Ephesians 6:14

This verse begins the eighth long sentence in this epistle, and it runs through Ephesians 6:20 (cf. Ephesians 1:3-23; Ephesians 2:1-7; Ephesians 3:1-19; Ephesians 4:1-7; Ephesians 4:11-16). The main verbs in this sentence are "stand" (Ephesians 6:14) and "take" (Ephesians 6:17). They are imperatives denoting urgency (cf. Ephesians 6:11; Ephesians 6:13). Four participles follow in Ephesians 6:14-16 that describe how to stand.

Isaiah described God as a soldier (cf. Isaiah 11:5; Isaiah 59:17; Isaiah 52:7; Isaiah 49:2). Paul may have had these descriptions in mind, but he probably used this figure to describe God’s protection because armored Roman infantrymen were commonplace throughout the empire. One may have been guarding Paul when he wrote this epistle (cf. Acts 28:16). Everyone knew what they looked like.

Paul described the items that the Roman infantryman wore in the order in which he would have put them on. He first put on, over his short tunic (shirt), a belt that would hold both the breastplate and scabbard in place. The "truth" could refer to both God’s revealed truth that the Christian has believed and the Christian’s own truthfulness, specifically a lifestyle that reflects the truth. Full truth is the only adequate basis for a defense against Satan (cf. Ephesians 4:25).

"A man of integrity, with a clear conscience, can face the enemy without fear. The girdle also held the sword. Unless we practice the truth, we cannot use the Word of truth. Once a lie gets into the life of a believer, everything begins to fall apart. For over a year, King David lied about his sin with Bathsheba, and nothing went right." [Note: Wiersbe, 2:58.]

"People of that time did not normally wear a belt in the house, but when they faced some vigorous action such as running, or when a soldier was preparing for battle, they raised their loose robes above the knees and fastened them in place with a belt . . . Thus the ’girding’ of the loins meant preparation for physical activity or, as here, for engaging in conflict." [Note: Morris, p. 205.]

Likewise righteous conduct seems to be in view as well as the righteousness of Christ that becomes ours at regeneration. The breastplate covered the soldier’s body from the neck to the thighs. It was usually bronze or chain mail. [Note: Wood, p. 87.] It had a back piece, but it was the front part that gave it its name.