seekeroftruth
Well-Known Member
1 Samuel 17:12 Now David was the son of an Ephrathite named Jesse, who was from Bethlehem in Judah. Jesse had eight sons, and in Saul’s time he was very old. 13 Jesse’s three oldest sons had followed Saul to the war: The firstborn was Eliab; the second, Abinadab; and the third, Shammah. 14 David was the youngest. The three oldest followed Saul, 15 but David went back and forth from Saul to tend his father’s sheep at Bethlehem.
16 For forty days the Philistine came forward every morning and evening and took his stand.
17 Now Jesse said to his son David, “Take this ephah[d] of roasted grain and these ten loaves of bread for your brothers and hurry to their camp. 18 Take along these ten cheeses to the commander of their unit. See how your brothers are and bring back some assurance[e] from them. 19 They are with Saul and all the men of Israel in the Valley of Elah, fighting against the Philistines.”
16 For forty days the Philistine came forward every morning and evening and took his stand.
17 Now Jesse said to his son David, “Take this ephah[d] of roasted grain and these ten loaves of bread for your brothers and hurry to their camp. 18 Take along these ten cheeses to the commander of their unit. See how your brothers are and bring back some assurance[e] from them. 19 They are with Saul and all the men of Israel in the Valley of Elah, fighting against the Philistines.”
d. 1 Samuel 17:17 That is, probably about 36 pounds or about 16 kilograms
e. 1 Samuel 17:18 Or some token; or some pledge of spoils
This is from Bible.org.
Goliath, the Philistine champion, is described in verses 4-11 in terms of his towering physical stature and his impressive defensive and offensive armor. David, Goliath’s opponent-to-be, is introduced in verses 12-15 by a very different description. Nothing is said here about David’s stature, his strength, or his weapons. We are simply told that he is the youngest of eight sons of Jesse, the Ephrathite of Bethlehem Judah. We are further told that Jesse is a very old man during the years that Saul reigns. We are told that David’s three oldest brothers have gone to war with Saul, and that David is left at home to care for the sheep, except for those times he needs to commute to serve as a minister of music for Saul.
Why this “family” emphasis in describing David when Goliath is described in terms of his awesome looks, weapons, and aggressiveness? There are several reasons. First, it is not David’s appearance which causes God to choose him, but his heart, his character. Second, in order for David to be recognized as the one whose offspring will someday be the Messiah, he must be of the tribe of Judah (see Genesis 49:8-12), and he must be a Bethlehemite (see Micah 5:2). His being the youngest in the family explains why he is assigned to care for the sheep, and also why his aged father sends him to deliver food to his brothers and bring back a report about their welfare. It is also another example of how God often reverses man’s ways, which here would be to choose the oldest son of Jesse, not the youngest.
Why this “family” emphasis in describing David when Goliath is described in terms of his awesome looks, weapons, and aggressiveness? There are several reasons. First, it is not David’s appearance which causes God to choose him, but his heart, his character. Second, in order for David to be recognized as the one whose offspring will someday be the Messiah, he must be of the tribe of Judah (see Genesis 49:8-12), and he must be a Bethlehemite (see Micah 5:2). His being the youngest in the family explains why he is assigned to care for the sheep, and also why his aged father sends him to deliver food to his brothers and bring back a report about their welfare. It is also another example of how God often reverses man’s ways, which here would be to choose the oldest son of Jesse, not the youngest.
This is from the blueletterbible.org site.
And the Philistine drew near and presented himself forty days: Day after day, Goliath would taunt and mock the armies of Israel, exposing them all (and especially Saul) as cowards who would run from a fight.
Left the sheep with a keeper: This little observation shows the shepherd's heart of David. If he left the sheep to run an errand for his father, he made sure the sheep were still well taken care of.
And he came to the camp as the army was going out to the fight and shouting for the battle: This must have been the approximate scene for forty days. The armies would gather on each hillside, and scream and shout at each other across the valley. Goliath would make his parade and shout his insults, and after awhile the Israelites would slink away in shame.
Significantly, forty days (or forty years) is used in the Scriptures rather consistently as a period of judgment and or testing. It rained for forty days in the time of Noah. Israel was in the wilderness forty years. Jesus fasted and was tempted of the devil for forty days before He began His public ministry. So here, Israel is also tested by Goliath's mockery.
Left the sheep with a keeper: This little observation shows the shepherd's heart of David. If he left the sheep to run an errand for his father, he made sure the sheep were still well taken care of.
And he came to the camp as the army was going out to the fight and shouting for the battle: This must have been the approximate scene for forty days. The armies would gather on each hillside, and scream and shout at each other across the valley. Goliath would make his parade and shout his insults, and after awhile the Israelites would slink away in shame.
David's instructions were to take supplies to his brothers and their commander.
I remember hearing a story that reportedly took place in Front Royal, Virginia during the civil war. As the story goes, the civil war was only supposed to last a little while. Provisions were provided by the local men and women. It was also reported that some of the residents would gather up a picnic lunch and go out to the battle. What began as a pleasant spectacle turned into a horrible bloody mess and people stopped "attending the war". Now I don't know if that's so... the same person also told me that there were hoop snakes in Front Royal that put their tail in their mouth and rolled down the mountainside... so I can't vouch for it's veracity.... but it does sound like what was going on back in David's day.
Just a note.... remember, these two armies are facing off against each other on land that doesn't bode well for anyone in a chariot or hauling heavy weapons... this is mountainous terrain.... full of rock.... hard to navigate on foot let alone on foot loaded down with all that armor.
So this is where David took supplies to his brothers and their commander.
