1 Samuel 17:31-54 from the daily reading in the One Year Bible

When the words which David spoke were heard, they told them to Saul, and he sent for him. ³² David said to Saul, “Let no man’s heart fail on account of him; your servant will go and fight with this Philistine.” ³³ Then Saul said to David, “You are not able to go against this Philistine to fight with him; for you are but a youth while he has been a warrior from his youth.” ³⁴ But David said to Saul, “Your servant was tending his father’s sheep. When a lion or a bear came and took a lamb from the flock, ³⁵ I went out after him and attacked him, and rescued it from his mouth; and when he rose up against me, I seized him by his beard and struck him and killed him. ³⁶ Your servant has killed both the lion and the bear; and this uncircumcised Philistine will be like one of them, since he has taunted the armies of the living God.” ³⁷ And David said, “The Lord who delivered me from the paw of the lion and from the paw of the bear, He will deliver me from the hand of this Philistine.” And Saul said to David, “Go, and may the Lord be with you.” ³⁸ Then Saul clothed David with his garments and put a bronze helmet on his head, and he clothed him with armor. ³⁹ David girded his sword over his armor and tried to walk, for he had not tested them. So David said to Saul, “I cannot go with these, for I have not tested them.” And David took them off. ⁴⁰ He took his stick in his hand and chose for himself five smooth stones from the brook, and put them in the shepherd’s bag which he had, even in his pouch, and his sling was in his hand; and he approached the Philistine.

⁴¹ Then the Philistine came on and approached David, with the shield-bearer in front of him. ⁴² When the Philistine looked and saw David, he disdained him; for he was but a youth, and ruddy, with a handsome appearance. ⁴³ The Philistine said to David, “Am I a dog, that you come to me with sticks?” And the Philistine cursed David by his gods. ⁴⁴ The Philistine also said to David, “Come to me, and I will give your flesh to the birds of the sky and the beasts of the field.” ⁴⁵ Then David said to the Philistine, “You come to me with a sword, a spear, and a javelin, but I come to you in the name of the Lord of hosts, the God of the armies of Israel, whom you have taunted. ⁴⁶ This day the Lord will deliver you up into my hands, and I will strike you down and remove your head from you. And I will give the dead bodies of the army of the Philistines this day to the birds of the sky and the wild beasts of the earth, that all the earth may know that there is a God in Israel, ⁴⁷ and that all this assembly may know that the Lord does not deliver by sword or by spear; for the battle is the Lord’s and He will give you into our hands.”

⁴⁸ Then it happened when the Philistine rose and came and drew near to meet David, that David ran quickly toward the battle line to meet the Philistine. ⁴⁹ And David put his hand into his bag and took from it a stone and slung it, and struck the Philistine on his forehead. And the stone sank into his forehead, so that he fell on his face to the ground.

⁵⁰ Thus David prevailed over the Philistine with a sling and a stone, and he struck the Philistine and killed him; but there was no sword in David’s hand. ⁵¹ Then David ran and stood over the Philistine and took his sword and drew it out of its sheath and killed him, and cut off his head with it. When the Philistines saw that their champion was dead, they fled. ⁵² The men of Israel and Judah arose and shouted and pursued the Philistines as far as the valley, and to the gates of Ekron. And the slain Philistines lay along the way to Shaaraim, even to Gath and Ekron. ⁵³ The sons of Israel returned from chasing the Philistines and plundered their camps. ⁵⁴ Then David took the Philistine’s head and brought it to Jerusalem, but he put his weapons in his tent.

“For the battle is the Lord’s and He will give you into our hands.” The account of David and Goliath is more than a story or a fable meant to entertain. As with many of the Old Testament accounts it is recorded to teach and encourage us. We too at times face giants, things or people that in our way, things which it seems are impossible to defeat or overcome. When we face those giants, those enemies it is critical for us to recognize and believe, as David did, that truly the battle is the Lord’s. It is neither in our own strength that we face these enemies, nor is the result our responsibility, it is God’s. How though do we come to that point? How do we acquire the faith to face the giants in our lives?

