Biblical buckler

[Scott A. Richardson]

I know this is a bit beyond the typical historical purview of our studies, but is the "buckler" referred to in Psalm 35, verse 2, essentialy the same thing as a Renaissance buckler, and would it be used in the same way?

Thanks.

[CalebChow]

Those more experienced with Hebrew and the Ketuvim can correct me, but I think the terms used here are dependent on your bible's translation.

The words "magen" and "Tzinah" both mean "shield" for all I can tell, so my guess it that the English translators thought "take up shield and shield" didn't make much sense, so they used buckler for one of them.

But archaeologically speaking, there's not much military material culture remaining from King David's time (around 10th century BCE) to say much about their weapons or the usage of their weapons.

The Assyrians a couple hundred years later, however, are a different story.

[Jaron Bernstein]

Those more experienced with Hebrew and the Ketuvim can correct me, but I think the terms used here are dependent on your bible's translation.

The words "magen" and "Tzinah" both mean "shield" for all I can tell, so my guess it that the English translators thought "take up shield and shield" didn't make much sense, so they used buckler for one of them.

But archaeologically speaking, there's not much military material culture remaining from King David's time (around 10th century BCE) to say much about their weapons or the usage of their weapons.

The Assyrians a couple hundred years later, however, are a different story.

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Magan is shield in Hebrew. It is today mainly used in a religious context. The ancient Israelis weren't radically different in military technology from their neighbors. You might look at shields in use at the time elsewhere in the region.

[Corey Roberts]

It should be remembered that many of the more common translations of the Bible, such as the King James version were translated during the Renaissance, the King James was translated I believe in 1611, so any reference to "Buckler" in the Bible is more than likely a language choice resultant from the period in which it was translated. The biblical translator encountered some Hebrew word meaning "shield" of some sort, and translated that to the most common shield of the 17th century, the "Buckler"

[Greg Coffman]

I have a note in my NASB that offers "small shield" as an alternative to buckler. This might be a buckler-like shield or it might be more like a small heater.

[Jake Glickfield]

The Hebrew word "tzinah" is from a language of concealment. It could be a form of armor. If I remember I will check a Hebrew edition with Hebrew commentary.