Stand Your Ground

Sep 27, 2024

For this reason, take up the full armor of God
so that you may be able to stand your ground on the evil day,
and having done everything, to stand.

Paul (Eph 6:13)

Starting tomorrow (Saturday September 28, 2024), a number of eager Bible study partners (from several backgrounds) and I will be starting a new biblical-text seminar with the title, "Standing Your Ground." The following song is a remake of Tom Petty's original, but a nice touch. It can be applied to all kinds of situations, including how Christians feel about their own faith in a world that keeps trying to tear them apart.

For Hundreds of Years

Now, it's true that, for many in the US, "stand your ground" now has a legal connotation and is closely associated with self-defense laws that were enacted in Florida as recently as 2005. Or, if you're a Florida Gators fan, you all have been singing Tom Petty's 1989 "Won't Back Down" song as a battle cry celebration since Petty's death in 2017. So, there is a lot of emotion, one way or the other, attached to the phrase in some current usage. But all of this was merely tapping into a much richer history of that phrase: "Stand your ground."

The phrase was used for centuries to imply an unwillingness to back down, give up ground, or surrender. In 1599, Shakespeare's "Henry V" refers to "standing firm in battle." Over the centuries "stand your ground" came to be used metaphorically to hold on to one's beliefs or position and a refusal to back down. It is still an important concept.

3000 Years Ago

It wasn't Florida, Shakespeare, or Tom Petty that created this concept. It's been a theme in literature since at least the days of the Iliad and Odyssey, nearly a thousand years before Jesus was born (and certainly much longer). These books are rich in their use of terms that are often translated as "stand firm," "hold your ground," "remain steadfast," or "endure." For example:

menein (μένειν) "to stay," "to remain," or "to endure" often for warriors standing their ground in battle (The Iliad Book 11, line 409, "Stand firm, all of you!").
stēten (στήτην) "to stand" or "to take a stand" about warriors physically standing their ground (The Iliad Book 13, line 131, "But others stood firm against them.").
tharseō (θαρσέω) "to take courage" or "be bold," often encourages someone to stand firm mentally and emotionally. (The Iliad Book 15, line 502, Zeus tells Hera, "Take courage, no more fear.")
karteros (καρτερός) "strong" or "steadfast," often for a hero's strength of resolve or physical strength in the face of some challenge. (The Odyssey Book 22, line 256, "A strong spear," referring to Odysseus standing firm in his fight against the suitors.)
anéchō (ἀνέχω) "to endure" or "to stand firm," used for mental or physical endurance. (The Odyssey Book 5, line 219, "Endure your pains," when Odysseus stands firm during Poseidon's great storm.)
empedos (ἔμπεδος) "firm" or "unshakable," used for mental resolve or standing steadfast. (The Odyssey Book 17, line 305, "Firm in counsel," for Odysseus' steadfastness, steadiness, or resolve in his plans.)

Biblical Text

This same thing can be demonstrated for the Bible. It is rich in the terminology and concepts of endurance, standing firm, standing one's ground and more. Whole books have been written on this concept! Look at this, for example, how the NIV uses the phrase "stand your ground":

NIV Psalm 26:12 My feet stand on level ground; in the great congregation I will praise the LORD.
NIV Jeremiah 46:21 The mercenaries in her ranks are like fattened calves. They too will turn and flee together, they will not stand their ground, for the day of disaster is coming upon them, the time for them to be punished.
NIV Amos 2:15 The archer will not stand his ground, the fleet-footed soldier will not get away, and the horseman will not save his life.

_________________________________________________________

"stand your ground" came to be used
metaphorically to hold on to one's beliefs
or position and a refusal to back down.

_________________________________________________________

Here are other examples from biblical texts of the concept being used in full view:

Exodus 14:13 (Moses at the Red Sea) "Stand firm and see the salvation of the Lord."
Psalm 46:10 "Be still and know that I am God."
Philippians 4:1 "Stand firm in the Lord."
Hebrews 11:27 "He endured, as seeing Him who is invisible."
John 15:4 "Remain in Me, as I also remain in you."
James 1:12 "Blessed is the man who endures temptation."
1Peter 5:10 "He will restore, confirm, strengthen."
Revelation 3:11 "Hold fast what you have, so that no one may seize your crown."
1Corinthians 15:58 "Be steadfast, immovable."
Romans 5:3-4 "Tribulation produces perseverance."
2Thessalonians 2:15 "Stand firm and hold to the traditions."

But the best example is Ephesians 6:13, where the NET Bible translates:

For this reason, take up the full armor of God
so that you may be able to stand your ground on the evil day,
and having done everything, to stand."

NET Bible then offers this helpful note:

The term ἀνθίστημι (anthistemi) carries the idea of resisting or opposing something or someone (BDAG 80 s.v.). In Eph 6:13, when used in combination with στῆναι (stenai; cf. also στῆτε [stete] in v. Eph 6:14) and in a context of battle imagery, it seems to have the idea of resisting, standing firm, and being able to stand your ground.

The NET Bible joins a few other translations (NIV, NIB, GWN, CEB, NIBO) in using this phrase: "stand your ground."

Still Standing

"Stand your ground" is not a political statement. It's a statement about life, intention, nerve, fervor, decision, direction, determination, commitment. It's about faithfulness. And that is what we are going to study.

Gary D. Collier