Belo' refers to worn-out garments, old rags, or tattered cloth. The word derives from the verb balah (H1086), "to wear out." It appears in a memorable narrative context where old rags become instruments of both rescue and prophetic symbolism.
The word appears in Jeremiah 38, where Ebed-melech the Ethiopian rescues the prophet Jeremiah from the cistern. He lowered belo' — old rags and worn-out clothes — for Jeremiah to pad the ropes under his arms. This small act of compassion, using the humblest of materials, saved God's prophet. Ebed-melech's use of discarded rags pictures a theological truth: God works salvation through lowly, despised means. The faithful foreigner's kindness earned him a divine promise of protection (Jeremiah 39:15–18).