David vs. Goliath: The Christian's Relevance for Today (Part 1)

Commentary on 1 Samuel Chapters 16 and 17

Everyone knows the story of David and Goliath; it has become a fairy tale of sorts, but what many fail to realize is that this story is true. David really did exist and eventually became King, first of Judah, then, seven and a half years later, Israel; he was the most well-known king in Jewish history.

There is a lot to learn from this story; this has been one of the traditional stories of faith, and rightly so, but there is so much more we can get out this story and some things that you may have never considered. Let’s take a look at David from the beginning and see what it was that God saw in David that God chose him out of all of Jesse’s sons.

To set up the events that led to God turning to David as his anointed, let us take a quick look at Saul, who preceded David as Israel’s first king. In 1 Samuel 8, we read of the elders of Israel coming to Samuel, who was called by God to fill many roles for Israel, but Samuel’s main purpose was to serve God.

When the elders of Israel came to Samuel they asked Samuel to appoint a king to serve Israel just as the other nations have a king to rule them. Samuel was displeased as well as feeling rejected, because he had led Israel from an early age under the supervision of God Himself, and would seek the Lord for advice. The Lord replied in verse 7 that it was not Samuel that was being rejected, but it was God Himself that the Israelites were rejecting. So, God told Samuel to give the Israelites what they want, but to warn them about their decision.

Saul was chosen by God to be the first king of Israel, he would rule Israel for forty-two years. During his rule he would disobey God which opened the door for David. In 1 Samuel chapter 16, God instructs Samuel to go to Jesse of Bethlehem as He chose one of Jesse’s sons to be the successor to Saul as king.

In verses 6 through 10, Samuel arrives at Jesse’s home and immediately sees Eliab, one of Jesse’s sons. Now Eliab must have been impressive to look at, as immediately after seeing him Samuel thought that Eliab must be the one God had chosen. But God said to Samuel that he should not consider his appearance or his height, because God looks at the heart to determine whom he uses or calls.

After viewing seven of Jesse’s sons, God said to Samuel that none of the seven were who He had chosen as successor to Saul. Samuel than asks Jesse in verse eleven, “Are these all your sons?”, Jesse replies, “There is still the youngest.” Although the Scriptures describe David as having a fine appearance and handsome features, he was probably overlooked by Jesse because of his age, the Scriptures do not tell how old he is other than stating that he is the youngest, but many scholars believe he was around 17 years old at this time. So, Jesse sends for David who was out tending his fathers sheep. When David arrived, God said to Samuel, “rise and anoint him; he is the one.” “rise and anoint him; he is the one.”

We learn a little bit more about David when Saul’s attendant told Saul of a son of Jesse’s that he had seen. Now, Saul who lost God’s blessing upon him, and was being tormented by an evil spirit, was searching for someone who could play the harp to make him feel better when the evil spirit was upon him. In verse 18, the attendant replied, "I have seen a son of Jesse of Bethlehem who knows how to play the harp. He is a brave man and a warrior. He speaks well and is a fine-looking man. And the LORD is with him."

Now, this comes right after Samuel anointed David in Scripture, but it may have been some time after that when this account takes place, Scripture does not give a time frame. So, Saul sent for David to come serve him in this capacity. In verse 21, we learn that Saul took a liking to David and made him his armor-bearer.

Now we get to the meat and potatoes portion of why David becomes a “man after God’s own heart.” We begin in chapter 17 of 1 Samuel, where the Philistines were gathering for war against Israel. “A champion named Goliath”, as the Scripture in verse 4 describes him, came out and shouted at Israel an ultimatum, in verse 8 though 10, Goliath dared Israel to send a man out to fight him, if that man were to beat him and kill him, then the Philistines would become Israel’s subjects; but if Goliath wins, Israel would become subject to the Philistines.

Saul, and all his army were terrified at this offer, because as the Scriptures go on to describe Goliath, it says that he was “six cubits and a span” (the NIV says this is approximately nine feet tall), and his armor alone weighed 125 pounds, not including his bronze javelin. This was a huge man! Israel had no one to match the awesome power that he possessed.

Now, when David wasn’t serving Saul he was back home tending his father Jesse’s sheep. Now, Jesse, Knowing that his three oldest son’s, Eliab, Abinidab, and Shammah, had gone off to war with Saul to fight the Philistines, he sent David with some food to see how his brothers were doing and if they were OK.

When David had arrived at the Valley of Elah, he was speaking to his brothers when Goliath began shouting his offer to Israel again. The Bible tells us that Goliath would shout this offer regularly for forty days. When the Israelites saw him they all ran from him in great fear. Saul was offering a reward to the Israelite who would go out and kill Goliath, he would also give that person his daughter in marriage and exempt his father’s family from paying taxes in Israel.

