“Stand Firm”​—How?

12. How can Christians gird their loins with truth?

¹² Paul explains: “Stand firm, therefore, with your loins girded about with truth, and having on the breastplate of righteousness.” (Ephesians 6:14) The two pieces of armor referred to here are a girdle, or a belt, and a breastplate.

13. How can we protect our figurative heart?

¹³ The literal breastplate served to protect the soldier’s chest, heart, and other vital organs. The Christian can protect his figurative heart​—the person he is on the inside—​by cultivating love for God’s righteousness and by adhering to Jehovah’s righteous standards. The figurative breastplate protects us from watering down God’s Word. As we come to “hate what is bad, and love what is good,” we restrain our feet “from every bad path.”​—Amos 5:15; Psalm 119:101.