Ashdod was one of the five cities of the Philistines. During the reign of King Sargon of Assyria about 722-715 B.C. he sent his commander to fight Ashdod and had it captured. It was at that time God sent Isaiah with a message to discourage Judah from joining forces with Egypt, and Cush or Ethiopia, to go against Assyria. The mode by which Isaiah was to communicate was drastically dramatic and graphic. God told him “Go and loosen the sackcloth from your hips and take your shoes off your feet.” And he did so, going about naked and barefoot for three years.
The whole purpose of Isaiah’s graphic display of himself naked and
barefooted was to show the people of Judah how futile it was for them to turn to
Egypt and Ethiopia for help. According to verses 3-5, God wanted Judah to know
that “Even as My servant Isaiah has gone naked and barefoot three years as
a sign and token against Egypt and Cush, so the king of Assyria will lead away the captives of Egypt and
the exiles of Cush, young and old, naked and barefoot with buttocks
uncovered, to the shame of Egypt.”
A picture paints a thousand words, so what Isaiah did was vivid and
unforgettable. It was to show Judah the hopelessness of turning to Egypt and
Ethiopia. It shows obviously that world powers were under God’s control and
subjected to what He said. For us today, we need to know that the crisis we
face cannot be solved by worldly methods. If we are to accomplish much in life we
need to live by the will of God.
One last thought. If we were in Isaiah’s shoes would we have obeyed
God as he did? The truth is this: if we want to be effective messengers of God,
we must learn to live transparent lives. We can no longer live with our camouflages.
Why? How we behave can either reveal or conceal
Christ. Live well and be God's message to the community!
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