DAVID AND GOLIATH
A Study in Courage
By Wayne Christiansen
The stage is set for the David and Goliath showdown in 1 Samuel 16. In this chapter, the LORD covertly sends the prophet Samuel to Jesse of Bethlehem to anoint the next king of Israel. At first, Samuel sees Jesse’s oldest son, Eliab, and thinks, “Surely the LORD’s anointed stands here before the LORD” (vs. 6). “But the LORD said to Samuel, ‘Do not consider his appearance or his height, for I have rejected him. The LORD does not look at the things man looks at. Man looks at the outward appearance, but the LORD looks at the heart’” (vs. 7).
Seven sons pass before Samuel, before the least likely candidate, David, is finally brought in and personally chosen by God. “So Samuel took the horn of oil and anointed him… and from that day on the Spirit of the LORD came upon David in power…” (vs. 13). This prepares us for the contest with the nine-foot giant. What the observant reader expects to find is a man with a heart for God through whom the Holy Spirit works mightily, and the reader will not be disappointed.
David is sent by his father to check on the well-being of the three oldest brothers who are part of Saul’s army. David “reached the camp as the army was going out to its battle positions, shouting the war cry” (1 Sam. 17:20). The irony of the “war cry” is that nobody is charging or engaging the enemy. The defiant taunts of Goliath had gone unchallenged for 40 consecutive days.
As David is talking with his brothers, “Goliath, the Philistine champion from Gath, stepped out from his lines and shouted his usual defiance, and David heard it. When the Israelites saw the man, they all ran from him in great fear” (vv. 23-24). Notice the two totally different perspectives: David heard God being defied, while the Israelites saw the man. Consequently, we have as expected, two opposite responses: the Israelites ran from the heavyweight champion in great fear; David “approached the Philistine” (vs. 40). The Israelites are thinking, “He’s so big, he’ll kill us.” David was thinking, “He’s so big, I can’t miss.”
“Where does such courage originate?” As we mentioned earlier, the Spirit of the LORD came upon David. We must not over-look God’s sovereign work in David’s life. In addition to this, two facets strike me: First, David’s heart burns with a passion for God’s glory. The focal point of this passage is not that David defeats Goliath, but that David defends God’s honor. It was the cause, namely God’s name and reputation that gave David courage. Courage always rises to the level of the cause. The greater the cause, the greater the courage. David not only prayed the first petition of the Lord’s Prayer: “Hallowed be thy name,” but he would fight giants, and even die, if necessary, for that petition to be fulfilled in Israel and among the nations. There is no greater cause than the glory of God.
Second, David’s faith in God is massive. He says confidently, without a hint of bravado, “The LORD who delivered me from the paw of the lion and the paw of the bear will deliver me from the hand of this Philistine” (vs. 37). He has learned that God is a “living” God, who intervenes in the lives of those who fear Him. The Israelites are acting as though God is dead. Never underestimate the impact of one’s theology! We all, without exception, live out our theology. David’s faith is huge, because his God is the living, Almighty LORD.
David’s confidence for victory is solely in God. Saul’s armor doesn’t fit, because it’s too big, but it isn’t even necessary. And, lest you think his confidence is in his ability to wield a sling shot, listen carefully to what David says to the Philistine, “You come against me with sword and spear and javelin, but I come against you in the name of the LORD Almighty, the God of the armies of Israel, whom you have defied. This day the LORD will hand you over to me, and I’ll strike you down and cut off your head… and the whole world will know that there is a God in Israel” (vv. 45-46). We know these are not empty words, like the Israelites “war cry,” because they were spoken not from the safety of the barracks, but from the frontlines of the battlefield. David longed for God to be known around the globe as a great and glorious God. “So David triumphed over the Philistine with a sling and a stone…” (vs. 50).
David is a type of Christ, who was the ultimate defender of God’s honor. Everything Jesus ever did or said was motivated by an earnest desire to see His Father’s name revered or hallowed. “Hallowed be thy name” is the first petition of the Lord’s Prayer, because it is the preeminent petition, and it is to be our preeminent passion. The Spirit of God works most powerfully through men and women of faith whose hearts burn for God’s glory.