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Ephesians 6:12-13
As Paul comes to the conclusion of his general letter to the Asian assemblies, we have learned that Paul
was summing up his letter by making an exhortation to the assemblies. Last week, we began to look into
what Paul was actually calling believers in the assemblies to do; to stand against the wiles of the devil.
Paul uses a metaphor of warfare here, with soldiers in a battalion, who are to put on all of their armor, and
to stand together against an enemys deceptions. Now last week, we had some questions which helped us
begin to define exactly what Paul was saying. Lets review some of the answers to these questions.
Who is the enemy? Satan is the enemy. As well see today, there are others who are in league with him.
What is the conflict? The conflict is a war between God and Satan. Where does the war take place? It is a
spiritual conflict, but it takes place on earth.
What is at stake, in this conflict? The souls of men unregenerate men. And clearly, believers are
involved in the conflict, as Paul is directing this metaphor to those in the assemblies who believe. Today
well begin to explore just what our involvement is.
First, well read the passage about the conflict together again.
[Ephesians 6:10-18]
If you were to choose one word that Paul used in this passage, to describe what it is that he is exhorting the
believers to do, what word would that be? Stand; he uses this word, or a form of it, no less than four times
(v. 11, 13 (twice), 14).
But Paul is not instructing each believer to stand alone. In verses 11, 13, and 16 where Paul uses the
personal pronoun you, it is in the plural form, in the Greek, which is not reflected in English. What this
tells us is that Paul is addressing the believers in the assemblies as a collective. They are to stand together
against the wiles of the devil.
In the context of Pauls military metaphor, to stand means to stand fast against an enemy. It does not
mean to gain ground, but simply not to lose ground; to hold the position. To stand means that there must be
no retreat, and no surrender. Would the command to stand include the idea of attacking as well? No; not of
attacking, but of being attacked. Its a defensive position which an army would assume if it were being
assaulted by enemy forces.
Paul describes these enemy forces, in verse 12; the legions who are in league with the devil, in this war
against God.
v. 12 Notice the change of pronouns in this verse; the only verse of the metaphor in which Paul does this.
What pronoun does he use? We. Paul is now including himself in the metaphor. But its not just Paul or
he would have said I. Its Paul, and those he is writing to; he might also have said, you and I. Paul is
involved in this conflict, as well.
The word wrestle in this context is referring to the hand-to-hand combat of soldiers; a struggle between
individual combatants in distinction from an entire military campaign. While Paul is making it clear that
they must stand together, as a collective, this emphasizes the individuals responsibility to hold their
position in the battle line.

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This type of hand-to-hand combat featured trickery and deception, while the combatants maneuvered to try
to gain the advantage. But there would be times when the struggle came down to brute force, as well. So
both guile and power were involved in this kind of warfare; and it was obviously a life and death contest.
Who is it that Paul and the believers wrestle against? Paul says, not flesh and blood. Paul makes it clear
that he is not speaking of a physical struggle with other men.
Who is this struggle against? Paul names four categories of beings that are not flesh and blood. Pauls
description of them clearly identifies them as spiritual beings angelic beings.
Now, in that they are allied with the devil, in the war against God for the souls of men, would these be
Gods holy angels? No. These are the devils angels, who joined him in his rebellion against God, which
we reviewed last week.
The book of Revelation tells us a little about these angels. Turn to Revelation chapter 12.
In this part of the Revelation, the signs given to John are derived from the gospel in the stars, with which
John would have been familiar. He would certainly have been able to identify who the woman, the dragon
and the male Child were, in the signs. What I want you to see relates to the dragon, who in verse 9 is
identified as the Devil; Satan.
[Revelation 12:1-9]
v. 1 The description of this woman makes it very clear that she represents the nation Israel, the nation God
made for Himself. The sun (s-u-n) in the sign represents the Son of God, the Christ. Throughout history,
Israels existence has always been wrapped up in her Messiah the woman, clothed with the sun.
The moon reflects the light of the sun, in times of darkness. The moon in the sign represents the Word
given to Israel the Law and the Prophets all of which spoke of the Christ reflected Light. The
Messiah, revealed in the Word, has always been Israels standing the moon is under her feet and it is her
only standing. The twelve stars represent the twelve tribes of Israel, confirming the womans identity (Gen
37:9).
The next verse relates to what will be happening to the woman during the Great Tribulation.
v. 2 This is the travail prophesied by Isaiah concerning Israel. That travail will be the Great Tribulation
(the last 3 year period of the 7-year Tribulation), after which the nation will be born in a day, a regenerate
nation (Is 66:7-8).
