John studied Isaiah’s grand portrayals of the Messiah’s glory day and night. See Isaiah 11:4; 32:2; 62:4. The glorious vision filled the heart of the lonely exile. He looked on the King in His beauty, and self was forgotten. He saw the majesty of holiness and felt himself to be inefficient and unworthy. He was ready to go forward as Heaven’s messenger, unshaken by anything human, because he had looked upon the Divine. He could stand fearless in the presence of earthly monarchs, because he had bowed low before the King of kings. HH 39.8
John did not fully understand the nature of the Messiah’s kingdom, but his hope centered on the coming of a King in righteousness and the establishment of Israel as a holy nation. HH 40.1
He saw his people self-satisfied and asleep in their sins. The message God had given him was to startle them from their dullness and apathy. Before the seed of the gospel could take root, the soil of the heart must be broken up. Before they would seek healing from Jesus, they must be awakened to their danger from the wounds of sin. HH 40.2
God does not send messengers to lull the unsanctified into fatal security. He lays heavy burdens on the conscience of the wrongdoer and pierces the soul with arrows of conviction. Ministering angels present the fearful judgments of God to deepen the sense of need. Then the hand that has humbled in the dust lifts up the repentant one. HH 40.3