When I coached high school basketball, most teams I coached against played man-to-man or zone defense. Like most coaches, either system could protect the goal with the right players. However, I had a fellow coach share a type of man-to-man defense that would change how I coached in the last few years of my career. The pack line was created by Dick Bennett and refined by his son Tony who coaches at Virginia.

The pack line name comes from an actual line taped on the floor during practice to show players how far to defend. It’s a type of man-to-man defense often called a “gap” team. The other classification is a “deny” team defense because it tries to expand its protection in the passing lanes and force turnovers with lots of pressure. Bennett’s “gap” defense does the opposite as it condenses its defense and clogs driving lanes. It uses a force field around the paint to protect the goal.

Revelation 11 – God Protects His People

While God didn’t use a pack-line defense to protect the two witnesses in Revelation 11, He did protect them during the timeout from the trumpet judgments. Even if you’re confused by the symbols in this chapter, don’t miss this point: God protects His people against all satanic opposition. They were protected so they could declare the gospel until the kingdom comes.

The Kingdom Coach and Athlete believe God will protect His people against satanic opposition. Whether in the book of Revelation or today, we can count on God to provide a plan to protect His goal of preaching the gospel.