Armor; Armour

Concise Bible Dictionary:

None of the Hebrew words translated “armor” refer definitely to what is understood now by armor worn on the person. Saul armed David with his “armor” (1 Sam. 17:38), but the word used is also translated “clothes,” and it may refer to Saul’s warrior-dress. The articles named are somewhat more definite.
1. Saul put on David a HELMET of “brass.” These were raised a little above the head, as may be seen by some of the sculptures from Nineveh (1 Sam. 17:38; Ezek. 23:24); the word is goba. Another word, koba, meaning the same, is found in 1 Samuel 17:5; 2 Chronicles 26:14; Isaiah 59:17; Jeremiah 46:4; Ezek. 27:10; and Ezekiel 38:5.
2. COAT OF MAIL. Saul put on David a “Coat of Mail,” shiryon (1 Sam. 17:5, 38). This word is translated HABERGEON in 2 Chronicles 26:14 and Nehemiah 4:16, which also signifies “coat of mail,” and there is a similar word in Job 41:26. It was made of brass scales fastened together. The weight of Goliath’s coat of mail was 5,000 shekels.
3. GREAVES. The giant wore Greaves of brass upon his legs (1 Sam. 17:6). The word is mitschah, and occurs nowhere else.
4. TARGET. He had a target of brass between his shoulders (1 Sam. 17:6): the word is kidon, and is elsewhere translated both “shield” and “spear.” In this case it was probably a small spear carried between the shoulders.
5. SHIELD. A shield was carried before him. This was a tsinnah, a shield of large size to protect the whole body, with a large boss in the center rising to a point which could be used as a weapon. It is employed figuratively for God’s protecting care of His people (Psa. 5:12; Psa. 91:4). The same word is translated BUCKLER (Psa. 35:2; Ezek. 23:24; Ezek. 26:8).
Another word is used for a smaller shield, magen, and this is the word which occurs most commonly in the Old Testament, especially in the Psalms, referring to God’s protection (Psa. 28:7; Psa. 33:20; Psa. 84:11; Psa. 119:114). The same word is translated BUCKLER (2 Sam. 22:31; 1 Chron. 5:18; Song of Sol. 4:4; Jer. 46:3).
The word shelet is translated “shield,” but is also applied to shields of gold (2 Sam. 8:7), and those suspended for ornament (Ezek. 27:11). It occurs also in 2 Kings 11:10; 1 Chronicles 18:7; 2 Chronicles 23:9; Song of Solomon 4:4 and Jeremiah 51:11.
In the New Testament “armor” is used symbolically.
1. ὅπλα, in contrast to “the works of darkness” we are exhorted to put on “the armor of light” (Rom. 13:12). Paul and his fellow-laborers commended themselves as God’s ministers by the “armor, or arms, of righteousness on the right hand and on the left” (2 Cor. 6:7).
2. παναπλἰα, “whole armor.” One stronger than Satan takes away all his “armor” (Luke 11:22). The Christian is exhorted to put on the “whole armor of God,” the panoply, that he may stand in the evil day in his conflict with the spiritual powers of wickedness in the heavenlies (Eph. 6:11, 13). See BREASTPLATE, HELMET, etc.

“251. Helmets Cuirasses” From Manners and Customs of the Bible:

