Lesson 8: Breastplate of Righteousness, part 1

Ephesians 6:14 - …and having put on the breastplate of righteousness

Here we see the second piece of supernatural military equipment that God gives us, with the ability to effectively struggle and come out on top in our war against the evil ones. This is WHEN they come at us every single day, not IF. This is the second piece that gives us the ability to stand our ground and not buckle or break under pressure when the dust clears from the battle that we are in. It is called the breastplate of righteousness. The obvious big question is, "What in the world is this Breastplate of Righteousness?" As we saw in previous lessons, the Roman soldier's uniform and his weaponry speaks of a real reality, a real spiritual truth which we need to know today. It was symbolic of something. But the question is, "What is it a picture of?"

The first thing we see is that the Breastplate of Righteousness protects us from all different angles. The original word for this breastplate means “armor in pieces” because it was put together in segments or plates. It covered the chest and shoulders and was made up of four sections, two for shoulders and two for the body, front and back, attached by means of brass hooks which were joined by leather laces. The broad iron or steel strips were fastened to internal leather straps and the strips were then arranged horizontally on the body, overlapping downwards.


This design allowed the armor to be stored very compactly, since it was possible to separate it into four sections each of which would collapse on itself into a compact mass. And since it covered the shoulders and chest area in the front and back, it afforded good protection from spears, missiles, swords, and knife piercings. In fact, the testing of modern replicas of this armor has demonstrated that it was impenetrable to most direct hits.

This breastplate was basically the central piece to the Roman soldier's armor. It protected the whole mid-section, the torso, the whole central part of the body. Without it you could not survive in battle. This is where all your vital organs are! Your heart, your lungs, and so on! You could take a hit in the arm or legs, but without this armor, you were asking for death! You were easy prey, easily defeated! But with it, the enemy's blows to this vital area would just glance right off it. You just keep marching forward as they unsuccessfully tried to bring you down! The breastplate did all this important protection for you. But notice it was not just in the front that it protected you. This is where a lot of people get it wrong. It contained shoulder protection on the top, and on either side of the torso, front and back! Why? Because the enemy is not going to just stab you in the front! Attacks come at you at all angles!

PRAYER: Lord Jesus, show me how I am trying to wear my own righteousness rather than Yours today.