Prayer Tents Bible References - Prayer Tents

WEAPONS

From as far back as we can determine, human beings have needed weapons to hunt and to protect themselves. As early as 7000 b.c. Jericho had a wall around the center part of the town with a tower inside the wall. This method of protecting towns with walls continued throughout the biblical period. Any sizable city had to expend the labor and money to build such a protective wall. Because of the expense, these walls covered only a small area of the city and contained primarily palace, temple, and government buildings plus some living areas. The majority of the population lived and farmed outside the walls, and rushed inside the city walls in time of an attack. The complex gate system was designed to prevent easy access into the city, and the walls were made high enough and thick enough that they could not be scaled or broken through. Inside the city there had to be great supplies of food and water to withstand sieges that might last three or more years (Samaria, 2 Kgs. 17:5-6; Jerusalem, 25:1-12). The enemy sought to penetrate the gate or city walls by undermining the foundations, weakening the walls and smashing through them, or scaling them with ladders. Battering rams with wheels brought enemy soldiers close to the walls where the long beam with a metal tip could be used to loosen and dislodge the wall material and break through. Of course, the soldiers inside the city sought to prevent this from happening. In many cases the siege was a standoff until food or water ran out and the city surrendered.

Offensive weapons can be divided into hand-held or short-range, medium-range, and long-range weapons. Among short-range weapons, the club was usually larger at the striking end (Prov. 25:18). The mace was a variation of the club with a stone or metal head (possibly implied in Ps. 68:21[MT 22]; Hab. 3:13). The battle-ax came from axes used for cutting wood (possibly Jer. 51:20). The spear had a sharp blade affixed to the end of a long stick. It was a stabbing or thrusting weapon (John 19:34). The sword was very common (more than 400 occurrences in the OT), used for stabbing in hand-to-hand combat. It was short or longer, straight, and generally kept in a sheath (1 Sam. 17:51). The sickle sword was curved like a sickle and sharp on only one side. It was used for slashing rather than stabbing, and is implied in “smiting someone with the edge of a sword” (Josh. 8:24; Judg. 21:10).

Medium-range weapons included a spear that was light enough to be thrown (1 Sam. 18:11). Most common in this category was the javelin, which was generally smaller than the spear (1 Sam. 17:6-7). It was essentially a long arrow with a string looped around the shaft. This increased the distance and accuracy because of the spin the string produced.

The two long-range weapons were the sling and stone and the bow and arrow. The sling was a long string made of woven materials on either end with a pouch to hold the stone in the middle. After circling over the head of the slinger several times, one string was released; the stone then ejected from the pouch and traveled well over 100 mph. The stones were 5-8 cm. (2-3 in.) in diameter, having been roughly rounded in wadi beds. Often the slingers worked to round them off even more so they would fly accurately (Judg. 20:16). David’s sling and stones put Goliath in range, but even Goliath’s javelin could not reach David, which explains why Goliath was trying to move closer to David (1 Sam. 17:41, 48).

The bow and arrow was the longest range weapon, effective up to 160-180 m. (175-200 yds.). Composite bows in classical times could reach up to 155 m. (500 yds.) in exceptional cases. The bow was 1-2 m. (3-6 ft.) in length, and could be made of wood or glued layers of wood, horn and sinew, or even bronze (2 Sam. 22:35). Arrows were made of wood shafts or reeds with an arrowhead of stone or metal and guiding feathers. Light weight and straightness was the key to accuracy and distance. A leather quiver holding 20-30 arrows was strapped to the back or slung over the shoulder. Quivers on chariots could hold up to 50 arrows. Jonathan used a bow in war (2 Sam. 1:22), but also to signal David (20:18-23). The Benjaminites (2 Chr. 17:17) as well as the Reubenites, Gadites, and the half-tribe of Manasseh had expert archers (1 Chr. 5:18). Four Israelite or Judean kings were wounded or killed by enemy arrows: Saul (1 Sam. 31:3), Ahab (1 Kgs. 22:34), Joram (2 Kgs. 9:24), and Josiah (2 Chr. 35:23).

The iron chariot was the ultimate offensive weapon. Pulled by two horses, it was a mobile fighting platform for two or three soldiers. The chariot was valuable when the land was flat and open, but useless in heavily wooded hill country. This is why Israel, who had no chariots until Solomon’s time, could take the hill country but were not able to drive out the people of the coastal plain (Judg. 1:19).

Defense against offensive weapons included a shield carried to protect the body and various pieces of armor worn on the body. Though shields came in a variety of shapes, they can be divided into two groups by size (2 Chr. 23:9). The smaller shield was round and covered about half the body. It could be held in one hand and a lighter weapon in the other hand for hand-to-hand combat. Nehemiah and the tribe of Benjamin preferred these smaller shields (Neh. 4:16; 2 Chr. 14:8). The buckler was also small and round, but worn on the arm rather than carried in the hand (Jer. 46:3). The larger shield was more rectangular and covered most, if not all, of the body. Often it required a shield-bearer to hold it in front of the warrior (1 Sam. 17:41). The tribes of Judah (2 Chr. 14:8[7]), Gad (1 Chr. 12:8) and Nephtali (12:34) used this type of shield with spears. The long shield was typically used in sieges. Leather, wood, and metal were typically used to make both types of shields.

Armor protected the body while allowing some mobility for hands and legs. The helmet, often made of metal but also of leather, came in a variety of shapes and was often decorated differently to distinguish enemy from comrade. Goliath (1 Sam. 17:5) and Saul (v. 38) wore bronze helmets. Though helmets were rare this early, they seem to be common later (2 Chr. 26:14; Jer. 46:4). Roman helmets were made of iron with plume or hair for decoration.

The coat of mail was necessary to protect against the arrow. It was made of small metal plates tied or sewn together in fishlike scales. They could number 700-1000 per “coat,” making the “coat” heavy and expensive. David found Saul’s armor heavy and awkward and did not use it (1 Sam. 17:38-39). The breastplate was a piece of metal armor worn by Greek and Roman soldiers that covered the neck and torso with a second piece protecting the back (Eph. 6:14). Leg armor or greaves covered the shins and were rare (cf. 1 Sam. 17:6).

Since warfare was common in the ancient world, the symbolic reference to weapons is frequent in the Bible. The sword is often a symbol of destruction and judgment (Exod. 5:3) and is also associated with justice (Rom. 13:4). The bow symbolized a nation’s power; God breaks the bow to defeat a nation (Jer. 49:35). The power and might of God are often depicted in shattering the weapons of war (Ps. 76:3[4]). God’s protection can be depicted by the shield (Gen. 15:1; Prov. 30:5). In Eph. 6:10-17 Paul exhorts the Christian to put on the whole armor of God in order to stand against the devil; the Roman soldier is his inspiration along with Isa. 59:17.

Bibliography. R. Gonen, Weapons of the Ancient World (Minneapolis, 1976); Y. Yadin, The Art of Warfare in Biblical Lands in the Light of Archaeological Study, 2 vols. (New York, 1963).

James C. Moyer

Prayer Tents Bible References - Prayer Tents

WEAPONS

Eerdmans Dictionary of the Bible (2000)