New King James Version
2 Kings 1:8
8So they answered him, “A hairy man wearing a leather belt around his waist.” And he said, “It is Elijah the Tishbite.”
2 Kings 1:8 in other versions
- King James Version (KJV)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 International Version (NIV)They replied, “He had a garment of hair and had a leather belt around his waist.” The king said, “That was Elijah the Tishbite.”
- English Standard Version (ESV)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."
- New Living Translation (NLT)They replied, “He was a hairy man, and he wore a leather belt around his waist.” “Elijah from Tishbe!” the king exclaimed.
Context of 2 Kings 1:8
6So they said to him, “A man came up to meet us, and said to us, ‘Go, return to the king who sent you, and say to him, “Thus says the Lord: ‘Is it because there is no God in Israel that you are sending to inquire of Baal-Zebub, the god of Ekron? Therefore you shall not come down from the bed to which you have gone up, but you shall surely die.’ ” ’ ” 7Then he said to them, “What kind of man was it who came up to meet you and told you these words?” So they answered him, “A hairy man wearing a leather belt around his waist.” And he said, “It is Elijah the Tishbite.” 9Then the king sent to him a captain of fifty with his fifty men. So he went up to him; and there he was, sitting on the top of a hill. And he spoke to him: “Man of God, the king has said, ‘Come down!’ ” 10So Elijah answered and said to the captain of fifty, “If I am a man of God, then let fire come down from heaven and consume you and your fifty men.” And fire came down from heaven and consumed him and his fifty.
Read all of 2 Kings 12 Kings 1:8 word by word
וַיֹּאמְר֣וּ אֵלָ֗יו אִ֚ישׁ בַּ֣עַל שֵׂעָ֔ר וְאֵז֥וֹר ע֖וֹר אָז֣וּר בְּמָתְנָ֑יו וַיֹּאמַ֕ר אֵלִיָּ֥ה הַתִּשְׁבִּ֖י הֽוּא׃Read the interlinear
Words taken from the KJV.
- And they answeredאָמַר'âmar · to sayH559
- an hairyשֵׂעָרώê‛âr ώa‛ar · hairH8181
- manאִישׁ'îysh · manH376
- manבַּעַלba‛al · master: owningH1167
- and girtאָזַר'âzar · to girdH247
- with a girdleאֵזוֹר'êzôr · girdleH232
- of leatherעוֹר‛ôr · skinH5785
- about his loinsמׇתְנַ֫יִםmôthen · loinH4975
- Elijahאֵלִיָּה'êlîyâh 'êlîyâhû · ElijahH452
- the Tishbiteתִּשְׁבִּיtishbîy · TishbiteH8664
Cross-references for 2 Kings 1:8
- Isaiah 20:2at the same time the Lord spoke by Isaiah the son of Amoz, saying, “Go, and remove the sackcloth from your body, and take your sandals off your feet.” And he did so, walking naked and barefoot.
- Zechariah 13:4“And it shall be in that day that every prophet will be ashamed of his vision when he prophesies; they will not wear a robe of coarse hair to deceive.
- Matthew 3:4Now John himself was clothed in camel’s hair, with a leather belt around his waist; and his food was locusts and wild honey.
- Matthew 11:8But what did you go out to see? A man clothed in soft garments? Indeed, those who wear soft clothing are in kings’ houses.
- Luke 1:17He will also go before Him in the spirit and power of Elijah, ‘to turn the hearts of the fathers to the children,’ and the disobedient to the wisdom of the just, to make ready a people prepared for the Lord.”
- Revelation 11:3And I will give power to my two witnesses, and they will prophesy one thousand two hundred and sixty days, clothed in sackcloth.”
Commentaries on 2 Kings 1:8
- Adam Clarke Bible Commentary · v. 8He was a hairy man - That is, he wore a rough garment, either made of camels' hair, as his successor John Baptist's was, or he wore a skin dressed with the hair on. Some think that the meaning is, he had very long hair and a long beard. The ancient prophets all wore rough garments, or upper coats made of the skins of beasts: They wandered about in sheep-skins and goat-skins, says the apostle, Hebrews 11:37.Read the comment
- Barnes’ Notes on the Bible · v. 8An hairy man - Either in allusion to his shaggy cloak of untanned skin; or, more probably, an expression descriptive of the prophet‘s person, of his long flowing locks, abundant beard, and general profusion of hair. His costume was that of a thorough ascetic. Generally the Jews wore girdles of linen or cotton stuff, soft and comfortable. Under the girdle they wore one or two long linen gowns or shirts, and over these they had sometimes a large shawl…Read the comment
- Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 2-82-8. Ahaziah fell down through a lattice in his upper chamber--This lattice was either a part of the wooden parapet, or fence, which surrounds the flat roofs of houses, and over which the king was carelessly leaning when it gave way; or it might be an opening like a skylight in the roof itself, done over with lattice-work, which, being slender or rotten, the king stepped on and slipped through. This latter supposition is most probably the true one, as…Read the comment
Topics related to 2 Kings 1:8
In the dictionaries
Commentaries on 2 Kings 1
- Adam Clarke Bible Commentary
- Barnes’ Notes on the Bible
- Matthew Henry Concise Commentary
- Tyndale Open Study Notes
- Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary
- Rashi on Tanakh
- Keil & Delitzsch Commentary
- John Wesley’s Notes
- Darby Translation Notes
- Geneva Bible Translation Notes
- Kingcomments
- Matthew Henry’s Complete Commentary
- Matthew Henry’s Modern English Commentary
- Scofield Reference Notes, 1917 Edition
- Seventh-day Adventist Bible Commentary
- EGW Writings
New King James Version — © 1982 Thomas Nelson, Inc
Commentaries