2 Kings 1:8
New International Version
They replied, “He had a garment of hair and had a leather belt around his waist.” The king said, “That was Elijah the Tishbite.”

New Living Translation
They replied, “He was a hairy man, and he wore a leather belt around his waist.” “Elijah from Tishbe!” the king exclaimed.

English Standard Version
They answered him, “He wore a garment of hair, with a belt of leather about his waist.” And he said, “It is Elijah the Tishbite.”

Berean Standard Bible
“He was a hairy man,” they answered, “with a leather belt around his waist.” “It was Elijah the Tishbite,” said the king.

King James Bible
And they answered him, He was an hairy man, and girt with a girdle of leather about his loins. And he said, It is Elijah the Tishbite.

New King James Version
So they answered him, “A hairy man wearing a leather belt around his waist.” And he said, “It is Elijah the Tishbite.”

New American Standard Bible
And they said to him, “He was a hairy man with a leather belt worn around his waist.” And he said, “It is Elijah the Tishbite.”

NASB 1995
They answered him, “He was a hairy man with a leather girdle bound about his loins.” And he said, “It is Elijah the Tishbite.”

NASB 1977
And they answered him, “He was a hairy man with a leather girdle bound about his loins.” And he said, “It is Elijah the Tishbite.”

Legacy Standard Bible
And they said to him, “He was a hairy man with a leather girdle girded about his loins.” And he said, “It is Elijah the Tishbite.”

Amplified Bible
They answered him, “He was a hairy man with a [wide] leather band bound around his loins.” And Ahaziah said, “It is Elijah the Tishbite.”

Christian Standard Bible
They replied, “A hairy man with a leather belt around his waist.” He said, “It’s Elijah the Tishbite.”

Holman Christian Standard Bible
They replied, “A hairy man with a leather belt around his waist.” He said, “It’s Elijah the Tishbite.”

American Standard Version
And they answered him, He was a hairy man, and girt with a girdle of leather about his loins. And he said, It is Elijah the Tishbite.

Aramaic Bible in Plain English
They were saying to him: “A hairy man and a belt of leather was bound around his waist.” He said to them, “He is Elyah who is from Thesbe.”

Brenton Septuagint Translation
And they said to him, He was a hairy man, and girt with a leathern girdle about his loins. And he said, This is Eliu the Thesbite.

Contemporary English Version
"He was hairy and had a leather belt around his waist," they answered. "It must be Elijah!" replied Ahaziah.

Douay-Rheims Bible
But they said: A hairy man with a girdle of leather about his loins. And he said: It is Elias the Thesbite.

English Revised Version
And they answered him, He was an hairy man, and girt with a girdle of leather about his loins. And he said, It is Elijah the Tishbite.

GOD'S WORD® Translation
They replied, "He was hairy and had a leather belt around his waist." "That's Elijah from Tishbe," the king answered.

Good News Translation
"He was wearing a cloak made of animal skins, tied with a leather belt," they answered. "It's Elijah!" the king exclaimed.

International Standard Version
They answered, "The man was a hairy fellow. He wore a leather sash around his waist." The king responded, "It's Elijah, that foreigner!"

JPS Tanakh 1917
And they answered him: 'He was a hairy man, and girt with a girdle of leather about his loins.' And he said: 'It is Elijah the Tishbite.'

Literal Standard Version
And they say to him, “A hairy man, and a girdle of skin girt around his loins”; and he says, “He [is] Elijah the Tishbite.”

Majority Standard Bible
“He was a hairy man,” they answered, “with a leather belt around his waist.” “It was Elijah the Tishbite,” said the king.

New American Bible
They replied, “He wore a hairy garment with a leather belt around his waist.” “It is Elijah the Tishbite!” he exclaimed.

NET Bible
They replied, "He was a hairy man and had a leather belt tied around his waist." The king said, "He is Elijah the Tishbite."

New Revised Standard Version
They answered him, “A hairy man, with a leather belt around his waist.” He said, “It is Elijah the Tishbite.”

New Heart English Bible
They answered him, "He was a hairy man, and wearing a leather belt around his waist." He said, "It is Elijah the Tishbite."

Webster's Bible Translation
And they answered him, He was a hairy man, and girt with a girdle of leather about his loins. And he said, It is Elijah the Tishbite.

World English Bible
They answered him, “He was a hairy man, and wearing a leather belt around his waist.” He said, “It’s Elijah the Tishbite.”

Young's Literal Translation
And they say unto him, 'A man -- hairy, and a girdle of skin girt about his loins;' and he saith, 'He is Elijah the Tishbite.'

Additional Translations ...
Audio Bible



Context
Elijah Denounces Ahaziah
7The king asked them, “What sort of man came up to meet you and spoke these words to you?” 8“He was a hairy man,” they answered, with a leather belt around his waist.” “It was Elijah the Tishbite,” said the king. 9Then King Ahaziah sent to Elijah a captain with his company of fifty men. So the captain went up to Elijah, who was sitting on top of a hill, and said to him, “Man of God, the king declares, ‘Come down!’ ”…

Cross References
Matthew 3:4
John wore a garment of camel's hair, with a leather belt around his waist. His food was locusts and wild honey.

Mark 1:6
John was clothed in camel's hair, with a leather belt around his waist. His food was locusts and wild honey.

2 Kings 1:7
The king asked them, "What sort of man came up to meet you and spoke these words to you?"

Zechariah 13:4
And on that day every prophet who prophesies will be ashamed of his vision, and he will not put on a hairy cloak in order to deceive.


Treasury of Scripture

And they answered him, He was an hairy man, and girt with a girdle of leather about his loins. And he said, It is Elijah the Tishbite.

