1Sa 17:38-39 | KingComments | STEP | Saul said, “may the LORD be with you”, but he does the opposite by providing David with his armor. This is a great trial for David, but he appears to be able to withstand it. If David had won the victory in Saul’s armor, the honor would have gone to Saul. The victory would have been attributed to his armor. However, the victory must be entirely the victory of the LORD. When David has put on the armor, it turns out he cannot go in it. What did the armor mean for Saul himself? He did not gain in it the victory over Goliath either, did he? Saul’s armor is no more than a variant of Goliath’s armor. We can compare David’s taking off Saul’s armor with the means Paul used to put the Corinthians on the right track. Paul did not use persuasive language of human wisdom when he came to the Corinthians. He renounced it, so that their faith might not be in the wisdom of men, but in the power of God. Thus David abandons all human means to go alone in trust in God. All human additions to spiritual power would, in the event of a result, only be fame for the flesh. That does not mean that David will fight with his bare hands. He is looking for tools. Only he does this in dependence on the LORD. He knows that his aids only benefit if the LORD blesses their use. David’s tools in this battle are no different than those he used as shepherd. A shepherd goes to war. He is looking for five smooth stones from the brook. Smooth stones have become smooth because of the flowing water. The flowing water is a picture of the Word of God that is applied by the Spirit to heart and conscience. The stones are a picture of the words from the Word of God. If we occupy ourselves with the living water of the Word of God, so that we may know it, the Spirit of God will be able to give us verses from it that we can use in the battle against the enemy. David takes five stones with him, even though he needs only one. This shows that he is aware of his responsibility. Five is the number of responsibility. Nor does he sling in the wild, he aims well (cf. ), while at the same time he knows that the victory is from the LORD.

‏ 1 Samuel 17:38-39

The Armor of Saul and of David

Saul said, “may the LORD be with you”, but he does the opposite by providing David with his armor. This is a great trial for David, but he appears to be able to withstand it. If David had won the victory in Saul’s armor, the honor would have gone to Saul. The victory would have been attributed to his armor. However, the victory must be entirely the victory of the LORD.

When David has put on the armor, it turns out he cannot go in it. What did the armor mean for Saul himself? He did not gain in it the victory over Goliath either, did he? Saul’s armor is no more than a variant of Goliath’s armor.

We can compare David’s taking off Saul’s armor with the means Paul used to put the Corinthians on the right track. Paul did not use persuasive language of human wisdom when he came to the Corinthians. He renounced it, so that their faith might not be in the wisdom of men, but in the power of God. Thus David abandons all human means to go alone in trust in God. All human additions to spiritual power would, in the event of a result, only be fame for the flesh.

That does not mean that David will fight with his bare hands. He is looking for tools. Only he does this in dependence on the LORD. He knows that his aids only benefit if the LORD blesses their use. David’s tools in this battle are no different than those he used as shepherd. A shepherd goes to war.

He is looking for five smooth stones from the brook. Smooth stones have become smooth because of the flowing water. The flowing water is a picture of the Word of God that is applied by the Spirit to heart and conscience. The stones are a picture of the words from the Word of God. If we occupy ourselves with the living water of the Word of God, so that we may know it, the Spirit of God will be able to give us verses from it that we can use in the battle against the enemy.

David takes five stones with him, even though he needs only one. This shows that he is aware of his responsibility. Five is the number of responsibility. Nor does he sling in the wild, he aims well (cf. Jdg 20:16), while at the same time he knows that the victory is from the LORD.