Bible Dictionaries
Loins

Holman Bible Dictionary

The Hebrew and Greek terms refer to the hips and lower back. Loins are used in the literal sense of the body's midsection (Exodus 28:42; 2 Kings 1:8; Isaiah 11:5; Jeremiah 13:1; Matthew 3:4 ). Tying up one's long, lower garments about one's waist or loins indicated readiness for travel (Exodus 12:11; 1 Kings 18:46; 2 Kings 9:1 ). In the New Testament, to gird up one's loins is used in the figurative sense of preparedness (Luke 12:35; Ephesians 6:14; 1 Peter 1:13 ). The Old Testament sometimes uses loins as the seat of physical strength (Nahum 2:1 ). Thus to make someone's loins shake or loosed is to render the person helpless (Psalm 69:23; Isaiah 45:1 ). Scripture also uses the loins as a symbol of procreative powers (Genesis 35:11; 1 Kings 8:19; Acts 2:30; Hebrews 7:5 ,Hebrews 7:5,7:10 ). Modern translations frequently hide the Hebrew expression “from his loins” behind the translation descendant.