GOLIATH’S SWORD – DAVID’S SWORD

© Carlos Padilla, August 2009

In the famous story of David’s victory over Goliath the giant, champion of the enemies of Israel, the Philistines, whilst David was a young boy who was not used to fighting methods or weapons, we all remember when we hear or read the story, or when it is mentioned in a daily conversation, how David won Goliath just using a smooth stone which he threw with his shepherd’s sling, struck him on his forehead and Goliath fell over his head. David then ran and stood on the dying Goliath, took his sword and cut his head with it. If you have not read it or you do not remember it, read David and Goliath: Faith and five stones

Although the spiritual meaning of the smooth stone used by David is the symbol of the faith in God and of course in His Word, and zeal for Him, it is notorious to see young David, whom the Lord chose to become the most famous king of  Judah and Israel  until the coming of His Son Jesus Christ, the King of kings; David, who would unite the two kingdoms in one, who would conquer Jerusalem turning it into the prophetic city and spiritual capital of the people of God, worshipped by Jews, Muslims and Christians, where the prophecies about Jesus Christ the Messiah would be fulfilled, His death on the Cross and His resurrection; David himself, when he runs away from Saul, first king of Judah, finds himself in a situation where he does not have his weapons and decides to take the sword of Goliath, and when the priest offered it to David, he said: …There is none like it; give it to me. 1Samuel 21:9

If this attitude does not call your attention, you will surely be surprised to see the consequences in a story which, like all the ones we find in the Word of God, is not only history but a practical example for our lives and guide for Christian  behaviour, and also for the Jewish people and for anybody who comes close to the Living God, Yahweh of Hosts.

We know that the sword of the Spirit is the Word of God, Ephesians 6:17, but how many times do we actually use other swords because we lack faith and we may fall in the mistake of trusting our abilities, knowledge, science, experience and other empirical tales of the world, of the flesh, of human mind, which give us confidence because, apparently, they are tried and tested, and we can turn to them instead of the conversation and prayer with our Father, in Christ, reaching out for His Word which nowadays we have the great blessing of having it available in paper and digital formats – something impossible in the past; Apostles did not have Bibles like we do, and Paul refers to having to ask a disciple to bring the scrolls, but they only had a few of them. Coming back to David, he actually turns to a sword other than the Word of God, he fails in his faith, he does not use the smooth stone of the faith in Christ, as he did when facing the giant – he actually turns to the giant’s sword, he trusts the prevailing philistine’s weapons, since he had decided to live amongst them, instead of trusting the faith that had victory over them, influenced by the rejection and persecution  from the king of Judah, the one he’s running away from to avoid killing him and who wants to kill him out of envy. Is it not notorious how this man goes back to trusting his abilities or the world’s, even when he has experienced victories through the Lord’s hand?

In the contents of this Bible Study we will read about David’s history before he became king of Israel, the consequences of using Goliath’s sword and other teachings which the Lord has prepared for us in His Word about the meaning of the sword and how we must take into account in our lives the most powerful sword of all: the faith in Christ, the Word and Verb of God.

KEY BIBLE TEXTS AND COMMENTARY, 1 SAMUEL CHAPTERS 17, 21 AND 22.

1SAMUEL 17

…So David prevailed over the Philistine with a sling and a stone, and struck the Philistine and killed him. But there was no sword in the hand of David. ⁵¹ Therefore David ran and stood over the Philistine, took his sword and drew it out of its sheath and killed him, and cut off his head with it. And when the Philistines saw that their champion was dead, they fled. ⁵² Now the men of Israel and Judah arose and shouted, and pursued the Philistines as far as the entrance of the valley and to the gates of Ekron. And the wounded of the Philistines fell along the road to Shaaraim, even as far as Gath and Ekron. ⁵³ Then the children of Israel returned from chasing the Philistines, and they plundered their tents. ⁵⁴ And David took the head of the Philistine and brought it to Jerusalem, but he put his armor in his tent.

The first Text of this study shows us that the victory over Goliath comes with a sling and a stone, without a sword in the hand, if we have faith, we can have victory over any circumstantial giant in our lives. Once we win the battle, we can also see how David takes Goliath’s armour as war trophies and that at some stage he would be fond of them and use them, as we can see with Goliath’s sword.

