Conquering Giants

1 Samuel 17:1-58

1 Samuel 17:1–58 ESV

1 Now the Philistines gathered their armies for battle. And they were gathered at Socoh, which belongs to Judah, and encamped between Socoh and Azekah, in Ephes-dammim. 2 And Saul and the men of Israel were gathered, and encamped in the Valley of Elah, and drew up in line of battle against the Philistines. 3 And the Philistines stood on the mountain on the one side, and Israel stood on the mountain on the other side, with a valley between them. 4 And there came out from the camp of the Philistines a champion named Goliath of Gath, whose height was six cubits and a span. 5 He had a helmet of bronze on his head, and he was armed with a coat of mail, and the weight of the coat was five thousand shekels of bronze. 6 And he had bronze armor on his legs, and a javelin of bronze slung between his shoulders. 7 The shaft of his spear was like a weaver’s beam, and his spear’s head weighed six hundred shekels of iron. And his shield-bearer went before him. 8 He stood and shouted to the ranks of Israel, “Why have you come out to draw up for battle? Am I not a Philistine, and are you not servants of Saul? Choose a man for yourselves, and let him come down to me. 9 If he is able to fight with me and kill me, then we will be your servants. But if I prevail against him and kill him, then you shall be our servants and serve us.” 10 And the Philistine said, “I defy the ranks of Israel this day. Give me a man, that we may fight together.” 11 When Saul and all Israel heard these words of the Philistine, they were dismayed and greatly afraid. 12 Now David was the son of an Ephrathite of Bethlehem in Judah, named Jesse, who had eight sons. In the days of Saul the man was already old and advanced in years. 13 The three oldest sons of Jesse had followed Saul to the battle. And the names of his three sons who went to the battle were Eliab the firstborn, and next to him Abinadab, and the third Shammah. 14 David was the youngest. The three eldest followed Saul, 15 but David went back and forth from Saul to feed his father’s sheep at Bethlehem. 16 For forty days the Philistine came forward and took his stand, morning and evening. 17 And Jesse said to David his son, “Take for your brothers an ephah of this parched grain, and these ten loaves, and carry them quickly to the camp to your brothers. 18 Also take these ten cheeses to the commander of their thousand. See if your brothers are well, and bring some token from them.” 19 Now Saul and they and all the men of Israel were in the Valley of Elah, fighting with the Philistines. 20 And David rose early in the morning and left the sheep with a keeper and took the provisions and went, as Jesse had commanded him. And he came to the encampment as the host was going out to the battle line, shouting the war cry. 21 And Israel and the Philistines drew up for battle, army against army. 22 And David left the things in charge of the keeper of the baggage and ran to the ranks and went and greeted his brothers. 23 As he talked with them, behold, the champion, the Philistine of Gath, Goliath by name, came up out of the ranks of the Philistines and spoke the same words as before. And David heard him. 24 All the men of Israel, when they saw the man, fled from him and were much afraid. 25 And the men of Israel said, “Have you seen this man who has come up? Surely he has come up to defy Israel. And the king will enrich the man who kills him with great riches and will give him his daughter and make his father’s house free in Israel.” 26 And David said to the men who stood by him, “What shall be done for the man who kills this Philistine and takes away the reproach from Israel? For who is this uncircumcised Philistine, that he should defy the armies of the living God?” 27 And the people answered him in the same way, “So shall it be done to the man who kills him.” 28 Now Eliab his eldest brother heard when he spoke to the men. And Eliab’s anger was kindled against David, and he said, “Why have you come down? And with whom have you left those few sheep in the wilderness? I know your presumption and the evil of your heart, for you have come down to see the battle.” 29 And David said, “What have I done now? Was it not but a word?” 30 And he turned away from him toward another, and spoke in the same way, and the people answered him again as before. 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.”

Defeated Enemies Sometimes Return

This chapter begins with a battle between the armies of the Philistines and the Israelites. The Philistines were a people group referred to as the Sea People who were a coalition of nine sea-fairing people groups that migrated from the Mediterranean invading Asia Minor, the Levant, and Egypt around 1200 BC. The Philistines were probably part of this migration. The Philistines conquered and dominated southwest Canaan near the Mediterranean coast with the five fortified cities of Gaza, Gath, Ekron, Ashkelon, and Ashdod.

