Lessons from the Lives of Saul and David. Scripture I Samuel 17:1-50

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Elaine Andrews
5 years ago
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1 Series Lessons from the Lives of Saul and David This Message David Fights Goliath Scripture I Samuel 17:1-50 We are at a point of transition in our examination of the lives of Saul and David. This is a good place for us to look back to review where we have been and to look forward so that we have some perspective about the pathway on which we will travel. For several weeks we have talked about the behavior of King Saul. His failures were described in some detail in chapters 13, 14, and 15. His behavior indicated that he did not have the proper heart attitude to serve as the representative of the LORD before the people of Israel. After his third and most serious disobedience, the LORD rejected Saul as king, and as evidence of this rejection, the Spirit of the LORD departed from Saul. Saul retained his position as leader of the people, but he had to rule without the guidance and protection of the LORD. In chapter 16, we learned about the young man who had the essential spiritual qualities to serve as the LORD s representative before the people. David, even though he was a teenager, was the man after God s own heart (I Samuel 13:14) and he was designated as the LORD s choice to succeed Saul as king. In view of the things we have learned about Saul s attitudes and behavior and the explanation of the LORD concerning the importance of the inner qualities of the heart (I Samuel 16:7) we can venture a definition of the meaning of the phrase a man after God s own heart. The person qualified to represent the LORD: 1) depends on the guidance of the LORD, 2) is eager to obey God explicitly and wholeheartedly, 3) is willing to trust the LORD regardless of physical circumstances, 4) gives full glory to God for achievements, and 5) is quick to confess personal sins and to maintain a personal relationship with the LORD. Saul was a failure in all these areas. However, in contrast, David, during his lifetime, demonstrated all these characteristics. This doesn t mean that David lived without sinning. David made mistakes, some of them really serious. He gave in to his lusts and passions, failed as a parent to his children there is a long list of his inconsistencies and sins. Yet, in spite of his failures and sins, David s central ongoing desire in life, his heart attitude, was to maintain a close relationship with the LORD and to give glory to God. In this regard, he is a model for the followers of God today. 1

2 We will read in future weeks of the times when David had to be confronted by prophets because of some sin or other, and in each case, David was quick to confess his offense and seek the restoration of his relationship with God. The details of what I have just explained about David will come out in the messages of future weeks. I wanted to give you this perspective so that you would have some specific things to look for and anticipate. Last week I stated that there were two episodes that brought David into Saul s court and to the attention of the entire nation of Israel. Last week we read that Saul was occasionally troubled by an evil spirit and that, on those occasions, David would take his harp and play. Then relief would come to Saul, and he would feel better (I Samuel 16:23). The context for the second episode, the one we will read about today, was a confrontation between the Philistines and Israel. Both the Philistines and Israelites had drawn up battle lines on either side of a valley about 20 miles from modern day Jerusalem. Chapter 17 is a very long chapter so we will read excerpts. Our first reading explains the circumstances. Read I Samuel 17:4-11 The Philistines proposed that the issue of dominance in the land be settled in a relatively bloodless way. Secular history books describe how some ancient battles were decided by what is called representative warfare, essentially a contest of champions in which selected individuals fight on behalf of others. The champion of the Philistines was a unique man, standing nine feet tall, covered with bronze armor, bearing an enormous javelin and a sword. Each day he would stride into the valley where he could be seen by the Israelite soldiers and shout insults at them. Saul and all the Israelites were dismayed and terrified by the challenge of Goliath. From a human perspective, Goliath must have appeared to be unassailable and invincible. Barring the response of an Israelite hero, Goliath and the Philistines would gain sovereignty over the land, and Israel would be subservient to its enemy. It is important for us to recall something we talked about in a previous message. Remember how Saul was described when we were first introduced to him? He was an impressive young man, a head taller than any of the other Israelites. In other words, Saul was the Israelite most similar in physic to Goliath. Saul was the one the people wanted to lead them into battle. Saul was the logical choice to represent Israel in this contest of champions. Saul may have looked like a champion among the Israelites, but compared to Goliath, he was not enough of a man to inspire any confidence. 2

