Lexical Summary chalats: To draw out, to deliver, to equip, to rescue Original Word: חָלָץ Strong's Exhaustive Concordance loins, reins From chalats (in the sense of strength); only in the dual; the loins (as the seat of vigor) -- loins, reins. see HEBREW chalats NAS Exhaustive Concordance Word Originfrom chalats Definition loins NASB Translation born* (2), loins (5), waist (3). Brown-Driver-Briggs [חָלָץ] noun [feminine] only dual, loins (as seat of strength, vigour; compare Aramaic חַרְצָא hip, loin, Syriac  , NöZMG 1886, 741) — חֲלָצָ֑יִם Isaiah 32:11; suffix חֲלָצֶיךָ Genesis 35:11 4t.; חֲלָצָיו Isaiah 5:27 2t.; חלצו Kt Job 31:20, Qr חֲלָצָיו; — loins: 1 as seat of virility ׳יצא מן ח Genesis 35:11 (P), 1 Kings 8:19; 2Chronicles 6:9. 2 as girded אֱזָרֿ ׳נָא כְּגֶבֶר ח Job 38:3; Job 40:7; אֵזוֺר חֲלָצָיו Isaiah 5:27 (see אֵזוֺר), וַחֲג֫וֺרָה עַל חֲלָצָ֑יִם Isaiah 32:11, compare Job 31:20 where the clothed loins are conceived as blessing charitable giver; metaphor Isaiah 11:5 faithfulness waist-cloth of his loins ("" מתניו). 3 as seat of pains, like a woman's in travail, Jeremiah 30:6. [חֲרַץ] noun [masculine] loin (see Biblical Hebrew חָלָץ, √ II. [חָלַץ]); — suffix חַרְצֵהּ Daniel 5:6 the joints of his loin (see קְטַר). Topical Lexicon Physical and figurative sense of the loins The term refers to the waist-hip region that carries weight, generates movement, and shelters the organs of procreation. Because of these functions, Scripture treats the loins as the seat of both physical vigor and potential for future generations. From this single anatomical image flow several interconnected theological motifs: offspring, strength, preparedness, blessing, fear and judgment. Loins and covenant lineage Genesis 35:11 records the foundational promise to Jacob: “A nation—even a multitude of nations—will come from you, and kings will descend from you.” The source of royal and national destiny is pictured as emerging from his loins. The same imagery undergirds the Davidic covenant (1 Kings 8:19; 2 Chronicles 6:9). In both texts Solomon is called “your own offspring,” reminding Israel that God’s redemptive plans move forward through the natural line God Himself energizes and protects. The faithfulness of the Lord in bringing Messiah through David’s loins underlines the continuity of covenant grace across generations. Loins as the seat of strength and readiness When God confronts Job—“Now brace yourself like a man” (Job 38:3; Job 40:7)—He commands him to tighten the core of his being. The prophet Isaiah uses the same picture for invincible armies: “no belt is loosened at their waist” (Isaiah 5:27). The Messiah is described with “righteousness … the belt around His hips” (Isaiah 11:5), linking moral integrity to undefeatable might. Girded loins therefore symbolize spiritual and moral preparedness for divine assignment, a principle echoed in New Testament calls to “gird your minds for action.” Loins loosened in distress and judgment Isaiah warns complacent women, “Strip yourselves bare, and put sackcloth around your waists” (Isaiah 32:11), and Jeremiah pictures terrified men with “hands on his stomach like a woman in labor” (Jeremiah 30:6). In times of overwhelming judgment the loins collapse, belts loosen, and fear replaces strength. The same body part that speaks of resolve and fruitfulness can testify against covenant breakers when the Lord’s day of reckoning arrives. Messianic and eschatological significance Isaiah 11:5 grounds the righteousness of the Messianic King in imagery drawn from the loins. The belt encircling His hips is not leather but moral perfection, guaranteeing the just reign that will restore creation. Because the loins are the place of both authority and offspring, the picture also anticipates the ultimate Seed who will bring the promised kingdom to fruition. Ethical compassion and ministry implications Job’s self-defense includes a tender bodily metaphor: “if his heart has not blessed me for warming him with the fleece of my sheep” (Job 31:20). The patriarch expects that a needy man’s loins—his very life core—would bless the one who provided warmth. Ministry that girds itself with Christ-like compassion strengthens the inner person of the downtrodden, mirroring the Lord who binds up bruised reeds. Key themes for preaching and teaching • God’s redemptive purposes pass through ordinary human bodies, transforming something as everyday as the waist into a sign of royal destiny. Forms and Transliterations חֲלָצֶ֑יךָ חֲלָצָ֑יו חֲלָצָ֔יו חֲלָצָֽיִם׃ חֲלָצָֽיו׃ חֲלָצָיו֙ חלציו חלציו׃ חלציך חלצים׃ מֵֽחֲלָצֶ֔יךָ מֵחֲלָצֶ֔יךָ מֵחֲלָצֶ֥יךָ מחלציך chalaTzav chalaTzayim chalaTzeicha ḥă·lā·ṣā·yim ḥă·lā·ṣāw ḥă·lā·ṣe·ḵā ḥălāṣāw ḥălāṣāyim ḥălāṣeḵā mê·ḥă·lā·ṣe·ḵā mechalaTzeicha mêḥălāṣeḵāLinks Interlinear Greek • Interlinear Hebrew • Strong's Numbers • Englishman's Greek Concordance • Englishman's Hebrew Concordance • Parallel TextsEnglishman's Concordance Genesis 35:11 HEB: מִמֶּ֑ךָּ וּמְלָכִ֖ים מֵחֲלָצֶ֥יךָ יֵצֵֽאוּ׃ KJV: shall come out of thy loins; INT: at and kings loins shall come 1 Kings 8:19 2 Chronicles 6:9 Job 31:20 Job 38:3 Job 40:7 Isaiah 5:27 Isaiah 11:5 Isaiah 32:11 Jeremiah 30:6 10 Occurrences |
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