The Philistines were the primary adversaries of Israel circa 1200–1000 BC. Unlike the Hebrew people, they did not practice circumcision (Judg 14:3) and were more technologically advanced than the Hebrews, having learned the art of working with iron tools and weapons. Their knowledge of iron gave them the ability to make chariots: formidable weapons of war that allowed them to dominate the coastal plains. These chariots, however, were ineffective in the mountainous regions of central Israel. As a result, the Philistines were unable to dislodge their Israelite neighbors.

We can read in 1 Samuel 14:1-23 how Saul’s son Jonathan along with his armorbearer traveled behind enemy lines to the Philistine outpost in Michmash. Johnathan told his armorbearer if the enemy tells them to stay where they are then they will stay and there and hide but if the Philistines say to them come up and fight then they will fight for that will be a sign that the Lord is fighting with them.

So when the Philistines saw Johnathan they said to him come up and fight so he climbed up the hill to fight them and he killed those who came against him from the front and his armor bearer killed those who came from behind. Then all of a sudden the entire Philistine camp broke out into a panic there was an earthquake and everyone was terrified.

It is at this point that Saul’s lookouts see the Philistine army melting away and realize that Johnathan is missing. So Saul and his men go to battle the enemy and when they get there they see something incredible. The Philistine army was confused and chaotic and actually killing one another. At this point Saul’s army along with those who had previously joined the Philistines and those who were hiding in the hill country of Ephraim joined in the fighting and the Lord gave a great victory to Israel that day.

As you can imagine this all came as not only a major military defeat but also a national embarrassment for the Philistines. They did not worship Yahweh but rather served false gods. Their gods primarily were Dagon the half man, half fish grain god who some consider the father of Baal and Ashteroth who was the goddess of love and consort of Baal. So to be defeated by man was bad but to be badly defeated by God Himself made it plain to see that Yahweh is the one true God and that the Hebrews are His chosen people.

So today’s text brings us approximately 27 years after the overthrow at Michmash. The Philistines have not only regrouped but have had several military victories and recovered their strength and national pride. Now it was time for them to settle the score with their adversaries the Israelites.

There is a lesson for us here today. It is easy for us to see the mighty hand of the Lord doing for us what we cannot do for ourselves in powerful ways against those things which wish to harm us and think that those adversaries will never bother us again. And while many times this is true there are other times where defeated foes will return again seeking to harm us or those we love.

The Lord’s ways are higher than our ways and He will use even our adversaries to fulfill His plans and purposes so that He may be glorified and that people will be blessed knowing that Jesus is the one true God. As believers it is important to trust the Lord and to remember that just as the Lord blessed us and helped us the first time, He will bless us and help us again.

God is the greatest and deserves the greatest praise and He is trustworthy and will not abandon His people.

So while yes sometimes things which we thought were defeated and conquered in the past come looking to hurt us today we do not need to worry because our God who was faithful then is still faithful now.

Our Adversaries Will Try to Intimidate Us

Israel was well aware of the Philistines attempts to take their revenge and conquer Israelite land because their armies were doing battle. However in addition to the armies they had a champion which would harass and taunt the army of Israel. In those days a champion was a Hebrew term which meant “a man between two” meaning a person who on the part of his own people undertook to determine the national quarrel by engaging in a single combat with a chosen warrior in a hostile army. If his strength or reputation was so great that no one would accept his challenge then he would walk the battle line shouting taunts and insults at the other army.

The Philistine champion was named Goliath and he was a mountain of a man. The Bible states that he was just over 9ft. tall and the the weight of his chain mail was 125 pounds. He carried a javelin which was as thick and heavy as a weavers beam and the tip was a spearhead weighing approximately 15 pounds. We also know from Saul’s response to David that Goliath has been a man of war since his youth and most likely had quite the reputation which is one of the reasons no one would accept his challenge.

Verse 11 tells us that when Saul and all Israel heard these words of the Philistine, they were dismayed and greatly afraid.

Have any of you every felt fear about someone or something in your life that not only seems too big to conquer but consistently harasses you?

