Jonathan And His Armor Bearer: The Story Of David Part 1.

4 Between the passes, by which Jonathan sought to go over to the Philistines’ garrison, there was a SHARP ROCK on one side and a SHARP ROCK on the other side. And the name of one was BOZEZ, and the name of the other SENEH. 5 The front of one faced northward opposite Michmash, and the other southward opposite Gibeah.”

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(Jonathan and his armor bearer take on the Philistines.)

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Before David ever met Jonathan, the young man who would become his life long friend, this is the kind of man he was: A man who trusted God; a man of great wisdom, courage, integrity, and loyalty.

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Jonathan Took Action.

Ever feel like nothing is going right and that God has forgotten you?  Is the grass looking a greener on the other side of the fence? You’re not alone.  The army of Israel was feeling just like that at this point in time. Those troublesome Philistines were at it again.

Jonathan and his young armor bearer, unlike his dad, were not satisfied with just sittin’ around, moping about things.  They left his father, King Saul, and the other troops, unbeknownst to the king, determined to go over to the Philistine garrison and defeat them in the name of The LORD of Hosts!

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(Wadi at Michmash.)

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If you go to Israel today, you can stand at Michmash and look down toward the deep wadi that Jonathan and his armor bearer had to cross.  The picture above shows just how steep and rocky the terrain was.  Not easy to negotiate! 😮

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Jonathan Trusted God.

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King Saul.

Obviously, Israel was under the leadership of King Saul at this time. He had just been informed by the prophet, Samuel, that his kingly line would end with him the reigns be handed over to another.  He was NOT happy about it.  He was sulking, in fact.  More importantly, the Spirit of The LORD was no longer with him and he knew it; he felt it. You see, in those days because their sins were only covered, the Holy Spirit could only be dispensed on a temporary basis and only rest “ON” individuals. He had to come and go because of sin IN them.  Thankfully, in these days, we are so blessed because He comes to live IN us and NEVER leaves. Jesus has cleansed our INSIDE!  He never has to leave because our spirit man has been forever cleansed of sin.

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The bottom line is, not much headway was made against their enemies, the Philistines, as a result of all the sulking and, of course, the absence of the Holy Spirit.  Saul was just lazing around on the outskirts of his capital, Gibeah, pouting and accomplishing a whole lot of nothing.

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Covenant With God.

Jonathan, on the other hand, saw the Philistines for who they were:  Uncircumcised, unwashed, having no covenant with God like they did.  He was not depending on the might of armies and did not put any faith the flesh like his father. He had faith in God.

Just like Israel, you and I have a covenant with God today.  Theirs was sealed by circumcision of their flesh, ours by circumcision of the heart.  Our enemies, who do not fear The Lord and are uncircumcised (in other words, without a covenant), DO NOT HAVE GOD ON THEIR SIDE.

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Many people see The Lord God as the holy and righteous One Who only judges sin.  He is all of that, yes, of course.  But the revelation of The LORD that Jonathan had was of God as Savior:  As Y’shua!   That’s what The Name means: Savior!  He came to save. He came to give us victory over our enemies.

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The LORD Gave The Victory!

1 Sam 14:9-10
“9 If they say thus to us, ‘Wait until we come to you,’ then we will stand still in our place and not go up to them. 10 But if they say thus, ‘Come up to us,’ then we will go up. For the Lord has delivered them into our hand, and this will be a sign to us.”

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Ever notice that enemies never want to humble themselves? They always think they are better, smarter, higher, stronger, more strategic, more…..whatever.  But you and I have something, or rather, SomeOne, that they don’t: The LORD God of Hosts!

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Come Up Higher!
Vs. 11-12
“11 So both of them showed themselves to the garrison of the Philistines. And the Philistines said, “Look, the Hebrews are coming out of the holes where they have hidden.” 12 Then the men of the garrison called to Jonathan and his armorbearer, and said, “Come up to us, and we will show you something.”
Jonathan said to his armorbearer, “Come up after me, for the Lord has delivered them into the hand of Israel.”

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The Lord always calls us to go up higher. The best defense is offense.  Go. Attack your enemies.  The Lord is always with you.  Jonathan and his armor bearer went up on their hands and knees, a picture of prayer.  The fact is we are never taller than when we are on our knees in prayer.

