Isaiah 20
New King James Version
The Sign Against Egypt and Ethiopia
20 In the year that (A)Tartan[a] came to Ashdod, when Sargon the king of Assyria sent him, and he fought against Ashdod and took it, 2 at the same time the Lord spoke by Isaiah the son of Amoz, saying, “Go, and remove (B)the sackcloth from your [b]body, and take your sandals off your feet.” And he did so, (C)walking naked and barefoot.
3 Then the Lord said, “Just as My servant Isaiah has walked naked and barefoot three years (D)for a sign and a wonder against Egypt and Ethiopia, 4 so shall the (E)king of Assyria lead away the Egyptians as prisoners and the Ethiopians as captives, young and old, naked and barefoot, (F)with their buttocks uncovered, to the shame of Egypt. 5 (G)Then they shall be afraid and ashamed of Ethiopia their expectation and Egypt their glory. 6 And the inhabitant of this territory will say in that day, ‘Surely such is our expectation, wherever we flee for (H)help to be delivered from the king of Assyria; and how shall we escape?’ ”
Footnotes
- Isaiah 20:1 Or the Commander in Chief
- Isaiah 20:2 Lit. loins
Isaiah 20
Living Bible
20 In the year when Sargon, king of Assyria, sent the commander-in-chief of his army against the Philistine city of Ashdod and captured it, 2 the Lord told Isaiah, the son of Amoz, to take off his clothing, including his shoes, and to walk around naked and barefoot. And Isaiah did as he was told.
3 Then the Lord said, My servant Isaiah, who has been walking naked and barefoot for the last three years, is a symbol of the terrible troubles I will bring upon Egypt and Ethiopia. 4 For the king of Assyria will take away the Egyptians and Ethiopians as prisoners, making them walk naked and barefoot, both young and old, their buttocks uncovered, to the shame of Egypt. 5-6 Then how dismayed the Philistines[a] will be, who counted on “Ethiopia’s power” and their “glorious ally,” Egypt! And they will say, “If this can happen to Egypt, what chance have we?”
Footnotes
- Isaiah 20:5 Philistines, literally, “inhabitants of the coastland.”
Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
The Living Bible copyright © 1971 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.