"And take the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God:" (Eph 6:17 KJV) From Textus Receptus, 16th Century
"Take the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God." (Eph 6:17 NRSV) From the NA27, 20th Century
Henrich Meyer, Greek scholar in the Exegetical NT -
"τὴν μάχαιραν τοῦ πνεύματος] The genitive cannot here be appositional (in opposition to Harless, Olshausen, Schenkel, and older expositors), since there follows the explanation ὅ ἐστι ῥῆμα Θεοῦ, from which it is clear that the sword of the Spirit is not the Spirit itself, but something distinct therefrom, namely, the word of God (comp. Heb 4:12). Comp. also Bleek. If Paul had wished to designate the Spirit itself as sword, the explanation ὅ ἐστι ῥῆμα Θεοῦ would have been inappropriate, inasmuch as the word of God and the Holy Spirit are different things;[311] in Romans, too, πνεῦμα means nothing else than the Holy Spirit. The ΜΆΧΑΙΡΑ ΤΟῦ ΠΝΕΎΜ. is the sword, which the Holy Spirit furnishes (comp. τὴν πανοπλίαν τοῦ Θεοῦ, Eph 6:11; Eph 6:13), and this sword is the word of God, the gospel (comp. on Eph 5:26), the contents of which the Spirit brings vividly to the consciousness of the Christian, in order that he may defend himself by the divine power of the gospel (Rom 1:16) against the assaults of the diabolic powers, and may vanquish them, as the warrior wards off and vanquishes the enemy with the sword."
The Expositor's Greek New Testament
"τὴν μάχαιραν τοῦ πνεύματος: and the sword of the Spirit. The gen. here cannot be that of appos. (although it is so taken by Harl., Olsh., etc.), for the following explanation renders that inept. It must be the gen. of origin, = “the sword supplied by the Spirit”.—ὅ ἐστι ῥῆμα Θεοῦ: which is the word of God. Some strangely make the ὅ refer to the πνεύματος, = “the Spirit who is the Word of God” (Olsh., Von Sod., etc.); but nowhere else is the Spirit identified with the Word. The ὅ is explanatory of the μάχαιρα, the neut, form being due to the usual attraction. In Heb 4:2 we have the λόγος τοῦ Θεοῦ compared in respect of superior sharpness or penetrating power to a two-edged sword. Here we have the phrase ῥῆμα Θεοῦ, which is to be understood, in accordance with the proper sense of ῥῆμα, as the spoken Word, the preached Gospel, and this in its length and breadth"
A history of our standard English translations -
"And take the helmet of salvacio and the swearde of the sprete which is the worde of God." (Eph 6:17 Tyndale of 1526)
"And take the helmet of saluation, and the sworde of the spirite, whiche is the worde of God." (Eph 6:17 Bishops of 1568)
"And take the helmet of saluation, and the sword of the Spirit, which is the worde of God." (Eph 6:17 Geneva of 1587)
"and take the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God," (Eph 6:17 ESV of 2011)
"Take the helmet of salvation and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God. (Eph 6:17 NRSVue of 2021)
Murdock's English Translation of the Peshitta, 5th century -
"And put on the helmet of rescue; and take hold of the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God.
Eph 6:17)
To equate the word of God as being the Spirit leads to many crazy notions heard and read. We are warned about what is brought about by such demonic teachings -
"You are not to be disqualified by the decision of people who go in for self-mortification and angel-worship and access to some visionary world. Such people, bursting with the futile conceit of worldly minds, lose their hold upon the head; yet it is from the head that the whole body, with all its joints and ligaments, has its needs supplied, and thus knit together grows according to God’s design." (Col 2:18-19 REB)
This approach to the biblical faith tends to produce incoherent ramblings interpreted as coming directly from God. Remember having a child-like faith does NOT mean be gullible.
"Take the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God." (Eph 6:17 NRSV) From the NA27, 20th Century
Henrich Meyer, Greek scholar in the Exegetical NT -
"τὴν μάχαιραν τοῦ πνεύματος] The genitive cannot here be appositional (in opposition to Harless, Olshausen, Schenkel, and older expositors), since there follows the explanation ὅ ἐστι ῥῆμα Θεοῦ, from which it is clear that the sword of the Spirit is not the Spirit itself, but something distinct therefrom, namely, the word of God (comp. Heb 4:12). Comp. also Bleek. If Paul had wished to designate the Spirit itself as sword, the explanation ὅ ἐστι ῥῆμα Θεοῦ would have been inappropriate, inasmuch as the word of God and the Holy Spirit are different things;[311] in Romans, too, πνεῦμα means nothing else than the Holy Spirit. The ΜΆΧΑΙΡΑ ΤΟῦ ΠΝΕΎΜ. is the sword, which the Holy Spirit furnishes (comp. τὴν πανοπλίαν τοῦ Θεοῦ, Eph 6:11; Eph 6:13), and this sword is the word of God, the gospel (comp. on Eph 5:26), the contents of which the Spirit brings vividly to the consciousness of the Christian, in order that he may defend himself by the divine power of the gospel (Rom 1:16) against the assaults of the diabolic powers, and may vanquish them, as the warrior wards off and vanquishes the enemy with the sword."
The Expositor's Greek New Testament
"τὴν μάχαιραν τοῦ πνεύματος: and the sword of the Spirit. The gen. here cannot be that of appos. (although it is so taken by Harl., Olsh., etc.), for the following explanation renders that inept. It must be the gen. of origin, = “the sword supplied by the Spirit”.—ὅ ἐστι ῥῆμα Θεοῦ: which is the word of God. Some strangely make the ὅ refer to the πνεύματος, = “the Spirit who is the Word of God” (Olsh., Von Sod., etc.); but nowhere else is the Spirit identified with the Word. The ὅ is explanatory of the μάχαιρα, the neut, form being due to the usual attraction. In Heb 4:2 we have the λόγος τοῦ Θεοῦ compared in respect of superior sharpness or penetrating power to a two-edged sword. Here we have the phrase ῥῆμα Θεοῦ, which is to be understood, in accordance with the proper sense of ῥῆμα, as the spoken Word, the preached Gospel, and this in its length and breadth"
A history of our standard English translations -
"And take the helmet of salvacio and the swearde of the sprete which is the worde of God." (Eph 6:17 Tyndale of 1526)
"And take the helmet of saluation, and the sworde of the spirite, whiche is the worde of God." (Eph 6:17 Bishops of 1568)
"And take the helmet of saluation, and the sword of the Spirit, which is the worde of God." (Eph 6:17 Geneva of 1587)
"and take the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God," (Eph 6:17 ESV of 2011)
"Take the helmet of salvation and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God. (Eph 6:17 NRSVue of 2021)
Murdock's English Translation of the Peshitta, 5th century -
"And put on the helmet of rescue; and take hold of the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God.
Eph 6:17)
To equate the word of God as being the Spirit leads to many crazy notions heard and read. We are warned about what is brought about by such demonic teachings -
"You are not to be disqualified by the decision of people who go in for self-mortification and angel-worship and access to some visionary world. Such people, bursting with the futile conceit of worldly minds, lose their hold upon the head; yet it is from the head that the whole body, with all its joints and ligaments, has its needs supplied, and thus knit together grows according to God’s design." (Col 2:18-19 REB)
This approach to the biblical faith tends to produce incoherent ramblings interpreted as coming directly from God. Remember having a child-like faith does NOT mean be gullible.
