David and GoliathThe story of David and Goliath can be thought of as a timeless tale of1) good versus evil and 2) the fact that the win does not always go to thestrongest or biggest, it goes to the most determined or strong willed. David,the good spirited fighter who wanted to save the Israelites from Goliath, forexample, was eager, confident, and prepared to win, as described in 1 Samuel17:48 – “David ran quickly toward the battle line to meet the Philistine”. David was a hero to the Israelites because he was able to kill Goliath, who had”come up to defy Israel” (1 Samuel 17:25). Although Goliath was a large,experienced fighter with a sword, David, determined to save the Israelites fromGoliath’s evils.
David mentions that Goliath had defied the armies of theliving God, and for that he would be punished. David’s strength, it seems,dwelled in “the name of the Lord of hosts, the God of the armies of Israel” (1Samuel 17:45). However, Goliath was dependent on the power of weapons, and wassure that a sword and spear would win the battle. It’s difficult to say whatthis meant to the Hebrews, but I interpreted it as symbolizing that thesuperiority and strength of their Lord was stronger than was any weapon. Igathered this, since one of the statements mentioned in 1 Samuel was: “the Lorddoes not save by sword and spear; for the battle is the Lord’s and he will giveyou into our hand” (17:47). Since the Lord’s followers were the Israelites, theLord savedhis people from harm through sending David to conquer Goliath.
The story of David and Goliath is a tale still told in modern day. I assume itsignifies the fact that the winner of a battle isn’t always the strongest, thefastest, or the one with the most weapons. The winner, instead, is the one whointelligently finds a way to make use of the resources that are available to him,and use these resources (the rocks, in this particular story), to gain triumph. I also found an ironic twist in this story when David uses the enemy’s weapon tostab and decapitate Goliath.
It just seems amusing that after Goliath haspassed out from being pelted by rocks, he is unconscious and cannot use his ownsword to defend himself. It seems to be a typical cliche, but this story is areminder of the fact that sometimes, what you consider your greatest strengthscan end up hurting you more than helping you.
