The Bible Book

302

PUT ON THE

FULL ARMOR

OF GOD

EPHESIANS 6:11, ARMOR OF GOD

T

he author of Ephesians

uses fierce military imagery

to convey his view that

believers face all-out warfare in the

fight against evil. It is a struggle

populated not with human foes at

the earthly level, but with powerful

and malevolent supernatural

beings—the scheming devil and

the hierarchy of “spiritual forces

of evil in the heavenly realms”

(Ephesians 6:12).

For believers, however, God’s

power is greater. Drawing on the

Old Testament prophet Isaiah,

who depicts God putting on

“righteousness as His breastplate,

and the helmet of salvation on His

head” (Isaiah 59:17), Ephesians

describes the “full armor of God”

(Ephesians 6:11) that believers, too,

can and must adorn to take their

stand “against the rulers, against

the authorities, against the powers

of this dark world” (Ephesians 6:12).

The Ephesian audience

As with all New Testament

writings, Ephesians is addressing

believers in a particular context.

The Ephesians live in a region

of Asia Minor whose chief city,

Ephesus, is famous for magical

practices associated with the

goddess Artemis. For them,

as for the area’s Jewish converts,

the world has two dimensions—

earthly and heavenly—and the

heavenly realm includes fearsome

forces of evil as well as of good.

Ephesians in no way denies this

vision of things—it simply puts

this idea into a wider perspective

by asserting the supreme power

St. Michael the Archangel dons

full armor in his victorious battle

against Satan in the book of Revelation.

This painting, composed in the early

16th century, is by an unknown artist.

IN BRIEF

PA S SAGE

Ephesians 6:10–20

THEME

The protection of God

SETTING

c. 61–62 ce Ephesus The

Ephesian letter was probably

written for churches in

western Asia Minor, of which

the church in Ephesus was the

largest and most important.

KEY FIGURES

Author of Ephesians Early

Christians believed this to be

Paul. Some modern scholars

argue that it is more likely to

be one of his disciples.

Readers The recipients of

the letter were mostly Gentile

converts to Christianity.

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303

See also: The Nature of Faith 236–41 ■ The Crucifixion 258–65 ■ The Road to Emmaus 272–73 ■

The Power of the Resurrection 304–05 ■ The Final Judgment 316–21

ACTS, EPISTLES, AND REVELATION

The Armor of God

According to Ephesians, the

conflict with Satan is a spiritual one.

Thus, one requires a full complement

of spiritual weapons to use against

him and other evils.

Sword of

the Spirit

(6:17)

Feet fitted with

peace (6:15)

Belt of truth

(6:14)

Helmet of

salvation

(6:17)

Breastplate of

righteousness

(6:14)

Shield

of faith

(6:16)

Ephesus Standing on the Aegean coast^

of Asia Minor (roughly modern

Turkey), Ephesus was an

intellectual and cultural hub of

up to 250,000 people and capital

of the Roman province of Asia.

The city was also an important

religious center renowned for

magical practices, mystery cults,

and, above all, the worship of

Artemis, Greek goddess of woods

and hunting and the most

venerated deity of Asia Minor.

Her temple at Ephesus was one

of the seven wonders of the

ancient world and the largest

Greek temple ever built.

According to the Book of Acts,

Paul visited Ephesus twice.

He most likely founded the

community of Christian

believers there on a brief visit

during his second missionary

journey. Later, during his third

mission, Paul spent more than

two years in the city before

he and his companions were

forced to leave—their ministry

success triggered a riot among

silversmiths, who saw them

as a threat to their livelihood,

which depended on making

devotional offerings to the

goddess Artemis.

of God and the authority of the risen

Christ seated “at His right hand in

the heavenly realms, far above all

rule and authority, power, and

dominion” (Ephesians 1:20–21).

Standing firm

Just as God’s power has raised

Christ from the dead, so it has also

raised believers from their pagan

practices. Even so, Ephesians says,

the world and believers are in an

interim state. There is a fullness

yet to come—a further, definitive

stage in history “when the times

reach their fulfillment” and unity

will be brought to “all things in

heaven and on earth under Christ”

(Ephesians 1:10).

Until this happens, believers

are still vulnerable to the ever-

active forces of spiritual evil. For

this reason, they need to “be strong

in the Lord” (6:10), emphasizing

their complete reliance on God

when cultivating courage. Believers

are instructed to put on the “full

armor” of God and stand firm—

a command that is repeated in

Ephesians three times.

The full armor of God is stated

as including truthfulness,

righteousness, salvation, peace,

and faith. Ultimately, Ephesians

is about resisting the assaults of

temptation—originating in both

the individual’s sinful nature and the

spiritual forces of evil—and living

one’s daily life in a truly Christian

way by being moral, honorable,

and loving. ■

Stand firm then,

with the belt of truth

buckled around your waist,

with the breastplate of

righteousness in place,

and with your feet

fitted with ... peace.

Ephesians 6:14–15

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