2 Samuel 21:22: “These four were born to the giant in Gath, and fell by the hand of David and by the hand of his servants.”

June 30th, 2023 by Pastor Ed in devotional

Near the end of the account of David’s life in 2 Samuel, we are told that Goliath (the Philistine giant David killed as a young kid) had relatives, sons and brothers, who over the years were killed by “David and by the hand of his servants.” This gives us great insight into the influence David, a man after God’s own heart, had over the lives of the men who served with him. We remember that when David first appeared at the battle between Israel and the Philistines, everyone in Saul’s army was afraid of Goliath. No one but David was willing to take him on. But he did. And with only a slingshot and a few stones, he defeated the giant.

David was God’s man as well as a man’s man. God took David, who had surrendered his life to the Lord, and made him a model for other men to follow. And in so doing, they too become men of God who didn’t fear giants. Yes, David was a man who fell into great public sin. But he was also a man who understood that the mercy of God extends to those who will humble themselves, confess, and repent of their sins. That is still the kind of person God is looking for today.

There is one other nugget of truth here that makes us smile when we see it. Back in 1 Samuel we read that David ran toward Goliath with 5 smooth stones in his hand. We would naturally assume he took extra stones in case he missed. But with this record that Goliath had at least 4 more giant relatives, we see another possible reason. Perhaps the young David wasn’t afraid he would miss Goliath, but assumed he would have to kill the other 4 too.

“LORD, we repent of our sins and ask for Your forgiveness, that we might walk in Your service this day.”