Lexical Summary
shiryon or shiryan: Coat of mail, armor, breastplate
Original Word:שִׁרְיוֹן
Part of Speech:Noun
Transliteration:shiryown
Pronunciation:shir-YONE or shir-YAN
Phonetic Spelling:(shir-yone')
KJV: breastplate, coat of mail, habergeon, harness See H5630
NASB:armor, body armor, breastplate, breastplates
Word Origin:[fromH8281 (שָׁרָה - lets it loose) in the original sense of turning]
1. a corslet (as if twisted)
Strong's Exhaustive Concordance
breastplate, coat of mail, habergeon, harness
Or shiryon {shir-yone'}; and shiryan {shir- yawn'}; also (feminine) shiryah {shir-yaw'}; and shiryonah {shir-yo-naw'}; fromsharah in the original sense of turning; a corslet (as if twisted) -- breastplate, coat of mail, habergeon, harness. Seeciyron.
see HEBREWsharah
see HEBREWciyron
NAS Exhaustive Concordance
Word Originfrom an unused word
Definitionbody armor
NASB Translationarmor (3), body armor (1), breastplate (1), breastplates (1).
Brown-Driver-Briggs
a weapon, perhaps ; —
Job 41:18 (+ , , ), — yet ,
thorax, i.e. .
IV. (√ of following; meaning dubious; compare Assyriansiriyâm,body-armour (Inscription of Sennacherib), Aramaic
id.; Ecclus 43:20id.; also Egyptian¾u-ïra-na, tà-ra-y-na, WMMAs.u.Eur.102).
, ; — absolute1 Samuel 17:5,38; (Ges§ 29u)1 Kings 22:34 2Chronicles 18:33,Isaiah 59:17; pluralNehemiah 4:10, 2Chronicles 26:14; —body-armour, perhaps more exactlybreast-armour,Nehemiah 4:10; with appendages ()1 Kings 22:34 2Chronicles 18:33; with verb1 Samuel 17:5, made of scale-like plates () of bronze1 Samuel 17:5, named with helmet here, so1 Samuel 17:38; 2Chronicles 26:14 and (figurative)Isaiah 59:17. — proper name see .
Topical Lexicon
Definition and EssenceThe shiryon is a fitted coat of mail or scale armor fashioned from overlapping metal plates sewn onto leather or heavy cloth. It covered the torso from neck to waist, protecting the heart and vital organs. As the most recognizable piece of ancient body armor, the shiryon became a metaphor for both human strength and, in prophetic literature, divine righteousness.
Occurrences and Narrative Contexts
•1 Samuel 17:5, 38 – Goliath’s massive coat of mail, weighing “five thousand shekels of bronze,” and Saul’s own armor offered to David, display the conventional confidence of the Philistine and of Israel’s king, contrasted with David’s reliance on the LORD.
•1 Kings 22:34;2 Chronicles 18:33 – A “random arrow” slips “between the joints of the armor” and mortally wounds King Ahab, revealing that no earthly protection hinders God’s sovereign judgment.
•2 Chronicles 26:14 – King Uzziah equips his army with shields, spears, helmets, and “body armor,” illustrating Judah’s military modernization during a period of prosperity.
•Nehemiah 4:16 – Post-exilic builders carry “spears, shields, bows, and armor” while reconstructing Jerusalem’s walls, symbolizing vigilance during spiritual renewal.
•Job 41:26 – Leviathan laughs at the “slingstone” and “dart,” its hide likened to impregnable armor, magnifying the creature’s fearsome might and, by contrast, the greater might of its Creator.
•Isaiah 59:17 – The LORD Himself “put on righteousness like a breastplate,” adopting the shiryon to execute justice, prefiguring the spiritual armor bestowed upon believers.
Historical Background
Archaeology confirms the prevalence of scale coats in the Late Bronze and Iron Ages across Canaan, Philistia, and Egypt. Typical construction used bronze or iron fish-scale plates laced together, allowing flexibility while deflecting blades and arrows. Weight ranged from twenty-five to seventy pounds; elite warriors and kings alone could afford such craftsmanship. By Uzziah’s reign (eighth century B.C.), Judah had acquired metallurgical skill sufficient to furnish an entire standing army with this equipment (2 Chronicles 26:14), marking a technological stride that paralleled Assyrian influence.
Theological Themes
1. Reliance on God versus human armor – David rejects Saul’s shiryon (1 Samuel 17:38-39), demonstrating that victory stems from covenant faith, not military hardware.
2. Vulnerability of the proud – Ahab’s fatal wound (1 Kings 22:34) warns that rebellion against divine counsel nullifies even the best defenses.
3. Divine Warrior motif –Isaiah 59:17 depicts the LORD donning armor to redeem His people and judge evil, revealing that human implements only faintly echo His perfect righteousness.
4. Continuity into New Testament teaching – Paul’s exhortation to “put on the breastplate of righteousness” (Ephesians 6:14) borrows directly from Isaiah’s imagery, rooting Christian spiritual warfare in the earlier revelation of God’s own armor.
Christological Foreshadowing
The prophetic vision of the LORD armored for salvation (Isaiah 59:17) anticipates Jesus Christ, who embodies righteousness and brings decisive victory over sin. Unlike Goliath’s or Saul’s mail, Christ’s protection is inviolable; He shares it with believers, clothing them in His own merits.
Practical Applications for Ministry
• Preaching: Contrast the weight of Goliath’s armor with the yoke that Christ declares “easy,” urging hearers to trust divine power rather than worldly strength.
• Discipleship: Encourage believers to examine “gaps in the armor,” areas of life where hidden sin, like the joint in Ahab’s shiryon, leaves them exposed.
• Corporate worship: Songs and liturgy can celebrate God as the Warrior who fights for His people and equips them with spiritual armor.
• Counseling and spiritual warfare: Use the shiryon motif to teach about guarding the heart (Proverbs 4:23) with truths of the gospel, reinforcing identity in Christ.
Summary
The shiryon threads through Scripture as a tangible symbol of protection, pride, judgment, and divine righteousness. Whether hanging on the shoulders of giants, kings, common soldiers, or the LORD Himself, it calls readers to discern where true security lies: not in forged metal, but in the steadfast character and saving purpose of God.
Forms and Transliterations
הַשִּׁרְי֔וֹן הַשִּׁרְיָ֑ן השריון השרין וְהַשִּׁרְיֹנִ֑ים וְשִׁרְי֥וֹן וְשִׁרְיָֽה׃ וְשִׁרְיֹנ֖וֹת והשרינים ושריה׃ ושריון ושרינות כַּשִּׁרְיָ֔ן כשרין שִׁרְיֽוֹן׃ שריון׃ haš·šir·yān haš·šir·yō·wn hashshirYan hashshirYon hašširyān hašširyōwn kaš·šir·yān kashshirYan kašširyān shirYon šir·yō·wn širyōwn vehashshiryoNim veshirYah veshirYon veshiryoNot wə·haš·šir·yō·nîm wə·šir·yāh wə·šir·yō·nō·wṯ wə·šir·yō·wn wəhašširyōnîm wəširyāh wəširyōnōwṯ wəširyōwn
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