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One With God Is A Majority!

Vs. 14
“14 That first slaughter which Jonathan and his armorbearer made was about twenty men within about half an acre of land.”

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Whoa!  There was 2 against 20!  But with God, that is a majority!  The gates of hell cannot prevail against us.  When we step out in faith, God will save us every day:  Salvation in our physical body, salvation from depression, from worry, from stress or from whatever we are facing.  No matter who or what our enemy, our God will save us from them all. Amen!

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Great Earthquake.

Vs. 15-16
“15 And there was trembling in the camp, in the field, and among all the people. The garrison and the raiders also trembled; and the earth quaked, so that it was a very great trembling. 16 Now the watchmen of Saul in Gibeah of Benjamin looked, and there was the multitude, melting away; and they went here and there.”

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Hmmm…..earthquake. That reminds me of what happened the moment Jesus bowed His head and gave up His Spirit:  THERE WAS A GREAT EARTHQUAKE when Jesus won the final victory! But though the battle is the LORD’s, THE VICTORY IS OURS!

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Because of the faith of Jonathan and his armor bearer, all Israel was saved and had GREAT victory.

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Flesh Vs. Spirit.
Saul, however, was not pleased when he learned what had happened. He then did something really, really, REALLY stupid: He swore and oath saying, in verse 24 of chapter 14, “Cursed is the man who eats any food until evening, before I have taken vengeance on my enemies.”

Jonathan, however, was not there when his father made his pronouncement and knew nothing about it. He ate some honey from a honeycomb and was invigorated. Then one of the people told him what his father had said.

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Read Jonathan’s response below:

“My father has troubled the land. Look now, how my countenance has brightened because I tasted a little of this honey. How much better if the people had eaten freely today of the spoil of their enemies which they found? For now would there not have been a much greater slaughter among the Philistines?

Well, Saul wanted to know who it was that disobeyed his orders and won this victory.   Like all men of the flesh, he did not understand a man of the the spirit.  One trusts his own efforts; the other trusts in God.  People of the flesh always persecute people of the spirit.  It is happening still today.

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Legalism Causes Licentiousness.

Saul made up his ridiculous law that the people ended up transgressing at the end of the battle anyway because they were literally starving.  That’s what legalism does:  IT CAUSES LICENTIOUSNESS.  Rather than doing what it’s proponents intend…..restrain the flesh…..IT DOES THE EXACT OPPOSITE.  The Bible clearly says that the strength of sin is the Law. Which word do these people not understand? Why do they continue to teach the law? Do they want to create license in the Church? I’m still scratching my head over that one.

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Discerning Vs, Knowing.

Grace, unlike law, swallows ALL our sin.  It alone can produce holiness and teach us how to live holy lives.  The Spirit does a far better job of helping of us to discern what is good and right for us.  “Discerning” is 180 degrees different from “Knowing” good and evil.  Knowing presupposes an ability in ourselves to KNOW the difference.  “Discernment” comes from The Lord.

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After all that Jonathan and his armor bearer had done for the people and the great victory they had won, foolish old Saul actually wanted to kill his own son for transgressing the dumb law he had made. But the people rescued him.  They at least had the sense to know he had worked with God. Funny how leaders should know better but their people seem to have more wisdom. 🤨

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Typology.

This entire story is a picture of our wonderful Jesus.  He, the “Shining One,” Who went down into the narrow, rocky valley where no one else could go.  By the way of the cross and the crown of “Seneh: Thorns,” Jesus successfully passed through both sharp edges of the Law and went down into the valley of death into “Michmash,” the concealed place.  He went up toward the “North side,” from where Israel’s enemies always attacked, and won!!!  He defeated all our enemies and won for us the GREATEST VICTORY OF ALL TIME!  He saved us all!

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This story also tells a tale of the state of the end-time Church.  As it was in Jonathan’s day, so it is today.  We still see the flesly “Sauls” coming against the Spirit-lead “Jonathan’s: Those who trust God’s Grace.”  The “Sauls” don’t trust God and they don’t trust grace.

But those of us who do trust God and Grace are like Jonathan and his Armor Bearer.

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You may follow the link below to part 2 where we’ll meet young David who will become Jonathan’s best friend:

Ephes Dammim: The Boundary Of The Blood: The Story Of David Part 2.