Strong's Lexicon thureos: Shield Original Word: θυρεός Word Origin: Derived from θυρα (thura), meaning "door" Corresponding Greek / Hebrew Entries: While there is no direct Hebrew equivalent for "thureos," the concept of a shield is present in the Old Testament. The Hebrew word מָגֵן (magen, Strong's H4043) is often used to describe a shield, both in a literal and metaphorical sense, as seen in passages like Psalm 3:3: "But You, O LORD, are a shield around me, my glory, and the One who lifts my head." Usage: The term "thureos" refers to a large, oblong shield used by ancient soldiers, particularly Roman legionaries. It was designed to cover the entire body, providing comprehensive protection during battle. In the New Testament, "thureos" is used metaphorically to describe the "shield of faith" in the spiritual armor of God. Cultural and Historical Background: In the context of ancient warfare, the "thureos" was a critical piece of a soldier's armor. It was typically made of wood, covered with leather, and reinforced with metal. The shield's size and shape allowed soldiers to form a protective wall, known as a "testudo" or tortoise formation, which was particularly effective against arrows and other projectiles. This imagery would have been familiar to early Christians living under Roman rule, providing a vivid metaphor for spiritual defense. HELPS Word-studies 2375 thyreós – properly, a gate or door (or "door-shaped"); used of the large, oblong ancient Roman shield (which looked like a full door), large enough to provide full protection from attack (used only in Eph 6:16). 2375 /thyreós ("full-body shield") refers to God's inworking of faith – i.e. "the shield (2375 /thyreós) of faith" which protects the whole believer, covering their whole person in spiritual warfare. See 4102 (pistis). The Lord Himself is our shield (Ps 7:10,13; Zech 12:8), providing protection by inbirthing His spoken-word (4487 /rhḗma) of faith in the believer. This always extinguishes (takes the fire out of) the missals of the enemy (cf. Ro 10:17, Gk text). NAS Exhaustive Concordance Word Originfrom thura Definition a shield NASB Translation shield (1). Thayer's Greek Lexicon STRONGS NT 2375: θυρεόςθυρεός, θυρεοῦ, ὁ (from θύρα, because shaped like a door (cf. Winers Grammar, 23)), a shield (Latinscutum); it was large, oblong, and four-cornered: τόν θυρεόν τῆς πίστεως, equivalent to τήν πίστιν ὡς θυρεόν, Ephesians 6:16. It differs from ἀσπίς (Latinclipeus), which was smaller and circular. (Polybius, Dionysius Halicarnassus, Plutarch, others.) Strong's Exhaustive Concordance shield. From thura; a large shield (as door-shaped) -- shield. see GREEK thura Forms and Transliterations θυρεοί θυρεοίς θυρεον θυρεόν θυρεὸν θυρεός θυρεού θυρεούς θυρεώ thureon thyreon thyreònLinks Interlinear Greek • Interlinear Hebrew • Strong's Numbers • Englishman's Greek Concordance • Englishman's Hebrew Concordance • Parallel Texts |
|
