Sermonette: David's Mighty Men

Adino killed 800 men in one battle. Eleazar slayed Philistine warriors alone until his arm was exhausted from destroying his enemies. Shammah, despite being fully surrounded, held the high ground alone and won the victory. These three also tore through Philistine battle lines, and then slashed their way back through… merely to fetch David a drink of Bethlehem water (David did not command or order them to do this.) Then there was Abishai who struck down 300 Philistine warriors alone, as well as Benaiah-who killed two prominent Moabites, an impressive Egyptian, and a lion with his bare hands. These are the noteworthy ones, but surely the other 28 of David’s Mighty Men were also incredible warriors. The feats described in 2 Samuel 23 and verified in 1 Chronicles 11 aren’t just impressive, they’re practically superhuman. We talk about David’s slaying of Goliath, but few people are aware that Goliath came from a family of giants, and it was David’s Mighty Men who slayed Goliath’s brothers through more brutal methods than God’s power and a sling. The Bible makes it clear that these guys, despite only being names on a page today, were truly awesome. Fearsome warriors in a brutal age. Battle prowess combined with the loot they must have acquired from so many victories should have meant that these men could have been warlords or mercenaries. Rich, free, and powerful. Giants among men.

But they weren’t. They served David with undying loyalty. Fighting his battles, protecting him, and submitting themselves to David’s leadership. David, who defeated Goliath through faith, not strength. David, the psalm writer. David, the harp player. I don’t mean to demean his considerable battle prowess, but I highly doubt that David was the aggressive, brutal sort of man that it would normally take to lead such warriors. Can you picture David humming his next psalm and plucking his harp in camp… while such battle-scarred and bulked-out beasts of men like Adino, Eleazar, and Shammah, listened as they sharpened their swords? It’s an odd image that the medieval artists seemed to have skipped. However, that’s the situation we find. Humble David. Musician, temple designer, man after God’s own heart. Beloved leader of a truly fearsome group of special ops.

The seeming contrast of David and his faithful men is only explained one way: David was clearly a man worth following. Despite having all the traits valued most highly in the brutal iron age, these men recognized that David was worth standing behind. That life in his shadow, in his footsteps was better than life on their own.

David teaches us by his example that people are attracted to those who have it figured out. Deep in our hearts, we know we’re broken and we need help. If we find someone who seems a little less broken, someone who seems to drink at the well of life, we can’t help but want to be near them. David followed after God, and his desire for God must have been attractive to others, even the mighty men mentioned in the Bible. David rarely worried about who was following him; because he was focused on God. Because of this, he never had to worry about allies. Allies were drawn to him.

Be like David. Worry about God. Concern yourself exclusively with being the kind of person God wants you to be, and don’t be surprised when people, even talented people, want to be like you.