In that day, every single Jew left alive will believe into Jesus as their Messiah. This is the child that will
be born to Israel, in the end; but it will come out of horrific persecution and suffering. The one who will
cause that suffering is described next.
v. 3 The dragons identity is confirmed in verse 9 as the devil; Satan. His color is emblematic of blood,
indicating the bloodshed for which he has been responsible, down through the ages; he was a murderer
from the beginning (Jn 8:44).

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The seven crowned heads represent heads of state; rulers of world empires down through history, whom
Satan operated through, via his world system. The ten horns, representing ten powers, return us to the
Tribulation, when there will be a democratic coalition of ten powers that will dominate the world system,
which we believe to be the European Union. So in the sign, we see both Satan and his world system
represented.
The revelation then continues with a flashback. This flashback goes to the beginning of time, and then
jumps ahead to the time of Christ. The purpose of the flashback is to reveal the enmity of Satan against
God and His Christ.
v. 4a Perhaps you might recall from last week that morning stars is a term in Scripture used for angelic
beings (Job 38:7). Here they are represented in the sign as stars of heaven. Remember that angels are
spirits; they do not have a physical, earthly form; a body.
The dragon drew some of the angels with his tail, and threw them to the earth. When Satan rebelled against
God, aspiring to be like the most High God, he drew one third of the angelic host with him, by his
deceptions. They were drawn by his tail; that is, they followed him.
Where did they go? They left the highest heaven, the home of God, because having sinned, they were no
longer holy, and could not continue in Gods presence. Their primary sphere of operation became the
physical heavens; the atmosphere of earth, and space. That is their current base of operations.
But we see that the dragon threw them to the earth, because that is where they execute his agenda, among
men. Remember the first part of Satans goal, to be like the most High God, is to possess the earth; to have
the rule over it. His angels, which are also called demons or evil spirits, are helping him to carry out his
goal which we know will never be realized.
Keep in mind that if Satan persuaded a third of the angels to follow him, that still leaves two-thirds of the
angelic host loyal to God; and that number is fixed, on both sides. Even in terms of just the numbers,
Satans forces are outnumbered two-to-one. In addition, Satan is limited in power, in wisdom, in ability.
And God is not.
v. 4b-5 You can see the malice of the enemy, in this graphic illustration. Clearly, the child in these verses
is the Christ; the male Child who was born to Israel, the One who would rule all nations with a rod of iron
(Ps 2:8-9) so much for Satan possessing the earth!
Remember that when Satan acted through the serpent in the garden to usher sin and death into the world, he
was effectively declaring war against God. Right after that, the LORD God spoke a prophecy to the serpent,
showing that Satan would lose that war, and his bid to be like the Most High God.
What was that prophecy? I will put enmity between you the serpent and the woman Israel; between
your seed, and her Seed speaking of the Christ. He the Christ will crush your head; and you the
serpent will crush His heel (Gen 3:15). It is Satans objective to see that this prophecy, which speaks of
his utter demise his head crushed never comes to pass.
This is what is represented in the dragon standing before the woman, ready to devour her Child.
Throughout Scripture, we can trace the attempts of the enemy to thwart Gods plan, so that the One who
would be the Headcrusher, the Christ, would never be born.

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Attempts to corrupt the human race from within (Gen 6:1-4) and without (Gen 6:5-7). Attempts to
reinterpret the story in the stars (Gen 11:1-4). Attempts to prevent Israel from coming into being (Gen
34:8-10). Attempts to destroy Israel (Esther 3:6). Attempts to kill Jesus as a baby, once He was born (Mt
2:16).
And did Satan succeed? No. The sign here in Revelation simply records that the Child was born, and was
caught up to God and His throne, speaking of the incarnation of Jesus, and His ascension back to heaven.
The point is that God accomplished His purpose in Christ, and the attempts of the enemy to prevent this
failed; the Headcrusher came, and the prophecy would be fulfilled.
The next verse brings us back to the action in verse 2, during the Great Tribulation.
v. 6 One thousand two hundred sixty days is 3 years; the second half of the 7-year Tribulation. So this
occurs in the middle of the Tribulation, when the tribulation becomes great, particularly for the woman
Israel, as the Beast persecutes the Jews with a vengeance (Rev 13:7).
