The Armour of God is a metaphor from the Bible (Ephesians 6:10-18) for spiritual protection, representing six key spiritual virtues and practices for Christians to use in spiritual battles: the Belt of Truth, Breastplate of Righteousness, Shoes of Peace, Shield of Faith, Helmet of Salvation, and the Sword of the Spirit (the Word of God). It’s depicted using Roman soldiers’ equipment to illustrate how believers can stand firm against evil through God’s strength.

The Six Pieces of the Armour:

• Belt of Truth: Girding oneself with truth to be firm and stand against deceit.
• Breastplate of Righteousness: Protecting the heart (emotions and will) from evil through living righteously.
• Shoes of Peace: Being prepared and ready to share the Gospel of peace, enabling stability.
• Shield of Faith: Using faith to extinguish the fiery darts (temptations, accusations) of the enemy.
• Helmet of Salvation: Protecting the mind (thoughts) with the hope and assurance of Salvation.
• Sword of the Spirit: The Word of God, used both defensively and offensively in spiritual combat.

How to “Put It On”:

Believers are encouraged to actively put on this armour daily through:
Prayer: Communicating with God and asking for His help.
Knowing Scripture: Meditating on and applying God’s Word (the Sword).
Living Righteously: Choosing truth and Righteousness in daily actions.
It’s a call to be spiritually prepared, relying on God’s power to withstand challenges and stand firm against spiritual forces of evil.

The phrase “Armour of God” (Ancient Greek: πανοπλίαν τοῦ Θεοῦ, panoplian tou Theou) is derived from Ephesians 6:11: “Put on the whole armour of God, that ye may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil.” (King James Version). As a biblical reference, the metaphor may refer to physical armour worn by God in metaphorical battles, or it may refer to vigilant Righteousness in general as bestowed by the grace of God (Romans 13:12, King James Version): “The night is far spent, the day is at hand: let us therefore cast off the works of darkness, and let us put on the armour of light.” In Islam, the concept of spiritual armour is best represented by Taqwa (God-consciousness/piety),

The Apostle Paul wrote Ephesians while under house arrest around 61 and 63 CE. Ephesians was not initially addressed to the Church of Ephesians but rather “to the holy ones who are faithful in Christ Jesus”. This was later changed to say “to the holy ones in Ephesus who are faithful in Christ Jesus”. In Chapter 6:10 -18, Apostle Paul focuses on the idea of believers and members of the Church resisting evil and keeping firm in their faith. In these verses, Paul instructs the Church to put on the whole Armour of God to prepare for the spiritual battle coming against Satan and his wiles; however, Scholars have different interpretations of what this means. Some believe that the Armour of God referenced is the same spiritual armour that he and his messiah wore in battle. In contrast, others believe the Armour is Christ himself and equipping oneself would be to metaphorically “put on Christ himself”.

The following biblical texts in Ephesians chapter 6 mention six pieces of armour:

1. helmet
2. breastplate
3. belt
4. footwear
5. shield
6. sword

These pieces are described in Ephesians as follows:

Helmet of Salvation, breastplate of Righteousness, belt/girdle of truth (loins girt with truth), shoes of peace (feet with the preparation of the Gospel of peace), shield of faith and the sword of the Spirit/word of God.

The helmet of Salvation and the breastplate of Righteousness also appear in Isaiah 59:17

The New Testament employs several military metaphors in discussing Christianity, especially in the Pauline epistles.

In Philippians 2:25 and Philemon 1:2, Paul describes fellow Christians as “fellow soldiers” (in Greek, συστρατιώτῃ, sustratiōtē). The image of a soldier is also used in 2 Timothy 2:3–4 as a metaphor for courage, loyalty and dedication; this is followed by the metaphor of an athlete, emphasizing hard work. In 1 Corinthians 9:7, this image is used in a discussion of church workers receiving payment, with a metaphorical reference to a soldier’s rations and expenses.

Ephesians 6:10–18 discusses faith, righteousness, and other elements of Christianity as the armour of God, and John Bunyan echoes this imagery in The Pilgrim’s Progress and by many different Christian writers.

Related imagery appears in hymns such as “Soldiers of Christ, Arise” and “Onward, Christian Soldiers”

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