The Victory of God: David and Goliath
1 Samuel 17:1-58
Turn in your Bibles to 1 Samuel 17. I was thinking when I came to this story in our study, what would be the most famous Old Testament story that many of us knew since we were young. What would you consider the most famous? We have the children up with us this morning. What would you consider kids to be one of your favourite Old Testament Bible stories? (Noah and the Ark; Daniel and the Lion’s Den; David and Goliath; Israel and the Red Sea; Joseph and his coat-of-many-colours; The Walls of Jericho; The Fiery Furnace; Jonah and the Whale) And what we like about these stories is that they often pit the small against the big, the underdog against the favoured guy. I mean, who doesn’t like to cheer for the underdog.
In the story of Noah and the Ark, there is the whole world against God. And you have a worldwide flood and then you have Noah and his little family, whom God delivers. In the story of Daniel and the lion’s den, there is the world power of Persia and mighty king Darius. And then you have Daniel who stands alone, but who stands for God, and he is thrown into this den with ferocious lions, and he survives. It is like the old movie where the bad guys have the army that is massive, and a handful of good guys defend their little village of women and children. And of course, the story of David and Goliath is no exception. Goliath, the giant, against the underdog, David. So, let us go through this story and then we will dig into it this morning, and to save time, I wish to abbreviate it a little for you. Look at verse1:
1 We have the Philistines on one side. 2 Saul and his men on the other side, 3 with a valley between them. 4 Then a champion came out from the camps of the Philistines named Goliath, a giant. 5 He was heavily armoured, 7 and had a spear and his shield-carrier also walked in front of him. 8 And he stood and called out to the battle lines of Israel and said to them, “Why do you come out to arrange yourselves for battle? Am I not the Philistine and you slaves of Saul? Choose a man for yourselves and let him come down to me. 9 If he is able to fight with me and strike me down, then we will become your slaves; but if I prevail against him and strike him down, then you shall become our slaves and serve us.” 11 Israel was greatly afraid.
12 Now David was the son of Jesse. 13 And Jesse had 3 sons in the battle. 14 But David was the youngest. 15 But went back and forth from Saul to shepherd his father’s flock at Bethlehem. 16 Then Goliath approached, 2 times, every day, for forty days. 17 But when Jesse told David to bring food for the guys in the battle, 23 David overhears the shout of Goliath, 24 and all the men of Israel saw him and fled.
26 David of course, tries to find out why no one is challenging this big brute. 27 He asks what might be done for the guy who takes on Goliath. 28 Then Eliab, David’s oldest brother tells him to be quiet. 31 Well, Saul hears about David hanging around and sends for him and who is asking too many questions. 32 And David tells Saul not to fear for he has fought lions and bears in the past, so it is no problem for him to defeat this big ape. 38 So Saul sends David on his merry way to battle and gives him his armour. 39 But David doesn’t want all that weight, so he just grabs but grabs his staff, 40 and then David chooses 5 stones.
42 When Goliath sees David, he toys with him and says what he is going to do to David, 45 and when David sees the giant, David says what he is going to do to Goliath. 46 And David promises that this day Yahweh will deliver Goliath into his hands, and that he will cut off his head. (sounds like some of the trash-talk prior to a boxing match) 48 Goliath rose to meet David. 49 David flung a stone which hit Goliath in the head, and he fell to the ground. 51 David cut off Goliath’s head and the Philistines fled, 52 and Israel chased after them and killed them.
Now many things have been preached over the years regarding this passage. Some have tried to come up with five theological points symbolized by the five stones. In other words, why the five stones? Well, it is obvious, one for Goliath and one for each of his four brothers. Except we are not really certain that Goliath had four brothers. Nor does it give any reason for why David chose five stones, other than he may thought he might need them. So, we might want to get rid of that idea.
