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A Prophecy Against Egypt and Ethiopia

20 In the year that the Tartan[a] came to Ashdod, when Sargon the king of Assyria sent him, and he fought against Ashdod and took it, at the same time the Lord spoke by Isaiah the son of Amoz saying, “Go and loosen the sackcloth from your waist and take off your shoes from your feet.” And he did so, walking naked and barefoot.

The Lord said, “Even as My servant Isaiah has walked naked and barefoot three years for a sign and wonder against Egypt and Ethiopia, so the king of Assyria shall lead away the Egyptians as prisoners and the Ethiopians as captives, young and old, naked and barefoot, even with their buttocks uncovered, to the shame of Egypt. Then they shall be dismayed and ashamed of Ethiopia their hope and Egypt their boast. So the inhabitants of this coastland shall say in that day, ‘Certainly such is our hope, where we flee for help to be delivered from the king of Assyria! And how shall we escape?’ ”

Footnotes

  1. Isaiah 20:1 Possibly Commander-in-Chief.

A Sign regarding Egypt and Cush

20 In the year the commander-in-chief came[a] to Ashdod, when Sargon the king of Assyria sent him, and he fought against Ashdod and he took it, at that time, Yahweh had spoken by the hand of Isaiah son of Amoz, saying,

“Go and loosen the sackcloth from your loins,
    and take off your sandals[b] from your feet,”

and he had done so, walking naked and barefoot.

Then[c] Yahweh said, “Just as my servant Isaiah has walked naked and barefoot three years as a sign and a portent against Egypt and Cush, so shall the king of Assyria lead the captives[d] of Egypt and the exiles of Cush, young and old, naked and barefoot, with bared buttocks,[e] the shame of Egypt.

And they shall be dismayed,
    and they shall be ashamed
because of Cush, their hope,
    and because of Egypt, their pride.

And the inhabitant[f] of the coastland will say this on that day:

‘Look! This is our hope to whom we fled for help, to be delivered from[g] the king of Assyria, and how shall we escape?’”

Footnotes

  1. Isaiah 20:1 Literally “of the coming of the commander in chief”
  2. Isaiah 20:2 Hebrew “sandal”
  3. Isaiah 20:3 Or “And”
  4. Isaiah 20:4 Hebrew “captive”
  5. Isaiah 20:4 Literally “and bare of buttocks”
  6. Isaiah 20:6 Hebrew “inhabitant”
  7. Isaiah 20:6 Literally “from the face of”