1 Samuel 17:37

This was the argument of faith. The hand that had delivered from one difficulty would deliver from another. There is no "if" in all this. David did not wait for a sign; he simply said, "Your servant will go."

How opposite is the arguing of unbelief to that of faith! Faith reasons like this: "You have been my help in the past, so under the shadow of Your wings I will rejoice." Every past mercy is a pledge for mercy to come. Unbelief sees every new danger as a bigger threat than all that came before. It forgets the mercy of God and remembers only the dangers it has come through.

There is real strength in following the simple path of obedience in whatever we have to do, whatever the trial may be. So it was with David when he had to fight. It made no difference to David whether it was the lion, the bear, or this giant of the Philistines. It was all the same to him, for in himself he was as weak before one as before the other. But he went on quietly doing his duty, taking it for granted that God would be with him. This is faith.

David had learned in secret what God could be to him. Then came a question of public service, and of testimony to God's faithfulness and power. He was ready to take his place in confidence in God.

David kept the secret of his triumph over the lion and the bear hidden in his own heart. He did not bring it out until the right moment. Even then he does not speak of himself as having achieved anything. He simply says, "The LORD who delivered me from the paw of the lion and from the paw of the bear will deliver me from the hand of this Philistine." Precious, self-renouncing faith! — faith that counts on God for everything and trusts the flesh in nothing.

David therefore speaks with calm certainty (vv. 36–37). The Philistine would suffer the same fate as the lion and the bear. That was because he had defied the armies of the living God, not because David was more capable than he. The living God would certainly intervene here and deliver David. His confidence persuades Saul to let him go, though Saul also sees that the Lord must be with him if he is to triumph.

Here mere religiousness and faith stand in sharp contrast. David made a clear and plain statement of faith in the presence and power of the Lord. Then Saul added, "Go, and the LORD be with you!" But how little he knew what it meant to have the Lord with him! He seemed to trust the Lord, but in reality he trusted his armour. Had he understood what he said, why think of putting on armour?

David sets out on his mission. He had already carried out a secret ministry in the wilderness where he kept the sheep. That is where he had struck down the lion and the bear — a picture of Christ when He bound the strong man. Before he fought the Philistine, he had rescued his father's sheep when the enemy tried to snatch them away and devour them.