Greek word · G4024

περιζώννυμι

perizōnnymi

to gird

To wrap a belt or sash around; in the middle voice, to gird oneself. With ὀσφῦς (waist/loins) it forms the biblical idiom 'gird the loins'. Men wore long tunics, and before running, working or fighting they pulled up the hem and fastened it with a belt.

Appears 6 times in 6 verses of the Greek New Testament. ·

What it means

περι-ζώννυμι and -ύω

(see Veitch, see word), [in LXX chiefly for חָגַר, also for אָזַר, etc. ;]

to gird (with dupl, accusative, as ὁ περιζωννύων με δύναμιν, Psalms 18:32): pass., αἱ ὀσφύες περιεζωσμέναι, Luke 12:35; π. ζώνην χρυσῆν, Revelation 1:13 15:6 (but see infr.). Mid., to gird oneself: Luke 12:37 17:8 (and so perh. Re, ll. with supr., cf. 1 Samuel 2:4); with accusative of thing(s) (figuratively), τ. ὀσφύν, Ephesians 6:14 (before ἐν, cf. 1 Chronicles 15:27).†

(AS)

From G. Abbott-Smith, A Manual Greek Lexicon of the New Testament (1922), via STEPBible.org (CC BY 4.0).

In depth

From the study of Ephesians 6:14

Range of meaning

To wrap a belt or sash around; in the middle voice, to gird oneself. With ὀσφῦς (waist/loins) it forms the biblical idiom 'gird the loins'. Men wore long tunics, and before running, working or fighting they pulled up the hem and fastened it with a belt. The idiom therefore means 'get ready for action'. For soldiers the belt was also part of the kit and a badge of active service.

Against the English

KJV/YLT 'loins girt about' keeps the idiom, but 'loins' now sounds sexual or merely archaic. BSB/NIV/WEB turn the verb into a noun, 'belt of truth … buckled', which reads clearly but loses the action of girding and its readiness idiom. WEB's 'utility belt' adds a modern picture the Greek does not have.

How it drifted

'Loins' in older English simply meant the lower back and hips. Over time it narrowed toward the reproductive organs, so the KJV phrase now sounds odd or suggestive.

Used elsewhere in the period

LXX Exod 12:11: Passover eaten with 'your loins girded' (αἱ ὀσφύες ὑμῶν περιεζωσμέναι), ready to leave. 1 Kgs 18:46: Elijah girds his loins to run. Job 38:3; 40:7: 'gird your loins like a man.' Jer 1:17: the prophet girds himself for his task. Most important, Isa 11:5 LXX says of the coming Davidic king that he will be 'girded with righteousness around his waist (ὀσφύν) and wrapped with truth (ἀληθείᾳ) about his sides.' NT: Luke 12:35; 1 Pet 1:13. Roman writers treat the military belt as a mark of soldier status; being made to stand 'ungirded' was a disciplinary disgrace (e.g. Suetonius, Augustus 24).

From the study of Luke 12:35

Range of meaning

To tie a belt around, to gird. Middle voice: to belt oneself. Used of hitching up a tunic to work, travel, fight or serve at table, and of putting on armour or a sash of office.

Against the English

'Girded' (KJV, YLT) is accurate but archaic. 'Dressed for service' (BSB, NLT) and 'dressed ready for service' (NIV) give the meaning but lose the concrete action of tucking up a garment, and so lose the wordplay with v.37. 'Dressed' alone (WEB) could suggest simply 'not naked' or 'in nice clothes,' which misses the point.

Used elsewhere in the period

LXX Exod 12:11; 1 Sam 2:4 ('the weak gird on strength'); Ps 18:32 (17:33 LXX), God girds with strength. In Luke the verb appears in 12:35, in 12:37 (the master 'will gird himself and have them recline and will come and serve them') and in 17:8 (a servant girds himself to serve his master's meal). Rev 1:13 and 15:6 use it of heavenly figures in sashes.

From the study of Luke 12:37

Range of meaning

'To gird around, to belt up'. People in the ancient Mediterranean wore long, loose tunics and robes. To run, fight or work you pulled the skirts up and tucked them into a belt or sash. Middle voice (as here): 'to belt oneself up', that is, to get ready for action or work.

Against the English

KJV 'gird himself' is accurate but opaque to most modern readers. BSB/NIV/ESV 'dress himself to serve / for service' give the sense but lose the visible link to v. 35 ('let your loins be girded', the same verb). 'Dress himself' can even suggest putting on fine clothes, the opposite of the picture.

Used elsewhere in the period

Septuagint: the Passover meal is eaten 'with your loins girded' (Exod 12:11), ready to go; Elijah girds up to run (1 Kgs 18:46); 'gird up your loins like a man' (Job 38:3). In the NT the slave in Luke 17:8 is told by his master to 'gird yourself and serve me'. John 13:4 has Jesus wrap a towel round himself (διαζώννυμι, a related verb) to wash feet.

Where it appears

Luke · 3

  1. Luke 12:35 περιεζωσμέναι girded

    Be dressed for service and keep your lamps burning.

    Here: Perfect participle: 'in the state of having been belted up.' It means the long garment has already been hitched up and tied off, so the wearer can move, work or run at once. The same verb returns in 12:37, where the master belts *himself* up to wait on his servants.

  2. Luke 12:37 περιζώσεται he will gird himself

    Blessed are those servants whom the master finds on watch when he returns. Truly I tell you, he will dress himself to serve and will have them recline at the table, and he himself will come and wait on them.

    Here: Future middle: 'he will belt himself up'. He tucks his long robe into his belt so he can work, which is the slave's posture. It echoes v. 35, where the slaves are told to keep their own robes belted.

  3. Luke 17:8 περιζωσάμενος having girded yourself about

    Instead, won’t he tell him, ‘Prepare my meal and dress yourself to serve me while I eat and drink, and afterward you may eat and drink’?

Ephesians · 1

  1. Ephesians 6:14 περιζωσάμενοι having girded

    Stand firm then, with the belt of truth buckled around your waist, with the breastplate of righteousness arrayed,

    Here: 'Having belted yourselves.' The middle voice means the readers do this to themselves. The picture is of pulling a belt tight round the waist, which tucked up a long tunic for action and, for a soldier, marked him as on duty. It also recalls the Old Testament phrase 'gird your loins', meaning get ready.

Revelation · 2

  1. Revelation 1:13 περιεζωσμένον having girded himself about

    and among the lampstands was One like the Son of Man, dressed in a long robe, with a golden sash around His chest.

    Here: Another perfect participle: "wearing a belt wrapped around". Ordinary working men belted their tunics at the waist so they could move. This belt sits high on the chest, which is ceremonial dress, not work clothing.

  2. Revelation 15:6 περιεζωσμένοι having girded themselves with

    And out of the temple came the seven angels with the seven plagues, dressed in clean and bright linen and girded with golden sashes around their chests.

    Here: Another perfect participle: they stand already girded. Girding usually signals readiness, but here the belt sits high on the chest, the way priests and dignitaries wore it.

Word data: STEPBible.org (CC BY 4.0), main text only.