It's not necessary to know all of the place names in Isaiah 20 and where they are on a map, although like the last pieces of a finished puzzle, it certainly makes the picture more clear that Isaiah is describing. What is most important to know about Isaiah 20 is that God is infinitely stronger than any of the kingdoms of the earth.
Isaiah 20 illustrates an example of this by showing the historical sweep of the king of Assyria and his armies hundreds of miles from the north down toward Jerusalem where, after having made a systematic progress of destruction for most of that distance, he is stopped in his tracks just short of Jerusalem.
The ancient historical fulfillment of this prophecy is described in 2 Kings 19, especially in verses 20, 21, 34, and 35. But Isaiah's prophecies commonly have multiple fulfillments--in his own day, and in our “latter” day. Just as the people of Jerusalem experienced fear and terror at the prospect of being subdued by a wicked overlord, many people have similar fears of being the victims of war and pestilence across the globe today. But with firm reliance upon God, none of that war and destruction needs to be.
Verses 8 thru 16 or so of Isaiah 20 are a sort of conversation between the worldly king and the Heavenly King. Assyria’s king, Sennacherib, claims that his kingdom would take over the world, and so far in their conquest, they had been wildly successful. But God promises his people and the Jewish King Hezekiah, through his prophet Isaiah, that Assyria’s designs would come to a screeching halt just outside the walls of Jerusalem.
Isaiah describes the speech (or the thoughts) of the powerful king of Assyria in verses 8 thru 11 and 13 thru 14 in chapter 20 as he sweeps the Mesopotamian and Middle Eastern world with terror and destruction. “My princes are kings” (verse 8) Sennacherib claims as he sets his envoys to govern over the cities and areas that he conquers on his way to Jerusalem. Calno and Carchemish are great cities in Assyria far to the north, while Hamath and Arpad are great cities in Syria, much closer to Jerusalem. By this point in Isaiah’s description of history, Hamath and Arpad have now themselves essentially become Assyrian cities, as Assyrian princes have been designated to rule as kings over them.
Having easily dispatched these major Syrian and Israeli strongholds along the way (Samaria is mentioned in passing), the Assyrian king thinks that taking over Jerusalem will be like eating a light snack.
Suddenly, however, the entire tenor of the story changes in Isaiah 20, verse 12. Jehovah, who is more infinitely powerful than all the kings of the earth put together, decrees that he will not allow Jerusalem to be conquered at this time. “I will punish the stout heart of the King of Assyria,” Jehovah says in verse 12.
Isaiah reiterates in verses 13 and 14 that the Assyrian King had no worry whatsoever that even Jerusalem’s god would be a match for his powerful army. “By the strength of my hand have I done these things,” Sennacherib boasts (verse 13). “My hand hath found...the riches of the [conquered] people,” he proclaims (verse 14.)
Not so fast, Jehovah reminds Isaiah, the Assyrian King, and anyone who reads this account for understanding. I, God, am in control. Just as the ax cannot be more powerful than the axeman that wields it to chop down the forest (verse 15), the King of Assyria cannot possibly be more powerful than the God who created him and everyone else who is born to live on earth. Because of the great pride and wickedness of the Assyrian king, Jehovah warns, “the glory of his forest...shall [be] consume[d].” (verse 18)
One night in approximately 701 BC, as the Assyrian armies ringed the walls of Jerusalem, Isaiah’s prophecy was dramatically fulfilled. During that night “the angel of the Lord went out, and smote in the camp of the Assyrians,” killing 185,000 soldiers with plague (2 Kings 19:35). A chastened Sennacherib returned in ignominy and defeat to Assyria and was soon murdered by his own sons.
But Isaiah’s story is not finished there. Isaiah wouldn’t be the pre-eminent prophet that he is had he not prophesied an equally miraculous delivery of God’s people in the latter days. “In that day,” said the prophet, “the remnant of Israel...shall no more” be subservient to “him that smote them” in war. Rather, Israel shall have the benefit and blessings of waiting “upon the Lord, the Holy One of Israel, in truth.” (verse 20).
“The remnant shall return...unto the mighty God,” Isaiah prophesied (verse 21), but it won’t be a small remnant. It will be “as the sand of the sea” and the violence that plagued not only the Jerusalem of Isaiah’s time, but also the world of our day, will “overflow with righteousness.” (verse 22)
When Hezekiah and his people firmly determined to rely on God in the face of seeming destruction, they suddenly discovered that they did need to be subservient to the bows and arrows and slings and swords of the once mighty Assyrians. Similarly, if we show by our right and moral actions that we firmly rely on God, we will eventually--but also suddenly--no longer need to live in fear of the jets and tanks and missiles and bombs of modern-day warfare that wreak terror and destruction across our globe.
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