Isaiah 20

Verse 1. Year. Eighteen after the preceding predictions. Calmet.—Sargon. Sennacherib, (Saint Jerome) Salmanasar, (Sanct.) or Assaradon, who intended to revenge Sennacherib, and sent his “collector of taxes” to take Azotus from Ezechias, and then to proceed farther. Calmet.—Psammitichus having obtained the sole dominion of Egypt, besieged Azotus for 29 years. Herod. ii. 157. Amos 1:8.

Verse 2. Sackcloth. The prophets lived in poverty. Zechariah 13:4. Their persons were prophetic. It is not agreed whether Isaias went quite naked, or only without his upper garment. The former supposition would represent better the condition of slaves, (verse 4) and is adopted by S. Jerom, and so forth Calmet.—People are said to be naked when they are almost so. 2 Kennicott. 6. John 21. Bible.—Yet “nothing is more honest than to obey God.” Saint Jerome Worthington.

Verse 3. Years. Isaias went so long, or perhaps only three days undressed. Numbers 14:34. Ezekiel 4:5. Egypt and the Arabian Ethiopia were to be abandoned to the Assyrians, in or during three years.

Verse 4. Shame. Thus captives were generally exposed to sale. Calmet. 47:2. Nahum 3:5.

Verse 5. Glory. The alliance of these nations shall not avail the Jews, who are said to inhabit an island, because they neglected God’s service no less than the most distant and abandoned nations. Calmet.—The changes in empires must convince us to depend only on God, since Damascus and Egypt could not save the Hebrews, nor even themselves. Worthington.