ישעה 20

1 בשנת בא תרתן אשדודה בשלח אתו סרגון מלך אשור וילחם באשדוד וילכדה׃

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

2 בעת ההיא דבר יהוה ביד ישעיהו בן אמוץ לאמר לך ופתחת השק מעל מתניך ונעלך תחלץ מעל רגליך ויעש כן הלך ערום ויחף׃

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].

3 ויאמר יהוה כאשר הלך עבדי ישעיהו ערום ויחף שלש שנים אות ומופת על מצרים ועל כוש׃

[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.

4 כן ינהג מלך אשור את שבי מצרים ואת גלות כוש נערים וזקנים ערום ויחף וחשופי שת ערות מצרים׃

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.

5 וחתו ובשו מכוש מבטם ומן מצרים תפארתם׃

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.

6 ואמר ישב האי הזה ביום ההוא הנה כה מבטנו אשר נסנו שם לעזרה להנצל מפני מלך אשור ואיך נמלט אנחנו׃

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!’”