David and Goliath

As many who have followed me for a bit, I have fallen into the Psalms, and I can’t get up! (As if I would want to.) The Psalms are a majestic collection of poetry, of heart felt human experiences that constantly challenge me in my own frail attempt to follow the true King. As many of the Psalms are written by David, my study on the Psalms has spurred me on to looking at the life of David, is the main contributor to this book, and to follow the victories and tragedies of the shepherd King of Israel.

Many times in the narrative, we will see the Lord Jesus, imperfectly, yet a reflection of His spirit in a man with weaknesses.

1 Samuel 17:28-30

28 Now Eliab his eldest brother heard when he spoke to the men. And Eliab’s anger was kindled against David, and he said, “Why have you come down? And with whom have you left those few sheep in the wilderness? I know your presumption and the evil of your heart, for you have come down to see the battle.”
29 And David said, “What have I done now? Was it not but a word?”
30 And he turned away from him toward another, and spoke in the same way, and the people answered him again as before.

No matter how you cut it, Eliab is a piece of work in this passage. He fully exposes himself in front of the army, and before his brothers face, his attitude of superiority over David, his condescending tone, his judgement of intent. Eliab does not look good in this passage.

First off, He rejects David’s attendance. Why have you come down? Why are you here? Never mind that David was sent, Eliab assumes David came to stir the pot, to cause trouble, that David came of his own volition.

Secondly, Eliab tries to shame David, by speaking of “those few sheep in the wilderness” that he cared for. If it was but a few sheep, this speaks of David’s faithfulness, yet we do not know if there was any truth to this slur of Eliab’s. Was it a few sheep, or dozens of sheep. Not the issue to be honest, for Eliab was working the same warfare as Goliath at this point, a warfare that attacked and denigrated the opposition. But the difference here is that Eliab is family! At least in the physical sense. 

Finally, Eliab judges David’s intentions, his heart, the motivations that drove David to come to the battle field. Remember, David came at the behest of his father, to provide sustenance for his brothers. David came to the battlefield as a servant, but Eliab assigned evil intentions to his younger brother, while in the middle of frustrated soldiers that were being shamed. 

Truly, Eliab was rejected by God as the next king, based on character traits that may not have been obvious at the time. It seems these character traits are starting to become evident, and Eliab has no problem expressing his disfavor of his own brother in the midst of a gang of soldiers. Yes Eliab had his issues. And it seems his rejection by God was well warranted. He simply was not good leadership material. Gosh – he wasn’t even good brother material!

After David’s declaration of taking on the giant, and Eliab’s tongue lashing of David, the rumor mill cranked up in activity and the news reached the king. 

We have a soldier willing to take on the giant! Bring him to the King!

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