Here was a young shepherd who had done nothing in life that we know of except to herd sheep. It hardly seems to qualify him for taking on the giant warrior, Goliath. It's no wonder that Goliath laughed at him and didn't really take him seriously. Who would?
Not only that, but the 'weapon' he planned to use against Goliath was a slingshot!
Now, David wasn't even on the battlefield. His father had sent him up with some food to take to his brothers and the other soldiers. These soldiers were scared to death of Goliath, and it was the talk of the camp what they should do about him. Along comes David and asks them who this "uncircumcised Philistine" is, that he would defy the God of Israel. He was outraged.
David's eldest brother was disgusted with this kind of talk, and he asked him (my own paraphrase), "What are you doing down here, anyway? And who is taking care of the sheep you're supposed to be watching? You just came down here out of pride, to act like you're a part of the battle," to which David responded, "What have I done now? Isn't there a good reason to ask why Goliath can just defy God like that?" So, David got into a disagreement with others along the same line.
When King Saul heard all the hubbub, he ordered David down so Saul could see what was going on. David said the same things to Saul and offered to fight the giant. Saul pointed out that the giant was a man of war and David was just a youth. David was determined, and he told Saul that during the course of watching the sheep he had also killed a lion and a bear, and that Goliath was no better than those two animals, especially after defying God. He said that God would deliver him out of Goliath's hand just as God had delivered him from the beasts.
It would be interesting to know exactly what Saul was thinking when he gave David some armor, a helmet and a sword, and agreed to it. My guess is that he was having 'a bit of fun' with David, thinking that all the gear would deter him. David had never handled such tools of war, and he took them off and said he couldn't do anything with that stuff. Instead, he picked out five smooth stones and his slingshot, and off he went.
When Goliath saw David, he ridiculed him, which we can certainly understand. No doubt this entire spectacle was a brief relief of tension for the soldiers on both sides. They were probably watching it as they would a sports event, happy for the moment of respite from the battle.
There was more. David told Goliath that he had come in the name of the God of the armies of Israel, whom "thou hast defied," that the Lord would deliver Goliath into his hands, that David would take off his head and give the carcasses of the Philistines to the birds..."that all the earth may know that there is a God in Israel. And all this assembly shall know that the LORD saveth not with sword and spear: for the battle is the LORD's, and he will give you into our hands."
I doubt if Goliath was laughing after this direct reproach from David. No doubt this aroused his anger at this silly upstart. Running toward the Philistines, David pulled out one stone, sunk it into Goliath's forehead and he was dead. David wasn't finished. He ran over to the body, took Goliath's own sword and chopped off the giant's head. Seeing this, the Philistine army fled.
Have you ever in your life heard of such confidence?
Most people would call it chutzpah, which the dictionary defines as: unmitigated effrontery or impudence; gall, audacity; nerve. Hardly anyone would disagree with that.
But that, indeed, was the very thing it was not. It was not even simple self-confidence. I'll tell you what it was. It was God-confidence. It was unmitigated FAITH. The kind of faith that qualified David to be mentioned in Hebrews 11 - the faith chapter of the Bible. We can be certain that David was an intimate acquaintance of God. They knew each other well.
Jesus, when speaking of self-confidence, said, "...when the Son of man comes, will he find faith on earth?"
David's kind of faith in God is the very same kind of faith God is seeking in people who desire to greet Jesus Christ at his second coming. It's the faith needed in 2010. We will never reach the goal without it.
Are you an intimate of God?
Royal Heir
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