1 Samuel 17:5. He had an helmet of brass upon his head, and he was armed with a coat of mail.
1. In the earliest times helmets were made of osier or rushes, and were in the form of bee-hives or skull-caps. The skins of the heads of animals were sometimes used. Various other materials were employed at different times. The ancient Egyptian helmet was usually made of linen cloth quilted. It was thick and well padded, sometimes coming down to the shoulder, and sometimes only a little below the ear. The cloth used was colored green, or red, or black. The helmet had no crest, but the summit was an obtuse point ornamented with two tassels. The Assyrian helmet was a cap of iron terminating above in a point, and sometimes furnished with flaps, covered with metal scales and protecting the neck. The Philistine helmet, as represented on ancient monuments, was of unique form. From the head-band there arose curved lines, by which the outline of the helmet was hollowed on the sides and rounded on top.
Goliath’s helmet was doubtless of this shape, and, being made of brass, must have presented a beautiful appearance. The form of the Hebrew helmets is unknown; but they probably did not vary widely from the Egyptian. As is seen in verse 38 they were sometimes made of brass. The helmet is also mentioned in 2 Chronicles 26:14; Jeremiah 46:4; Ezekiel 23:24; 27:10; 38:5.
2. For the body, the skins of bents were probably the earliest protection in battle. Felt or quilted linen was also used subsequently. The ancient Egyptians had horizontal rows of metal plates well secured by brass pins. The ancient Assyrians had scales of iron fastened on felt or linen. Iron rings closely locked together were likewise used by different nations. Scales made of small pieces of horn or hoof were also used. Sometimes a very serviceable armor was made of small plates of metal, each having a button and a slit, fitting into the corresponding slit and button of the plate next to it. It is supposed that Ahab had on armor of this sort when he was slain; the “joints of the harness” being the grooves or slits in the metallic plates, or the place between, where they did not overlap (1 Kings 22:34; 2 Chron. 18:33). Goliath’s “coat of mail” was scale armor (shiryon kaskassim, “armor of scales”). This kind of armor consisted of metallic scales rounded at the bottom and squared at the top, and sewed on linen or felt. The Philistine corselet covered the chest only. On the bas-relief at Nineveh are seen warriors with coats of scale armor which descend to the knees or ankles. In one of the palaces Mr. Layard discovered a number of the scales used for this armor. Each scale was of iron two to three inches long, rounded at one end and squared at the other, with a raised or embossed line in the center, and some were inlaid with copper. At a later period the Assyrian armor was made of smaller scales, which were pointed and ornamented with raised figures, and the coat of mail reached no lower than the waist.
In several passages shiryon is rendered in our version “habergeon.” See 2 Chronicles 26:14; Nehemiah 4:16.
The lorica of the Romans end the thorax of the Greeks—rendered “breastplate” in Ephesians 6:14 and 1 Thessalonians 5:8—were scale armor covering breast and back.

“252. Greaves Javelin” From Manners and Customs of the Bible:

1 Samuel 17:6. He had greaves of brass upon his legs, and a target of brass between his shoulders.
1. Greaves were coverings for the legs. There are none represented on the Egyptian monuments, but they are seen on the Assyrian sculptures. They were of leather, wood, or, as in the case of Goliath, of brass, and were bound by thongs around the calves and above the ankles.
2. Kidon, here rendered “target,” is translated by the word “shield” in verse 45 of this chapter, and in Job 39:23; “spear” in Joshua 8:18, 26; Job 41:29; Jeremiah 6:23; and “lance” in Jeremiah 50:42. It was probably a light javelin, which could be easily hurled at an enemy. Some suppose it to have been decorated with a flag, like the lances of the Polish lancers. It would seem from this verse that when not in actual use it was carried on the back; for this is the meaning of “between the shoulders.” It was probably slung across he shoulders by means of a leathern strap.

“253. Spear Large Shield.” From Manners and Customs of the Bible:

1 Samuel 17:7 The staff of his spear was like a weaver’s beam; and his spear’s head weighed six hundred shekels of iron: and one bearing a shield went before him.
1. The chanith, “spear,” was a heavier weapon than the kidon. See preceding note. The word is rendered both “spear,” and “javelin.” It was the chanith with which Saul endeavored to strike David (1 Sam. 18:10-11; 19:9-10) and which at another time he aimed at Jonathan (1 Sam. 20:33). This heavy spear had at its lower extremity a point by which it could be stuck into the ground. It was in this way that the position of Saul was naked while he lay sleeping in the camp at Hachilah, his spear being his standard (1 Sam. 26:7). This lower point of the spear was almost as formidable as the head. The Arab riders of today sometimes use it to strike backward at pursuers, and it was with this “hinder end of the spear” that Abner killed Asahel (2 Sam. 2:23). The size of Goliath’s chanith, is expressed by the description of the staff and of the head; the latter being of iron, in contrast to the brass head of his kidon, and to his brazen helmet, cuirass, and greaves. See also note on Jeremiah 46:4 (#555).
2. The tsinnah, “shield,” was the largest kind of shield, and was designed to protect the whole body. This shield, as represented on the Egyptian monuments, was about five feet high, with a pointed arch above and square below. The great shield of the Assyrians, as is shown by their sculptures, was taller, and of an oblong shape, and sometimes had at the top an inward curve. The large shields were generally made of wicker work or of light wood covered with hides. They were grasped by a handle of wood or of leather. Goliath had man to bear his great shield before him. In the Assyrian sculptures there are representations of warriors fighting in this manner, with men before them holding the large shields, with the bottom resting on the ground, thus forming movable breastworks. The great shields of the Philistines seem to have been of circular shape.
The beauty of the figure used in Psalm 5:12 is heightened by the fact that the tsinnah is the shield there spoken of. The Lord uses the great buckler for the protection of his people.

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