1SAMUEL 21

Now David came to Nob, to Ahimelech the priest. And Ahimelech was afraid when he met David, and said to him, “Why are you alone, and no one is with you?” ² So David said to Ahimelech the priest, “The king has ordered me on some business, and said to me, ‘Do not let anyone know anything about the business on which I send you, or what I have commanded you.’ And I have directed my young men to such and such a place. ³ Now therefore, what have you on hand? Give me five loaves of bread in my hand, or whatever can be found.” ⁴ And the priest answered David and said, “There is no common bread on hand; but there is holy bread, if the young men have at least kept themselves from women.” ⁵ Then David answered the priest, and said to him, “Truly, women have been kept from us about three days since I came out. And the vessels of the young men are holy, and the bread is in effect common, even though it was consecrated in the vessel this day.” ⁶ So the priest gave him holy bread; for there was no bread there but the showbread which had been taken from before the Lord, in order to put hot bread in its place on the day when it was taken away.

David lies to Ahimelec the priest to cover up his situation because he was running away from Saul to avoid having to face him, his king, and having to kill him. This is the noble spirit of a king, David, who in spite of having been appointed by the Lord and king of his people; he waits for the Lord to place him in the throne, and he does not do it himself, with his own sword. The priest gives the holy bread to be eaten as food, because the priest has no other bread; our priest has no other bread but of the Spirit, our Lord Jesus Christ is the bread from heaven, the Father’s manna, the Holy Bread, which we thank the Lord for.

We can see that David asks for five loaves. These are spiritual loaves of bread, as we have already seen, but David had victory taking five stones, even though he only used one – the first one. The priest’s five loaves of bread feed the faith for the five stones which he has to fight with, leaving the faith on the smooth stone. Bread from the Lord to increase the faith to submit his body and his flesh to God; Bread from the Lord to increase the faith to submit his soul in his feelings before God; Bread from the Lord to submit his mind, his thoughts, his strategies, before God; and Bread from the Lord to submit the wishes of his heart before God; so that he feeds his Spirit with This Bread, with the Lord’s Spirit, who teaches us to use the Sword of the Spirit properly, the faith in Him and His Word.

⁷ Now a certain man of the servants of Saul was there that day, detained before the Lord. And his name was Doeg, an Edomite, the chief of the herdsmen who belonged to Saul. ⁸ And David said to Ahimelech, “Is there not here on hand a spear or a sword? For I have brought neither my sword nor my weapons with me, because the king’s business required haste.” ⁹ So the priest said, “The sword of Goliath the Philistine, whom you killed in the Valley of Elah, there it is, wrapped in a cloth behind the ephod. If you will take that, take it. For there is no other except that one here.” And David said, “There is none like it; give it to me.”

On his escape, David, wanting to avoid killing his king, who is also anointed by the Lord even though he tries to kill him, comes to a point when he has no weapons to fight for his survival, and therefore when he comes to see the priest he also asks him for help in this respect, and asks him for a sword in case he has any. The priest had kept Goliath’s sword as war trophy, the only item that David did not have from the rest of the weapons that he kept in his tent. This war trophy is more valuable than any other trophy, since it proves that David won the philistines. But the Lord has placed an enemy in the scene who has heard about why he did not reveal the truth – Doeg – who will tell Saul about the whole story.

¹⁰ Then David arose and fled that day from before Saul, and went to Achish the king of Gath. ¹¹ And the servants of Achish said to him, “Is this not David the king of the land? Did they not sing of him to one another in dances, saying: ‘Saul has slain his thousands, and David his ten thousands’?” ¹² Now David took these words to heart, and was very much afraid of Achish the king of Gath. ¹³ So he changed his behavior before them, pretended madness in their hands, scratched on the doors of the gate, and let his saliva fall down on his beard. ¹⁴ Then Achish said to his servants, “Look, you see the man is insane. Why have you brought him to me? ¹⁵ Have I need of madmen, that you have brought this fellow to play the madman in my presence? Shall this fellow come into my house?” 1Samuel 21

How can it be that David, who had victory over the most powerful philistine, is now afraid of the king? The answer is that he has trusted his enemy, seduced by his weapons: the war trophies. These weapons were not necessary, neither was the sword, the reputation of the victory granted by the God of David over Goliath was enough. In the world, we do not need to use the world’s weapons to have victory, even if they are recognized by men as powerful weapons, the most powerful ones; instead, we must always turn to use the Sword of the Spirit, the sling and the stone, the faith. We shall pray and the Lord shall reveal the victories, but let’s be patient and pray continually, with every supplication in the Holy Spirit, and He, Himself, will win.