Those Jews in Israel who are to survive will first flee to the mountains (Mt 24:16), then into the wilderness,
possibly Petra (in Jordan). The Jews throughout the world will also be severely persecuted, and will flee
into a different wilderness (Rev 12:14) as Ezekiel prophesied, a wilderness of peoples (Ez 20:35),
speaking of friendly Gentile nations. Those who do not flee and find refuge will perish.
Thats what will be happening on earth. Now the Revelation returns to the scene in heaven.
v. 7-9 Michael is an archangel, or chief prince (Dan 10:13). Daniel calls him the great prince who stands
watch over the sons of your people (Dan 12:1), meaning the Jews. So we might take it that this order of
angels has responsibility for a nation of people; in this case, Israel. You can read about this in Daniel
chapters 10 and 12.
We also see that there is a ranking among the angels; there are angels that answer to Michael. By the
parallelism, it would seem that the dragon Satan had a similar ranking to Michael, with angels that
answer to him.
In the Revelation, war broke out in heaven, with the opposing angelic forces contesting with one another.
And which side won? Gods side; Michael and his angels cast the devil and his angels out of heaven, to the
earth.
Now, as mentioned before, the devil and his angels currently operate from the physical heavens. So this
tells us that this war, and the subsequent casting out of the devil and his angels, is yet future.
If we were to continue in the passage, we would see that in fact, this casting out occurs in the middle of the
Tribulation (v. 13-17); Satan loses his base of operations, and is cast to the earth. And in his fury, Satan
turns on the woman Israel, resulting in the Great Tribulation of the last 3 years.
This gives us some perspective on the angelic beings of which Paul is speaking in Ephesians. Instead of
serving God, as ministering spirits to believers (Heb 1:14), they serve the enemy of God, Satan, and they
are opposed to those who believe in God.
One third of all the angels followed Satan in his rebellion, and carry out his schemes from his base of
operations in the physical heavens to the earth, among men.

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As Scripture indicates there are myriads of angels (Heb 12:22, Jude 14), the number of evil spirits is large;
but they are still only half as many as Gods holy angels. They have cast in their lot with Satan, and work
to realize his first goal to have dominion over the earth.
[Return to Ephesians 6]
Paul lists four categories of these spiritual beings, possibly different ranks, possibly with different levels or
spheres of authority and influence. Paul is not just using synonymous terms here, because he precedes each
category with the word against; believers are engaged in warfare against each of these types of evil
spiritual beings.
Paul says that believers are engaged in warfare against principalities. Principalities is from the Greek
arche which means first or beginning; it speaks of dignity or preeminence.
This would indicate angelic beings of a high rank, most likely the equivalent of the archangels (arche), as
we read of in Revelation 12. These would be spiritual beings with authority over other angels, and possibly
with jurisdiction over nations (Dan 10:13, 20, 21). Although the term can be used either for Gods holy
angels or the devils angels, the latter is clearly inferred here.
After that, we read the battle is also against powers, again referring to the devils angels. This word
frequently accompanies the term principalities in Pauls writings; we have seen the two words used twice
before in Ephesians, to refer to the angelic creation, in general (Eph 1:21, 3:10).
Powers, meaning here those invested with power, may refer to those angelic beings who are ranked under
archangels, and execute their orders they are the outworking of the power of those in authority over them,
as is reflected in their ranking. Next, we read that believers are engaged in combat against the rulers of
the darkness of this age, and then spiritual hosts of wickedness in the heavenlies that is, evil spirits
in the heavens. Again, Paul is speaking of the devils angels.
These two categories may reflect differences in jurisdiction. This age refers to Satans world system,
built up on the face of the earth. So it may be that the first group operates principally on the earth, while
the second is more active in the atmospheric heavens perhaps communications might be pertinent here;
the power of the air, of which Satan is the prince (Eph 2:2).
Clearly, these ideas are somewhat speculative; but what is certain is that Paul desired those believers who
were hearing his letter read to understand that they, as well as Paul, are opposed by a highly organized,
widespread, powerful multitude of invisible beings, all of whom are united in purpose, under the enemy of
God. And that purpose is to have the rule over the earth; and therefore, the conflict is for the souls of men,
to rule over them.
Was Paul trying to scare them? No; they had nothing to fear. As mentioned last week, the conflict is not
for their souls; Christ has won their souls, and they can never be lost. Believers are in Christ. The conflict
is for the souls of men who are still in Adam. But since those who are in Christ are sons of God, sons of
the kingdom, they are also involved in the conflict for dominion.
