The Champion of the Philistines
First, I have to say, CONGRATULATIONS ON MAKING IT INTO 2024!!! Happy New Year to every single one of you who have stayed, encouraged, read and contributed on this platform. May this year be our best one yet! I’m so thankful for all of you, and wish nothing but the absolute best for you and your families. This first post of the year is a bit unusual, but bear with me. I simply go where I’m led. So without further ado, let’s dive into it. I promise you, it’s worth it!
As children, a lot of us can remember our parents, or Sunday school/Cathecism teachers, telling us a lot of stories from the Bible. In fact, a good number of us were thought to read using the book, My Book of Bible stories, which was beautifully illustrated with brilliant pictures to give our childish minds an idea of what we were reading. I had that book, and I absolutely loved it. I loved the stories, but more than anything, I absolutely loved the pictures. They told me more that words, exactly what was happening, and how, and sometimes why. The stories were designed to furnish us with a basic understanding of what the Bible says, by highlighting several important truths and engaging our minds with them.
Today, I want to talk about one of the most popular stories in this book, and in the Bible as well. It’s one most Christian children can easily tell you, with interesting embellishments of their own as well. It is the story of David and Goliath, but with a twist. Today, we step out of the usual narrative, and focus on Goliath.
I have heard, read, and been taught the story of David and Goliath in a thousand different forms, but every one of those teachings has come from the perspective of David, the shepherd boy who was to be the King. This morning though, I saw 1 Samuel 17 in a new light. I couldn’t help but wonder, what about Goliath?? And really, what about him?
What do we really know about Goliath? What was his mistake? What actually caused his death? I mean, yes, David slung his stone and what not, but honestly, do you really think it was just luck that made his first shot the best one? I don’t. I think there’s more to the story, and as with every word in God’s Word, there usually is.
The Bible introduces us to Goliath in 1 Samuel chapter 17, during the battle against the Philistines. The Israelites were camped on one side of the valley of Elah, and the Philistines were on the other side, and the valley was between them. Both parties were set for battle, and all was looking like it was business as usual. But the Philistines had a trump card, a champion named Goliath, who was a sight to behold. The Bible was very descriptive about what Goliath looked like (1 Sam. 17:4-7), and I think it’s so that we would make no mistake and see him for what he truly was, which was terrifying. Standing taller than anyone else at a good 6 cubits and a span (which translates to almost 10 feet in our regular height range), he wasn’t someone you wanted to play with on a regular day. Much less in full armor that required the services of a shield-bearer. I just know that he would have been a sight to behold, one that you would never forget, no matter how long you lived.
So yes, Goliath was this terrifying giant who fought for the Philistines as their champion. Now, in order to become a champion, it is expected that one must have defeated the previous champion and all other contenders for this position. So it goes without saying that not only could Goliath fight, he had been fighting for a long time, and he could fight tremendously well. And this was confirmed by King Saul himself in 1 Sam. 17:33. He was the ace in the deck of the Philistines, and what an ace he was. With him on their side, they were basically almost guaranteed to win any battle they waged. Almost. Because they didn’t win this one, and they lost their champion in the process. So what went wrong?
We all know the story. Goliath reduced the battle to a one-on-one fight between himself and whoever the Israelites would choose as their champion. The terms were simple; whoever won the fight, won the war. This was a very good situation, because it would reduce the bloodshed on both sides and prevent the destruction that a battle usually causes. It was really all good and dandy for everyone. There was only one problem: the Israelites didn’t have a champion. They were operating within the realms of common sense and were justifiably terrified of Goliath, every single one of them, from the King himself, to the last foot soldier. For 40 days, Goliath offered his challenge and for 40 days, the Israelites shrank back in absolute fear.
Now along comes David, fine shepherd boy who was doing solo performances for the King to restore his mental settings to default mode from time to time. David had 3 brothers in the army of the Israelites, and he had been sent to drop off provisions for them, as well as a gift for their commander, because his father was thoughtful like that. It did not have anything to do with finding favor in the commander’s eyes and ensuring that his sons survived the battle. Nothing like that. But I digress.
So David shows up to the battlefield, and drops everything off with the storekeeper because he wants to see his brothers. He finally finds them and they’re gisting when Goliath comes out to give his usual proposition. Now, here’s the thing. The philistines had an advantage, but so did the Israelites. The difference was, the Philistines were aware of this advantage in Goliath and they were exploiting it. The Israelites had forgotten that they had God on their side, and He had already done battle for them several times in the past and they never lost. They had forgotten that God had claimed them for His own, and so whoever waged war against them was actually waging war against their God. They had forgotten the Source of their strength. That was their mistake, and with this, they gave the Philistines power over them. They had the advantage, but had forgotten that they had it. How many times have we thought back to certain times in our lives, and realized that we actually had what we needed to get out of that situation, or come out ahead, but we failed to utilize our advantage? That’s precisely what the Israelites had been doing, until David showed up.
The Philistines, on the other hand, had short term, very selective memories. Because in 1 Samuel 4 & 5, they had defeated the Israelites and captured the Ark of God. Now, it’s possible that because they had defeated the Israelites before, they had become overconfident, especially since they had done it with the Ark of God in the Israelites camp, and as there was no mention of Goliath then, he might have not been present in that battle. But they had quickly forgotten the havoc that Ark had caused them, and all the trouble they got into because of it. So much so that they had sent it away from them with gifts, and watched as it returned to where it was supposed to be. And now, they were back again to fight these same people. Selective memory at its best.
David wasn’t supernaturally strong, or gifted, or anything. He just had the Spirit of God on him, from being chosen by Yahweh to be King and by Samuel’s anointing. He knew what the Israelites had forgotten, what the Philistines had forgotten, and what Goliath’s ultimate mistake was. Goliath thought he was fighting man, but David knew that the battle was God’s (1 Sam. 17:45-47). Goliath looked at the boy, and saw him for precisely what he was, a boy. A fine boy, but still a boy. A boy without any armor or weapons. Of course, he felt insulted. Of course, he got angry. Because it looked like the Israelites were making him look like a fool. But David knew that he was the weapon, God’s weapon, and since he was only the vehicle of Goliath’s destruction, it was not up to him to secure the victory. It was up to God, the not-so-secret weapon of the Israelites.
God fights our battles, He has even instructed us to stand still and watch Him do fight for us. Most times, we’re so overwhelmed with life and all it’s issues, and we keep fighting and fighting and making the same mistake that these people made, all of them. We keep forgetting that we are God’s children, and as such, our battles are not ours to fight. But God will not struggle, He will not wrestle control of our lives with us. He lets us do what we think we can do, and only steps in when we remember, and hand over control to Him.
Isn’t it exhausting? Constantly fighting and trying and struggling to keep afloat in life’s waters. As someone who prefers to live life on certain terms, I’ll tell you for free. It’s draining. Nothing burns you out as fast as trying to control something that’s beyond your comprehension, much less your control. And we don’t know the trajectory of our lives. We know only how we would like it to be, and what we would like it to look like, but we have absolutely no idea how it will be, and yet we try to hard to make our ideas our reality.
This year, why not try something different? Why not try handing over the reins, this time for good? Try giving up control of your life completely, to the One who made it, the One who has your best interests. Because the thing is, no matter how good your plans are for yourself, you can bet your entire existence that God’s plans are wayyyy better. I’m not a betting person, but those odds definitely look pretty good to me. So in 2024, bet on God. Truly and completely. Put it all in His hands. And let’s see how your life looks in the coming months.
…Calvary Greetings from me to you,
Gabrielle.
