This familiar Bible story reminds us of the courage in men’s hearts when their faith is placed entirely in God. Goliath taunts David, but David’s faith becomes evident when he does not cower under the threats but instead warns Goliath with the hand of God. The armor he rejected represents man’s strength, while David chose the Armor of God.
David said to Saul, “Let no one lose heart on account of this Philistine; your servant will go and fight him.” Saul replied, “You are not able to go out against this Philistine and fight him; you are only a young man, and he has been a warrior from his youth.” But David said to Saul, “Your servant has been keeping his father’s sheep. When a lion or a bear came and carried off a sheep from the flock, I went after it, struck it and rescued the sheep from its mouth. When it turned on me, I seized it by its hair, struck it and killed it. Your servant has killed both the lion and the bear; this uncircumcised Philistine will be like one of them, because he has defied the armies of the living God. The LORD who rescued me from the paw of the lion and the paw of the bear will rescue me from the hand of this Philistine.” Saul said to David, “Go, and the LORD be with you.” Then Saul dressed David in his own tunic. He put a coat of armor on him and a bronze helmet on his head. David fastened on his sword over the tunic and tried walking around, because he was not used to them. “I cannot go in these,” he said to Saul, “because I am not used to them.” So he took them off.Then he took his staff in his hand, chose five smooth stones from the stream, put them in the pouch of his shepherd’s bag and, with his sling in his hand, approached the Philistine. Meanwhile, the Philistine, with his shield bearer in front of him, kept coming closer to David. He looked David over and saw that he was little more than a boy, glowing with health and handsome, and he despised him. He said to David, “Am I a dog, that you come at me with sticks?” And the Philistine cursed David by his gods. “Come here,” he said, “and I’ll give your flesh to the birds and the wild animals!” David said 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 deliver you into my hands, and I’ll strike you down and cut off your head. This very day I will give the carcasses of the Philistine army to the birds and the wild animals, and the whole world will know that there is a God in Israel. All those gathered here will know that it is not by sword or spear that the LORD saves; for the battle is the LORD’s, and he will give all of you into our hands.” As the Philistine moved closer to attack him, David ran quickly toward the battle line to meet him. Reaching into his bag and taking out a stone, he slung it and struck the Philistine on the forehead. The stone sank into his forehead, and he fell facedown on the ground. So David triumphed over the Philistine with a sling and a stone; without a sword in his hand he struck down the Philistine and killed him.
The Biblical account of David and Goliath is one of the most popular Bible stories ever. It teaches courage, faith, and overcoming what seems impossible. David was the youngest of Jesse’s twelve sons. One day, the nation of Israel was called to fight the Philistine army that had gathered for war. While David’s brothers went to fight, young David stayed back. The two armies gathered to stand on opposite sides of a deep valley. A great Philistine giant named Goliath, who stood at over nine feet tall, came to the front of the Philistine battle line each day for forty days and mocked the Israelites and their God. Goliath called them to fight, but King Saul and the Israelites were scared and did nothing. His father, Jesse, sent David to visit the front lines and bring back battle news from his brothers. David heard Goliath mocking Israel and their God. David was brave and volunteered to fight Goliath. He persuaded King Saul to let him fight and decided not to wear any of his armor. David carried his sling and gathered five smooth stones. Goliath laughed at David, but David responded that even though Goliath had a sword and spear, he came in the name of the Lord Almighty, the God of Israel. David put a rock in his sling and swung one of the rocks at Goliath’s head. The rock sank into the giant’s forehead, and he fell. David then picked up Goliath’s sword and used it to kill Goliath and cut off his head.