3 Saul was unwilling to confront Goliath; unwilling to put himself at risk, so he offered some generous incentives to the Israelite who would go out to fight Goliath. There are some verses in this chapter which explain that Saul offered to give great wealth to the man who killed him. He would also give him his daughter in marriage and would exempt his father s family from taxes (I Samuel 17:25). Such a good deal, but there were no takers among the Israelite soldiers. Basically, Saul was trying to bribe someone to do what he needed to do. In verse 12, we are reintroduced to the hero of this episode, David. I will summarize the middle section of this chapter but we will read more later. David apparently divided his time between Saul s court and his home in Bethlehem, and during the days in which Goliath was parading in front of the Israelite army, David was in Bethlehem. His three oldest brothers were soldiers in the service of Saul. Jesse, David s father, was concerned about the well-being of his sons, so he gathered food and supplies for them and instructed David to carry these items to the camp and to bring back a report from the front lines. As David was talking to his brothers, Goliath stepped out from the battle line of the Philistine army and shouted his usual defiance in the direction of the Israelites (I Samuel 17:21-23). It was a divinely arranged moment. When David saw Goliath, he asked two questions: What will be done for the man who kills this Philistine and removes this disgrace from Israel? and Who is this uncircumcised Philistine that he should defy the armies of the living God? (I Samuel 17:26) David s questions revealed his concern for the honor of both Israel and God. What David said was overheard and reported to Saul, and Saul sent for him (I Samuel 17:31). David said to Saul, Let no one lose heart on account of this Philistine; your servant will go and fight him (I Samuel 17:32). In the ensuing dialogue, Saul tried to dissuade David from what he thought to be a foolish undertaking. He said, You are only a boy, and he has been a fighting man from his youth. Of course, Saul was once again only looking at circumstances from a human perspective. He had no experience with what the LORD could do in and through a person who was totally devoted to the LORD and concerned about the LORD s glory, nor did he have an understanding of or confidence in what the LORD had promised on behalf of Israel. David, on the other hand, had a keen sense of personal responsibility. He had proven this in his care of his father s sheep which had been entrusted to him. Now he was ready to demonstrate his sense of personal responsibility to God s covenant people, and he was willing to trust the LORD to help him fulfill that responsibility. 3

4 In his reply to Saul, David said, Your servant has killed both the lion and the bear (which attacked the flock); 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 (I Samuel 17:34-37). Reliance on the guidance and strength of the LORD is an essential characteristic for every person who wants to serve God in an acceptable way. This principle applies today just as it did in David s time. David lived in reliance on the LORD, and so he could, in advance of his confrontation with Goliath, acknowledge the assistance of God. For us, it is like thanking God in advance for the answers to our prayers. The willingness to rely on the guidance and strength of the LORD is a strong indication of the heart attitude toward, and confidence in, the supernatural power of God and His authority over human circumstances. This is what it means to live by faith in a way which is pleasing to God. We can make a comparison between David s concern for his sheep and his concern for the people of Israel. The flock of his father had been threatened by predators just as the armies of the living God were being threatened by the predator Goliath. As God had delivered David from the hand of the lion and of the bear, so he would be delivered from the hand of the Philistine. The outcome of Goliath would be like the lion and bear, both of whom David had killed. Each experience in David s life in which he trusted God was a stepping stone into a greater appreciation of God s power. Each experience was the basis of more and more confidence in his relationship with the living LORD God. In contrast, Saul had had a positive first experience in warfare, but this did not lead him to a deeper level of confidence and respect for the LORD. Saul s decisions were like stepping stones which led him further and further from God. The spiritual paths of Saul and David moved in opposite directions. In order to prepare David for his confrontation with Goliath, Saul attempted to dress David as an authentic warrior to have David wear the same kind of armor as Goliath, and have the same kind of helmet. Saul dressed David in his own tunic and gave him his own sword. This must have been a humorous, pathetic moment. Saul was a big man; David of ordinary stature. The armor would not have been a comfortable fit. There may have been an emotional reason why Saul did all this. It was commonly believed that the clothing and possessions of an important person would imbue the wearer with the essence and power of the owner. If David had worn the battle attire to meet Goliath, Saul would have been able to take some credit for, and to share in, David s accomplishments. 4

