07/22/2025
The Battle BEGINS!
David rose to fame in the Valley of Elah where he
went mano a mano with a Bronze Age version of
Bobby Jackson. Goliath stood nine feet nine
inches tall, wore 126 pounds of armor, and twice
daily double-dog dared the Israelites to come out
of hiding and fight him.
He was the MVP (Most Valuable Philistine). The
Philistines were mighty warriors with, at their zenith,
thirty thousand iron chariots and six thousand
horsemen. Imagine a N**i platoon large enough to fill
half a dozen football fields. The commandant is
behemoth Goliath who boasts:
This day I defy the armies of Israel!
Give me a man and let us fight each other.
1 Samuel 17:10
For forty days, he awoke the Hebrews in the
morning and sent them scurrying into their tents at
night. On eighty separate occasions, the Hebrew soldiers
heard his voice, turned their heads, and tucked their tails.
It was an utter beatdown. The Philistines were
the middle school bullies, and the Hebrew soldiers
were pale-faced first graders. Goliath emasculated
them, intimidated them, and demoralized them. Bait-
Shop earthworms have healthier self-esteem.
By the time David arrived, sent from home with
food for his brothers, the army was shivering like a
litter of wet puppies.
David was the youngest in his family — a teenager.
Too young to go to battle. Too young to join the army.
At least that is what others thought. Not David.
The ruddy-skinned and skinny son of Jesse showed
up and piped up:
What will be done for the man who
kills this Philistine and removes this
disgrace from Israel? Who is this
uncircumcised Philistine that he should
defy the armies of the living God?
1 Samuel 17:26
The Bible records thousands of David’s words. His
conversations, his meditations. We know more about
David than about any other person in holy Scripture.
Sixty-six chapters are dedicated to his story, more
square inches than any biography other than Jesus’.
The New Testament mentions his name fifty-nine
times! And, of all his recorded words, these are
the first. And, of all the words, these are arguably
the best.
He calls Goliath an “uncircumcised Philistine.”
Or in modern parlance, a filthy, rotten scoundrel.
Politically, correct? No. Spiritually sensitive? No
doubt. He marched into the battle keenly aware of
the “armies of the living God.”
He sees a battle; he thinks of God. He sees the Philistines;
he thinks of God’s armies.
And you? How does David’s reaction
to the enemy compare with yours?
He sees a battle; he thinks of God.
He sees the Philistines;
he thinks of God’s armies.
I recently spent the better part of an hour reciting to
my pastor the woes of my life. I felt overwhelmed by
commitments and deadlines. I had been sick. There
was tension at the church between some of my
friends. A married couple whom I had counseled
chose to ignore my advice and file for divorce.
Groan.
After several minutes of my ranting, my pastor asked
me: “Is God in this anywhere?”
(I hate it when he does that.) I was not thinking
about God. I was not consulting God. I was not
turning to God. I was not talking about God.
David, on the other hand, could not stop talking
about Him. Every time he opened his mouth, he
mentioned God.
He told the men:
Who is this uncircumcised Philistine that he
should defy the armies of the living God?
1 Samuel 17:26
He told King Saul:
The Lord who rescued me from the
paw of the lion and the paw of the bear
will rescue me from the hand of this Philistine.
1 Samuel 17:37
And he told Goliath:
You come to me with a sword, a
spear, and a shield, but I come to you
in the name of the Lord of Hosts, the
God of the armies of Israel, whom you
have reviled. On this day the Lord
will deliver you into my hand. And I
will strike you down and cut off your
head. Then I will give the corpses of
the Philistine camp this day to the
birds of the air and to the beasts of
the earth so that all the earth may
know that there is a God in Israel.
And then all this assembly will know
that it is not by sword and spear that
the Lord saves. For the battle
belongs to the Lord, and He will give
you into our hands.
1 Samuel 17:45–47
Saul offered David his armor. David refused. He
was more comfortable with his sling and creek-bed
stones. So, while Goliath was sharpening his sword,
David was selecting the rocks. The kind that fit
snuggly in the pouch of the sling. The kind that
whistles like missiles through the air. The kind that
cracks open the skull of a hardheaded giant like
Goliath.
No one placed a bet on David. No one.
Not the brothers. Not his kinsmen.
Not Saul the king. No one gave David a fighting chance.
They did not know what we know. This battle
was not David’s to fight; it was God’s.
Remember his resolve?
********* The battle belongs to the Lord.
** 1 Samuel 17:47
Brawny Goliath scoffed at scrawny David.
Do you think that I am just a dog?
Can you knock me down with a little stick?
V. 43
David loaded a stone. Goliath raised his sword.
The shepherd swung. The giant smirked. The rock
flew. The skull cracked and the duel ended as quickly
as it began. Goliath collapsed. David guillotined
him. The Israelites, suddenly infused with
courage, overtook their enemies, and a new day
began for Israel.
All because David knew this: The battle
belonged to the Lord.
WHAT ABOUT YOU?!
** PM - FOR PRAYER 😉🙂🙏
