In the Name of the Lord Almighty

David said to [Goliath] the Philistine, “You come against me with sword and spear and javelin, but I come against you in the name of the Lord Almighty.” (1 Samuel 17:45, NIV 1984).

My Musings – One of the most famous accounts in the Old Testament, the confrontation between David and Goliath. So famous, that “facing your giants,” a slightly veiled reference to David and Goliath, has become proverbial.

Goliath was indeed a giant of a man. “He was over nine feet tall. He had a bronze helmet on his head and wore a coat of scale armor of bronze weighing [about 125 pounds]; on his legs he wore bronze greaves, and a bronze javelin was slung on his back. His spear shaft was like a weaver’s rod, and its iron point weighed [fifteen pounds].” (1 Samuel 17:4-7, NIV 1984). A fierce and intimidating looking warrior who had “Saul and all the Israelites…dismayed and terrified.” (1 Samuel 17:1, NIV 1984).

Goliath had challenged the Israelites to send one of their warriors to battle him one-on-one. “If he is able to fight and kill me, we will become your subjects; but if I overcome him and kill him, you will become our subjects and serve us.” (1 Samuel 17:9, NIV 1984). A risk that Saul had been unwilling to take. It would have been a fool’s wager, except for one thing. The so-called “gods” of the Philistines were no match for the God of Israel. They just needed a champion with more faith than macho.

“This day I defy the ranks of Israel! Give me a man and let us fight each other.” (1 Samuel 17:10, NIV 1984). These words of Goliath must have haunted the men in Saul’s army. But not young David, who had come to camp to bring some food to his brothers that were serving in Saul’s army. He was indignant. “Who is this uncircumcised Philistine that he should defy the armies of the living God? Let no one lose heart on account of this Philistine; [I] will go and fight him.” (1 Samuel 17:25, 32, NIV 1984).

Saul, who himself “as he stood among the people…was a head taller than any of the others. (1 Samuel 10:23, NIV 1984), was not as confident as David. “You [David] are not able to go out against this Philistine and fight him; you are only a boy, and he has been a fighting man from his youth.” (1 Samuel 17:33, NIV 1984). Only a boy?

But David was insistent. “Your servant has been keeping his father’s sheep. When a lion or a bear came and carried off a sheep from the flock, I went after it, struck it and rescued the sheep from its mouth. When it turned on me, I seized it by its hair, struck it and killed it. Your servant has killed both the lion and the bear; this uncircumcised Philistine will be like one of them, because he has defied the armies of the living God. The Lord who delivered me from the paw of the lion and the paw of the bear will deliver me from the hand of this Philistine.” (1 Samuel 17:34-37, NIV 1984).

So, refusing armor that was too big for him, and weapons that were too unwieldy, he went out to face Goliath. Taking “his staff in his hand, [he] chose five smooth stones from the stream, put them in the pouch of his shepherd’s bag and, with his sling in his hand, approached the Philistine.” (1 Samuel 17:40, NIV 1984).

Goliath was not impressed, not to mention a bit too cocky. “‘Am I a dog, that you [David] come at me with sticks?'” And the Philistine cursed David by his gods. ‘Come here,’ he said, ‘and I’ll give your flesh to the birds of the air and the beasts of the field!'” (1 Samuel 17:43-44, NIV 1984).

David was not discouraged and did not lose heart. “You [Goliath] come against me with sword and spear and javelin, but I come against you in the name of the Lord Almighty, the God of the armies of Israel, whom you have defied. This day the Lord will hand you over to me, and I’ll strike you down and cut off your head. Today I will give the carcasses of the Philistine army to the birds of the air and the beasts of the earth, and the whole world will know that there is a God in Israel. All those gathered here will know that it is not by sword or spear that the Lord saves; for the battle is the Lord’s, and he will give all of you into our hands.” (1 Samuel 17:45-47, NIV 1984).

It takes little in the way of imagination to figure out “the rest of the story. “David ran quickly toward the battle line to meet him. Reaching into his bag and taking out a stone, he slung it and struck the Philistine on the forehead. The stone sank into his forehead, and he fell face down on the ground. So, David triumphed over the Philistine with a sling and a stone.”(1 Samuel 17:48-50, NIV 1984). With four stones left over.

My Advice – We will face our own “giants” in our life. Jesus said as much. “In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world.” (John 16:33, NIV 1984). Sometimes, however, maybe even most of the time, we focus too much on the troubles (giants) we are facing, and not nearly enough about taking heart and overcoming our doubt and fear.

We know we will not face them alone. Nor do we face them with “sword and spear and javelin.” “For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms.” (Ephesians 6:12, NIV 1984).

“For though we live in the world, we do not wage war as the world does. The weapons we fight with are not the weapons of the world.” (2 Corinthians 10:3-4, NIV 1984). How foolish it would be to take a “knife to a gunfight.” To fight “spiritual forces of evil” with worldly weaponry.

So, we must “put on the full armor of God so that [we] can take [our] stand against the devil’s schemes. For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms.” (Ephesians 6:11-12, NIV 1984).

What is the full armor of God? “The belt of truth buckled around your waist, with the breastplate of righteousness in place, and with your feet fitted with the readiness that comes from the gospel of peace. In addition to all this, take up the shield of faith, with which you can extinguish all the flaming arrows of the evil one. Take the helmet of salvation and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God. And pray in the Spirit on all occasions with all kinds of prayers and requests. (Ephesians 6:14-18, NIV 1984). Truth. Righteousness. Gospel of peace. Faith. Salvation. The word of God.

“It is not by sword or spear that the Lord saves.”