Looking back to 1 Samuel 16:18, when Saul’s attendant was describing David to him, he ended by saying, “and the Lord is with him.” As we get to know David , we’ll see that he is a man who desires to follow God, and a man whose faith was strong. In 1 Samuel 17:26, David makes a statement of authority, when he said, “Who is the uncircumcised Philistine that he should defy the armies of the living God?”

For a young man to make a statement like this, while his king and all the kings armed forces were terrified of Goliath, shows that David either had a death wish or that he was so tuned into the Spirit of God, that his faith was of super-natural proportions. David never considered anything less than Israel being victorious against Goliath and the Philistines. The Scriptures do not tell us much about David’s life prior to this account, but a shepherds life could be a lonely life as he spends many hours alone tending to his flock. During this alone time David must have had many encounters with the Lord; there were no Scriptures to read at that time or any other way David could have become so knowledgeable of these godly principles and be one of such great godly character.

If you consider that the Scriptures say “all” Saul’s men feared Goliath and yet David did not even consider fear, we can stop here as to the reason why God chose David over all his older brothers to be his anointed. Remember three of David’s brothers were in Saul’s army, so that means they would be include with those being fearful of Goliath.

Fear is a common symptom of lack of spiritual knowledge and awareness. Fear is a lack of faith and qualifies as sin, because it is opposite of God. There is a good type of fear and we read of that in Joshua 4:24, “He did this so that all the peoples of the earth might know that the hand of the LORD is powerful and so that you might always fear the LORD your God.” Fear of God is a good fear, because it keeps us in line with God’s will, if you fear God you will steer clear of satanic influence which is all around us in society and are pleasing in appearances. By fearing God and staying close in the Word, you will be able to distinguish between those things that are of God and those things that are not of God in society.

Fear is something that, if a person is fully immerged in the Holy Spirit, it will not be an issue in his or her life. If fear is something that you may have trouble with, a good verse to meditate on is Psalm 23:4, “Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil, for you (God) are with me; your rod and your staff, they comfort me.” (Parenthesis mine.)

With this attitude, David recognized that whoever went up against Goliath would be victorious, as long as their faith relied on God’s strength and not their own. In all reality, Goliath was not challenging the Israelites, he was challenging God. Notice David’s statement in 1 Samuel 17:26 above; he stresses the fact that Goliath was uncircumcised. Circumcision identified one as a child of God in the Old Covenant, so David was pointing out that God was not with Goliath, and that by defying the armies of God, he is defying God Himself.

Eliab, David’s brother, heard David speaking to the other men and in verse 28 he chastised his brother for coming, and asked him who he left his few sheep with in the desert. Now, I take this as Eliab wanting to belittle David in front of the other soldiers. Eliab knew exactly why David was there, because back in verse 22 and 23 the Scripture mentions that David greeted his brothers (plural, meaning he spoke to more than one of his brothers and I would think if he were not talking to all three, the Scripture would have mentioned which brothers he was talking to), after greeting his brothers, verse 23 says he talked with them. I’m sure during this conversation their father would have had to come up, because the food David brought was from their father. They would have known that Jesse had sent David.

Jesus had a similar reaction from His brothers in the Book of John, chapter 7, when his brothers spoke sarcastically to him about performing miracles and wanting to be a public figure. In a different account in Mark 6:4, Jesus said, “Only in his hometown, among his own relatives and in his own house is a prophet without honor.”

When David came before Saul, again he showed great faith in the Lord by saying, “Let no one lose heart on account of this Philistine; your servant will go and fight him.” Faith like this is unique— faith like this you do not find everyday. With faith like this you can move mountains (Matthew 17:20-21 ).

The Scripture doesn’t say, but you could imagine the reaction from the soldiers gathered around David as he spoke with such faith. Here is this young boy, whose responsibility in his short life has been to tend a flock of sheep and he is telling men who were trained for battle not to fear, that he will go fight him. From their carnal point of view, David was not capable physically, nor was he trained for such combat. In verse 33 we read that Saul replied to David, “You 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.” Saul just didn’t get it, he didn’t get it when he was God’s anointed and he certainly doesn’t get it now.

In the Book of Matthew 17:20 Jesus is responding to the disciples inquiry as to why they could not cast out a demon from a demon possessed boy, that Jesus finally had to do by Himself. Jesus answered his disciples, “Because of your unbelief; for assuredly, I say to you, if you have faith as (small as) a mustard seed, you will say to this mountain, ‘Move from here to there,’ and it will move; and nothing will be impossible for you.” (NKJV—Parenthesis mine). David could have said this to Saul and his army.