1SAMUEL 22

 ¹ David therefore departed from there and escaped to the cave of Adullam. So when his brothers and all his father’s house heard it, they went down there to him. ² And everyone who was in distress, everyone who was in debt, and everyone who was discontented gathered to him. So he became captain over them. And there were about four hundred men with him.
³ Then David went from there to Mizpah of Moab; and he said to the king of Moab, “Please let my father and mother come here with you, till I know what God will do for me.” ⁴ So he brought them before the king of Moab, and they dwelt with him all the time that David was in the stronghold. ⁵ Now the prophet Gad said to David, “Do not stay in the stronghold; depart, and go to the land of Judah.” So David departed and went into the forest of Hereth.

David is a figure of Jesus Christ. His brothers and his father’s house came to Him when they realized that He was the Messiah, even though they did not believe in Him at the beginning. To Christ came all those who were in distress, everyone who was in debt, and everyone who was discontented gathered to him and He became captain over all of us, who are a great army in the world. While he was fulfilling His ministry, just like David left his parents with the king of Moab, Jesus left his parents in Nazareth, in Galilee of the gentiles, until the Spirit confirmed Him the start of His Ministry and sent Jesus to Judah, to Jerusalem and before He was crucified He went up to pray to Gethsemane where He drank the cup of sin of humanity, whilst David hides in the forest of Hereth to avoid fighting against the king of his people, waiting for the Lord to take him down from the throne. The text goes on to explain the consequences of the battle between David and Saul, whose result is in verse 16.

¹⁶ And the king said, “You shall surely die, Ahimelech, you and all your father’s house!” ¹⁷ Then the king said to the guards who stood about him, “Turn and kill the priests of the Lord, because their hand also is with David, and because they knew when he fled and did not tell it to me.” But the servants of the king would not lift their hands to strike the priests of the Lord. ¹⁸ And the king said to Doeg, “You turn and kill the priests!” So Doeg the Edomite turned and struck the priests, and killed on that day eighty-five men who wore a linen ephod. ¹⁹ Also Nob, the city of the priests, he struck with the edge of the sword, both men and women, children and nursing infants, oxen and donkeys and sheep—with the edge of the sword.

The consequence of speaking in front of Doeg, like Christ did in front of Judas, is that the enemy goes against the people of the Lord to death, of as many as he can destroy in his path. A horrible expectancy of judgment for the evil ones is awaiting them in the lake of fire and brimstone, which is the second death, unextinguishable forever and ever.

²⁰ Now one of the sons of Ahimelech the son of Ahitub, named Abiathar, escaped and fled after David. ²¹ And Abiathar told David that Saul had killed the Lord’s priests. ²² So David said to Abiathar, “I knew that day, when Doeg the Edomite was there, that he would surely tell Saul. I have caused the death of all the persons of your father’s house. ²³ Stay with me; do not fear. For he who seeks my life seeks your life, but with me you shall be safe.”

Let us learn the lesson. He knew, the same way many times we also do things even though we know. When we open our heart, we must do it in front of those who are trustworthy, because there are some amongst us – I refer in the Church – who are on Judas Iscariot’s side, enemies, like Doeg the Edomite, who will reveal our lives to our enemies and who will also bring destruction to other beloved brothers.

The same subject, this sword of treachery, and imprudence, are two mentalities which we must avoid because they bring damnation and curse. In work, in our family, amongst our friends, in marriage, with our children…be careful, you have to know who you are speaking with when you open your heart, because the enemy lies in wait. You must always first open your heart to the Lord privately and then put order in your life, sharing specific things with specific people. However, the Lord will do incredible things in our lives and will make adverse situations turn into blessings, even when we have made mistakes, if our heart is humble before Him. Whoever is without sin, let him be the first to throw a stone.

DIFFERENT TYPES OF SWORD AND THEIR MEANING

As we all know, there are countless types of swords with different designs which have evolved throughout the centuries. There are famous swords that have been used by kings, like the sword of David or Solomon, or the legendary Excalibur. But the most important of them all is the Word of God. The former were used to win battles and wars, but with the Gospel we can win souls for eternity.

Just like those kings in ancient history, in modern history we have seen, and also see nowadays, leaders trusting other swords such as intelligence, the army, nuclear weapons, space control, telecommunications…all of them are swords of power. Other swords that destroy humanity and that many men of different political ideology use are propaganda, national and international politics, famine, creation of conflicts and wars, neglecting and casting into oblivion certain areas of the world vastly populated…all of them are swords of indifference and hate.