There are some people and some things that are so wicked that their intention is to not only to harm you but to completely break you down to the point where you feel so worthless and defeated that you no longer have the will to fight let alone have peace or joy.

This evil intent is not from the Lord and you must remain strong in your faith to focus on hearing the Holy Spirit and silencing anything or anyone which seeks to break you down.

The Lord Will Place You at the Right Place at the Right Time to Do His Will

So the situation for Israel is that they are in a stalemate as they have been battling for some time each stationed on opposite mountains with a valley in the middle. We know the battles have been going for quite some time for a few reasons. First off because typically if an army could easily defeat their enemy they would not have a need for a champion to try and end the stalemate. Also because In those times campaigns seldom lasted above a few days at a time. The soldiers were volunteers or militia, who were supplied with provisions from time to time by their friends at home. This is the reason that Jesse sent David to see his brothers and bring provisions for them and the commander of their thousand. Jesse also instructed David to check on the well being of his brothers and to bring back a token which is a symbol of their good health and would typically be a piece of hair or nail or something similar to that.

While David is delivering the provisions and checking on his brothers he hears Goliath’s taunts and sees the fearful reaction of the other Israelite men. He then hears them say that whoever defeats the giant will have great wealth, the kings daughter as a wife and his family will live tax free in the kingdom.

Verse 26 states that David not only feels a sense of righteous indignation from hearing the uncircumcised Philistine defy the armies of the living God but also inquires about what will happen to the person who defeats Goliath to make sure he heard correctly the first time. He goes on to ask again even after his brother Eliab rebuked him.

Make no doubt about it David’s motivation here is twofold. Not only is he a man who loves the Lord and will fight for what is right but he is also seeking an opportunity to go from being a modest shepherd from the small town in Bethlehem to being a wealthy son in law to the king. The Lord is well aware of David’s thoughts but He honors David’s heart for Him and the ambition of David works with the greater purpose of the Lord in preparing him to be the next king of Israel.

In verse 31 we can read that Saul hears about David’s inquiry and calls for him.

It is impossible to calculate the number of variables which would have to align for David to be at the exact place at the exact time to hear Goliath, express his inquires on what happens to the person who defeats the giant and that despite all the people there that his words would make it back to the king.

The Lord will do the same thing in your life. We all have an important role to play in the plans and purposes of God. We often take it for granted but it is difficult to imagine the amount of coincidences that would need to take place for you to be where you are, with who you are and have the opportunities to do mighty things for the kingdom. There are no accidents and the Lord can and will put you in the right place at the right time to fulfill His plans and purposes but you need to be aware of the significance of each moment and let the Holy Spirit guide you so that you do not have a missed opportunity at what the Lord is leading you to do.

The Holy Spirit Gives Us Confidence to Act and Inspires Others to See the Vision

Verse 31 begins with Saul hearing David’s words and calling for him. Upon their meeting, David boldly declares that no man’s heart should fail because he is going to fight with the Philistine.

While Saul was no doubt impressed with David’s passion, he disqualifies David saying that he is only a youth but Goliath has been a man of war since his youth.

However, David shares with Saul how when doing the work of a shepherd a bear or a lion came along and grabbed the sheep that he would pursue the animal and strike it so that the sheep would be dropped and could escape.

David then states that if the bear or lion would turn to him wanting combat that he would grab them and kill them. This demonstrated great courage and a warrior mindset because the tools of the shepherd were only the staff which was a walking stick with a crook for rescuing or herding sheep, a sling to protect and keep the sheep together and a rod which is relatively short heavy club-like device for protection and counting sheep.

This meant that David was in direct harms way to defend the sheep and still came out victorious.

David then declares with passion and the power of the Holy Spirit that not only has he struck down lions and bears but that he is going to strike down Goliath for defying the armies of the living God.

He confidently proclaims that the Lord delivered him from the paw of the lion and the bear and that He will deliver him from the hand of the Philistine.

Saul tells David “Go, and the Lord be with you!”

You see in 1 Samuel 16:13 tells us that when David was anointed as King the Spirit of the Lord came upon Him.

So now not only does David have the courage and love for the Lord he had when He defeated the lion and the bear but now David has full confidence that the Lord will be with him in whatever he does.

