Putting on the Whole Armor of God (Ephesians 6:10-18)

¹⁰Finally, be strong in the Lord and in his mighty power. ¹¹Put on the full 

armor of God, so 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.