Isaiah 20:1–21:17
A Prophecy Against Egypt and Cush
20 In the year that the supreme commander,o sent by Sargon king of Assyria, came to Ashdodp and attacked and captured it—2 at that time the Lord spoke through Isaiah son of Amoz.q He said to him, “Take off the sackclothr from your body and the sandalss from your feet.” And he did so, going around strippedt and barefoot.u
3 Then the Lord said, “Just as my servantv Isaiah has gone stripped and barefoot for three years,w as a signx and portenty against Egyptz and Cush,a a 4 so the kingb of Assyria will lead away strippedc and barefoot the Egyptian captivesd and Cushitee exiles, young and old, with buttocks baredf—to Egypt’s shame.g 5 Those who trustedh in Cushi and boasted in Egyptj will be dismayed and put to shame.k 6 In that dayl the people who live on this coast will say, ‘See what has happenedm to those we relied on,n those we fled to for helpo and deliverance from the king of Assyria! How then can we escape?p’ ”
21 A prophecyq against the Desertr by the Sea:
Like whirlwindss sweeping through the southland,t
an invader comes from the desert,
from a land of terror.
2 A direu vision has been shown to me:
The traitor betrays,v the looter takes loot.
Elam,w attack! Media,x lay siege!
I will bring to an end all the groaning she caused.
3 At this my body is racked with pain,y
pangs seize me, like those of a woman in labor;z
I am staggered by what I hear,
I am bewildereda by what I see.
4 My heartb falters,
fear makes me tremble;c
the twilight I longed for
has become a horrord to me.
they spread the rugs,
they eat, they drink!e
Get up, you officers,
oil the shields!f
6 This is what the Lord says to me:
“Go, post a lookoutg
and have him report what he sees.
7 When he sees chariotsh
with teams of horses,
riders on donkeys
or riders on camels,i
let him be alert,
fully alert.”
“Day after day, my lord, I stand on the watchtower;
every night I stay at my post.
9 Look, here comes a man in a chariotk
with a team of horses.
And he gives back the answer:
‘Babylonl has fallen,m has fallen!
All the images of its godsn
lie shatteredo on the ground!’ ”
10 My people who are crushed on the threshing floor,p
I tell you what I have heard
from the Lord Almighty,
from the God of Israel.
11 A prophecy against Dumahb:q
Someone calls to me from Seir,r
“Watchman, what is left of the night?
Watchman, what is left of the night?”
“Morning is coming, but also the night.
If you would ask, then ask;
and come back yet again.”
13 A prophecys against Arabia:t
You caravans of Dedanites,u
who camp in the thickets of Arabia,
14 bring water for the thirsty;
you who live in Tema,v
bring food for the fugitives.
15 They fleew from the sword,x
from the drawn sword,
from the bent bow
and from the heat of battle.
16 This is what the Lord says to me: “Within one year, as a servant bound by contracty would count it, all the splendorz of Kedara will come to an end. 17 The survivors of the archers, the warriors of Kedar, will be few.b” The Lord, the God of Israel, has spoken.c