IF YOU had to choose a single word to describe Jehovah God​—his essence, or nature—​what word would you select? In the eighth century B.C.E., the prophet Isaiah was given a vision in which he heard spirit creatures extolling Jehovah, using a word that describes a key aspect of His very essence​—holiness. What Isaiah saw and heard should both fill us with awe and draw us closer to Jehovah. As we consider the words at Isaiah 6:1-3, imagine yourself there.

Isaiah is awed not only by what he sees but also by what he hears. Forming a heavenly choir, the seraphs lift up their voices in song. Isaiah writes: “This one called to that one and said: ‘Holy, holy, holy is Jehovah of armies.’” (Verse 3) The Hebrew word rendered “holy” conveys the idea of cleanness and purity. The word also includes “the thought of complete freedom and separation from what is sinful.” In what is perhaps a continuous antiphonal song, the seraphs sing the word “holy” three times, emphasizing that Jehovah is holy to the superlative degree. (Revelation 4:8) Holiness, then, is a distinguishing characteristic of his nature. Through and through, Jehovah is pure, clean, and blameless.