Thursday,
May 10, 2018 – Ephesians 6:16
The Armor
of God, Pt. 17.
The
Shield of Faith, Pt. 1.
The
Guardianship of Faith.
Grace Fellowship Church
Pastor/Teacher, Jim Rickard
Stand in Warfare –
Eph 6:10-20.
3. The Equipment, vs. 13-17.
Vs. 16
Having noted the first three
pieces of armor, we now turn to the fourth in vs. 16.
Eph 6:16, “In addition to all (the first three
pieces of armor), taking up the shield of faith with which you will be able
to extinguish all the flaming missiles of the evil one.”
It begins with, “In addition to all,” which in the Greek
is simply, EN PAS, ἐν πᾶς in the Dative case. The words “addition to” were
added to emphasize the other parts of the armor of God that the “shield of
faith” is now included with to make up the “full” armor of God.
“Taking up,” is the Verb ANALAMBANO, which we saw in vs. 13, regarding “taking up” the full
armor of God. It is in the Aorist, Active, Participle, Nominative, Plural.
Here, we are to “take up” this piece of equipment to join the other pieces that
we are arming ourselves with. The Culminative Aorist, once again
emphasize completed past action where the results continue today. In vs. 13, it was in the Imperative
mood for a command. Here, the Participle continues that mandate with
this piece of armament. The Active voice in both verses, tells us that
we are the ones to perform this action. It emphasizes our volitional
responsibility, in the non-meritorious act of faith, to take up the weaponry
that God has provided for us found in His Word, so that we can stand firm
against our adversary, Satan.
The piece of equipment we are to
take up here is “the shield,” HO
THUREOS in the Direct Object Accusative case. THUREOS, θυρεός is a military
term that means not just any shield, but a “long shield or large shield.” It is
a hapaxlegomena that means, it is only used here in the NT.
It was designated the shield of
the heavy infantry, large, oblong, and four-cornered, four feet long by two and
a half feet wide. It was made of a metal or wooden frame, with an insert of
metal, leather, or wicker-work, and held on the left arm by means of a handle.
If leather, there were several layers of leather spread over the frame, perhaps
as thick as a hands breadth. Often the leather was soaked in water so as to put
out any flaming arrows hurled by the enemy.
Its cognates THURA and THURIS
mean, “door, gate, or entrance,” referring to a stone for closing the entrance
of a cave or a window, respectfully. Thus, Homer used THUREOS in his writings
for that which is placed in front of the doorway, where in Odyssey, the
character Polyphemus used a THURA as the stone placed in front of his cave,
(“Odyssey,” ix., 240). Therefore, THUREOS is used to describe a large,
door-shaped shield.
The earliest dating of this word
appears to be from papyri of 3 B.C. It also occurs 24 times in the Septuagint.
Eleven times it is used for the Hebrew word TSINNAH that denotes “a large
rectangular protective shield,” which usually covered the entire body. Thirteen
times it is used for the Hebrew MAGHEN that was typically a smaller shield used
by an individual soldier who was active in battle. During the time of the NT,
it commonly referred to the Roman legionary shield that was door-shaped with an
iron frame.
The emphasis of the term is upon
the shield most commonly used by an army in frontline combat. It was a basic
tool of warfare, particularly significant for troops which were in the most
intense fighting. It did not indicate the ornamental shield or armor which was
reserved for those of higher rank.
Paul uses it only here in the NT
to figuratively describe the “shield of faith” that the believer needs to take
up in order to extinguish the flaming arrows / missiles of the enemy, Satan.
So, it is used symbolically of shielding like a door for every believer.
The Roman shield was made from
metal and leather. Yet, the believer’s shield is made up “of faith,” which is HO PISTIS in the Descriptive Genitive case.
PISTIS πίστις can mean, “Faith, trust, trustworthiness, reliability;
confidence, assurance, conviction, belief, or Bible doctrine / the Word of
God.” In classical Greek writings, it denoted the trust one has in another, and
indicated the trustworthiness, reliability, of someone, (i.e., faith in the
object of your faith). Both the noun PISTIS and the verb PISTEUO have a wide
range of usages in the NT.
The basis of faith is the Word of
God and His action in history; thus faith is directed at God Himself. God and
Jesus Christ are the objects of faith, central to the life lived by faith, John 14:1. Jesus is rightly called the
“author (leader, pacesetter) and finisher (perfecter) of our faith,” Heb 12:2.
It is used extensively throughout
the NT, and we have seen it in Eph 1:15;
2:8; 3:12, 17; 4:5, 13. We will see it again in Eph 6:23. In a survey of the usage in Ephesians we see:
Eph 1:15, “For this reason I too, having heard of the faith
in the Lord Jesus which exists among you and your love for all the saints.”
Eph 2:8, “For by grace you have been saved through faith;
and that not of yourselves, it is the gift of God.”
Eph 3:12, “In whom we have boldness and confident access
through faith in Him.”
Eph 3:17, “So that Christ may dwell in your hearts through
faith; and that you, being rooted and grounded in love.”
Eph 4:5, “One Lord, one faith, one baptism.”
Eph 4:13, “Until we all attain to the unity of the faith,
and of the knowledge of the Son of God, to a mature man, to the measure of the
stature which belongs to the fullness of Christ.”
Eph 6:16, “In addition to all, taking up the shield of
faith with which you will be able to extinguish all the flaming arrows of the
evil one.”
Eph 6:23, “Peace be to the brethren, and love with faith,
from God the Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.”
Therefore, those who have faith in
the Lord are commended:
- We
are saved by faith alone in Christ alone, (i.e., our entrance into the
spiritual life by faith).
- Faith
in Christ gives us boldness and confident access to the Father, (i.e., our
prayer life of faith).
- Christ
is at home in the heart of faith, (i.e., our walk in faith).
- We
have One Faith, (i.e., positional unity in
the Body of Christ).
- We
are to attain a unity of faith with the brethren, (i.e., experiential
unity in the body of Christ).
- We
are protected by the shield of faith, (i.e., the guardianship that is
faith).
- God
the Father, the Lord Jesus Christ, and Paul desire us to have faith,
(i.e., their hope of faith for us).
In the Old and New Testaments,
faith has a broad array of application. The LXX uses PISTIS to translate
several Hebrew words including, EMUNAH, AMAN, BATACH, and CHASAH.
It ranges from, “fidelity and
faithfulness,” to the “faithful attitude” toward another human being, and our
relationship with God, Gen 15:6; Ex
14:31; 2 Chron 20:20. It also indicates a trust in God with respect to His
Word and His promises, Joshua 3:5; Psa
106:12, and obedience to His commands, Psa
119:66. It also means, “to rely on, put confidence in,” as well as, “to
seek refuge in.” God is the object in whom trust/confidence/refuge is placed or
sought.
Psa 106:12, “Then they believed His words; They sang His
praise.”
Psa 119:66, “Teach me good discernment and knowledge, For I
believe in Your commandments.”
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