Charles Ellicott Commentary Luke 12:35

"Let your loins be girded about, and your lamps burning;" — Luke 12:35 (ASV)

Let your loins be girded . . .—To “gird up the loins” was, in Eastern customs and with Eastern garments, the accepted symbol of readiness for active service (Luke 12:37; Luke 17:8; 1 Kings 18:46; 2 Kings 1:8; John 13:4; 1 Peter 1:13). The “lights” are the lamps which the watchful hold in their hands. What follows is of interest because it presents the germ of the thought which was afterwards developed into the parable of the Wise and Foolish Virgins (See Notes on Matthew 25:1-13).