Some have related it to the Apostle Paul’s statement, when I am weak, I am strong. So, the 5 stones represent 5-character qualities that Paul’s talks about in that passage: obedience; prayer; fellowship; witnessing; and worship. Problem is, David only used one stone. And 1 Samuel 17 mentions nothing of this. So, we might as well disregard that one as well. So, let’s try another one we might get from this story, let’s talk about giants in your life. Yet the story doesn’t mention us, and we never had to fight Goliath. So, maybe we need to get rid of that one too. Sometimes in our sermons we like to make people believe we as teachers come up with some amazing thing that no one else has ever discovered before, instead of going through the passage and simply understanding what God is telling us.
So, this battle where an army stands on one side and the other army stands on the other side was common in those days. So, the armies take their place. And then of course, out walks Goliath, six cubits and a span (appr 9 ft tall, some say a little taller). Now when I think of someone like Goliath it really puts me in my place. Obviously, I have never been all that strong, wiry maybe, but not strong. More the kind of sports guy that chirps and then runs and let’s someone else stick up for me. And as I have grown older, I feel weaker, as I feel so fragile playing hockey. I mean when I run into Rick Campbell in the corner at Friday night hockey, it can be a little painful. Although I did run into Pete Parke a few months ago and he actually went down. I can’t figure out what happened, the Lord must have intervened or something.
Now this appearance by Goliath was also common in these days, as sometimes the champion of one side would fight the champion of the other side. And the one who lost would serve the other nation or would pay them somehow with riches. Now we have already read how massive and strong Goliath was, just by the way he was dressed, his armour and his weapons. I don’t know how close you have ever been to a professional football player, especially a guy that plays on the offensive line, who has their full equipment on. The average NFL linemen is 6’4” and 314 pounds. And we are not talking here about someone who is just overweight, but most of them can run fast and are in top physical condition. I was reading that the heaviest NFL linemen was Trent Brown (Houston Texans) at 6’8” and he weighed in at 380 pounds. But since getting older he has slimmed down to 355 pounds to maintain his speed. I thought, poor little guy. Of course, there have been famous basketball platers who have been over seven feet. But the tallest known man in the US was Robert Wadlow at 8’11”, who died in the United States in 1940 at age 22, but who was somewhat thin and weak. Whereas we rightfully picture Goliath as both tall and extremely strong.
And then in verse 7, we read that his shield-carrier or his shield-bearer went before him, an interesting fact that the Lord wanted us to know. Then this giant speaks (vs 8), “Why do you come out to arrange yourselves for battle?” In other words, why do you come out for battle if you are not going to fight? So, why don’t you just choose a man and just the two of us will fight? And then we read (vs 16) that this has been going on for forty days, twice a day. So, for forty days, the Israelite army gets up in the morning, they have something to eat, they get their gear on, they kiss their wife’s goodbye for the day, and they stand and look at Goliath and chicken out. In other words, each morning they head out to the battlefield, but they never do any battling. Are you going to fight? No, I’m not going to fight. I was going to fight him yesterday, but I have sort of chickened out today. So, out of this group of Israelites, there are no volunteers, they were all afraid, as no one was willing to answer Goliath’s challenge, Verse 11, they were greatly afraid, and then (vs 12) the story shifts and we read about a guy named David. Now if we were reading this for the first time, we may be thinking, oh boy here comes someone to solve the problem. But then we would read on.
“But David was the youngest. Now the three oldest had gone after Saul.”
1 Sam 17:14 (LSB)
And then we might think, oh I guess he is not the guy. So, we have this young man who seems too young to be part of the battle, as we find out here that he is only a shepherd boy and on an errand for his Dad, as he came to bring some grain, bread, and some cheese. And so, David arrives to the battle, and it looks like things are just about to heat up again for another day, and David likely thought, oh boy I am here just in time! And the writer here really builds up the story, where Saul and the men are (vs 19) “fighting with the Philistines.” And when David sees this, we read:
“Then David left his baggage in the care of the baggage keeper and ran to the battle line and entered in order to greet his brothers. As he was speaking with them, behold, the champion, the Philistine from Gath named Goliath, was coming up from the battle lines of the Philistines, and he spoke these same words; and David heard them. Now all the men of Israel saw the man, and they fled from him and were greatly afraid.”
