigns — Uzziah, Jotham, Ahaz, and Hezekiah (Isaiah 1:1). When King Ahaz panicked over an invading coalition, Isaiah urged him to trust God rather than seek Assyrian help, offering a sign: a child called Immanuel, "God with us" (Isaiah 7:1-14) — a prophecy the New Testament identifies as ultimately fulfilled in Christ's virgin birth (Matthew 1:22-23). Isaiah later confirmed God's deliverance of Jerusalem from Sennacherib's siege and, at Hezekiah's request, gave the sign of the sun's shadow moving backward during the king's illness (Isaiah 37-38). When Hezekiah proudly showed Babylonian envoys his treasures, Isaiah warned that everything would one day be carried off to Babylon (Isaiah 39). Isaiah's book contains Scripture's clearest Old Testament portrait of a coming Suffering Servant "pierced for our transgressions... by his wounds we are healed" (Isaiah 53:5), a passage the New Testament applies directly to Jesus (Acts 8:32-35).
First named in 2 Kings 19:2-20
References: 2 Kings 19:2-20; 2 Kings 20:1-19; 2 Chronicles 26:22; 2 Chronicles 32:20-32; Isaiah 1:1; Isaiah 2:1; Isaiah 7:3; Isaiah 13:1; Isaiah 20:2-3; Isaiah 37:2-21; Isaiah 38:1-21; Isaiah 39:3-8; Matthew 3:3; Matthew 8:17; Matthew 12:17; Matthew 13:14; Matthew 15:7; Mark 1:2; Mark 7:6; Luke 3:4; Luke 4:17; John 1:23; John 12:38-41; Acts 8:28-30; Romans 9:27-29; Romans 10:20; Romans 15:12
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Lives of Scripture