So we are in hand-to-hand combat, metaphorically speaking, with these spiritual beings. What is actually
happening? In hand-to-hand combat, the contestants have material weapons. But that is when the conflict
is against flesh and blood; this is a conflict in the spiritual realm. So what are the weapons, in this conflict?
They are immaterial weapons.

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The weapons are words; concepts; doctrine. Go back and look at verse 11. What is it that the believer is
to stand against? What is the weapon, used in the assault? The wiles of the devil. Remember this refers to
Satans deceptions; his lies.
But lies must still be told by someone. Do evil spirits have bodies vocal cords breath to tell lies? No;
but sons of Adam have these things. So although we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, the conflict
still involves men: those unregenerate men, sons of Adam, who have bought into the lies of the enemy.
These lies are the devils wiles, which are put out by his spiritual agents throughout his pervasive world
system, and then taken in by the sons of disobedience. It is in this way that the devils angels employ
human instruments to sow their masters lies (Mt 13:24-30).
The false teachers were the sons of disobedience who brought the devils wiles into the assemblies which
Paul had established in the faith. All of Pauls letters show evidence of false teachers that had come in after
he had departed, changing the truth of the gospel with their lies, which always involved adding the works
of man to their faith in Christ, in order to be saved.
Here was the subtle craft of the enemy, to not come in with a blatant lie, but to add his lies to the truth, so
that the unsuspecting would assimilate both, and in so doing, take in a different so-called gospel, which is
not another (Gal 1:6-7); which is powerless to save.
And who was affected by this deception? Certainly, those in the assemblies who were just being
enlightened to the truth were often deceived, as were those who merely professed to believe. But Pauls
letter to the Galatian assemblies shows that even those who had truly believed into Christ could buy the lie
that they must add works to their faith to be completely saved.
Lets look back at that a moment. Turn to Galatians chapter 3. Paul has just written of the one and only
basis for a man being made righteous by faith in Jesus Christ. Then he went on to admonish the Galatian
assemblies.
[Galatians 3:1-5]
v. 1 The oldest manuscripts read, O foolish Galatians! Who has bewitched you, before whose eyes Jesus
Christ was clearly portrayed as crucified? Paul had preached the gospel throughout the cities of southern
Galatia, bearing witness to the death, burial and resurrection of Jesus.
Who has bewitched you is Pauls indirect reference to the false teachers, whom he does not tend to
dignify with direct statements, in his letters.
The false teachers had come in and bewitched those in the assemblies of Galatia. Paul had put Jesus before
their eyes, but their eyes had been drawn away from Jesus by the attractive deceptions of the false teachers.
It is apparent from this letter of Paul that in fact the majority of those in the assemblies in Galatia were
persuaded by their lies.
v. 2 In that Paul speaks of the receiving of the Spirit, it is apparent that even some of those who truly
believed into Christ had been carried away by the deceptions of the false teachers. Even believers can be
deceived, if they do not have a firm grasp on the truth.

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v. 3-5 We continue to see the evidence that Paul is speaking of the believers here, although certainly those
who merely professed to believe, or were just beginning to be enlightened, would be even more susceptible
to the lies, as they did not have the Holy Spirit to help them discern the error.
But it is believers of whom it would be said that they have begun in the Spirit, and that God supplies the
Spirit to them, and works miracles in their midst, meaning in them, though the Holy Spirit, referring to
the spiritual graces, the charismata which the Spirit bestows.
Paul was appealing here to the actual experiences of the Galatian believers with the Holy Spirit as a means
of demonstrating to them that their salvation was based on their simple faith in Jesus alone. They had
received the Holy Spirit when they had believed the true gospel which Paul had preached to them. That
was before the false teachers had come in, telling them that they could only be perfected through keeping
the works of the Law.
[Return to Ephesians 6]
We have seen that the weapons of the devils angels are the wiles of the devil; his lies and deceptions. Paul
was exhorting believers in the assemblies to each hold their position against these wiles; to contend against
the lies put out by the enemy and his agents. If they each will hold their position, standing together, the
enemy will be unable to break through their line of defense, and penetrate their assemblies with false
teaching.
The metaphor which Paul uses here is based on the way in which the Romans waged war, in his day. When
attacked, Roman soldiers were to stand their ground, and not retreat. As long as they stood together on a
flat, open field and did not break ranks, their legions were considered virtually invincible.
