In 1 Samuel 17, we find ourselves standing at the edge of something monumental—a battle that seems too vast for any of the Israelites to win, a fight that everyone knows will define the fate of a nation. The Philistines have gathered in the Valley of Elah, a place where the air is thick with the anticipation of violence. On one side stands the massive Philistine army, and on the other, the Israelites are arrayed in fear, watching their greatest enemy rise in power. But there’s one figure in this chapter that rises above the rest, a young shepherd named David, who enters the scene with no armor, no sword, and certainly no expectation that he will be the one to change the course of history.
For forty days, the giant Philistine warrior, Goliath, has taunted the Israelites. He is a towering figure, almost beyond belief, with armor and weaponry that make him seem invincible. He calls out to the Israelites, daring them to send someone to fight him. Every day, the Israelites shrink back, paralyzed by fear. We understand their hesitation—how many times have we faced something that feels insurmountable, something so big that it makes us question our ability to do anything at all? We might have been the ones cowering on the sidelines, hoping someone else would take the fight on our behalf. Goliath is not just an enemy in the literal sense; he’s a symbol of everything we might fear in life—the giants that loom in our minds, the struggles that seem unbeatable.
Enter David, the youngest son of Jesse, who is still at home tending the sheep. His older brothers are among the Israelite army, but David is simply there to bring them food and check on their well-being. He is unaware of the challenge Goliath has made until he arrives at the camp and hears the taunts for himself. It’s then that we see David’s heart. While the entire army is intimidated, David is outraged. “Who is this uncircumcised Philistine, that he should defy the armies of the living God?” he asks. David’s words hit us with the force of someone who sees something the others don’t—where they see a giant, David sees a man who has no place standing against the living God.
David’s confidence isn’t born from arrogance or naivety; it’s rooted in his past experiences with God. When he faces King Saul, who is skeptical of his ability to fight, David recounts how he has already fought and killed lions and bears while protecting his sheep. He doesn’t rely on his own strength, but on the God who delivered him from those beasts. That’s when we realize that David’s faith isn’t just about the fight before him; it’s about a history with God. He believes that the same God who helped him protect his flock from wild animals will also help him defeat this giant.
Saul, desperate and seeing no other option, agrees to let David fight, though he offers David his own armor. But David, unaccustomed to it and knowing that it doesn’t belong to him, rejects the armor and chooses instead to take five smooth stones from a brook and approach the battlefield with nothing but his sling. This moment speaks to us about trust—David doesn’t fight like everyone else; he doesn’t rely on what others might see as the proper tools for victory. He brings what he knows, what he’s comfortable with, and that becomes the tool God uses to bring victory.
As David approaches Goliath, the giant scoffs at him. Goliath sees only a boy, unarmed and unworthy of his attention. But David, undeterred, steps forward with a declaration: “You come to me with a sword and with a spear and with a javelin, but I come to you in the name of the Lord of hosts, the God of the armies of Israel, whom you have defied.” His words are not filled with bravado—they are filled with faith in the God who is greater than any giant, greater than any weapon. As Goliath moves toward him, David runs toward the battle, taking one of the stones from his pouch and slinging it with precision. The stone sinks into Goliath’s forehead, and the giant falls, defeated before the power of God.
The victory is immediate and dramatic. David doesn’t just defeat Goliath; he takes the giant’s sword and uses it to cut off his head, a powerful symbol of God’s ultimate triumph over the forces that seem unconquerable. The Israelites, who had been paralyzed by fear, are suddenly filled with courage. They charge into the Philistine camp, chasing them from the battlefield in a sweeping victory. In that moment, we feel the shift from hopelessness to triumph, from fear to faith. David’s victory isn’t just physical—it’s spiritual. It shows that with God, nothing is impossible, no matter how impossible it seems.
As we reflect on this chapter, we see so many aspects of our own lives reflected in David’s story. We all face giants in different forms—circumstances that seem unbeatable, problems that appear unsolvable. Like Saul’s army, we often hesitate, feeling inadequate or afraid. But David’s story calls us to something more. It challenges us to remember that God has already equipped us with everything we need for victory, that we can rely not on conventional strength but on God’s power working through us. David’s trust in God and his willingness to step into the unknown can teach us how to face our own challenges—not in our strength, but in the strength of the One who is greater than any giant we will ever face. His victory becomes our victory, a reminder that with faith, courage, and trust in God, we too can overcome whatever giants stand in our way.