As David prepares to battle Goliath, Saul comes to his aid by providing “armor,” a helmet of brass, and a “coat of mail.” The translation is deceptive. It would seem to partially match the armor of Goliath, but it doesn’t. In the original Hebrew, Goliath is wearing the brass helmet and fish scales, which is the actual armor since it consists of overlapping metal plates having the appearance of fish scales.
In the King James Version, it looks like Saul is giving David some armor, a brass helmet, and a “coat of mail.” The coat of mail for David is a different Hebrew word. It is actually the armor and likely a javelin is included. The “armor” is actually an outer cloth garment and would seem to be insufficient protection in battle. David “puts off” the unproven defensive clothing from Saul and “puts on” the attire of a shepherd.
David takes the shepherd’s staff, five polished stones from a brook of living water, his shepherd’s bag, and a sling. He most certainly wore the “armor,” which was an outer cloth tunic. He is arrayed like the Good Shepherd. Goliath mocks David’s lack of weapons: “Am I a dog, that thou comest to me with staves?” (1 Samuel 17:43).
Let’s switch to the Greek for the change of clothing. The phrase “put off, take off, or strip” is the Greek word ekdyo. It is the opposite of the Greek word endyo, meaning “to sink into or put on sacred clothing.” Endyo is the root of the English word endowment. During the Crucifixion, both words are used as the Roman soldiers clothed Jesus (endyo) with a purple robe and a crown of thorns. After mocking Him “they took off (ekdyo) the purple from Him, and put his own clothes on (endyo) Him” (Mark 15:20). In the parable of the Good Samaritan, the thieves, symbolic of Satan and his followers, strip (ekdyo) the man traveling to Jericho. Interestingly, the victim loses only his garments and no money, jewelry, or other valuables are stolen.
In the Book of Mormon, we are told to “put off the natural man” (or woman). We symbolically remove the influences and tendencies of the natural man (see Mosiah 3:19). In Galatians 3:27, Paul states, “For as many of you as have been baptized into Christ have put on Christ.” The Greek word for “put on” is endyo, which also appears in Ephesians 6:11: “Put on the whole armour of God, that ye may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil.” This is the kind of symbolic armor that David needs to fight Goliath. It’s the kind of spiritual armor we need to fight the “enemy to all righteousness” (Mosiah 4:14).
Elder David A. Bednar provides instructive commentary about the parable of the marriage of the king’s son in Matthew 22:
“In ancient times, one of the most joyous occasions in Jewish life was a wedding celebration—an event that would span a week or even two.
“People invited from the highways to attend the wedding would not have had the time or means to procure appropriate attire in preparation for the event. Consequently, the king likely gave guests the garments from his own wardrobe. Everyone was given the opportunity to clothe themselves in garments of royalty.
“As the king entered the wedding hall, he surveyed the audience and immediately noticed that one conspicuous guest was not wearing a wedding garment. The man was brought forward, and the king asked, “Friend, how camest thou in hither not having a wedding garment? And he was speechless.” In essence, the king asked, “Why are you not wearing a wedding garment, even though one was provided for you?” (David A. Bednar, “Put On Thy Strength, O Zion,” October 2022 General Conference).
Sacred clothing is symbolic of our covenant with God and is a source of power to conquer the “enemy of all righteousness.” We have the daily opportunity to “put off the natural man” and “put on” Christ.
