“He was a hairy man,” they answered, “with a leather belt around his waist.” “It was Elijah the Tishbite,” said the king.
Parallel translations
- WEB They answered him, “He was a hairy man, and wearing a leather belt around his waist.” He said, “It’s Elijah the Tishbite.”
- 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.
- NKJV So they answered him, “A hairy man wearing a leather belt around his waist.” And he said, “It is Elijah the Tishbite.”
- NASB 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.”
- NLT They replied, “He was a hairy man, and he wore a leather belt around his waist.” “Elijah from Tishbe!” the king exclaimed.
Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
Scripture quotations taken from the (NASB®) New American Standard Bible®, Copyright © 1960, 1971, 1977, 1995, 2020 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission. All rights reserved. lockman.org
Scripture quotations are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.
Quick answer
From the description of a hairy man with a leather belt, the king recognizes Elijah the Tishbite. The prophet's rugged identity confirms the divine source of the message.
Overview
Elijah's distinctive dress marks him as a prophet set apart from courtly comfort. This same austere garb later characterizes John the Baptist (Matthew 3:4), who came in the spirit and power of Elijah. The recognition seals the king's dread, for Elijah's word against the house of Ahab had always proven true.
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 7
- Matt 3:4John wore a garment of camel’s hair, with a leather belt around his waist. His food was locusts and wild honey.
- Zech 13:4And 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.
- Mark 1:6John was clothed in camel’s hair, with a leather belt around his waist. His food was locusts and wild honey.
- Luke 1:17And he will go on before the Lord in the spirit and power of Elijah, to turn the hearts of the fathers to their children and the disobedient to the wisdom of the righteous—to make ready a people prepared for the Lord.”
- Rev 11:3And I will empower my two witnesses, and they will prophesy for 1,260 days, clothed in sackcloth.”
- Matt 11:8Otherwise, what did you go out to see? A man dressed in fine clothes? Look, those who wear fine clothing are found in kings’ palaces.
- Isa 20:2the LORD had already spoken through Isaiah son of Amoz, saying, “Go, remove the sackcloth from your waist and the sandals from your feet.” And Isaiah did so, walking around naked and barefoot.
Themes, concepts, people & topics
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Christ at the center
Amid the long decline toward exile, the promise to David's house refuses to die; the flickering lamp kept burning anticipates the coming King who will not fail or be cut off.
How 2 Kings 1:8 points to him is part of the one story that runs through all Scripture — meet Jesus at the heart of the web, or follow a trail that traces him from Genesis to Revelation.
Original language
Each word below is tagged with its Strong’s number — tap one to see the underlying Hebrew word, its meaning, and every verse that uses it.