How many times is sackcloth mentioned in the Bible?
The word sackcloth appears 46 times in the King James Version, in 45 verses. It is found in 19 of the 66 books. The World English Bible uses sackcloth 48 times.
Sackcloth in the King James Version and the World English Bible
Each form of sackcloth counted in each translation.
| Form | KJV | WEB |
|---|---|---|
| sackcloth | 46 | 48 |
| Total | 46 | 48 |
Which books mention sackcloth most
Sackcloth appears in 19 books of the 66 in the King James Version. Isaiah has the most (9), then 1 Kings (4) and Esther (4).
Also in: Daniel (1), Amos (1), Matthew (1), Luke (1).
First and last mention of sackcloth
And Jacob rent his clothes, and put sackcloth upon his loins, and mourned for his son many days.
And I will give power unto my two witnesses, and they shall prophesy a thousand two hundred and threescore days, clothed in sackcloth.
The verse that uses it most is 1 Kings 21:27, 2 times:
And it came to pass, when Ahab heard those words, that he rent his clothes, and put sackcloth upon his flesh, and fasted, and lay in sackcloth, and went softly.
Where the two translations differ
0 verses match in the KJV but not in the World English Bible, and 1 verse matches only in the World English Bible, usually because the other translation chose a different word there.
Nehemiah 9:1: counted in the World English Bible only
Now in the twenty and fourth day of this month the children of Israel were assembled with fasting, and with sackclothes, and earth upon them.
Now in the twenty-fourth day of this month the children of Israel were assembled with fasting, with sackcloth, and dirt on them.
Verses with sackcloth on our topic pages
4 verses that use sackcloth in the World English Bible are in our topic collections.
You have turned my mourning into dancing for me. You have removed my sackcloth, and clothed me with gladness,
On: Comfort, Depression, Joy
But as for me, when they were sick, my clothing was sackcloth. I afflicted my soul with fasting. My prayer returned into my own bosom.
On: Fasting
I set my face to the Lord God, to seek by prayer and petitions, with fasting and sackcloth and ashes.
On: Fasting
The people of Nineveh believed God; and they proclaimed a fast, and put on sackcloth, from their greatest even to their least.
On: Fasting
Common questions
How many times is sackcloth in the Old Testament and the New Testament?
In the King James Version, counting every form, 42 of the 46 uses are in the Old Testament and 4 in the New Testament. Sackcloth appears in 19 books of the 66 in the King James Version. Isaiah has the most (9), then 1 Kings (4) and Esther (4).
Where is sackcloth first mentioned in the Bible?
The first use in the King James Version is Genesis 37:34: "And Jacob rent his clothes, and put sackcloth upon his loins, and mourned for his son many days." The last is Revelation 11:3.
More word counts: pearl, wheat, rock, star, rain, cloud, thorn, chariot, or all 484 words.
Counted by Bible Says About from the full public-domain text of the King James Version (1769 edition) and the World English Bible. Verse text only: headings and psalm titles are left out. A word is a run of letters: a hyphenated name like Beer-sheba counts as two, and an apostrophe stays inside its word (LORD'S is one). Matching ignores capital letters. Data compiled 2026-10-22.