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Clothing and adornment
Tunic and cloak
Hebrew kuttonet (tunic), simlah (cloak) · Greek chitōn, himation · the two basic garments
Most people wore two main garments. Next to the skin went the tunic, a shirt of wool or linen reaching to the knees or, more often, to the ankles, usually tied at the waist with a belt; a man in only his tunic was called “naked”. Over it went the cloak, a large square of cloth draped over one or both shoulders. In early times men also wore a loincloth. Before running or a long walk, men tucked the long clothes into the belt, as Elijah did when he ran ahead of Ahab (1 Kings 18:46).
At night the cloak served as a blanket, so a cloak taken as a pledge had to be returned “by sunset” (Exodus 22:26). Tassels were sewn on its four corners (Deuteronomy 22:12). Hannah made young Samuel “a little robe” every year (1 Samuel 2:19). Joseph’s “robe of many colors” was, by one view, a long robe with sleeves, by another a richly decorated tunic. Soldiers cast lots for Jesus’ seamless tunic, “woven in one piece” (John 19:23–24), and Paul asked for the cloak he had left at Troas (2 Timothy 4:13).
Key verses
And the hand of the LORD came upon Elijah, and he tucked his cloak into his belt and ran ahead of Ahab all the way to Jezreel.If you take your neighbor’s cloak as collateral, return it to him by sunset, because his cloak is the only covering he has for his body. What else will he sleep in? And if he cries out to Me, I will hear, for I am compassionate.You are to make tassels on the four corners of the cloak you wear.Each year his mother would make him a little robe and bring it to him when she went with her husband to offer the annual sacrifice.When the soldiers had crucified Jesus, they divided His garments into four parts, one for each soldier, with the tunic remaining. It was seamless, woven in one piece from top to bottom. So they said to one another, “Let us not tear it. Instead, let us cast lots to see who will get it.” This was to fulfill the Scripture: “They divided My garments among them, and cast lots for My clothing.” So that is what the soldiers did.When you come, bring the cloak that I left with Carpus at Troas, and my scrolls, especially the parchments.Sources
Adapted and shortened from the Tyndale Open Bible Dictionary · CC BY-SA 4.0
Tyndale Open Bible Dictionary © 2023 Tyndale House Publishers · CC BY-SA 4.0 — Clothing: Male Clothing; Color; Loins; Fringe
Adapted from Tyndale Open Bible Dictionary: articles chosen, shortened and retold in our own words (history, nature and daily life only) and, in languages other than English, machine-translated. The original work by Tyndale House Publishers is available for free at tyndaleopenresources.com.
