10 Finally, be strong in the Lord and in the strength of His might. 11 Put on the full armor of God, so that you will be able to stand firm against the schemes of the devil. 12 For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the powers, against the world forces of this darkness, against the spiritual forces of wickedness in the heavenly places. (Ephesians 6:10-12 NASB)
As we study Ephesians 6:10-20, which in most New Testaments is labeled as “The Armor of God” or something similar, we need to pay close attention the reason God has given us this armor and, therefore, why it is necessary for us to put it on and keep it on at all time….
The Church and God’s truth are continually under attack by our enemy. We take up this whole armor in order to stand firm in the evil day. Well, this is most definitely an evil day when truth is seen as something to be bargained away or shunned while lies and that which is only appears to be the truth is elevated as if it is the truth. Because of this, we must become discerning and wise, therefore, we must consistently wear this armor.
We will focus on Ephesians 6:12 in this post, specifically on the word translated as “world forces” in the NASB, which the KJV translates as “rulers.” I put the phrase in focus in bold in all four “renderings.”
Mike Ratliff’s title: Rulers of the darkness of this world