Verse 15
15. Sackcloth This cloth was of a coarse texture, generally of goat’s hair of a dark colour, with armholes, and shaped like a sack. It was commonly worn over the coat, in place of an outer garment, and thus served as a symbol of distress; but in extreme cases it was worn next to the skin, (2 Kings 6:30,) having been sewed tightly upon it, “like crepe upon a hat.” Barnes. Dr. Good cites from Menander, the Greek poet:
Following the Syrian plan
They then wear sackcloth, and by the public road
Sit upon a dunghill, επι κοπρου , in humblest guise,
Appeasing thus the Deity’s dread ire.
See note, Job 2:8. My horn in the dust The horn, the defence and adornment of many animals, has ever been regarded in the East as a symbol of strength and dignity. Job’s degradation might well be compared to that of some noble animal lying dead, with its horn thrust ( ‘holalti) into the dust. Some think Job here speaks of the head, which it was customary to cover with dust in times of affliction; with which agrees the Syriac rendering of my head.
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