1 Sam 17:22-24 (LSB)
We have to smile here at David as he leaves his baggage with the baggage keeper. Just like we might imagine with any kid who has been told to do something, only to see a fight or something exciting going on and they forget everything else, and they are off to the races. And so, David hears these words by Goliath, and he realizes that none of his fellow Israelites respond and flee and are afraid, as they are growing accustomed to being defeated. In other words, they basically live each day as if there is no God in Israel, as it becomes a pattern in their lives. That for almost six weeks now they have lived paralysed and humiliated. Do you see what their “Christian” life is looking like? Yes, they get up Sunday morning and get dressed and they come to church. They get up on the other mornings and maybe do a little Bible reading, but it has no impact on their lives, in other words, there is no spiritual power associated with it, but just the routine of the Christian life.
Well, the story goes on. Saul has said that anyone who would kill Goliath would be given what? The king’s daughter, lots of money, and will live tax free. In other words, if someone is willing to save us from all this mess, you will not have to pay the carbon tax. That seems like a good deal. So, (vs 26) David asks what would be done for the man who slays this giant? Some commentaries have chosen to be tough on David for this question, as if he had some sort of personal agenda going here. But I think we need to think about this a little, as David simply asks, “What will be done for the man who strikes down this Philistine?” Remember last week we said that we either will be interested in spiritual things, or we will not. And the truth given in God’s Word is always used as a motivator for those who will seek after the Lord. David later will write (Ps 37), “Delight yourself in the Lord and He will give you the desires of your heart.” Good the know that this passage is not in the Bible to discourage us in serving God, but it is placed there to encourage us in serving God. Young people, the Bible does not promise a “problem” free Christian life. Hakuna Matata, no “worry-free philosophy.”
No, but we could confidently say this, that if you choose to serve the Lord, the Lord will bless you. Maybe not materially, maybe not trouble-free, but we know for certain that there is no better life than serving Christ! And our kids need to know that. Our kids need to be told that. And our kids need to see that kind of life, they need to see that in us. That it’s believed by us and lived out before them every day by you and me. And if David was somewhat naïve, it may have been as a young lad, knowing the history of Israel and all that God had done for them in Egypt, Moses, the Red Sea, Joshua, and the conquering of the Promised Land; he may have just been surprised that no one has taken up the challenge. and of course, Eliab, the older brother, jumps all over David’s spiritual excitement here.
“Then Eliab his oldest brother heard when he spoke to the men; and Eliab’s anger burned against David, and he said, ‘Why have you come down? And with whom have you left those few sheep in the wilderness? I myself know your arrogance and the wickedness of your heart, for you have come down in order to see the battle.’”
1 Sam 17:28 (LSB)
David must have been tempted to say, what battle? I don’t see anyone fighting. And (vs 29) we see some “spunk” here in David, though he is just a shepherd-boy and an errand-boy. What have I done? Was it not just a word? In other words, am I not allowed to say anything?
“Then the words which David spoke were heard. And they told them to Saul, and he sent for him. And David said to Saul, ‘Let no man’s heart fail on account of him; your servant will go and fight with this Philistine.’ 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.’”
1 Sam 17:31-33 (LSB)
You can understand Saul here, likely thinking, I like your spunk boy, your passion, but there is no way you can defeat this giant. And, by the way, thanks for the cheese. But David responds to Saul and tells him how the Lord delivered him from a lion and a bear, and David says that this uncircumcised Philistine will be like one of them. So, Saul likely must feel a little guilty sending David out to battle. And says (vs 37), “Go, and may Yahweh be with you!” In other words, you will need it! And Saul suits him up, but we know that David refuses the heavy armour. So, David goes and chooses five stones, and he takes his sling in his hand, and approaches the Philistine.
“Then the Philistine came on and drew near to David, with the shield-bearer in front of him.”
