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.”

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1 Samuel 21 KJV

¹ Then came David to Nob to Ahimelech the priest: and Ahimelech was afraid at the meeting of David, and said unto him, Why art thou alone, and no man with thee? ² And David said unto Ahimelech the priest, The king hath commanded me a business, and hath said unto me, Let no man know any thing of the business whereabout I send thee, and what I have commanded thee: and I have appointed my servants to such and such a place. ³ Now therefore what is under thine hand? give mefive loaves of bread in mine hand, or what there is present.  ⁴ And the priest answered David, and said, There is no common bread under mine hand, but there is hallowed bread; if the young men have kept themselves at least from women. ⁵ And David answered the priest, and said unto him, Of a truth women have been kept from us about these three days, since I came out, and the vessels of the young men are holy, and the bread is in a manner common, yea, though it were sanctified this day in the vessel.  ⁶ So the priest gave him hallowed bread: for there was no bread there but the shewbread, that was taken from before the LORD, to put hot bread in the day when it was taken away. ⁷ Now a certain man of the servants of Saul was there that day, detained before the LORD; and his name was Doeg, an Edomite, the chiefest of the herdmen that belonged to Saul. ⁸ And David said unto Ahimelech, And is there not here under thine hand spear or sword? for I have neither brought my sword nor my weapons with me, because the king’s business required haste. ⁹ And the priest said, The sword of Goliath the Philistine, whom thou slewest in the valley of Elah, behold, it is here wrapped in a cloth behind the ephod: if thou wilt take that, take it: for there is no other save that here. And David said, There is none like that; give it me. ¹⁰ And David arose, and fled that day for fear of Saul, and went to Achish the king of Gath. ¹¹ And the servants of Achish said unto him, Is not this David the king of the land? did they not sing one to another of him in dances, saying, Saul hath slain his thousands, and David his ten thousands? ¹² And David laid up these words in his heart, and was sore afraid of Achish the king of Gath. ¹³ And he changed his behaviour before them, and feigned himself mad in their hands, and scrabbled on the doors of the gate, and let his spittle fall down upon his beard.  ¹⁴ Then said Achish unto his servants, Lo, ye see the man is mad: wherefore then have ye brought him to me?  ¹⁵ Have I need of mad men, that ye have brought this fellow to play the mad man in my presence? shall this fellow come into my house?