In the Old Testament, a person who was in despair, or mourning, or facing hardship, or expressing repentance before God would often wear sackcloth under their clothes. From the Hebrew word sak, sackcloth is defined as a loose-fitting sack with a course texture. Imagine punching a few holes in one of those big potato sacks and wearing it underneath your clothes. I'm sure you can imagine how uncomfortable that would be. The discomfort of the sackcloth, much like fasting, not only provided a constant reminder of the individual's distress, it directed their minds towards God. At least, this is my understanding of the purpose of sackcloth.
In 2 Kings 6:30-31, we find an example of the King of Israel wearing sackcloth under his clothes. The king, although not named anywhere in the immediate context, is surely King Jehoram, the son of Ahab (2 Kings 3:1 --> 2 Kings 8:16). He was a wicked king whose 12-year reign coincided with the work and ministry of Elisha the prophet.
Now let's consider the text I mentioned a moment ago. To provide some context, the land of Israel was dealing with a severe famine (1 Kings 6:25). The famine was so severe that two women came to the king with the horrific news that they had resorted to boiling and eating their own sons (vs. 26-29). Notice Jehoram's reaction...
"Now it happened, when the king heard the words of the woman that he tore his clothes; and as he passed by on the wall, the people looked, and there underneath he had sackcloth on his body. Then he said, 'God do so to me and more also, if the head of Elisha the son of Shaphat remains on him today'" (vs. 30-31).
Jehoram was clearly disturbed by this disgusting news from the women, and the fact that he wore sackcloth beneath his clothes indicates (1) that he had some religious leanings, and (2) he wasn't flaunting those religious leanings, which, if interpreted in the best light, emphasizes a sense of private devotion and humility before God.
However, though the sackcloth covered his body, it couldn't cover his heart. Notice how he cursed Elisha, the prophet of God, and vowed to sever Elisha's head from his body that very day! The king's true character is seen in this statement. Jehoram's sackcloth was a sham!
There is a valuable lesson here for us...
We may go through the motions of religion. We may even endure discomfort in the name of faith. There may even be a sense in which we see ourselves as humble and devout. And yet none of that matters if our hearts are filled with hatred and bitterness. No matter how hard we may try to convince ourselves that we respect God, our outward acts of piety, even though they be many in number, cannot forever suppress the leanings of a wicked heart. This glaring hypocrisy is sometimes seen even among our brethren who, like Jehoram, go through the motions of piety all the while expressing hatred and/or disdain for other saints of God, who harbor ill-will in their hearts, who gossip maliciously about others in the church, and who run from one church to another at the slightest offense (an unloving response).
Please remember that if the sackcloth only covers your body and not your heart, you're no better than wicked King Jehoram who cursed the prophet Elisha! Woe to the Christian who is guilty of such a Sackcloth Sham.
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