II Samuel 23:13-17
Then three of the thirty chief men went down at harvest time and came to David at the cave of Adullam. And the troop of Philistines encamped in the Valley of Rephaim. David was then in the stronghold, and the garrison of the Philistines was then in Bethlehem.
Then three of the thirty chief men went down at harvest time and came to David at the cave of Adullam. And the troop of Philistines encamped in the Valley of Rephaim. David was then in the stronghold, and the garrison of the Philistines was then in Bethlehem.
And David said with longing, “Oh, that someone would give me a drink of the water from the well of Bethlehem, which is by the gate!” So the three mighty men broke through the camp of the Philistines, drew water from the well of Bethlehem that was by the gate, and took it and brought it to David. Nevertheless he would not drink it, but poured it out to the Lord. And he said, “Far be it from me, O Lord, that I should do this! Is this not the blood of the men who went in jeopardy of their lives?” Therefore he would not drink it. These things were done by the three mighty men.
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Chapter 23 of 2 Samuel records the names of all David’s Mighty Men along with their incredible achievements. They are listed below along with their amazing accomplishments.
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The Mighty Men.
#1. “Josheb-Basshebeth the Tachmonite (II Samuel 23:8) chief among the captains. He was called Adino the Eznite, because he had killed eight hundred men at one time.”
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#2. “Eleazar the son of Dodo, the Ahohite is one of the three mighty men that were with David when they defied the Philistines who were gathered for battle after the men of Israel had retreated. II Samuel 23:9-10 records his deeds:
“He arose and attacked the Philistines until his hand was weary, and his hand stuck to the sword. The Lord brought about a great victory that day; and the people returned after him only to plunder.”
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#3. Then we have “Shammah the son of Agee the Hararite, recorded in II Samuel 23:11-12:
“The Philistines had gathered together into a troop where there was a piece of ground full of lentils. So the people fled from the Philistines. But he stationed himself in the middle of the field, defended it, and killed the Philistines. So the Lord brought about a great victory.”
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Read the entire chapter and you’ll see many others with very great accomplishments.
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David’s Mighitest Men.
Those certainly are mighty deeds, no doubt about it. But there are three listed as David’s mightiest men who accomplished something that doesn’t seem nearly as mighty as the rest. All they did was to go and get water from the wells of Bethlehem for David. 😳 Now to be fair, they probably did a lot of other things too but, for some reason, the Holy Spirit doesn’t mention them. This is where the silence of scripture here speaks volumes! What was so great about getting water for their master, David? Let’s check it out.
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(The Three Mightiest Men.)
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The Mightiest Deed.
David was on the run from King Saul at this time, who had been actively seeking to kill him. He and his mighty men had fled to the cave of Adullam, which is approximately 15 miles from his home town of Bethlehem.
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At the time of our story, Bethlehem was in the hands of the Philistines, Israel’s arch enemy. David longed to be able to go back home and voiced his desire to drink water from the well by the gate of the town. These three men, who are not mentioned by name, in response to his wish, took it upon themselves to go down to the well in question, break through the ranks of soldiers guarding it, and get water for their master.
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David was so overwhelmed by their brave and selfless service to him that he did something quite surprising: He poured the water out as a drink offering to the Lord rather than drink it! Why? Because they had risked their very lives to obtain it for him, making it beyond price in his mind. He did not feel worthy to receive such a priceless gift, so he offered it to the One Who is.
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Secrets In The Hebrew Language.
David’s name means, “Beloved.” The story of his life and his mighty deeds are a picture of our Lord Jesus, the greater David.
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Remember what it says of Jesus in Psalm 22:14?
“I am poured out like water,
And all My bones are out of joint;
My heart is like wax;
It has melted within Me.”
And all My bones are out of joint;
My heart is like wax;
It has melted within Me.”
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This act of David’s is a picture of what Jesus, the priceless Lamb of God, did for us at Calvary: He was poured out like water. Jesus gave to His Father the most priceless gift of Himself as a sacrifice for sin to save all of us. He spared nothing. Paints quite a picture, doesn’t it?
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Not On The List.
Surprisingly, among the list of David’s mighty men, his general, Joab, is not there. Why? Because he was really more interesting in promoting himself and advancing his position than in serving David. He’s the one, you remember, who later killed Absolom, David’s wayward son, against David’s specific orders that the young man not be harmed.
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You see, God isn’t interested in a person’s position, how many degrees you have, or your family name. He interested in how much love you have toward His Beloved Son.
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The Bema Seat.
So, when rewards are handed out at the Judgment seat of Christ, don’t be too surprised who gets rewarded and who does not.
NEWS FLASH: The “Judgment Seat” of Christ, is not what it seems to be. You see, in the Greek, the word “Judgment” in 2 Corinthians 5:10 doesn’t appear. It is actually called the “Béma” seat of Christ. What is that and what’s the difference? You can read all about it if you like by following the link below:
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Just as it is surprising who is…..and who isn’t…..counted as one of David’s mighty men will be those who are and who are not counted as the Greater David’s Mighty Men!
You may follow the link below to part 7 continue this series. We’ll be talking about a young man with an odd name, which is full of meaning!:
Emmaus Road Ministries 