Isaiah 20

1 One year King Sargon of Assyria sent the chief commander of his army [to take his soldiers] to capture Ashdod [city in Philistia].

In the year in which Tartan, being sent by Sargon, the king of Assyria, came to Ashdod, and fought against Ashdod, and took it,

2 At that time, Yahweh told me, “Take off the rough sackcloth that you have been wearing and take off your sandals.” [So] I did what he told me to do, and [then] I walked around naked and barefoot [for three years].

at that time spake Jehovah through Isaiah the son of Amoz in this manner: Go, and loose the sackcloth from thy loins, and put off thy shoes from thy feet. And he did so, walking naked and barefoot.

3 [Then] Yahweh said this [to the people of Judah]: “My servant Isaiah has been walking around naked and barefoot for the past three years. That is to show the terrible disasters that [I will cause the people of] Egypt and Ethiopia to experience.

And Jehovah said: As my servant Isaiah hath walked naked and barefoot three years, a sign and a token for Egypt and Ethiopia,

4 What will happen is that the [army of the] King of Assyria will [invade those countries and capture many of the people and] take them away as their prisoners. They will force all them, including both the young ones and the old ones, to walk naked and barefoot. They will [also] force them to have no clothes around their buttocks, which will cause [the people of] Egypt to be ashamed.

so shall the king of Assyria lead the captives of Egypt, and prisoners of Ethiopia, young and old, naked and barefoot, with their hind parts uncovered, to the shame of the Egyptians.

5 Then the people of other countries who trusted that the armies of Egypt and Ethiopia would be able to help them will be very dismayed/confused and afraid/disappointed.

Then shall they be afraid and ashamed on account of Ethiopia their trust, and of Egypt their glory.

6 They will say, ‘We trusted that the armies of Egypt and Ethiopia [would help us and defend us, but they have been destroyed], so there is no way [RHQ] that we can escape from [being destroyed by the army of] the King of Assyria!’”

The inhabitant of this coast shall say in that day, “Behold, so is it with them in whom we trusted, and to whom we fled for help, that we might be delivered from the king of Assyria. How then shall we escape?”