The Helmet and the Sword

“...and take the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God.” - Ephesians 6:17

We come now to the last two pieces of armor that a soldier would take up before battle. The Roman helmet was made of bronze fitted over an iron skull cap lined with leather or cloth; it had a band to protect the forehead, plates for the cheeks, and extended down in back to protect the neck. Strapped into place, the helmet exposed little besides the eyes, nose and mouth. Virtually the only weapons which could penetrate it were hammers or axes.

With the impressive coverage of both the shield and helmet, one would expect that the “sword” Paul refers to here is some kind of broadsword, but in fact it was the machaira, a short sword or dagger, a “cut and thrust weapon for close work.” Similarly, the term Paul uses here for “word” is not logos, which refers to generalized messages and statements, but rhema, which refers to individual words or particular statements. One commentator writes, “While logos embraces nearly everything, rhema has a slighter weight. It really means ‘a saying,’ in this case, a particular, specific portion of God's written revelation.”

The armor we wear tells us about the nature of the attacks we face. We have shields that protect against long-range attacks, but often the battle is closer. Paul says we “wrestle” against the powers of darkness: this is the same type of wrestling we know today, a body-to-body grappling in which opponents attempt to throw each other down. We must “take” the helmet and the sword: that verb is in a Greek tense which suggests urgency, more like “grab.” We must grab the salvation God offers, we must have a precise knowledge and understanding of specific truths from the Bible, lest we be thrown when our fights with evil come close. What specific verse do you have with you today? Do you have hope in the helmet of salvation (1 Thessalonians 5:8)? Even if you've had losses in the past, will you get back up, take up the armor, and fight again?