In God's Armor, Track 2. A devotional on Ephesians 6:10.
The Scripture
"Finally, my brethren, be strong in the Lord, and in the power of his might." (Ephesians 6:10, KJV)
"Be strong and of a good courage, fear not, nor be afraid of them: for the LORD thy God, he it is that doth go with thee; he will not fail thee, nor forsake thee." (Deuteronomy 31:6, KJV)
The Heart of It
Before Paul names a single piece of the armor, he gives one command and hides a secret inside it. The command is plain: be strong. The secret is the part we so easily skip: be strong "in the Lord, and in the power of his might." He does not say be strong in yourself. He does not say grit your teeth and try harder. The strength he calls us to is borrowed strength, the strength of Another.
That is good news, because most of us already know how the other way ends. We square our shoulders, we promise to do better, we lean on our own willpower, and for a while it holds. Then the trial runs long, the night runs late, and our own strength runs out. It always does. We were never meant to carry the weight alone.
The power of His might has no such limit. It does not rise and fall with our mood or our sleep or our circumstances. When Paul says we are to stand against the schemes of the enemy, he first makes sure we know whose strength we are standing in. The armor that follows is not the strength. The Lord is the strength. The armor is simply how we put Him on.
Long before Paul, Moses stood with Israel at the edge of the promised land and said the same thing in different words. Be strong and of a good courage. Then he told them why they could: not because the road was easy or the enemies were small, but because the Lord their God would go with them, and He would not fail them, and He would not forsake them. Courage here is not pretended. It is not a feeling we manufacture. It rests entirely on a Person who has promised to come along.
So when Scripture says be strong, it is not a demand to produce something we do not have. It is an invitation to lean on Someone who has everything we lack. Our weakness is not the obstacle. It is the doorway. As the Lord told Paul elsewhere, His strength is made perfect in weakness. We come empty, and He fills us. We come afraid, and He walks beside us. We rise, not because we are strong, but because He is.
More Witnesses: Latter-day Scripture
The same truth runs through the Restoration scriptures. In the Book of Mormon, Ammon confesses exactly where his strength came from: "I know that I am nothing; as to my strength I am weak; therefore I will not boast of myself, but I will boast of my God, for in his strength I can do all things" (Alma 26:12). That is the heartbeat of this song: nothing in ourselves, everything in Him.
The Lord makes the exchange explicit in Ether 12:27: "I give unto men weakness that they may be humble ... for if they humble themselves before me, and have faith in me, then will I make weak things become strong unto them." Our weakness is not disqualifying. Brought to Him in humility and faith, it is the very thing He turns into strength.
And in the Doctrine and Covenants, the Lord ties that strength directly to the armor we are taking up across this album: "Lift up your hearts and rejoice, and gird up your loins, and take upon you my whole armor, that ye may be able to withstand the evil day, having done all, that ye may be able to stand" (Doctrine and Covenants 27:15). To be strong in the Lord is to put on His armor and stand.
How the Song Carries It
The song begins low and honest, on purpose. The verses are spoken, plain and unhurried, a confession before they become a declaration: "Not by my power, not by my hand, I cannot win this on my own." That is where strength actually starts, with the truth that we have none of our own to spare.
Then the music lifts. The choir rises into the chorus, "Be strong in the Lord, be strong in His might," and the borrowed strength becomes a song. The slow tempo keeps it reverent rather than triumphant, so the courage feels settled and sure instead of forced. By the final chorus the listener is not being told to be strong so much as being carried into it.
The Lyrics
Be strong in the Lord, and in the power of His might.
Be not afraid, neither be dismayed, for the Lord thy God is with thee.
Not by my power, not by my hand,
I cannot win this on my own.
But in the Lord I take my stand,
His mighty strength becomes my own.
So I will rise, I will not fear,
For my Redeemer draweth near.
Be strong in the Lord, be strong in His might,
Rise up and walk as a child of the light.
The battle is His, and the victory sure,
Be strong in the Lord, and stand secure.
Though giants rise and nations rage,
The Lord of hosts is at my side.
His word will stand from age to age,
In Him alone I will abide.
Strength to the weary, hope to the worn,
Power to the faithful, joy in the morn.
He who began it will see it through,
The God of all power lives now in you.
Be strong in the Lord, lift up your eyes,
His power within you shall never die.
Through valley or fire, whatever you face,
Be strong in the Lord, and stand in His grace.
A Blessing
Wherever you are reading this, you do not have to be strong enough today. You only have to lean on the One who is. Be strong in the Lord, and in the power of His might, and go in peace.
Scripture References
- Ephesians 6:10
- Deuteronomy 31:6
- 2 Corinthians 12:9
- Alma 26:12 (Book of Mormon)
- Ether 12:27 (Book of Mormon)
- Doctrine and Covenants 27:15