בִּשְׁנַת בֹּא תַרְתָּן אַשְׁדּוֹדָה בִּשְׁלֹח אֹתוֹ סַרְגוֹן מֶלֶךְ אַשּׁוּר וַיִּלָּחֶם בְּאַשְׁדּוֹד וַיִּלְכְּדָהּ׃   20:1

Isai. 20:1   It was in the year of the coming of Tartan to Ashdod when Sargon, king of Assyria, sent him and he fought with Ashdod and he captured it.

בָּעֵת הַהִיא דִּבֶּר יְהוָה בְּיַד יְשַׁעְיָהוּ בֶן־אָמוֹץ לֵאמֹר לֵךְ וּפִתַּחְתָּ הַשַּׂק מֵעַל מָתְנֶיךָ וְנַעַלְךָ תַחֲלֹץ   20:2 מֵעַל רַגְלֶיךָ וַיַּעַשׂ כֵּן הָלֹךְ עָרוֹם וְיָחֵף׃

Isai. 20:2   At that time the Lord spoke by the hand of Isaiah son of Amoz saying, “Go and you shall loosen the sackcloth from being on your loins, and you shall pull off your shoes from your foot.”  And he did so, walking naked and barefoot.

וַיֹּאמֶר יְהוָה כַּאֲשֶׁר הָלַךְ עַבְדִּי יְשַׁעְיָהוּ עָרוֹם וְיָחֵף שָׁלֹשׁ שָׁנִים אוֹת וּמוֹפֵת עַל־מִצְרַיִם וְעַל־כּוּשׁ׃   20:3

Isai. 20:3   Then any inhabitant of this coast-land shall say in that day, “Behold, such was our expectation, that we fled there for help to be delivered from before the king of Assyria.  Then how shall we be saved?”

כֵּן יִנְהַג מֶלֶךְ־אַשּׁוּר אֶת־שְׁבִי מִצְרַיִם וְאֶת־גָּלוּת כּוּשׁ נְעָרִים וּזְקֵנִים עָרוֹם וְיָחֵף וַחֲשׂוּפַי שֵׁת עֶרְוַת   20:4 מִצְרָיִם׃

Isai. 20:4   And the Lord said,” As My servant, Isaiah, has walked naked and barefoot three years, a sign and a wonder concerning Egypt and concerning Ethiopia,

וְחַתּוּ וָבֹשׁוּ מִכּוּשׁ מַבָּטָם וּמִן־מִצְרַיִם תִּפְאַרְתָּם׃   20:5

Isai. 20:5   so shall the king of Assyria lead away the Egyptian captives and the Ethiopian exiles -- young and old -- naked and barefoot, with bared buttocks, the shame of Egypt,

וְאָמַר יֹשֵׁב הָאִי הַזֶּה בַּיּוֹם הַהוּא הִנֵּה־כֹה מַבָּטֵנוּ אֲשֶׁר־נַסְנוּ שָׁם לְעֶזְרָה לְהִנָּצֵל מִפְּנֵי מֶלֶךְ אַשּׁוּר   20:6 וְאֵיךְ נִמָּלֵט אֲנָחְנוּ׃

Isai. 20:6   so they shall be dismayed and ashamed because of Ethiopia, their expectation, and because of Egypt, their glory.

It is believed that Isaiah’s three-year-long walk was meant to be symbolic of a possible three-year period between Tartan’s capture of Ashdod  until the exile of Egypt and Ethiopia.  All this allegedly happened  during the period of Sargon’s reign from 722 to 705 BCE.  This was just about the time of the end of the northern kingdom of Israel.

 

[Return to Isaiah Chapters]   [Prev.:  Isai. 19]   [Next:  Isai. 21]