1 Sam 17:41 (LSB)
I just need to pause here as this shield-bearer is mentioned again. When we were at Moody Pastor’s conference back in 2013, and Alistair Begg spoke about this battle. And he really questioned the shield-bearer, questioning his inclusion in the story. Now the shield-bearer would stand before a mighty warrior and his job was to block any spear or arrow or in this case a stone from hitting the big guy. And Alistair Begg asked, what good was this useless guy anyway? He had one stone to stop, and he missed it! The only one happier that Goliath would eventually be dead than David, was this lousy shield- bearer. In other words, if Goliath had only lost an eye but lived, this shield-bearer would have been in big trouble! Then of course Goliath ridicules David, and you would think that humanly, David’s heart must have been beating heavily. Yet listen to what David says:
“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 Yahweh of hosts, the God of the battle lines of Israel, whom you have reproached. This day Yahweh 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 camp of the Philistines this day to the birds of the sky and the beasts of the earth, that all the earth may know that there is a God in Israel, and that all this assembly may know that Yahweh does not save by sword or by spear; for the battle is Yahweh’s, and He will give you into our hands.’”
1 Sam 17:45-47 (LSB)
Well, of course, the stone hits Goliath and he falls. And then David takes Goliath’s sword and cuts off his head and takes it to Saul. I thought of the significance of doing this. I guess it would have been proof enough that Goliath was dead. There may not have been any photographers there or CNN. How else would you prove your story? Then the Israelites forget their initial challenge to have the Philistines to become their slaves, and chase the Philistines, slaying them and it says that they plundered their camps.
“And David took the Philistine’s head and brought it to Jerusalem, but he put his weapons in his tent.”
1 Sam 17:54 (LSB)
I am not sure why he did this, put Goliath’s weapons in his tent? Maybe he wanted to have something to show his grandchildren. David might have told his grandkids about Goliath and how big he was, and they might say, well, that is all grand and good Papa, but how big was he really? Well, let me show you, for I kept some of his stuff. When some of our grandkids were at our house the other day, Anne was saying something about me playing hockey. And Violet, who is 12, turned and said, “Papa, do you still play hockey?” And I said, “Well, yes, do you think I am some half-dead guy or something?” No, I was kinder than that! And as we read the next few verses, we understand why some believe that this story falls in the middle of chapter 16, as it appears that Saul does not yet know David.
“Now when Saul saw David going out to meet the Philistine, he said to Abner the commander of the army, ‘Abner, whose son is this young man?’ And Abner said, ‘By your life, O king, I do not know.’ And Saul said to him, ‘Whose son are you, young man?’ And David answered, ‘I am the son of your servant Jesse the Bethlehemite.’”
1 Sam 17:55, 58 (LSB)
There are certainly times that we may feel overwhelmed by the enemy. And we will address that more next Sunday from this story. But listen to what David says near the end of his life:
“As for God, His way is blameless;
The word of Yahweh is tried;
He is a shield to all who take refuge in Him.
For who is God, but Yahweh?
And who is a rock, but our God?
God is my strong fortress;
And He sets the blameless in His way.
He makes my feet like hinds’ feet,
And sets me on my high places.”
2 Sam 22:31-34 (LSB)
Think about Goliath: confident in himself and his weapons; he was proud and arrogant; and he went out on day forty-one just like any other day, as he had always gone out, not knowing that this was his last day to dishonour God. Now as we conclude with this story, there is such a temptation here to list some of the qualities of David that we all need to strive for. That we too might be men and women of courage, that we need to be men and women of action, or that we need to somehow step out in faith. And there is merit in that to some extend, and it would be wrong to completely ignore David here as we can applaud what he says and does for God. In fact, that is what we can applaud when we may listen to someone preach or teach, or when we see a Christian step out in faith for their Lord. I trust that those who we might appreciate, that we do not put them on a pedestal. I mean, I have warned about doing that with David. But what we can applaud and enjoy about them is their proclaiming the truth about God and living that truth out in their lives. This is what I would appreciate in some preachers and Christians, where we applaud their proclamation, both in their words and in their life.
