There's a Crack in Your Armor Perry Stone

about the size of a large pizza; it was hooked to the loin belt and was used in parades held after a war victory. The larger shield was used for one-on-one conflict and battles. The word shield here is thureon and refers to a large shield with the oblong shape of a door, about four and one-half feet high, with a curved shape. These large shields are the ones we see in the movies of the Roman times. In a battle five hundred soldiers were deployed in a line—shoulder to shoulder—facing the enemy. The shields could be thrust against the body of the enemy to throw them off balance, as the front of the battle shield had a sharp metal point called the umbo constructed in the center. After the shield was withdrawn, the sword of the soldier was used to thrust through the body of the enemy. The constant thrust of the shield and the sword could eventually disorient the enemy. When Christ was tempted for forty days by Satan in the Judean wilderness, He quoted three scriptures from the Book of Deuteronomy to counter the three sharp arrows of Satan (Matt. 4:1–10). The large individual shields of these soldiers could be joined side by side as soldiers stood shoulder to shoulder, forming a protective wall in battle. They were also used to cover the heads of the soldiers, forming a covering like a tortoise shell. This position was called the testudo and was used when the enemy soldiers dropped large rocks from the walls of a city being invaded. Just as soldiers joined together in battle, believers must not fight alone, but join our faith with others, as the more shields in battle, the more faith is released to bring