Havasu Christian Church
Series in I Samuel
August 18, 2024
1 Samuel 17:1-58
“The most familiar battle in the bible!”
Part 1 “The lead up”
INTRO: Today, we start a series within a series. We’ve been going through the book of I Samuel. That’s the series. But as we come to the “showdown” between David and Goliath, it’s just too big a story to cover in one sermon. There’s just too much going on. So, we are going to look at this event in the next three weeks. #1: The lead up. #2: The main event. #3: The aftermath.
Before we start into this though, there are some things that come up that I think we should deal with first. If we don’t, it would be easy “get lost in the weeds.” What I mean by that is that we can easily get so interested in the details of the event that we lose sight of the point of it. So, let’s get some of those things out of the way!
- Goliath; 9 feet 9 inches tall.
- There are many accounts of very tall people in other historical documents besides the bible.
- Currently, the Dinka tribe in South Sudan are the tallest people group on earth. The average height of men and women together is about 6 feet. Many of the men are around 7 feet tall, with one individual, Malith Dak, comes in at 7 feet, 9 inches tall.
- For comparison, Shaquille O'Neal was 7-foot-1-inch tall and 325-pounds in his prime. He could bench 475 pounds. He could jump straight up 32 inches, But with his long arms, he didn’t have to jump very high to get above the rim.
- Put Shaq in armor with a sword and spear. Who would want to tangle with him?
- His Scale armor, about 78 pounds.
- The shaft of his spear, probably 16 pounds.
- The head of his spear, around 17 pounds.
- David wasn’t too small for the King’s armor, he had never used it and wanted to use what he knew.
- A sling was a potent weapon in the right hands. Goliath should have been more wary.
- And the biggest question: How did Saul not know who David’s father was?
- David has been playing music for Saul. Saul has grown to love him. Saul has made him his armor bearer.
- One idea is that Saul simply had forgotten Jesse’s name.
- My thought: the Hebrew often gives a general idea of something and then fleshes it out in more detail.
- Perhaps this event takes place as part of David coming into the palace, playing music, and becoming Saul’s armor bearer?
So, let’s look at the lead up to the event and see what there is to be learned from it.
1 Samuel 17:1–11 Now the Philistines gathered their armies for battle; and they were gathered at Socoh which belongs to Judah, and they camped between Socoh and Azekah, in Ephes-dammim.
2 Saul and the men of Israel were gathered and camped in the valley of Elah, and drew up in battle array to encounter the Philistines.
3 The Philistines stood on the mountain on one side while Israel stood on the mountain on the other side, with the valley between them.
4 Then a champion came out from the armies of the Philistines named Goliath, from Gath, whose height was six cubits and a span.
5 He had a bronze helmet on his head, and he was clothed with scale-armor which weighed five thousand shekels of bronze.
6 He also had bronze greaves on his legs and a bronze javelin slung between his shoulders.
7 The shaft of his spear was like a weaver’s beam, and the head of his spear weighed six hundred shekels of iron; his shield-carrier also walked before him.
8 He stood and shouted to the ranks of Israel and said to them, “Why do you come out to draw up in battle array? Am I not the Philistine and you 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 become your servants; but if I prevail against him and kill him, then you shall become our servants and serve us.”
10 Again 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.
- The people of Israel had a number of BIG problems!
- They have an army camped out in their country!
- The Philistines have given them LOTS of trouble over the years.
- The Philistines want it all!
- They want to kill!
- They want to enslave!
- They want to take Israel’s possessions!
- The Philistines want to take their land!
- If this wasn’t enough, there was another problem…. Goliath!
- Goliath has taunted Israel’s army for the last 40 days!
- He’s BIG! And Scary!
- His taunts are disheartening.
- No one, including Saul, is willing to go out and fight him.
Let’s see where things go from here….
- David comes for a visit.
I Samuel 17:12-24 Now David was the son of the Ephrathite of Bethlehem in Judah, whose name was Jesse, and he had eight sons. And Jesse was old in the days of Saul, advanced in years among men.
13 The three older sons of Jesse had gone after Saul to the battle. And the names of his three sons who went to the battle were Eliab the firstborn, and the second to him Abinadab, and the third Shammah.
14 David was the youngest. Now the three oldest followed Saul,
15 but David went back and forth from Saul to tend his father’s flock at Bethlehem.
16 The Philistine came forward morning and evening for forty days and took his stand.
17 Then Jesse said to David his son, “Take now for your brothers an ephah of this roasted grain and these ten loaves and run to the camp to your brothers.
18 “Bring also these ten cuts of cheese to the commander of their thousand, and look into the welfare of your brothers, and bring back news of them.
19 “For Saul and they and all the men of Israel are in the valley of Elah, fighting with the Philistines.”
20 So David arose early in the morning and left the flock with a keeper and took the supplies and went as Jesse had commanded him. And he came to the circle of the camp while the army was going out in battle array shouting the war cry.
21 Israel and the Philistines drew up in battle array, army against army.
22 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.
23 As he was talking with them, behold, the champion, the Philistine from Gath named Goliath, was coming up from the army of the Philistines, and he spoke these same words; and David heard them.
24 When all the men of Israel saw the man, they fled from him and were greatly afraid.
- His father, Jesse, has sent David.