Isaiah 20:2
At the same time spake the LORD by Isaiah the son of Amoz, saying, Go and loose the sackcloth from off thy loins, and put off thy shoe from thy foot. And he did so, walking naked and barefoot.

Zechariah 13:4
And it shall come to pass in that day, that the prophets shall be ashamed every one of his vision, when he hath prophesied; neither shall they wear a rough garment to deceive:

Matthew 3:4
And the same John had his raiment of camel's hair, and a leathern girdle about his loins; and his meat was locusts and wild honey.

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Band Belt Body Bound Clothed Coat Elijah Eli'jah Garment Girdle Girt Hair Haircloth Hairy Leather Skin Tishbite Waist Wore
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Band Belt Body Bound Clothed Coat Elijah Eli'jah Garment Girdle Girt Hair Haircloth Hairy Leather Skin Tishbite Waist Wore
2 Kings 1
1. Moab rebels
2. Ahaziah, sending to Baal-Zebub, has his judgement by Elijah
5. Elijah twice brings fire from heaven on those Ahaziah sent to apprehend him.
13. He pities the third captain,
15. and, encouraged by an angel, tells the king of his death
17. Jehoram succeeds Ahaziah














(8) Answered.--Said unto.

An hairy man.--Literally, a lord of hair. This might refer to length of hair and beard (so LXX., ?????, "hirsute," "shaggy"); or to a hairy cloak or mantle. The second alternative is right, because a hairy mantle was a mark of the prophetic office from Elijah downwards. (Comp. Zechariah 13:4, "a rough garment;" and Matthew 3:4, where it is said of John Baptist--the second Elias--that "he was clad in camel's hair," and had "a leather girdle about his loins.") The girdle, as Thenius remarks, would not be mentioned alone. The common dress of the Bedawis is a sheep or goat's skin with the hair left on.

Girt with a girdle of leather.--Such as only the poorest would wear. The girdle was ordinarily of linen or cotton, and often costly. The prophet's dress was a sign of contempt for earthly display, and of sorrow for the national sins and their consequences, which it was his function to proclaim. (Comp. Isaiah 20:2.)

Verse 8. - A hairy man; literally, a lord of hair (בַּעַל שַׂעָר). Some take the meaning to be that he was rough and unkempt, with his hair and beard long; and so the LXX., who give ἀνὴρ δασύς. But the more usual explanation is that he wore a shaggy coat of untanned skin, with the hair outward. Such a garment seems certainly to have been worn by the later prophets (Zechariah 13:4; Matthew 3:4), and to have been regarded as a sign of their profession. But there is no positive evidence that the dress had been adopted by Isaiah's time. Girt with a girdle of leather. Generally the Israelites wore girdles of a soft material, as linen or cotton. The "curious girdle" of the high priest's ephod was of "fine twined linen," embroidered with gold, and blue, and purple, and scarlet (Exodus 28:8). Girdles of leather, rough and uncomfortable, would only be worn by the very poor and by the ascetic. Elijah may have adopted his rough and coarse costume, either to show contempt for things earthly, as Hengstenberg thinks; or as a penitential garb indicating sorrow for the sins of the people, as Keil supposes; or simple to chastise and subdue the flesh, as other ascetics. It is Elijah the Tishbite. The description given is enough. The king has no longer any doubt. His suspicion is turned into certainty. There is no living person but Elijah who would at once have the boldness to prophesy the death of the king, and would wear such a costume as described. Elijah is, of course, his enemy, as he had been his father's "enemy" (1 Kings 21:20), and will wish him ill, and prophesy accordingly, the wish being "father to the thought." It is not improbable that Elijah had withdrawn himself into obscurity on the accession of Ahaziah, or at any rate on his exhibition of strong idolatrous proclivities (Ewald), as he had done on more than one occasion from Ahab (1 Kings 17:10; 1 Kings 19:8-8). Ahaziah may have been long wishing to arrest and imprison him, and now thought he saw his opportunity.

Parallel Commentaries ...


Hebrew
“[He was] a hairy
שֵׂעָ֔ר (śê·‘ār)
Noun - masculine singular
Strong's 8181: Hair

man,”
אִ֚ישׁ (’îš)
Noun - masculine singular construct
Strong's 376: A man as an individual, a male person

they answered,
וַיֹּאמְר֣וּ (way·yō·mə·rū)
Conjunctive waw | Verb - Qal - Consecutive imperfect - third person masculine plural
Strong's 559: To utter, say

“with a leather
ע֖וֹר (‘ō·wr)
Noun - masculine singular
Strong's 5785: Skin, hide, leather

belt
וְאֵז֥וֹר (wə·’ê·zō·wr)
Conjunctive waw | Noun - masculine singular construct
Strong's 232: Something girt, a belt, a band

around his waist.”
בְּמָתְנָ֑יו (bə·mā·ṯə·nāw)
Preposition-b | Noun - mdc | third person masculine singular
Strong's 4975: The waist, small of the back, the loins

“It is
הֽוּא׃ (hū)
Pronoun - third person masculine singular
Strong's 1931: He, self, the same, this, that, as, are

Elijah
אֵלִיָּ֥ה (’ê·lî·yāh)
Noun - proper - masculine singular
Strong's 452: Elijah -- 'Yah is God', a well-known prophet of Israel, also three other Israelites

the Tishbite,”
הַתִּשְׁבִּ֖י (hat·tiš·bî)
Article | Noun - proper - masculine singular
Strong's 8664: A Tishbite

said [the king].
וַיֹּאמַ֕ר (way·yō·mar)
Conjunctive waw | Verb - Qal - Consecutive imperfect - third person masculine singular
Strong's 559: To utter, say


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OT History: 2 Kings 1:8 They answered him He was a hairy (2Ki iiKi ii ki 2 kg 2kg)
2 Kings 1:7
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