But what we want to focus on this morning is God Himself and therefore, to proclaim His greatness. And we see this as God chose an unlikely man to become the hero of this story, as the Bible goes out of its way to state the insignificance of David. When Samuel came to anoint one of Jesse’s sons as king, Jesse’s thought was it cannot be David, it must be one of my other boys. When David came to see the battle, his oldest brother does not think a whole lot of David. When David goes to Saul to say he wishes to fight Goliath, it seems that Saul somewhat makes sport of David. And of course, when David stands before Goliath, Goliath takes one look at David and toys with him. So, David gets no respect from his dad, His brother, Saul, or Goliath. I wish to leave you with a few lessons from this story, of the true focus of this story, God.
- God will use whomever and whatever He chooses to bring about His purposes.
And in this case, it was David. And David’s success against Goliath has nothing to do really with the person of David but has everything to do with the power of a person who God uses. And the person who places his faith in such a God and is simply willing to be used by God.
- God will receive praise from everyone and everything that exalt Him.
We certainly see this from this young shepherd boy from Bethlehem, as David will often express his praise for the Lord. But Jesus said that even if people do not praise God, the rocks will cry out. Romans, 1:20, “For since the creation of the world His invisible attributes, both His eternal power and divine nature, have been clearly seen.” Psalm 96, “Let the heavens be glad, and let the earth rejoice; Let the sea roar, as well as its fullness; Let the field exult, and all that is in it. Then all the trees of the forest will sing for joy. Before Yahweh, for He is coming.” Psalm 1, “The heavens are telling of the glory of God; And the expanse is declaring the work of His hands. Day to day [they] pour forth speech … throughout all the earth, And their utterances to the end of the world.”
- God will defeat anyone and anything that oppose Him.
John 3:18, “He who believes in Him is not judged; he who does not believe has been judged already, because he has not believed in the name of the only begotten Son of God.” John 3:36, the one who does not obey the Son, the wrath of God is upon him. Revelation 20:15, “And if anyone’s name was not found written in the book of life, he was thrown into the lake of fire.” For when we read the story of David and Goliath, we are introduced to the true Giant Killer, God. For without His strength and power, we can do nothing. Paul said, “We can do all things through Christ who strengthens us.” This is not about you and me; this is about God. So, may we acknowledge that and live our lives by proclaiming Him with our words, and praising Him by our actions. As we close this morning, I wish to read some words of this same David from Psalm 145:
“I will exalt You, my God, O King,
And I will bless Your name forever and ever.
Every day I will bless You,
And I will praise Your name forever and ever.
Great is Yahweh, and highly to be praised.”
“They shall pour forth the memory of Your abundant goodness
And will shout joyfully of Your righteousness.
Yahweh is gracious and compassionate;
Slow to anger and great in lovingkindness.
Yahweh is good to all,
And His compassions are over all His works.”
“All Your works, O Yahweh, shall give thanks to You,
And Your holy ones shall bless You.
They shall speak of the glory of Your kingdom
And talk of Your might;
To make known to the sons of men His mighty deeds
And the glory of the majesty of His kingdom.”
“Your kingdom is an everlasting kingdom,
And Your dominion endures from generation to every generation.
Yahweh sustains all who fall
And raises up all who are bowed down.”
The eyes of all wait on You,
And You give them their food in due time.
You open Your hand
And satisfy the desire of every living thing.”
“Yahweh is righteous in all His ways
And holy in all His works.
Yahweh is near to all who call upon Him,
To all who call upon Him in truth.”
“He will work out the desire of those who fear Him;
He will hear their cry for help and He will save them.
Yahweh keeps all who love Him,
But all the wicked He will destroy.
My mouth will speak the praise of Yahweh,
And all flesh will bless His holy name forever and ever.”
Portions of Psalm 145 (LSB)
And all God people said, amen.