Koine Foundations

¹⁰ Finally, be made strong in the Lord and in the power of His might. ¹¹ Wear the full armor of God so that you can stand against the schemes of the Devil. ¹² For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the world powers of this dark domain, against the spiritual powers of evil in the heavenly realms. ¹³ For this reason, take up the full armor of God so that you can hold your ground in the evil day, and stand firm because you have made everything ready.

¹⁴ This being the case, take your stand having fastened truth around your waist, wearing the breastplate of righteousness, ¹⁵ and having shod your feet with the readiness that comes from the Good News whose message is peace. ¹⁶ In addition to all these*, having taken up the shield of faith with which you will be able to extinguish all the flaming arrows of the Evil One. ¹⁷ Also receive the helmet of salvation and the sword of the Spirit, which is the Word of God.

¹⁸ Take your stand praying in every situation in the Spirit by means of every kind of prayer and petition, and to this end, staying alert with all perseverance and petition for all the saints. (Ephesians 6:10-18)

*Or perhaps, “In all circumstances…” instead of “In addition to all these…“

---

Word Focus
full armor
πανοπλία / panoplia
<Hear It>

scheme
μεθοδεία / methodeia
<Hear It>

For the next nine posts I will be commenting on Ephesians 6:10 to 18. This is probably the most well know illustration written by Paul in the New Testament – the Armor of God. Paul uses the picture of a Roman soldier preparing for battle to teach about the spiritual conflict in which the Christian is engaged. There are forces at work attempting to defeat and destroy the believer and Paul explains the resources that will assure victory over these forces.

Paul wrote the book of Ephesians to believers who lived in the city of Ephesus – an important commercial city and port on the western coast of Asia Minor (in modern day Turkey). Paul had spent over two years evangelizing and ministering in the city, probably around AD 54 to 56.

The book of Ephesians is actually a letter or epistle that he wrote to these believers about 5 years after he left Ephesus while under house arrest in Rome between AD 60 to 62. He was awaiting the outcome of his appeal to Caesar on false charges of sedition. During his house arrest, Paul was under the custody of Roman guards, which may have inspired his illustration of the Armor of God.

Paul begins this passage by writing:

¹⁰ Finally, be made strong in the Lord and in the power of His might.

As Paul brings his letter to a close, he instructs believers about the resources they need to prevail in the spiritual battle. The victory is already assured because of Christ’s death and resurrection. However, believers will still encounter opposition as they share the Good News and live holy lives in an evil world that opposes God’s values. Spiritual warfare is inevitable and the believer must be prepared.

First, preparation involves having the strength to fight the battle. Paul’s exhortation to “be made strong” is a present passive imperative verb form in Greek. (See Greek Grammar Notes below for an explanation of the Greek imperative.)

• Imperative means this is a command. Success depends on obeying Paul’s instruction.
• Passive implies that the strength is to be drawn from a source outside the believer. Believers do not strengthen themselves, but allow themselves to be empowered. The source of strength is “the Lord” – Jesus Christ. The conduit to receive this strength is being “in” the Lord. The believer’s relationship with Jesus Christ allows the strength to be exercised in his or her life. Anything in the believer’s life that hinders that relationship must be dealt with so that the conduit is unobstructed.
• Present implies that the strengthening must be constant or ongoing. The Greek present imperative often commands an activity that should be ongoing or repeated. Therefore, believers must be constantly empowered by staying constantly in union with Jesus Christ.

The strength that Jesus Christ supplies is described as “the power of His might“. This is the same mighty strength that Paul says God used to raise Jesus Christ from the dead (Ephesians 1:19-20). Its adequacy is not in doubt and nothing less is sufficient.

Second, preparation involves wearing the full armor that is supplied by God. We have no inherent defense against the Devil. Fortunately, in addition to strength, God provides armor for the battle.

¹¹ Wear the full armor of God so that you can stand against the schemes of the Devil.

“Full armor” is the translation of the Greek word πανοπλία / panoplia which refers to the full offensive and defensive equipment of the Roman foot soldier. The Greek historian Polybius (c. 200 BC to c. 118 BC) lists the full equipment as shield, sword, two pila (javelins), helmet, greaves, and breastpiece (Polybius, The Histories, 6.23 – read his full text at this link). Paul does not use the pila and greaves in his illustration in verses 14 to 17.