The weapons of the enemy forces are the devils wiles. What are the believers weapons, for contending
against these wiles? How do you combat a lie? With the truth. But this is a powerful enemy, who is filled
with cunning. His forces are well-organized, and skilled with their weapons.
In the believers own strength, it would be impossible to resist this enemy; to stand against his wiles. That
is why Paul makes it clear to the believers that their strength and power for this conflict are to be found in
their Lord, Jesus Christ, and in Him, alone; in the power of His might (v. 10).
This is the power of the Spirit of Christ, the indwelling Holy Spirit, to guide the believer into all truth (Jn
16:13); the power of Light, which dispels the darkness of deception and lies; which discerns for the
believer the spirit of truth, from the spirit of error (1 Jn 4:1-6).
As each individual believer is enlightened by the Spirit to the truth, they will be empowered to stand
collectively against the wiles of the devil, as he attempts to make inroads into their assembly, which is to be
a beacon of light to those who are still in the dark.
In verse 10, Paul says to be strong in the Lord, and the power of His might. Then in verse 11 and 13, he
exhorts believers to put on, to take up, the whole armor of God, that they might be able to stand. The word
for able in these two verse means empowered.
Although this is a different Greek word for power than the one in verse 10, the two ideas are certainly
linked. The believer is strengthened in the Lord as he puts on the whole armor of God.

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Now, the way it reads in the Greek, the armor of God can mean the armor that God Himself wears, or the
armor that He supplies. In fact, I think that Paul intended both meanings.
Turn to Isaiah chapter 59. This is a prophecy which is yet future concerning the redemption of the nation
Israel. The prophet recounts the sins of the nation (v. 2-8), and their repentance for their sins, which will be
the fulfillment of the Day of Atonement. The nation is seeking justice and righteousness; they are seeking
salvation; but there is none to be had (v. 9-15). The LORD saw this, and was displeased.
[Isaiah 59:15b-17]
v. 15b-16 the LORD will send His own arm, His own righteousness. These are references to the Redeemer
of Zion (v. 20), the Messiah.
v. 17 This is Messiah in His Second Coming to the earth, whose coverings reflect the justice that He will
mete out on the earth. To those who will bow the knee to Him as their Lord, He will give His righteousness
and salvation; but to His enemies, vengeance; according to their deeds, He will repay.
The armored coverings mentioned the breastplate of righteousness, the helmet of salvation are both
named specifically by Paul as he lists the different parts of the armor of God in Ephesians. So clearly,
Paul was thinking back on the armor that Isaiah described here for the Messiah.
[Return to Ephesians 6]
So not only is the armor of God the armor that God supplies; it is His very own armor. To be strong in the
Lord, then, is to be clad in His armor; believers are completely covered, in Him.
The believers in the assemblies are to put on the whole armor of God. In the Greek, the word is panoplia,
and it means complete armor; both offensive and defensive.
Now, Paul was exhorting the believers in the assemblies to employ their armor defensively, to ward off
attacks of the enemy. But Paul was also involved in this conflict; remember, the we in verse 12. Paul
was also covered with the whole armor of God; but for him, the armor was used in a different way.
Turn to Second Corinthians chapter 7. We need a little background for this letter, first.
This is the second letter retained in Scripture to the assembly in Corinth, but there was at least one other
letter between this and the letter we know as First Corinthians; so at least three letters, that we know of,
with the actual second letter being unretained.
Paul had established the assembly in Corinth on his second missionary journey. He wrote First Corinthians
while he was ministering in Ephesus on his third missionary journey. It was written in response to some
questions from them.
That letter First Corinthians makes it clear that the assembly in Corinth as a whole was struggling with
sanctification. It was apparent even at that time that the assembly was experiencing division because of
their tendency to favor one teacher over another. Also, they esteemed worldly knowledge and fine rhetoric
at the expense of wisdom and truth.

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By the time of Pauls second letter, which has not been retained, things had deteriorated further. A
significant faction of the Corinthian assembly had moved past criticizing Paul to rejecting him and more
importantly, his teaching regarding the gospel.
What brought this about? It is abundantly evident from the letter we call Second Corinthians that false
teachers had come into the assembly, denounced Pauls authority as an apostle, and gave the Corinthians a
different version of the gospel; undoubtedly, one which involved working for their salvation.
It is clear that many in Corinth bought this lie. Pauls unretained letter apparently included a strong
admonishment of the Corinthian assembly, along with a reinforcement of the truth.