In this account David gives us insight into where his faith was developed. He says:  “Your servant was tending his father’s sheep.”  Being a shepherd was certainly not a high calling, it was not the most prestigious or respected occupation in David’s time. Yet God often used shepherding to train up His future leaders. Moses went from royalty in Egypt to shepherding sheep in preparation for being God’s chosen deliverer. The Patriarchs of Israel, Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob were all shepherds. There is something about the humility of shepherding which creates and forges great leaders. David learned much in his time with the sheep. One of the most important things was that he learned who God was. He learned to worship and know God personally during the many hours he spent tending sheep. He also learned to trust God regardless of the situation. David says:  “When a lion or a bear came and took a lamb from the flock,  I went out after him and attacked him, and rescued it from his mouth; and when he rose up against me, I seized him by his beard and struck him and killed him.  Your servant has killed both the lion and the bear; and this uncircumcised Philistine will be like one of them, since he has taunted the armies of the living God.”      We too, like David, need to not despise our humble beginnings. We need to not be dissatisfied or frustrated with where we are, but rather seek God wherever we are. We need to learn to trust Him, to know Him. We need to allow God to use the things that are happening now to prepare us for what’s in store. Romans 8:28-29 says:     And we know that God causes all things to work together for good to those who love God, to those who are called according to His purpose.  For those whom He foreknew, He also predestined to become conformed to the image of His Son, so that He would be the firstborn among many brethren    God wants to use the circumstances in our lives to train us, to equip us and to conform us to the image of Christ. Once we are conformed to Christ, we too can defeat Giants as David did. Jesus says:   “ Truly, truly, I say to you, he who believes in Me, the works that I do, he will do also; and greater works than these he will do; because I go to the Father.  Whatever you ask in My name, that will I do, so that the Father may be glorified in the Son.  If you ask Me anything in My name, I will do it. (John 14:12-14)

There is another vital lesson we can learn from this account. It continues:      Then Saul clothed David with his garments and put a bronze helmet on his head, and he clothed him with armor.  David girded his sword over his armor and tried to walk, for he had not tested them. So David said to Saul, “I cannot go with these, for I have not tested them.” And David took them off.  He took his stick in his hand and chose for himself five smooth stones from the brook, and put them in the shepherd’s bag which he had, even in his pouch, and his sling was in his hand; and he approached the Philistine.      David was confident, not only in God, but also in who he was in God. While David trusted fully that the battle was the Lord’s, he also was confident that God had prepared him and given him everything he needed for the fight. He was uniquely qualified, prepared by God. Not even the strongest warrior could match Goliath, but a shepherd boy trained and equipped by God would be victorious. God also prepares each of us, uniquely for His purposes and to fulfill His call on our lives. He may call us to do something even a great scholar, pastor, evangelist or prophet cannot do.

There is much more we can learn and apply from this account of David’s encounter and victory. The final thing I want to look at today is this:  When the Philistines saw that their champion was dead, they fled.  The men of Israel and Judah arose and shouted and pursued the Philistines as far as the valley, and to the gates of Ekron. And the slain Philistines lay along the way to Shaaraim, even to Gath and Ekron.  The sons of Israel returned from chasing the Philistines and plundered their camps.    Just as when David defeated Goliath, the men of Israel were encouraged and went on to a great victory, so too, when we overcome giants, when we win our victories over our enemies by God’s hand, other will be encouraged. Others too will follow us and reclaim the things that God has promised them. Revelation 12:11 says:  They triumphed over him by the blood of the Lamb and by the word of their testimony; they did not love their lives so much as to shrink from death.

 The battle is the Lord’s. We must though, like David, not shrink back in fear but rather walk forward in the confidence of knowing both that God goes before us and that He has prepared us, uniquely and individually for the battle at hand.

Heavenly Father, Lord Jesus Christ; precious Holy Spirit thank You for Your word, the accounts of those who have gone before us from which we can learn and be encouraged. Thank You that You do indeed use all things for our good, to prepare us to train and equip us and most of all to conform us to the image of Christ. Give me the humility to find You in the humble circumstances and the confidence to walk forward into the battles before me, confident both in who You are and who I am in You. Your kingdom come, Your will be done and in all things may You be glorified.   Amen