5 David, however, denied Saul this potential glory. After trying to walk around in the oversized attire of the well-outfitted combat ready soldier, David said, I cannot go in these and he took them off. He then went out to battle Goliath with his shepherd s staff, his sling, and five smooth stones. In the hands of a skilled person, the sling could be a deadly weapon. The use of slings in warfare predates bows and arrows. The sling used by David is still commonly used in the Middle East today. It consists of two leather thongs or cords with a pouch in the middle. A stone would be placed in the pouch, the ends of the thongs would be held in the hand, the stone would be twirled around several times, then shot by releasing one of the thongs. Stones were often baseball size, and the speed of the stone would be equal to a fast baseball pitch. Now let s read what happened. Read I Samuel 17: Goliath was not impressed with the champion of Israel who was coming toward him. He saw only a boy whom he despised, and he cursed David by his gods. In his response, David pointed out the ineffectiveness and irrelevance of sword and spear. Rather, David announced that he was coming to Goliath in the name of the Lord Almighty, the God of the armies of Israel, whom Goliath had defied. Obviously the weapons wielded by Goliath and David belonged to totally different realms. Notice that David was coming into this situation as the representative of God. That is what he meant by fighting in the name of the LORD. The reference to the Lord Almighty can also be translated the Lord of hosts. Goliath didn t know it, but he was in a perilous situation: to defy the armies of Israel was the same as defying the hosts of the LORD Almighty which was the same as defying God Himself. In verse 46 David states that it would be the LORD Himself who would hand over Goliath. The literal meaning is deliver you into my hand. 5

6 The victory that David anticipates would demonstrate to all the world the existence and power of Israel s God. Among those who most needed to understand this were the people of Israel themselves. They needed to get back to the kind of faith and expectation that their ancestors had when they entered the promised land under Joshua. That generation defeated enemies and occupied the land because they looked to God to guide them and fight for them. The Israelites of Saul s and David s generation needed to understand that it was not human strength or weapons that would enable them to be victorious in battle. They needed to understand that the battle is the LORD s. David did not fight Goliath with a conventional battle style. He refused to wear conventional armor for protection. He did not carry conventional weapons with which to attack the enemy. The interaction with Goliath did not involve physical strength or cleverness or unique strategy. David used common objects. He approached the conflict with great confidence in the ability of God to give him the victory. And when Goliath fell to the ground, it was evident to all that there was a God in Israel who was powerful against the foes of His people. All the glory in the victory had to go to the LORD. Verse 50 summarizes what happened. David had prevailed in such an unconventional way that the only reasonable explanation was that the LORD was responsible. There is an epilogue to the verses we have read. David used Goliath s own sword to behead the giant. When the Philistines saw that their hero was dead, they turned and ran. Scripture explains that the men of Israel and Judah pursued the Philistines for many miles, leaving their dead strewn along the road to their fortified cities. It was a day of great victory. It was a day in which despair was turned into rejoicing because one young man was concerned about the glory of God. Some Thoughts for Reflection: The person who is after God s own heart: -depends on the guidance of the LORD; -is eager to obey the God explicitly and wholeheartedly; -is willing to trust the LORD regardless of physical circumstances; -gives full glory to God for achievements; 6

Secrets of a Giant Killer 1 Samuel 17:23-51

Secrets of a Giant Killer 1 Samuel 17:23-51 What giants are in your life? How can you eliminate them? 1. Faith Seeks God's Glory 1 Samuel 17:21-22 Israel and the Philistines were drawing up their lines