321. Token of Abasement

1 Kings 20:32
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1 Kings 20:32. So they girded sackcloth on their loins, and put ropes on their heads, and came to the king of Israel.
This was a sign of deep abasement and submission. It was a Persian custom for persons desiring clemency from the sovereign to approach him with a sword suspended from the neck. The same practice has also been noticed in Egypt. Harmer suggests that these servants of Ben-hadad appear before Ahab with ropes around their necks from which their swords hung. Others suppose that these ropes were halters.