There’s one huge difference between the Philistines and Israel you gotta be aware of.
The Philistines were a nation of warriors…
While the Israelites were mainly farmers and herdsmen.
But when I say the Philistines were “warriors”, I don’t mean they were uncivilized beasts or something.
Far from it…
What I mean is they had a fully functioning government that dedicated a good portion of their budget towards creating a full-time and uniformed army.
This was quite different than Israel at the time who did NOT have a central government or national military.
In the beginning, when Israel first entered the Promised Land, she had a standing army.
But it was soon demobilized.
After some quick and decisive victories, the Hebrew soldiers gathered up their families and soon settled into their assigned territories.
But that was about 300 years ago.
In contrast, the army we’re dealing with here in 1 Samuel was a just gathering of civilians.
So imagine the picture.
We have a group of farmers and herders who pretty much until yesterday were baling hay with their pitchforks going up against a professional, well-funded and well-trained army of soldiers.
What was the result?
Israel was defeated and lost 4000 men in the process.
Can you say OUCH?!
It was a painful and humiliating defeat.
After the loss, we’re told the ZIKNE YISRAEL or the “elders of Israel” gathered together in a state of shock as to why they’d lost the battle.
These elders weren’t military leaders.
They were tribal leaders who made decisions for the community.
And they were about to make one of the most disastrous decisions in their lives having to do with the Ark of the Covenant.
So here’s the takeaway I’m getting from today’s post.
When the Lord is with you, external circumstances don’t matter.
The wisdom and weapons of the enemy will not prevail against you.
We even see this in many of Israel’s modern battles with her enemies.
Recall how Israel was attacked by all the surrounding Arab nations soon after she was reborn as a nation in 1948.
Or recall the 6-day war Israel fought with Egypt.
In both cases, I think one could argue the enemy possessed superior manpower and possibly weaponry.
Yet Israel prevailed.
Why?
Because God was with them.
Now, on the other hand, when the Lord is NOT with you, then the opposite occurs.
The wisdom and weapons of the gentiles WILL prevail against you.
As what happened here in 1 Samuel when the Israelite Militia were defeated by a much more sophisticated Philistine fighting force.
Ya feel me here?
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