- He is bringing roasted grain and bread for his brothers, and he is bringing cheese to their commander.
- David is supposed to bring back news to his father about how things are going.
- David arrives just in time to be impressed!
- The army is drawing up into a battle line
- They are dressed for a fight.
- They are all acting very bravely.
- They are shouting and making lots of noise!
- hear Goliath’s twice daily challenge.
- But things go wrong in a hurry.
- Goliath steps out and begins his taunt.
- No one steps forward to answer him.
- David goes from being impressed to being surprised and ashamed.
Let’s keep on going….
I Samuel 17:25-30 The men of Israel said, “Have you seen this man who is coming up? Surely he is coming up to defy Israel. And it will be that 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 Then David spoke to the men who were standing by him, saying, “What will 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 taunt the armies of the living God?”
27 The people answered him in accord with this word, saying, “Thus it will be done for the man who kills him.”
28 Now 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 know your insolence and the wickedness of your heart; for you have come down in order to see the battle.”
29 But David said, “What have I done now? Was it not just a question?”
30 Then he turned away from him to another and said the same thing; and the people answered the same thing as before.
- David asks a simple question….
- “What will 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 taunt the armies of the living God?”
- His oldest brother, Eliab, gets mad!
- You have an evil heart!
- “You just came down here to be a “Looky- loo!”’
- “Why aren’t you with your sheep where you belong?”
- Eliab doesn’t want his little brother seeing him acting as a coward!
- Guilt is a powerful thing!!!
- Perhaps, Eliab is afraid that he will be upstaged by David.
- Remember, David has already been anointed as the next king…. Not Eliab!
- David is not deterred by Saul, or Goliath!
I Samuel 17:31-44 When the words which David spoke were heard, they told them to Saul, and he sent for him.
32 David said to Saul, “Let no man’s heart fail on account of him; your servant will go and fight with this Philistine.”
33 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.”
34 But David said to Saul, “Your servant was tending his father’s sheep. When a lion or a bear came and took a lamb from the flock,
35 I went out after him and attacked him, and rescued it from his mouth; and when he rose up against me, I seized him by his beard and struck him and killed him.
36 “Your servant has killed both the lion and the bear; and this uncircumcised Philistine will be like one of them, since he has taunted 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, He will deliver me from the hand of this Philistine.” And Saul said to David, “Go, and may the LORD be with you.”
38 Then Saul clothed David with his garments and put a bronze helmet on his head, and he clothed him with armor.
39 David girded his sword over his armor and tried to walk, for he had not tested them. So David said to Saul, “I cannot go with these, for I have not tested them.” And David took them off.
40 He took his stick in his hand and chose for himself five smooth stones from the brook, and put them in the shepherd’s bag which he had, even in his pouch, and his sling was in his hand; and he approached the Philistine.
41 Then the Philistine came on and approached David, with the shield-bearer in front of him.
42 When the Philistine looked and saw David, he disdained him; for he was but a youth, and ruddy, with a handsome appearance.
43 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 also said to David, “Come to me, and I will give your flesh to the birds of the sky and the beasts of the field.”
- Saul ties to discourage David.
- “You’re just a kid!”
- “Goliath has been a warrior since he was your age!”
- David’s response is that he has fought both a lion and a bear to protect his sheep.
- “God protected me from them, He will protect me now!
- Saul now wants to help David.
- “Here, take my armor and sword.”
- David has never worn armor or used a sword. It’s not a case of being too small or too weak. It’s a matter of not being used to wearing the additional weight and not knowing how to fight using them.
- Goliath wants to discourage David!
- He “distains” him.
- He makes it very obvious that he feels like David is no threat!
- , “Am I a dog, that you come to me with sticks?”
- He cursed him.
- He tried to intimidate David by invoking the “power” of his “little g” gods.
- He threatens him.
- “Come to me, and I will give your flesh to the birds of the sky and the beasts of the field.”
- Instead of allowing all this to deter him, David goes on the offensive!
And that’s where we leave it this week!
What should I put into my mind from this passage today?
- Sometimes, God’s people are faced with big challenges.
- It may not even be of our own making…
- Often, they are attacks orchestrated by Satan.
- Often, those challenges are opportunities that God has given us to serve.
- You may be afraid.
- You may be unsure if you are capable.
- You may just not want to do what is needed.
- God expects us to serve in whatever way He gives us the ability to serve.
- We may be amazed that no one else has “stepped up” to take care of the problem or opportunity.
- “Everybody knew what somebody should do…”
- There may be objections to you even trying to do what’s needed.
- “You’re too young!”
- “We’ve never done it that way before.”
- “We tried it that way 25 years ago and it didn’t work.”
- Don’t be the one who runs away from the challenging situation or opportunity..
- Others will have an opinion about how YOU should do what they don’t want to do themselves!
- “Here; wear my armor!”
- Listen
- Think about what they said.
- They might even have a good idea!
- But DO NOT give up!
Jesus came to do what no one else could do.
He had MANY detractors.
He had people who tried to stop Him.
He even had Peter try to tell Him that He couldn’t do what He was doing.
Jesus Persevered.
We are saved because He did!
Maybe our perseverance can help to bring someone else to Jesus!
