Ephesians 6:11

Put on the whole armour of God,— The word in the original is πανοπλια, panoply, which includes all sorts of armour, whether offensive or defensive. This the Apostle applies to the exercise of all those Christian graces with which we are furnished by God, to be made use of in his strength, as well to annoy the enemy, as to defend ourselves; and it appears by the particular description which the Apostle here proceeds to give of it, to be a suit of armour, every way complete, and properly adapted to the defence of every part; with this exception, that none is provided for the back; to hint to us, as some have observed, that we must always face the enemy, or we shall soon lie open to his attacks, and have no defence from dangers. The reader will find, in Gurnall's "Christian in complete Armour," a very large and practical improvement of this portion of Sacred Scripture.