NOTES for Isa 20:1-21:17
1 In the year that Tartan came unto Ashdod, (when Sargon the king of Assyria sent him,) and fought against Ashdod, and took it; |
2 At the same time spake the LORD by Isaiah the son of Amoz, saying, Go and loose the sackcloth from off thy loins, and put off thy shoe from thy foot. And he did so, walking naked and barefoot. |
3 And the LORD said, Like as my servant Isaiah hath walked naked and barefoot three years for a sign and wonder upon Egypt and upon Ethiopia; |
4 So shall the king of Assyria lead away the Egyptians prisoners, and the Ethiopians captives, young and old, naked and barefoot, even with their buttocks uncovered, to the shame of Egypt. |
5 And they shall be afraid and ashamed of Ethiopia their expectation, and of Egypt their glory. |
6 And the inhabitant of this isle shall say in that day, Behold, such is our expectation, whither we flee for help to be delivered from the king of Assyria: and how shall we escape? |
1 The burden of the desert of the sea. As whirlwinds in the south pass through; so it cometh from the desert, from a terrible land. |
2 A grievous vision is declared unto me; the treacherous dealer dealeth treacherously, and the spoiler spoileth. Go up, O Elam: besiege, O Media; all the sighing thereof have I made to cease. |
3 Therefore are my loins filled with pain: pangs have taken hold upon me, as the pangs of a woman that travaileth: I was bowed down at the hearing of it; I was dismayed at the seeing of it. |
4 My heart panted, fearfulness affrighted me: the night of my pleasure hath he turned into fear unto me. |
5 Prepare the table, watch in the watchtower, eat, drink: arise, ye princes, and anoint the shield. |
6 For thus hath the Lord said unto me, Go, set a watchman, let him declare what he seeth. |
7 And he saw a chariot with a couple of horsemen, a chariot of asses, and a chariot of camels; and he hearkened diligently with much heed: |
8 And he cried, A lion: My lord, I stand continually upon the watchtower in the daytime, and I am set in my ward whole nights: |
9 And, behold, here cometh a chariot of men, with a couple of horsemen. And he answered and said, Babylon is fallen, is fallen; and all the graven images of her gods he hath broken unto the ground. |
10 O my threshing, and the corn of my floor: that which I have heard of the LORD of hosts, the God of Israel, have I declared unto you. |
11 The burden of Dumah. He calleth to me out of Seir, Watchman, what of the night? Watchman, what of the night? |
12 The watchman said, The morning cometh, and also the night: if ye will inquire, inquire ye: return, come. |
13 The burden upon Arabia. In the forest in Arabia shall ye lodge, O ye travelling companies of Dedanim. |
14 The inhabitants of the land of Tema brought water to him that was thirsty, they prevented with their bread him that fled. |
15 For they fled from the swords, from the drawn sword, and from the bent bow, and from the grievousness of war. |
16 For thus hath the Lord said unto me, Within a year, according to the years of an hireling, and all the glory of Kedar shall fail: |
17 And the residue of the number of archers, the mighty men of the children of Kedar, shall be diminished: for the LORD God of Israel hath spoken it. |
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It is possible to understand that the prophet's nakedness became a sign of the coming military defeat of Egypt and Ethiopia. There can be no hope in such allies; the strength of their weapons is not supported by the strength of the Lord and therefore will not withstand their enemies. But why did the prophet need to reinforce his warnings in such an extravagant way? Was verbal preaching not enough for him?
It must not have been, for the reaction to what is heard too often fails to match the importance of what is heard. After all, people say all kinds of things. And anyway, how does he know? He is not an expert; where did this know-it-all come from? But here before us is not just a speaker, but a man staking his own reputation and ready to engage in the most extravagant behavior, if only he can reinforce what he has said vividly and emotionally and break through the indifference of his hearers.
By revealing his visions to his hearers, the prophet gives us a chance to touch, at least a little, the way he sees the world around him. Images of distant nations appear before us, nations that are destined to play a role in Israel's history, and these nations come closer and closer. The prophet does not hide from us that he is afraid, for he is an ordinary person, not without weaknesses. But he overcomes his weaknesses and continues to gaze into what the Lord reveals to him. However difficult it is for the prophet, he courageously continues to proclaim to the people what he sees.
Readings for 14 July 2025
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