David is so confident in the Lord in fact that by the power of the Holy Spirit David passionately shares his testimony of God’s power and protection in his life and that he is certain that the Lord will be with him against Goliath.

It is the Spirit of God that inspires Saul to change his heart and mind and give David his blessing. This point cannot be overlooked because if David lost the battle then the rules of engagement are that the Israelites would then be the servants of the Philistines. So this was not a decision to be taken lightly by Saul especially considering that none of the men in Israel including himself would face the Philistine and David was but a youth. It was the anointing on David that made his words powerful and that gave him confidence to do what the Lord was calling him to do.

The same is true for you and me today brothers and sisters. In the natural realm we can look at the giants in our lives or the things we know God is calling us to do and disqualify ourselves from victory. If we are seeking reasons not to succeed they are easy to find and we can even convince ourselves they are true.

But David didn’t brag on himself rather he said the Lord saved him from the lion and bear and that the Lord will protect him from Goliath.

We are to do the same. It is not because we are qualified in the natural realm that we can do and be all the Lord wants us to do and be. Rather it is by the power of the Holy Spirit that we can first see what the Lord is calling us to do then have the confidence to move forward and start doing it.

Some situations can be scary if we let fear control us. People or even ourselves will disqualify us before we even get started.

Other times we are uncertain of what to do because we don’t feel like we have heard from the Lord.

But there are other times. Times like David is experiencing here where the giant is standing right in front of him. The need is obvious and not only has he heard the call but he is eager to answer the call. The mission and vision are crystal clear.

It is in those times my friends that we are to reflect on how faithful and good God has been to us and have confidence that He is going to be there with us now and in the future.

Then when the opportunity becomes available to step out and face your giant or to step out and do what the Lord is calling you to do by the power of the Holy Spirit speak confidently, giving all glory to God and others will not only see your vision, they will want to help in whatever way they can.

The Battle is the Lord’s

Verse 41 states that the Philistine moved forward towards David and when he saw David he disdained him meaning that he did not think David was worthy to fight him because he was a youth. He then insults David and proceeds to tell him that he will feed his flesh to the birds of the air and beasts of the field.

David declares that he is coming in the name of the Lord of hosts, the God of the armies of Israel and that the Lord will give him victory.

Verse 47 is one of the most powerful in this whole passage of scripture when David declares

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.”

Aren’t you glad this morning that we serve a God that is almighty not just in the natural but in the supernatural as well.

So it doesn’t matter if your giant is in your body, mind, soul or with others around you because Jesus is bigger and Jesus is stronger and Jesus will give you victory over anything that comes against you! Hallelujah!

Run to Battle and Claim Victory

In verse 48 we can see that the Philistine rises and comes near to David. Then David quickly runs toward the battle line to meet him.

Then David takes a stone from his pouch and slung it and the stone sank in the Philistines forehead then he stumbled and fell face down on the ground.

Then David ran over to Goliath pulled out his sword used it to kill him and cut off his head.

When the Philistines saw this they turned and ran.

Hear me today when it is time to do battle don’t walk but run to the battle line and face your foes head on and use the weapons which the Lord has given you.

You have the word of God so you know His character and promises. You have eternal life through your faith in Christ Jesus. And you have the power of the Holy Spirit which is God living inside of you.

There is not a giant alive than can compare with the power which God has placed in you.

Give Him all the glory and He will move mightily in your situations so that everyone around will know that their is a God in heaven who cares for His people.

So if you are fighting sickness today then you have victory.

If you are fighting on the battlefield of your mind then you have victory.

If you are lonely or having a financial hardship or battling addiction or low self esteem or having issues in your family or in your career whatever is coming against you today whatever is harassing you whatever is a defeated foe who is coming back around to try and steal your joy be strong in the Lord and in the power of His might.

Look the devil right in the eye and tell him that in the name of Jesus he must flee and that he is under your feet and that he may come at you with weapons of every kind but you are coming in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ and victory is yours now and forever. Glory to God! Hallelujah! Praise Jesus!

So how do you conquer your giants. Simple the battle is the Lord’s and all you need to do is your part and trust Him that He will do His part and give Him all the glory the honor and the praise.

Let us Pray