Mount Hope Men’s Retreat

Mighty Men

Ever gotten a backhanded complement? Like “You look really good for your age.” or “That was really intelligent. I didn’t expect that from you.” Sometimes people are more subtle. “Wisdom is chasing you. But you are faster.” The worst is when you come across something that has a double meaning. Walk up to a guy at the gym and call him big. That can mean muscular, fat, or tall. You never know.

Mighty men, or mighty man, is one such example. The most famous are David’s mighty men. But there are other examples as well.

Genesis 10:8–12 NLT

Cush was also the ancestor of Nimrod, who was the first heroic warrior on earth. Since he was the greatest hunter in the world, his name became proverbial. People would say, “This man is like Nimrod, the greatest hunter in the world.” He built his kingdom in the land of Babylonia, with the cities of Babylon, Erech, Akkad, and Calneh. From there he expanded his territory to Assyria, building the cities of Nineveh, Rehoboth-ir, Calah, and Resen (the great city located between Nineveh and Calah).

Growing up this guys name, Nimrod, was an insult. Like calling someone stupid. Have you guys ever used it like that? I started to look into it and it comes from Looney Tunes. Specifically, Bugs and Elmer Fudd. He was sarcastically calling Fudd a heroic hunter.

Nimrod was considered a mighty man. And not a good one. He was a cruel tyrant, one giants of old.

Then we have The 3. The cream of the crop. The elite spec ops of Davids mighty men.

2 Samuel 23:8–12 NLT

These are the names of David’s mightiest warriors. The first was Jashobeam the Hacmonite, who was leader of the Three—the three mightiest warriors among David’s men. He once used his spear to kill 800 enemy warriors in a single battle. Next in rank among the Three was Eleazar son of Dodai, a descendant of Ahoah. Once Eleazar and David stood together against the Philistines when the entire Israelite army had fled. He killed Philistines until his hand was too tired to lift his sword, and the Lord gave him a great victory that day. The rest of the army did not return until it was time to collect the plunder! Next in rank was Shammah son of Agee from Harar. One time the Philistines gathered at Lehi and attacked the Israelites in a field full of lentils. The Israelite army fled, but Shammah held his ground in the middle of the field and beat back the Philistines. So the Lord brought about a great victory.

Where Nimrod used his strength and power to control, overthrow, oppress, and enslave The 3 used their power to defend, protect, support, and strengthen. The 3 were capable, commited, and unified. Let’s break that down.

Capable- These men where no slouches. They had worked hard on their craft. These men were capable of doing whatever David asked of them.

Committed- 2 Sam 23:13-17

2 Samuel 23:13–17 NLT

Once during the harvest, when David was at the cave of Adullam, the Philistine army was camped in the valley of Rephaim. The Three (who were among the Thirty—an elite group among David’s fighting men) went down to meet him there. David was staying in the stronghold at the time, and a Philistine detachment had occupied the town of Bethlehem. David remarked longingly to his men, “Oh, how I would love some of that good water from the well by the gate in Bethlehem.” So the Three broke through the Philistine lines, drew some water from the well by the gate in Bethlehem, and brought it back to David. But he refused to drink it. Instead, he poured it out as an offering to the Lord. “The Lord forbid that I should drink this!” he exclaimed. “This water is as precious as the blood of these men who risked their lives to bring it to me.” So David did not drink it. These are examples of the exploits of the Three.

These men risked their lives to get their leader a drink of water. He never asked, they simply loved their captain that much.

3. Unified- Unity is a huge thing for men. When men come together behind a single leader or purpose, there is very little that can stop them. We are called to be unified as men of God.