31 When the words that David spoke were heard, they repeated them before Saul, and he sent for him. 32 And David said to Saul, “Let no man’s heart fail because of him. Your servant will go and fight with this Philistine.” 33 And Saul said to David, “You are not able to go against this Philistine to fight with him, for you are but a youth, and he has been a man of war from his youth.” 34 But David said to Saul, “Your servant used to keep sheep for his father. And when there came a lion, or a bear, and took a lamb from the flock, 35 I went after him and struck him and delivered it out of his mouth. And if he arose against me, I caught him by his beard and struck him and killed him. 36 Your servant has struck down both lions and bears, and this uncircumcised Philistine shall be like one of them, for he has defied 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 will deliver me from the hand of this Philistine.” And Saul said to David, “Go, and the LORD be with you!”
38 Then Saul clothed David with his armor. He put a helmet of bronze on his head and clothed him with a coat of mail, 39 and David strapped his sword over his armor. And he tried in vain to go, for he had not tested them. Then David said to Saul, “I cannot go with these, for I have not tested them.” So David put them off. 40 Then he took his staff in his hand and chose five smooth stones from the brook and put them in his shepherd’s pouch. His sling was in his hand, and he approached the Philistine.
41 And the Philistine moved forward and came near to David, with his shield-bearer in front of him. 42 And when the Philistine looked and saw David, he disdained him, for he was but a youth, ruddy and handsome in appearance. 43 And 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 said to David, “Come to me, and I will give your flesh to the birds of the air and to the beasts of the field.” 45 Then David said to the Philistine, “You come to me with a sword and with a spear and with 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 defied. 46 This day the LORD will deliver you into my hand, and I will strike you down and cut off your head. And I will give the dead bodies of the host of the Philistines this day to the birds of the air and to 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 saves not with sword and spear. For the battle is the LORD’s, and he will give you into our hand.”
48 When the Philistine arose and came and drew near to meet David, David ran quickly toward the battle line to meet the Philistine. 49 And David put his hand in his bag and took out a stone and slung it and struck the Philistine on his forehead. The stone sank into his forehead, and he fell on his face to the ground.
50 So David prevailed over the Philistine with a sling and with a stone, and struck the Philistine and killed him. There was no sword in the hand of David. 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 And the men of Israel and Judah rose with a shout and pursued the Philistines as far as Gath and the gates of Ekron, so that the wounded Philistines fell on the way from Shaaraim as far as Gath and Ekron. 53 And the people of Israel came back from chasing the Philistines, and they plundered their camp. 54 And David took the head of the Philistine and brought it to Jerusalem, but he put his armor in his tent.
55 As soon as Saul saw David go out against the Philistine, he said to Abner, the commander of the army, “Abner, whose son is this youth?” And Abner said, “As your soul lives, O king, I do not know.” 56 And the king said, “Inquire whose son the boy is.” 57 And as soon as David returned from the striking down of the Philistine, Abner took him, and brought him before Saul with the head of the Philistine in his hand. 58 And Saul said to him, “Whose son are you, young man?” And David answered, “I am the son of your servant Jesse the Bethlehemite.”
(ESV)
STOP! Think a little 🤔 What is God saying to you?
- What is the writer saying?
- How do I apply this to my life?
David’s disdain for Goliath’s insults on Israel, the armies of the living God, and his inquiries about the reward were brought to Saul’s attention and he was summoned before the king. David encouraged all around him not to be discouraged by Goliath’s words and then he proposed an astonishing solution—he would fight Goliath. Saul immediately rejected David’s proposal. Again we see man judging by outward appearance. David was only a youth while Goliath had been a man of war since his youth. But David explained why he believed he could win this battle. He had been a shepherd and had to protect his father’s sheep against attacks from lions and bears. When one of those predators stole a lamb, David would go after it, fight it and rescue the lamb. David had killed both lions and bears and the uncircumcised Philistine Goliath would be no different because of his defiance against God. David wasn’t boasting in his physical abilities or leaning on his past achievements. David recognised God’s faithfulness in delivering him from the paws of the lion and bear and trusted that God would deliver him from Goliath.
Saul agreed to David’s plan and dressed him in his own armour, helmet, and sword. David tried to go out wearing the armour but could not because he wasn’t used to it. So David went with only his shepherd’s staff in his hand and he chose five smooth stones from the stream. It’s interesting to note that Goliath and Saul relied on weapons forged by man while David went out with weapons created by God—a stick and some stones.
When Goliath saw David approaching, he saw him as a youth and not a very challenging opponent. He was incensed and insulted David’s choice of weapon, a stick only fit for beating a dog. Then he cursed David by his gods. This is theologically significant because in cursing a son of Abraham, Goliath was bringing down the Lord’s curse on himself (Gen 12:3). Then Goliath’s final threat was to kill him, dishonour his corpse, and deny him an honourable burial by feeding him to the animals and birds. David replied that while Goliath, with his sword, spear, and javelin thought he outmatched David, David would outnumber Goliath because he was not alone. He came in the name of the Lord of hosts (Lord of armies) who Goliath had defied and he was assured that God would deliver him and his army to Israel. What Goliath had threatened to do to David would be the fate of him and his army. The end result would be that all the earth would know that there is a God in Israel and that everyone present would recognise that God doesn’t need a sword and spear to ensure victory for the battle is the Lord’s.
Goliath stepped up. David ran forward, took a stone out of his hand, slung it, and hit Goliath on his forehead and killed him—“without a sword in his hand”. Theologically the Old Testament required that anyone who blasphemed God’s name should be stoned (Lev 24:16). David would continue to be a diligent follower of God’s law in his military endeavours. David followed the custom of the day, removed Goliath’s weapon, and proved he was dead which caused the rest of the Philistines to flee. The army of Israel rose with newfound courage and pursued the Philistine army returning later to retrieve the spoils of war.
The closing of this story seems a little confusing. Saul asks the commander of his army, “whose son is this youth?” It appears he doesn’t know David even though David has been serving as his armour-bearer. Saul was probably officially looking for his father’s name so he could formally issue the tax exemption promised as part of the victor’s reward.
This Bible story is probably one of the most famous and is used to describe someone overcoming seemingly insurmountable odds to defeat an oppressor. But that is not what this story is about. This is a story of someone with great faith putting all their trust in God and inspiring an entire army to victory by showing that no one will succeed in defying the armies of the Living God. Will you move forward in faith and allow God to show others His power through your life?
Major Stories of the Bible Reading Plan
Jesus Faces the Sanhedrin: Mark 13-14