What does Isaiah 20:2 mean?

The Lord tells His prophet to do something truly strange in this verse. Bible scholars describe this as an "enacted" or "role-played" prophecy. This is when God tells a prophet to do something specific and purposefully odd to call the attention of the people. This is the only time Isaiah is called upon by God to act out such a message. But elsewhere in the Old Testament, both Ezekiel and Jeremiah also became visual object lessons (Jeremiah 27:1–5; Ezekiel 4:1–8).

God instructs Isaiah to take off the sackcloth he is wearing—his outer garment—as well as his sandals, and to walk around without them. The term translated into English as "naked" has a broader meaning than "completely unclothed." It's not likely Isaiah was commanded to appear entirely nude. Nor does this necessarily mean he appeared in that condition every moment for three years (Isaiah 20:3). Rather, he was probably "stripped" down to a humbling and embarrassing level, such as only in a loincloth. He would have appeared in the same state as a war captive or prisoner.

A possible interpretation of this verse is that the Lord told Isaiah to act in this manner before the Assyrians defeated Ashdod. The words "at that time" might indicate that Isaiah began his ministry of walking around in exposed disgrace three years earlier. The fall of Ashdod could have been the fulfillment of his visual prophecy.

The following verse shows what Isaiah's "nakedness" was meant to warn the people of Judah about.