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Bible Dictionaries
Sackcloth
Watson's Biblical & Theological Dictionary
or a sort of mourning worn at the death of a friend or relation. In great calamities, in penitence, in trouble also, they wore sackcloth about their bodies: "Gird yourselves with sackcloth, and mourn for Abner," 2 Samuel 3:31 . "Let us gird ourselves with sackcloth; and let us go and implore the clemency of the king of Israel," 1 Kings 20:31 . Ahab rent his clothes, put on a shirt of haircloth next to his skin, fasted, and lay upon sackcloth, 1 Kings 21:27 . When Mordecai was informed of the destruction threatened to his nation, he put on sackcloth, and covered his head with ashes, Esther 4. On the contrary, in time of joy, or on hearing good news, those who were clad in sackcloth tore it from their bodies, and cast it from them, Psalms 30:11 . The prophets were often clothed in sackcloth, and generally in coarse clothing. The Lord bids Isaiah to put off the sackcloth from about his body, and to go naked, that is, without his upper garment, Isaiah 20:2 . Zechariah says that false prophets shall no longer prophesy in sackcloth, to deceive the simple, Zechariah 13:4 .
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Watson, Richard. Entry for 'Sackcloth'. Richard Watson's Biblical & Theological Dictionary. https://www.studylight.org/dictionaries/eng/wtd/s/sackcloth.html. 1831-2.