Regarding the full armor of God:

• Its Extent – It is the full armor. God provides everything that is needed for defense and offense. However, to gain victory everything must be worn – the full armor that is provided. Just as no Roman soldier would ever go into battle without full armor, the believer must wear everything that God provides.
• Its Source – Because the armor is supplied by God, it has divine power. (See 2 Corinthians 10:3-4 where Paul writes about other weapons that have divine power.)
• Its Purpose – The full armor is provided so that the believer can stand in times of battle. Standing is mentioned again in verses 13 and 14, making it the main point of this illustration. In the language of the soldier this is to stand one’s ground or hold one’s position, which also implies prevailing against the enemy. As Andrew T. Lincoln notes in his excellent commentary on Ephesians, “The decisive victory has already been won by God in Christ, and the task of believers is not to win but to stand, that is, to preserve and maintain what has been won. It is because this victory has been won that believers are involved in the battle at all.”¹ They were liberated from the very powers they now stand against.
• Its Opponent – Believers must stand “against the schemes of the Devil“, who is the leader of the opposing forces and the enemy of believers. He cunningly and maliciously plans and implements schemes or tactics (μεθοδεία / methodeia) to deceive believers and lead them away from the faith. The use of this word implies that the Devil often does not attack through head-on assaults. Rather, he is tactically shrewd and attacks when believers are not prepared or not on the alert. In the church he uses the invasion of false teaching to deceive believers to abandon or compromise the truth, and strained relationships that destroy unity.

In the next post I will comment on the spiritual opponents that are involved in the conflict.

¹Lincoln, Andrew T. Word Biblical Commentary, Ephesians. Word Incorporated. 1990. pp. 442-443.

---

Here are links to all the posts for the Armor of God:

The Full Armor of God
Spiritual Opponents
Belt of Truth
Breastplate of Righteousness
Good News Boots
Shield of Faith
Helmet of Salvation
Sword of the Spirit
Pray and Stay Alert

---

Greek Grammar Notes
The Imperative Mood

This is a summary of a complex subject. The Imperative Mood is used to express a command, exhortation, or request. The tense form can be Present Imperative, Aorist Imperative, or Perfect Imperative. However, in the New Testament, imperative verbs are nearly all Present Imperative or Aorist Imperative tense forms. There are only two instances of Perfect Imperative tense forms: Mark 4:39 (“be quiet!”) and Acts 15:29 (“farewell”).

Typically, Present Imperatives are used to express general commands or customary precepts – to enjoin or forbid general behavior whenever appropriate, a characteristic state, or a repeated action whenever the situation demands it. For example: Do not judge, so that you will not be judged. (Matthew 7:1). This command forbids a general behavior and “judge” is a Present Imperative in Greek.

Typically, Aorist Imperatives are used to express specific commands – to enjoin or forbid an action or state in a specific situation. The action may or may not require some period of time to complete. For example: Pilate said to the Jews, “You take Jesus and judge him according to your law.” (John 18:31) This is a specific command by Pilate to the Jewish leaders and “judge” is an Aorist Imperative in Greek.

However, there are other factors that affect the use of Present Imperative vs. Aorist Imperative tense forms such as the inherent meaning of a verb – some verbs are always Present tense (ex., “flee“) or always Aorist tense (ex., “throw“) regardless of the type of command (i.e., general or specific). In addition, it is common for verbs of motion to use Present tense forms (ex., “go“, “walk“), even for specific commands. And it is common Greek usage (Biblical and secular) to use Aorist tense forms in prayers.

Note that the Subjunctive Mood and Future Indicative tense form are also used for commands.

---

Word Focus Lexicon

Lexical Form: ἡ πανοπλία πανοπλίας <Hear It>
Gloss: full armor
Part of Speech: First Declension Feminine Noun
New Testament Frequency: 3
Strong’s Number: G3833 (Link to Blue Letter Bible Lexicon)

Lexical Form: ἡ μεθοδεία μεθοδείας <Hear It>
Gloss: scheme, maneuver, strategy, tactic
Part of Speech: First Declension Feminine Noun
New Testament Frequency: 2
Strong’s Number: G3180 (Link to Blue Letter Bible Lexicon)

---

Bibliography

Bromiley, Geoffrey W. (Editor). Theological Dictionary of the New Testament, Abridged. Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing Company. 1985.
Bruce, F.F. The Epistles to the Colossians, to Philemon, and to the Ephesians (The New International Commentary on the New Testament). Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing Company. 1984.
Danker, Frederick William (Editor). A Greek-English Lexicon of the New Testament and other Early Christian Literature, Third Edition (BDAG). The University of Chicago Press. 2000.
Foulkes, Francis. The Epistle of Paul to the Ephesians (Tyndale New Testament Commentaries). Inter-Varsity Press. 1956.
Gilbrant, Thoralf (Editor). The New Testament Greek-English Dictionary. The Complete Biblical Library. 1990.
Kent Jr., Homer A. Ephesians, The Glory of the Church. Moody Press. 1971.
Lincoln, Andrew T. Word Biblical Commentary, Ephesians. Word Incorporated. 1990.
Salmond, S.D.F. The Expositors Greek Testament, Volume III. Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing Company. 1990.
Stott, John R.W. The Message of Ephesians (The Bible Speaks Today). Inter-Varsity Press. 1979.
Wood, A. Skevington. The Expositor’s Bible Commentary, Volume 11. The Zondervan Corporation. 1978.

Unless otherwise noted, English translations of Bible verses are by the author from the Greek text and are not quotations from any copyrighted Bible version or translation.