The letter had a strong effect on the Corinthians, and Second Corinthians shows Pauls relief that the
assembly, for the most part, recognized that they had been deceived, and were once again embracing the
truth and renewing their allegiance to Paul, who had taught it to them.
Chapter 7 gives us the best background of the reconciliation of the Corinthian assembly with Paul.
[Second Corinthians 7:2-11]
v. 2 Here we see one of Pauls many allusions to the false teachers in this letter, who did wrong the
Corinthians, corrupt them and cheat them.
v. 3 It is not Pauls intention to condemn the Corinthians for being deceived, but in love, to give them the
truth, so they will not continue in their deception.
v. 4-7 Paul had sent Titus to Corinth after he sent them the letter of admonishment, out of his great concern
for them. When Titus returned to Paul, Paul was relieved to discover that the Corinthians, as a whole, were
now embracing the truth again and Paul with it.
v. 8-11 Paul was sorry that his letter had to be so sharp, but he also knew that was what was called for.
And in fact, it produced the desired result: repentance in the Corinthians, which led to their salvation.
Then the Corinthians were diligent concerning their obedience to the truth, getting rid of the deception that
they had embraced, and thus clearing themselves.
Now that the Corinthian believers saw the false teachers in the right light, they were indignant against
them. Perhaps their zeal reflected their determination to expel them from the assembly. And through all of
this, Paul was vindicated and more importantly, the gospel he preached.
Now lets continue to Second Corinthians 10, where Paul speaks about this situation with the false teachers
under a somewhat familiar metaphor.
In this passage, I refers to Paul, we and us to Paul and Timothy, and perhaps other fellow teachers;
and you refers to the Corinthian assembly.
[Second Corinthians 10:1-6]
v. 1 When Paul says he is lowly in presence among the Corinthians, he is referring to the fact that he is not
an impressive speaker, trained in rhetoric something for which the Corinthians, as Greeks, had a great
affinity. That may have been exactly the kind of thing which got them in trouble with the false teachers.
By now, they may have been learning to value the message, and not the style of delivery!

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10

When Paul says he is bold in his absence toward them, he is referring to his letters. It is not hard to know
what Paul means here his letters are powerful. Both in speaking and in writing, Paul would have operated
in the Spirit; but the Corinthians were consumed with appearance, and delivery, instead of substance.
v. 2 What Paul is saying is that when he comes to Corinth, he intends to exert his apostolic authority in the
assembly, and deal with the false teachers with severity if perchance they were still around. The false
teachers are the some to whom Paul alludes in this verse; some, who do not understand that Paul and his
fellow teachers walk in the power of the Spirit.
v. 3 Paul and his fellow teachers are just human beings, but they are empowered by the Spirit; they are
covered with the full armor of God, with its supernatural offensive and defensive capabilities.
v. 4-5 Notice that Paul and his fellow teachers are not on the defensive here; they are not standing against
the enemy, as Paul was exhorting the believers in our letter. Instead, we see them on the offensive.
What are they doing? They are pulling down strongholds. The picture here is the demolition of a fortress.
High thing is figurative of a proud adversary; a lofty tower or fortress built up proudly by an enemy.
In this metaphor, the fortress is the doctrine of the false teachers, into which they had taken captive many of
those in the assembly in Corinth. What weapon does Paul and his fellow teachers use against this fortress
of lies? The truth; the Word of God.
It is the Word of God which blasts a hole in the wall of that fortress, exposing it for what it is; a deception.
Through the Word of God, those who had been taken captive in their minds by that false doctrine are now
taken into captivity to the obedience of Christ; the truth has set them free.
v. 6 this speaks to those who were refusing to be obedient to the truth. When Paul comes, if they will not
repent, he will likely put them out of the assembly.
Proverb 21:22 says, A wise man scales the city of the mighty, and brings down the trusted stronghold.
And so Paul did.
[Return to Ephesians 6]
So we see that Pauls involvement in the conflict is somewhat different from those who were in the
assemblies, in general. He was often on the offensive, in the enemys attacks.
But the armor is still the same; it is the whole armor of God. Every believer must take it up, putting on
every part of it, in order to be empowered to stand against the deceptions of the enemy.
This is a one-time action, to put on the armor of God; one does not take it off and on, but puts it on, and
keeps it on. And once the believer has put on every part, he has done all (v. 13); he has made every
preparation, in order to do his part in the conflict between God and Satan, for the souls of men; to stand.
Next week: REALLY finish the letter.