Due to the wrong use of these worldly swords and the instinct and hunger for power and the love of money that is the root of all evil, we see how we live in a society that has come to self-destruction, as it is prophesized in the Bible. In the third and fourth worlds people are neglected, they are confronted making them members of different sects and tribes or religions to spread hatred and death, which results in brutal slaughters in Africa, India, etc. They die from famine, pests and lack of water, whilst the Western world makes profit in the markets, financial markets as well as those for weapons, persons, organs and others. Governments have been selling weapons to totalitarian and terrorist regimes for decades, depending on which side they are on, and thus keeping an industry alive that provides multi-million dollar profits. People don’t matter, only the profit that power provides, to waste fortunes in immoral lives. The search for resources such as crude oil, in exchange for destroying entire countries, or searching for gas or any other source of technology, including nuclear power without control, with the danger entailed in leaving it in the hands of fanatics: we will see the result shortly and there will be no solution, it will be too late; but for us, Christians, to die is gain.

In the second and first worlds, multinational corporations use the sword of commerce to perfection, making citizens feel the need to have what is advertised, to covet having the very latest in all types of products, many of them unnecessary, providing ways of finance and credit cards without knowing their repayment capacity. We are living the result of these actions worldwide, in an unprecedented crisis, a sword that has bent. Medical industry makes medicines to earn money selling remedies for doubtful illnesses created through marketing. Governments have promoted the use of anti-natural sexuality for the sake of so-called freedom, in order to win votes; free abortion as contraceptive method; the morning-after pill, euthanasia – or what is known as the “culture of death” to save Public Health costs which are then spent in who knows what new invention or useless department to provide income to the prime minister’s friends. I am sure that we could add as many enemy swords as personal cases. This is all condemned in the Bible and God judges and will judge everyday millions of individuals who receive the Lord’s judgments, and they will also be held accountable for their actions in the tribunal of Christ. The antichrist and apostasy have been installed in the world. The great sword of Goliath, which threatens us constantly: the antichrist society. But we have the smooth stone to throw with the sling which turns in the air – when it is thrown with faith – in the most powerful Sword, the faith of the King of kings, who tells us: … I have overcome the world…John 16:33.

Needless to say that we see other swords daily and we can appreciate the virtuous use of them in any common individual in any society at any development level and they are intrinsical to the fall of man since Cain and Abel, such as revenge, hate, wrath, ill-treatment, lack of respect, in schools, shops, in books, in the news, in films, in the radio, we see and hear all these arguments made up to impact people’s minds, they have different targets in their mind which do not include evangelization or loving he neighbour, but their selfish projects of success or evil.

An argument in a couple, a dirty trick by a driver next to you, the one who jumps the queue, the delay in checking-in at the airport, poor service in a restaurant, medical negligence, or of the public administration or the politicians in the use of tax money, they are all situations where we lose our temper and we turn to use one of those swords. How many times do you leave the sword of the flesh aside to fight with the one of the Lord, to make sacrifice of lips that confess His name, as the Bible says, or just to defend a good cause such as poverty, or the need of a friend or brother in the faith, even knowing that often it will bring persecution? If the Gospel brings us persecution, it is for the Lord’s glory and for our neighbour’s salvation, on top of our joy, when we see new disciples.

In our own spiritual growth we will find barriers that are difficult to overcome, that we cannot reach with our own strength, discernment, eldership, etc. but which require us to go back to prayer and faith, because: … the righteous will live by faith…Galatians 3:11. If we do not understand some parts of the Bible, if we cannot stand a brother, if we do not value our pastor because we consider him to be imperfect, if we do not have brotherly kindness, if we do not discern the ministries of the Church or our own, if we do not give fruits of the Spirit, let us not fall into using our sword of the mind, of the heart, flesh, soul; instead, let us turn again and as always to the Sword of the Spirit, which teaches us that our victory is in the smooth stone of humbleness and God’s love, in patience and prayer, and the Lord will give us victory in His time. 

Let us make justice, love mercy and talk about Jesus Christ to the world, there is no bigger privilege. If we have to win any goliath, any difficult situation in life that requires faith, is it not better to do it with the sling and a stone than with sword and spear?