If they could have only remembered what God had done for Israel in the past and how He fought battles for them and protected them; but human beings who do not stay close to God and in line with His will, not only lose His blessing, but they also lose a godly perspective on situations in life that God promised He would protect them from. They become consumed with the awareness of their weaknesses and shortcomings, and that’s exactly what Satan wants you to focus on. He wants you to forget 2 Corinthians 12:10 when the apostle Paul said, “That is why, for Christ's sake, I delight in weaknesses, in insults, in hardships, in persecutions, in difficulties. For when I am weak, then I am strong.” You are strong in your weakness, because it is no longer you that is working, but God Himself has taken over and is working through you just as He had promised. But, only if you are in line with His will.

I mention “God’s will for your life” quite often here; for those who may not know God’s will or are struggling to find God’s will for there lives, it can be summed up in this verse in Joshua 1:8, “Do not let this Book of the Law depart from your mouth; meditate on it day and night, so that you may be careful to do everything written in it. Then you will be prosperous and successful.” The Book of the Law is God’s Bible, an owners manual, if you will. When you buy a new car, you get an owners manual to help you understand how to take care of your new car and how to solve minor problems throughout its lifespan. When a problem is greater than you are capable of handling arises, you take the car to a mechanic who is more knowledgeable than yourself in fixing the problem.

It works the same for us; God created us and create His Word, the Bible; that is an instruction manual to guide us through life. Through that instruction manual we learn how to deal with common problems along the way. When a problem arises that is greater than we are capable of handling, we bring our life to the ultimate mechanic, God, for him to fix it and He will every time, as long as we trust, obey, and keep our faith solely in Him.

Jesus said in John 8:31-32, "If you hold to my teaching, you are really my disciples. Then you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free." There truly is a freedom when you apply God’s will to you life; I believe the reason why so many fail to find it is because it is so simple to find. I know that sounds contradictory, but it’s true. It’s just a matter of dedication to God’s word, putting it first in your life, meditating on (thinking about) what you read and what God is teaching you through study of his word, during your day.

Now, back to our story; if they (King Saul and the soldiers) could get rid of this unbelief that was certainly in their hearts, which in turn created fear in them, and they had the faith of just the size of a mustard seed, they could’ve guaranteed a victory against Goliath and the Philistines, because God would fight their battle for them. There are many examples of this in the Old Testament, where the Israelites failed to have faith in God. Now, there are a couple of important lessons to be learned here. In Matthew 13:31 , Jesus used the comparison of a mustard seed in regard to faith again, but this time he adds that a mustard seed is the smallest of all seeds, yet it is the largest of garden plants and becomes a tree over ten feet tall, so that the birds of the air come and perch in its branches.

Just as the small mustard seed produces such a large tree, so too can your small faith can produce an abundance of Godly blessings. By studying this parable by Jesus of the “Four Soils” in Matthew 13, we can understand more fully what the significance is here. I am not going to go into the explanation of all the examples Jesus gave in this parable, but just to say that the basic principle of the “Four Soils” is the root system. In order for a plant of any kind to produce the fruit that it is designed to produce, some basic elements must be in place in order for the root system to develop sufficiently. The most important part of the growth of any plant is going to take place at germination and the development of the root system. If the soil is fertile, and the depth is sufficient, the root system will develop to support a healthy growth above ground which will produce a bountiful harvest of fruit.

How does this relate to David? Well, David obviously put God first in his life and was better rooted in the Spirit of God than any of his brothers, soldiers, or even the king. The faith that David displayed and the knowledge and understanding that God would be with him and sustain him to victory over Goliath, was just the fruit being produced by an effective root system that took place long before this situation came about.

We can look at our lives in the same respect. Are you putting God first in your life? Are you regularly in God’s Word (The Bible)? Are you making excuses for not getting in the Word on a daily basis? Do you meditate on what you have learned from the Bible, so you can get complete understanding. I am not talking about the eastern kind of meditation that is so prevalent today, such as yoga. Meditation is nothing more than thinking about what you have read in Scripture and dwelling upon it. Trying to think of the possible meaning of the Scripture by comparing it to other Scriptures, speaking to God and asking for understanding of what you read and relating it to your present situation and how you can see God in your life.

Through all this God will speak to your heart through the Holy Spirit in you. If you do all this, you will find yourself standing firm and fearless in situations that prior, you would have grumbled and complained and would have been full of fear, which is exactly what Satan, the deceiver (2 John 1:7) wants you to do. He knows that these emotions separate you from God; if you can develop your root system to the point where you will not crumbled under these circumstances, but stand firm in the faith that God will provide through any situation, you will prosper in every aspect of life, physically, spiritual, emotionally, and financially. This is God’s promise to you in Jeremiah 29:11, “For I know the plans I have for you”, declares the Lord, “ Plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you a hope and a future.”

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