Why does Paul use the helmet and breastplate as metaphors in 1 Thess?

Question

I am having trouble understanding the use of a military garments in Paul's letter in 1st Thess.

1 Thess 5:8 - But since we belong to the day, let us be sober, putting on the breastplate of faith and love, and the helmet of our hope of salvation.

Answer 1

In 1 Thessalonians 5:8, the Greek word 'thorax' is translated as breastplate, and the Greek word 'perikephalaia' is translated as helmet. The same words are further used by Paul in Ephesians 6:14 & 17 where the same metaphors make the same points: the spiritual heart must be protected, and the spiritual mind must be protected.

The word faith comes from 'pistis' and so the metaphor simply means that faith will protect the Christian's spiritual heart - which must beat for Christ, who is leading his spiritual soldiers as in an army against unseen spiritual forces. Paul wrote to Timothy to "fight the good fight of faith" (1 Timothy 6:12), which fits in beautifully with his analogy in 1 Thessalonians.

The word love comes from 'agape', which is principled love (enabling Christians to love and forgive their enemies, for example). This highest form of love is not based on emotions, though does not exclude them; it just goes much deeper than love for family, friends, or one's spouse - it is the love God has for sinners. This means that, in the analogy a symbolic helmet of such love will protect the Christian from succumbing to compromise through emotions, and their thinking will remain guided by the Holy Spirit instead of their own ideas.

Further understanding of why Paul used such metaphors comes from the context, starting with verse 1, going through to verse 10. The reason for urging believers to think in terms of a spiritual war and the need to wear spiritual armour is that Christ will suddenly return and they must not be caught unguarded. The world shall be, and the world will be overtaken with destruction. Another illustration is used by Paul, comparing the world, which will be drunk, with Christian soldiers who will be sober. That also fits in well with the idea of Christians needing to have such armour on, because when soldiers sleep, they take such armour off, and Paul admonishes the Christians that:

"...the day of the Lord cometh as a thief in the night... But ye, brethren, are not in darkness, that that day should overtake you as a thief. Ye are all the children of light, and the children of the day: we are not of the night, nor of darkness. Therefore let us not sleep, as do others; but let us watch and be sober. For they that sleep sleep in the night; and they that be drunken are drunken in the night. But let us, who are of the day, be sober, putting on the breastplate of faith and love; and for an helmet, the hope of salvation." 1 Thessalonians 2-8 A.V.

This helmet of salvation is the assurance of God's salvation in Christ. The soldier of Christ lives to be identified with his saviour. If he did not have such assurance (given to him by the indwelling Holy Spirit - see Romans chapter 8) he would never engage in the spiritual war, or, he would shrink back, wavering when the battle became fierce. It is the glorious 'knowledge of the truth' that assures one of salvation in Christ. Paul used that phrase twice when writing to Timothy. Such knowledge is stored in the spiritual brain, and needs protecting as with a helmet, for the world hates this assurance of salvation which Christians are given, therefore aims its spiritual blows at the thinking of the believer.

This, I trust, will show something of the rationale of Paul when using such metaphors.

Answer 2

Paul uses this military metaphor in other places as well such as Eph 6 -

13 Therefore take up the full armor of God, so that when the day of evil comes, you will be able to stand your ground, and having done everything, to stand. 14 Stand firm then,

• with the belt of truth buckled around your waist,
• with the breastplate of righteousness arrayed,
• 15 and with your feet fitted with the readiness of the gospel of peace.
• 16 In addition to all this, take up the shield of faith, with which you can extinguish all the flaming arrows of the evil one.
• 17 And take the helmet of salvation and
• the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God.

In 1 Thess 5:8, we have two of the same elements namely:

• the breastplate of faith and love, and
• the helmet of our hope of salvation.

In each case, Paul has assigned an element of the "panoply" (= full armor) in an appropriate way:

• the belt truth was to support lower garments and a place to support the weapons especially the sword. Without truth, the Christian would be almost naked and unprotected. Without truth, there could be not support for the sword of the Spirit which is the Christian's main offensive weapon!
• the breastplate of righteousness is an essential protection - without righteousness, the Christian's preaching would be hypocritical
• the shoes of the gospel of peace is an echo of Jesus' intention dual intention that (a) the gospel be carried to the ends of the earth (Acts 1:8) and (b) that the gospel brings peace to the souls of the converted (Acts 10:36, Eph 2:17, etc)
• the shield of faith (as stated in the text of Eph) is to protect the Christian from "the flaming arrows of the evil one"
• the helmet of salvation protects the mind of the Christian to keep it focused on the tack of spreading the gospel
• The sword of the Spirit is the main offensive weapon of the Christain to convert the souls of the unconverted (John 16:1-16)

Thus, Paul, in the environment of living under a Roman miliary dictatorship, was very familiar to all, and thus provided a useful teaching metaphor of the Christain life.

In 1 Thess 5:4-8, Paul is contrasting the sinful life using the metaphors of sleepiness and drunkenness vs the alert-ready-for-action life of the Christian who is always prepared to spread the Gospel.

Answer 3

Why these particular metaphors in this particular context? The answer is necessarily speculative but I suggest the following exegesis:

• The physical breastplate protects the physical heart. The breastplate of faith and love protects the emotions. Christians of that era faced serious emotional challenges as they dealt with persecution, not only from the state but from society and close family members. Faith in God and love of one's neighbor - and even of one's enemy - enabled them to persevere to the end.

• The physical helmet protects the brain. The helmet of the hope of salvation protects the believer from spiritual doubt when faced with the temptation to despair of salvation (if for example a person continues to sin after baptism). It also protects against intellectual doubts regarding the seeming "foolishness" (1 Corinthians 1:18) of the Gospel.

Summary: the breastplate of faith and love protects the believer's spiritual heart from mortal wounds. The helmet of hope protects his/her intellect from doubt and despair.