Five Smooth Stones

I just finished teaching Sunday School on 1 Samuel. I have had the opportunity to teach my way through it several times now and it is definitely one of my favorite books of the Bible - certainly in the Old Testament.

The class that I taught is the oldest community at MBCC. They are great people. Very spiritually mature and full of comments and questions. I really enjoyed that interaction with them. Last week one of the ladies that always asks insightful questions asked me why the Bible specifically mentioned that David took “five smooth stones” for his battle with Goliath. I really didn’t know the answer but told her that I would look into it and get back with them this week.

After researching her question, I found that there wasn’t a clear answer but there was basically two theories that are suggested - both with an interesting common denominator. The one thing that seems to be clear, however, is there is no indication that by picking up five stones instead of one that David was doubting God. He never wavered in his belief that he would win this battle against the giant. He even had to passionately convince King Saul to let him fight. King Saul’s throne and the freedom of the whole Israelite nation depended on David’s success. It was the highest form of ‘winner take all.’

The first theory assumes that David was simply being prepared. David was an experienced hunter in his role as shepherd. He had defended his flock against all sorts of wild animals. He couldn’t have known that one stone would be enough to kill the giant. God had not promised that David would kill Goliath with the first stone. He trusted God with the result and believed that God would tell him exactly what to do and how - which is exactly what happened.

Others speculate that David chose five smooth stones because Goliath had four brothers and David was readying himself to have to contend with the other four after he killed the first. While this did not happen, we do know that David and his men faced four other giants in later battles.

The common denominator in both of the theories is the readiness of David. God had prepared and equipped David for this moment. As a man of great faith, David trusted in God’s preparation. He had experienced God’s faithfulness and had come to rely on it even as a young man. The Lord had delivered him out of dangerous situations in the past, proving His power and trustworthiness, and David relied on Him to deliver him from the Philistine. Whether it took one stone or five, David recognized that the power was not just in his sling but in the Lord.

Like David, God equips and prepares us for battles in life. We will all face them. We have walked with you through some of them. We don’t know the timing, scale or battleground we will be confronted with but David’s story is a great reminder that God will not put more on us than we can handle if our faith is in Him.

Stay hungry,

Big E

Matt. 5:6