10Finally,
be strong in the Lord and in his mighty power. 11Put on the full
armor of
God, s
o that you can take your stand against the devil’s schemes. 12For our struggle is not against flesh and
blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of
this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly
realms.13Therefore put on the
full armor of God, so that when the day of evil comes, you may be able to stand
your ground, and after you have done everything, to stand. 14Stand firm then, with the belt of truth
buckled around your waist, with the breastplate of righteousness in place,15and with your feet fitted with the
readiness that comes from the gospel of peace. 16In
addition to all this, take up the shield of faith, with which you can
extinguish all the flaming arrows of the evil one.17Take the helmet of salvation and the
sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God.
o that you can take your stand against the devil’s schemes. 12For our struggle is not against flesh and
blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of
this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly
realms.13Therefore put on the
full armor of God, so that when the day of evil comes, you may be able to stand
your ground, and after you have done everything, to stand. 14Stand firm then, with the belt of truth
buckled around your waist, with the breastplate of righteousness in place,15and with your feet fitted with the
readiness that comes from the gospel of peace. 16In
addition to all this, take up the shield of faith, with which you can
extinguish all the flaming arrows of the evil one.17Take the helmet of salvation and the
sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God.
18And
pray in the Spirit on all occasions with all kinds of prayers and requests.
With this in mind, be alert and always keep on praying for all the Lord’s
people.
Recently I made a recording of this Scripture passage so
I could listen to it each morning for strength and fortitude. It also spurred me to look deeper into a
soldier’s armor during Biblical times and what each piece of the armor represents.
A soldier’s belt — or girdle — is a symbol of strength,
activity, and power. It also represents
the exhortation to prepare ourselves for readiness for service.1 In Luke
12:35-38, it is used to exhort us to be watching and preparing for the
Lord’s return:
35Let your loins be girded about, and your lights
burning;36And ye yourselves like unto men that wait for their
lord, when he will return from the wedding; that when he cometh and knocketh,
they may open unto him immediately. 37Blessed are those
servants, whom the lord when he cometh shall find watching: verily I say unto
you, that he shall gird himself, and make them to sit down to meat, and will
come forth and serve them. 38And if he shall come in
the second watch, or come in the third watch, and find them so, blessed are
those servants. (KJV)
The breastplate protected the soldier’s heart and had to be
supported by the girdle (the belt of truth). As believers, we
are not immune to spiritual warfare. At times we groan with fear or feelings of
defeat or doubt. Those who look to
Scripture as just a salve for soothing uncomfortable emotions may experience continued discouragement. Our true strength comes from the promises in God’s Word concerning Christ Jesus’ return
for us and the establishment of His Millennial Kingdom. Our emotions will falter, but His truth is unfailing.
The shield was the ancient soldier’s chief defensive weapon
and was large enough to cover the entire body.1 The first time shield is mentioned is in Genesis 15:1 and it speaks of God’s
protection:
After
this, the word of the Lord came to Abram in a
vision:“Do not be afraid, Abram. I am your shield, your very great reward.” (NIV, emphasis mine)
The sword was suspended from the girdle and was the soldier's offensive weapon.1 God’s Word — the sword of the spirit — is
our offensive weapon against Satan. Hebrews 4:12 tells us that the Word of God is quick and powerful and
sharper than any two-edged sword, which was commonly carried by Greek and Roman soldiers.1 Unlike a single-edge sword, a two-edged sword
was primarily used for piercing (see Hebrews
4:12).2 When Jesus was
tempted by Satan in the desert, the Word of God was His strong weapon (Matthew 4:1-11).
David's helmet was made of brass when he conquered Goliath (1 Samuel 17:38). Other times it was made of quilted linen
cloth, iron, and bronze.1 In Isaiah 59:17,
Jehovah is represented as arming Himself for the defense of man:1
17For he put on righteousness
as a breastplate, and a helmet of
salvation upon his head; and he put on the garments of vengeance for
clothing, and was clad with zeal as a cloak. (KJV, emphasis mine)
Some commentators believe that the
helmet of salvation represents the crowning act of God.1 I think it also represents our ability to understand and discern God’s Word, which is only possible when we believe in Jesus Christ and receive the Holy Spirit.
1 Samuel 17:6 describes Goliath wearing greaves of brass upon his legs, which led to a kind of half
boot that was made of leather and studded with strong nails.1 There are only two mentions of the gospel of
peace in Scripture: Romans 10:15 and
Ephesians 6:15. Some say it represents the spreading of the
good news of Jesus Christ. But I wonder
if it represents spreading the message of the true and lasting peace that will only
come when the Lord returns to establish His earthly Kingdom?
We are living in troubled times and the days are growing darker by the minute. Despite knowing the end of the story — and God's ultimate victory over Satan — as long as we are still
here, we are vulnerable to attack from the
rulers, authorities, powers of this dark world, and the spiritual forces of
evil in the heavenly realms.
God has lovingly given us His full armor for
that very reason.
1. Merril
F. Unger and R.K. Harris, ed. The New Unger’s Bible Dictionary (Chicago, IL: The Moody Bible Institute,
1988), 104-107.
2. Arms and Armor. Holman Bible Dictionary. Available at: www.studylight.org.
