Isaiah 20:4

4 so shall the king of Assyria lead away the Egyptians as prisoners and the Ethiopians as captives, young and old, naked and barefoot, with their buttocks uncovered, to the shame of Egypt.

Isaiah 20:4 Meaning and Commentary

Isaiah 20:4

So shall the king of Assyria lead away the Egyptians
prisoners, and the Ethiopians captives
As beasts are led or driven, being taken prisoners, and carried captive by the king of Assyria, namely Sargon, whoever is intended by him:

young and old;
without any regard to age, sparing none for their tender years or gray hairs:

naked and barefoot;
as prisoners of war commonly are, being stripped by their conquerors of their clothes, and having only a few rags given them to cover their nakedness with, and obliged to travel without shoes on their feet:

even with [their] buttocks uncovered, to the shame of Egypt;
having no clothes on them to cover those parts; or the skirts of their garments cut off, as David's servants were by the Ammonites, ( 2 Samuel 10:4 ) and this to humble and mortify the pride of the Egyptians.

Isaiah 20:4 In-Context

2 at the same time the Lord spoke by Isaiah the son of Amoz, saying, "Go, and remove the sackcloth from your body, and take your sandals off your feet." And he did so, walking naked and barefoot.
3 Then the Lord said, "Just as My servant Isaiah has walked naked and barefoot three years for a sign and a wonder against Egypt and Ethiopia,
4 so shall the king of Assyria lead away the Egyptians as prisoners and the Ethiopians as captives, young and old, naked and barefoot, with their buttocks uncovered, to the shame of Egypt.
5 Then they shall be afraid and ashamed of Ethiopia their expectation and Egypt their glory.
6 And the inhabitant of this territory will say in that day, 'Surely such is our expectation, wherever we flee for help to be delivered from the king of Assyria; and how shall we escape?' "
Scripture taken from the New King James Version. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson, Inc. Used by permission. All rights reserved.