1 SAMUEL 17:17-37
Saul stated that David was not able to go against the Philistine. Saul said, “Thou art but a youth,
and he a man of war from his youth” (1 Sam. 17:33). Here was a man of gigantic stature and who
had been trained for war from his adolescent years. In this way, Saul sought to discourage David
just as Eliab had tried to discourage him with criticism and slander. But David knew his God and
would not be put off.
Many centuries later, Paul put into words the truth that God does not choose the great things of this
world to do His work, but He calls on those things that the world considers as nothing to confound
the world’s wisdom (see 1 Cor. 1:26-29).
Herein lies a basic difference between human reasoning and God’s reasoning. David knew his God
and had already seen the hand of God upon his own life in a remarkable way.
David said to Saul, “Thy servant kept his father’s sheep, and there came a lion, and a bear, and
took a lamb out of the flock: and I went out after him, and smote him, and delivered it out of his

mouth: and when he arose against me, I caught him by his beard, and smote him, and slew him” (1
Sam. 17:34-35).
All of us face lions and bears and Goliaths who defy the living God and scorn His people. But
where is the Lord God of David? He is still the same today, and those of us who put our trust in
Him will be victorious.
God is our refuge and strength, a very present help in trouble (Ps. 46:1).
Theodore Epp
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