They gird themselves with sackcloth means they will put on clothes made of rough material as a sign of grief. In ancient Israel people did this in times of national calamity as well as for personal mourning. Sackcloth was a coarse material of goat or camel hair. Some cultures have special clothing or other articles that are worn during times of mourning, or special ways of painting the body. If so, this expression may be adapted to fit the local customs. This clause may be rendered “To show their grief, they will put on clothing made from very rough cloth” or “They will put on mourning clothes.”

And horror covers them; shame is upon all faces, and baldness on all their heads: The picture of putting on clothes continues here, but now it is metaphorical. Horror covers them means they will tremble because of extreme fear. Shame is upon all faces means they will be ashamed of their sins. Translators may say “on their faces you will see how ashamed they are,” “their faces will show their shame,” or simply “they will be ashamed.” Baldness on all their heads means they all will shave their heads to show that they are in mourning. If it is difficult for a language to maintain the clothing metaphor in these three clauses, it is acceptable to say “They will tremble all over with fear. They will be very ashamed. They all will shave their heads to show that they are in mourning.”

Quoted with permission from Gross, Carl & Stine, Philip C. A Handbook on Ezekiel. (UBS Helps for Translators). Miami: UBS, 2016. For this and other handbooks for translators see here .