1788. The fact that a shield is protection from evil and falsity, which inspires trust, can be seen without explanation; frequent use of the saying "Jehovah is a shield and buckler" has made it a familiar one. 1
The specific symbolism of a shield, though, can be seen from the Word. In relation to the Lord it symbolizes protection. In relation to human beings it symbolizes trust in his protection. Just as war symbolizes times of trial (as shown in §1664), every weapon of war symbolizes a particular aspect of trial or of defense against evil and falsity. (Defense against evil and falsity is defense against the Devil's horde, the source and agent of our trials.) So a shield symbolizes one thing, a buckler another, an aegis another, 2 a helmet another, a spear or a javelin another, a sword another, a bow and arrows another, and a corselet another. Each will be discussed later, with the Lord's divine mercy. 3
[2] The reason a shield symbolizes protection from evil and falsity on the Lord's part, and trust in him on our part, is that it was a way of protecting the chest, and the chest symbolizes goodness and truth. (The chest symbolizes goodness because it contains the heart, and truth because it contains the lungs.) This symbolism of a shield can be seen in David:
A blessing on Jehovah, my towering rock (teaching my hands battle; my fingers, war), my mercy and my fortress, my fortified citadel and my own rescuer, my shield and he in whom I trust. (Psalms 144:1-2)
The battle and war are those of spiritual trial and, in an inner sense here, of the Lord's trials. The shield obviously means Jehovah's protection and humankind's trust in it.
[3] In the same author:
Israel, trust in Jehovah; he is their help and their shield. House of Aaron, trust in Jehovah; he is their help and their shield. All you who fear Jehovah, trust in Jehovah; he is their help and their shield. (Psalms 115:9-10, 11)
The meaning is similar. In the same author:
Jehovah my fortress, my God in whom I will trust, will cover you with his wing, and under his wings you will feel confidence. His truth is a buckler and aegis. (Psalms 91:2, 4)
The buckler and aegis stand for protection from falsity.
[4] In the same author:
Jehovah is my rock and my fortress and my rescuer, My God, my towering rock in which I trust, my shield, and the horn of my salvation. Jehovah is a shield to all who trust in him. (Psalms 18:2, 30)
The meaning is similar. In the same author:
You, who examine hearts and kidneys, 4 are a just God. My shield [rests] on God, who saves the upright at heart. (Psalms 7:9-10)
The shield stands for trust. In the same author:
You have given me the shield of your salvation, and your right hand will hold me up. (Psalms 18:35)
The shield stands for trust. In the same author:
To God belong the shields of the earth; he has been greatly exalted. (Psalms 47:9)
[5] The shields stand for trust. In the same author:
A sun and shield is Jehovah God; favor and glory Jehovah will grant. Good will not be withheld from those who walk in integrity. (Psalms 84:11)
The shield stands for protection. In Moses:
Blessings are yours, Israel. Who is like you, a people finding salvation in Jehovah, the shield of your help and one who is the sword of your excellence? And your foes will be deceived concerning you. (Deuteronomy 33:29)
The shield stands for protection.
[6] Just as people fighting their inward battles are said to have these weapons of war, so are the enemies that attack and challenge them. In that case, the symbolism of the weapons is the direct opposite. A shield, for instance, is then the evil and falsity that they wield in battle, defend themselves with, and trust in. For example, in Jeremiah:
Arrange shield and buckler, and approach for battle. Harness the horses, and mount, riders, and present yourselves in your helmets; polish your javelins; don your corselets. (Jeremiah 46:3-4)
There are many other passages as well.
Footnotes:
1. Although the exact reference Swedenborg is making — whether to proverb or hymn — is not clear, the imagery is common in the Bible. See Deuteronomy 33:29; 2 Samuel 22:3, 31, 36; Psalms 3:3; 5:12; 18:2, 30, 35; 28:7; 33:20; 35:2; 59:11; 84:9, 11; 91:4; 115:9-11; 119:114; 144:2; Proverbs 2:7; 30:5; and compare also Ephesians 6:16. [SS]
2. The Latin word here translated "shield" is clypeus, Swedenborg's translation of the Hebrew מָגֵן (māḡēn). "Buckler" is a translation of the Latin scutum, which Swedenborg uses for the Hebrew צִנָּה (ṣinnā); and "aegis," of the Latin parma, which Swedenborg uses for the Hebrew סֹחֵרָה (sōḥērā). The words indicate three types of shield. What is here rendered a "shield" was a shield of average size that protected the chest (as Swedenborg points out in subsection 2 just below). The "buckler" was a larger, full-body shield (see Psalms 5:12) that required twice as much metal to make (compare verse 15 with verse 16 in 2 Chronicles 9). The "aegis" was the smallest and lightest of the three. [JSR, RS]
3. The present section is the only one in Secrets of Heaven that treats at length of shields of any kind. Helmets, spears, javelins, and corselets are not treated extensively anywhere in Secrets of Heaven. Swords are discussed in §§2799, 7102; bows and arrows, in §2686. [LHC]
4. On the kidneys as the seat of the emotions, see note 1 in §348. [Editors]
