“But Abishai son of Zeruiah came to David’s rescue; he struck the Philistine down and killed him. Then David’s men swore to him, saying, ‘Never again will you go out with us to battle, so that the lamp of Israel will not be extinguished.”
~ 2 Samuel 21:17
Hi James and Ellen,
Do you know what a giant looks like? A giant is a guy who is much taller than any other guy around – other than other giants. Giants can be super scary dudes. David killed a giant. When David was just a young guy, his dad asked him to take some bread and roasted grain to his three oldest bros. David’s bros were helping Saul – who was Israel’s first king, fight against the Philistine army. Saul was not winning the battle against the Philistine army. There was a very good reason why Saul was not winning the battle against the Philistine army. The Philistines had a giant fighting in their army. Goliath – the Philistine giant, was nine feet tall. There was no guy in Saul’s army who was willing to go one on one in a fight against Goliath. When David realized how intimidated Saul’s soldiers were of Goliath, David volunteered to slay the giant. David – with God’s help, overpowered and executed a human giant.
It is now years later. David has been recently positioned as the next king over the Israelite people group’s guy, gals and kids – God’s especially chosen guys, gals and kids. The Israelite guys and gals are happy to have David as their king. David would make mistakes but . . . David knew God personally. Do you know God personally? David trusted in God for answers to difficulties. David in 2 Samuel 21 asks God why Israel is having a famine that has already lasted three years. God explains to David why there is a famine in Israel. Joshua was the first leader of the Israelite guys, gals and kids after they crossed the Jordon River into Canaan – the land that God had promised to them that they would always have to live in as their very own land if . . . and which became known as Israel. While Joshua was in the process of doing what God had asked him to do – which was to purge the Canaan land area of all the people groups that were living in the land, some Gibeonite people group’s guys tricked Joshua into making a vow that he would not kill any Gibeonite guy, gal or kid. Joshua did this years before Saul became the first king over the Israelite guys, gals and kids. Joshua should never have made that vow but . . . but because Joshua did, God expected His specially chosen guys to keep that vow. Gibeonite guys, gals and kids lived in the area that had been allotted to the Benjamin tribal clan. Saul – after he had been positioned as king over the Israelite people group’s guys and gals, began to eradicate Gibeonite guys, gals and kids who were living in the Benjamin tribal clan’s land area – breaking the vow that Joshua had made to some Gibeonite guys. Saul was from the Benjamin tribal clan. The famine that God was punishing Israelite guys and gals with at this time was for something that had taken place years earlier. What would you do if you found out from God that the reason that something disastrous is happening to you is because of something appalling that your grandpaa had done? David went to some surviving Gibeonite guys to ask them what he should do to make everything right again. The Gibeonite guys told David that if he would give them seven of Saul’s grandkids for them to kill at a place called Gibeah that that the famine would come to an end. Your grandpaa knows that what the Gibeonite guys wanted David to do sounds like a really bad solution to a really bad situation but . . . David obediently did what God told him to do. Do you obediently do what God tells you to do?
After David was positioned as Israel’s second king, David thought that he still needed to be the one to lead out in the battles against the enemies of the Israelite guys and gals. The Philistine people group’s guys, gals and kids lived on a narrow stretch of land along the Mediterranean Sea. This strip of land is called the Gaza Strip today. The land where Philistine guys, gals and kids lived was not a part of Canaan’s land area. Israelite guys and gals were constantly being pestered by Philistine guys. Israel’s army seemed to be always in a battle with the Philistine army. David would always take his band of warriors with him to where the Philistine army was located – to fight them. Ishbi-Benob was another massive giant fighting in the Philistine army. Ishbi-Benob was set on killing David. The oversized dude had gotten himself a new sword. The guy’s bronze spearhead weighed at least three hundred shekels or seventy-five pounds. David had become exhausted in this battle. David was not in a good place to do battle with Ishbi-Benob. Verse 17 says “But Abishai son of Zeruiah came to David’s rescue; he struck the Philistine down and killed him. Then David’s men swore to him, saying, ‘Never again will you go out with us to battle, so that the lamp of Israel will not be extinguished.’” David’s guys over time would kill three more Philistine giants including a huge guy who had six fingers on each hand and six toes on each foot. When David could no longer kill giants, David let his soldiers kill the giants. Giants are not always big tall guys. Giants can be something in your lives that is keeping you from being able to seriously converse with God. Anger, jealousy, loneliness, an illness could be giants in your lives. Unendingly playing games on the computer, spending hours watching TV, overeating could be giants in your lives. Not listening to what your dad and/or ma have asked you to do, not doing your homework, not keeping your room clean could be giants in your lives. Your grandpaa uses what took place with David in this chapter in the first devotional that he gives to a short term ministry team. Your grandpaa divides the team members into small groups. Each guy or gal in each group is to share a giant that he or she has and then he or she is to ask another guy or gal to pray for him or her. Your grandpaa really believes that a giant that a guy, gal or kid has in his or her life will vanish over time if the guy, gal or kid feels that he or she is being unconditionally accepted, affirmed and approved. Your grandpaa believes that every guy, gal and kid will always have at least four giants trying to interfere with their lives.
2 Samuel 21 (188)