Shield

But you, O Lord, are r a shield s about me,
my glory, and t the lifter of my head.

Ps 3:3

Shield (3:3; 5:12; 7:10; 18:2, 30; 28:7; 59:11; 84:11; 144:2). In battle the type of shield would be chosen to suit the type of combat one expected to encounter. If siege was being laid to defend city walls, one would want a body-length shield that would provide protection from arrows and sling stones raining down from the walls. In contrast, hand-to-hand combat in the open field would favor a small maneuverable shield that could be used to ward off thrusts by sword or spear. Nearly all of the examples in Psalms refer to the latter (all of the above except 5:12). The metaphor of deity as a shield is familiar from the ancient Near East in, for instance, a prophetic oracle given to the Assyrian king Esarhaddon, who is assured by the goddess Ishtar that she will be a shield for him. Ishtar, as the goddess of war, is referred to as "lady of the shield," and her planet, Venus, takes the Akkadian word for shield, aritu, as one of its names.