Goliath’s Challenge 1 Samuel 17:1-11
• Philistines Camped on Eastern Slope at The Valley of Blood
• Saul was Camped on the Western Slope
• Both Took Mountain Slope Positions Because of the Effects of Gravity
• Valley (emek) verse 2 Means Broad & valley (gai) verse 3 Means Ravine
• Where Was David?
• No Major Battle Had Taken Place with the Philistines for 27 years
• David Was Returned Home to Watch the Sheep for at Least 40 days
• David Was in God’s Finishing School for Battle (Lion & Bear) in Private (Matt 6:4)
• David’s Actions Show Attitudes We Must Adopt:
• A Believer Must Give Their Schedule Over to God
• Our Disappointments Are God’s Appointments
• David Was Busy Being the Best Shepherd
• Champion-Literally, A Man of the Two Middles
• Of Gath-Philistine City Inhabited by the Race of Anak (Josh 11:21;Dt 1:28; Gen 6)
• Height was six cubits and a span
• Cubit-Generally, 18 inches
• Span-Span (sit) 8 inches; This Word zereth Means Handbreath or 4 inches
• This Would Make Goliath 9 Feet 4 inches Tall
• Armed with a coat of mail-Literally, Clothed in a Shirt of Scales; about 200 lbs.
• Greaves of brass upon his legs-Shin Guards
• A target-Javelin
• Spears head weighed six hundred shekels of iron-25 Pound Head on a Spear
• One bearing a shield went before him-A Man Carrying a Shield the Size of a Full Grown Man
• To Israel He Was Too Big to Fight; To David He Was Too Big to Miss
• Choose you a man for you-Representative Combat; Winner Take All
• We Face Giants in our Own Valley
• Giants like Worry, Fear, Uncertainty, Change
• They Don’t Come Just Once
• We Can’t Fight Them in Our Own Strength Either
• I defy the armies-To Cast Scorn or Insult
• They were dismayed-Terrified and Uncertain What to Do