In verses 14-17 the writer mentions the various different items in the Christian’s armor. Again he exhorts his readers So stand ready; compare New English Bible “Stand firm, I say.”
Truth translates the Greek alētheia, and righteousness the Greek dikaiosunē, and these are the meanings that the two words normally have in the Greek New Testament. But in this passage there seems to be an allusion to (or dependence on) Isaiah 11.5, which describes the rule of the future Davidic king: “Righteousness shall be the girdle of his waist, and faithfulness the girdle of his loins” (Revised Standard Version), which the Septuagint translates by the same two nouns used here, dikaiosunē and alētheia. The two lines in Hebrew are parallel, and it would seem that no great difference in meaning is intended between the Hebrew “righteousness” and “faithfulness”; the two are synonymous. So it may be that here the Greek alētheia reflects the meaning of the Hebrew noun “faithfulness, loyalty,” that is, the Christian soldier’s faithful devotion to the cause for which he is fighting, his loyalty to his commanding officer.
But some commentators, pointing to the use of the two nouns in 5.9, take the word here to mean truth or truthfulness as a Christian virtue (Murray “sincerity”). Die Bibel im heutigen Deutsch translates “the truth of God.”
A belt tight around your waist: the loose clothes had to be held tight with a belt (or girdle) to permit rapid movement; see the same metaphorical figure of “girding the loins” (Revised Standard Version) in Luke 12.35; 1 Peter 1.13.
The phrase with truth as a belt tight around your waist may be translated as “your faithfulness to God will be like a belt tied around your waist” or “the truth about God will be like a belt fastened around your waist” or “the true message about God will be….”
Righteousness may be regarded as “integrity, character.” Abbott defines it as uprightness of character. In Isaiah 59.17 it is said of Yahweh, “He put on righteousness as a breastplate” (Revised Standard Version); there Yahweh’s righteousness is his faithfulness to his covenant promises.
In a number of languages one cannot speak of righteousness as an abstract quality. Rather, one must employ some type of personal reference, for example, “your doing what is right” or “your being a just person” or “your being an upright person.” It may be possible to translate with righteousness as your breastplate as “your always doing what is right is like a protection for your chest.”
The breastplate was made of tough leather or metal, and it covered the soldier’s breast and sometimes the back, to protect him from the enemy’s attack. (It should be noticed that in 1 Thes 5.8 Paul defines the breastplate as “faith and love.”)
The writer speaks of the readiness to announce the Good News of peace as the shoes the Christian warrior is to wear. The Greek noun “preparation, readiness” occurs only here in the New Testament. It is difficult to know for sure in what sense the word is used here. The following are possible meanings:
(1) Abbott takes it to mean “readiness of mind,” the attitude that is required of a soldier as he advances into battle; so this would be equivalent to courage or determination or readiness to fight. The Good News of peace, in Abbott’s view, is what equips the Christian soldier with this attitude, this readiness of mind (also Goodspeed “the readiness the good news of peace brings”; see also Ellicott).
(2) Revised Standard Version translates “(having shod your feet) with the equipment of the gospel of peace,” which is not very clear.
(3) Others take the Greek word to mean firmness, stability, sure footing. So Barth “steadfast because the gospel of peace is strapped under your feet”; New English Bible “to give you firm footing”; Moffatt “stability.”
(4) Others, like Good News Translation, take the phrase to mean “the readiness to proclaim the gospel of peace”: Westcott, Robinson (who regards Isa 52.7 as a source of the figure), Beare; Translator’s New Testament, New International Version, Jerusalem Bible, and others.
It is impossible to be dogmatic; the translator will choose the interpretation that seems best to fit the context, and it would seem that either (3) or (4) would be the best choice.
In verse 15 it may be better to preserve the parallelism with the two preceding statements about protection and armor by translating “the fact that you are ready to announce the Good News of peace is like your shoes” or “… like the shoes that a soldier wears.”
Readiness to announce the Good News may also be expressed as “the fact that you always want to tell others about the Good News.”
In general one may best translate the Good News of peace as “the Good News about the peace that God provides” or “… causes” or “… makes possible.” Here peace is practically synonymous with “salvation” or “reconciliation” (see verse 23 below). It is the restoration of spiritual health or wholeness that the Good News proclaims and effects.
In some instances it may be better to use similes (or comparisons): “Take truth as if it were the belt you put on, righteousness as if it were the breastplate that protects you, and your readiness to announce the Good News of peace will be like the shoes you wear.”
Quoted with permission from Bratcher, Robert C. and Nida, Eugene A. A Handbook on Paul’s Letter to the Ephesians. (UBS Handbook Series). New York: UBS, 1982. For this and other handbooks for translators see here .