WITH SLING AND STONE VERSUS SWORD AND SPEAR

…So David prevailed over the Philistine with a sling and a stone, and struck the Philistine and killed him. But there was no sword in the hand of David. 1 Samuel 17:50

Have you ever stopped to think – I am sure you have – in our Lord Jesus Christ being with the Father in Heaven and watching the result of what man would come to be a having to face death on the Cross coming to this dimension of the flesh? We also have Noah, building the ark on a dry land, in the middle of an adverse generation, or Abraham facing God’s instruction to sacrifice his beloved son Isaac, or Moses taking the people out facing Pharaoh’s opposition, or queen Esther delivering her people in a world where women had no right to speak, Peter facing the sheet accepting the gentiles, or Paul when he saw the vision against his mind, enemy of the church, converting to the Lord and evangelizing the world, or John when he faced prison in the island of Patmos, where he wrote the biggest revelations. All these opponents were also giants who had to be overcome.

But there is more in history. Luther facing Rome, the Catholic Kings facing the project of the discovery of America, Martin Luther King Jr. facing slavery, the western world facing the two world wars, Israel facing the promise the one day they would return to their land, 1948, Teresa of Calcutta confronting faith when she saw her impotence to stop the death of children and their families, any of us when we face any adversity where we have to fight with the sling and not with our sword, which is normal, but with the spiritual sword of the faith in His Word in Spirit.

Any of us facing a court case, an unfair situation in society, against poverty, in a family problem, facing financial needs, in church, facing false doctrines that take root in the congregation, facing false rumours, a death threat, sickness, prison or an accident. In each and every one of these situations our nature resorts automatically to our way of thinking, the mind at its peak, this is when we have to stop to pray, because we will not win, with our sword nor with four of the five stones that David took, but with the smooth stone of faith in the Gospel of Jesus Christ, in the way He used to deal with adversity and grant victories, and this is how we will use the Sword of the Spirit, the Word of God. Faith. Let us practice with the sling to become experts in their use. We must study the Bible and preach the Gospel, pray. Help the brothers and praise the Lord amongst His people, for His glory, the angel of the Lord encamps around those who fear him, and he delivers them. Psalm 34:7.

BIBLE TEXTS ABOUT THE SWORD AND THEIR COMMENTARY

Genesis 3:24

So He drove out the man; and He placed cherubim at the east of the garden of Eden, and a flaming sword which turned every way, to guard the way to the tree of life.

As I have written in the ©Spiritual Dictionary of the Bible in our website: Word of God, sharp and double edged, with which we win the lives of our neighbours in the battle, by preaching the Gospel, but the other edge is death, because if one does not receive Christ in the preaching, it says that God's Law is the ministry of condemnation and death. Once again we must remember the word “understanding”, because this meaning is of the understanding of the Holy Spirit. This edge of this sword in the hands of the guardians of the Lord is lethal if one reaches out to it with a merely intellectual approach, but also in physical terms. Those who want to understand it, or actually dominate it through human understanding, receive “eyes so that they could not see and ears so that they could not hear”. Romans 11:8, and those who do not consider it to be the Word of God and want to make fun of it and despise it, receive the punishment of the justice of the Lord. Our own sword, like Goliath’s, is not powerful before the Lord. The man of God wins with sling and stone – the stone of faith – the sword of the man’s mind and heart. Let us come close to the Sword of the Spirit in humbleness and clean heart and let us receive the understanding of the Spirit of the Lord.

This sword is a guard that kills those who want to understand it through the human understanding and not through God's. And He placed cherubim with a flaming sword which turned every way to guard the way to the tree of Life, in other words, to avoid the return to paradise, which means to the presence of God. If one lives in repentance and receives Christ, Who is the door, we are given back the access to the Tree of Life, and this sword, now does not cut us, but is placed in our hands, after being instructed in its use for mercy, as in spiritual fencing, and becomes our ally.

…He placed cherubim at the east of the garden of Eden, and a flaming sword which turned every way, to guard the way to the tree of life…, that is to prevent the entrance again to paradise, to the presence of the Lord. If we live in repentance and accept Christ, who is the door, we have access again to the Tree of Life, and this sword does not hurt us, but it is placed in our hands, after having been taught how to use it, for mercy, as spiritual fencing becoming our ally and defender.

DEUTERONOMY 33:29  

Happy are you, O Israel! Who is like you, a people saved by the Lord, the shield of your help and the sword of your majesty! Your enemies shall submit to you, and you shall tread down their high places.

The blessing of Moses to Israel who sees how his people are exalted by the Lord as the sword of His triumph, as we do in the blessings of life where the Lord places us as tools of His Works, and the Gospel.

JosHUA 5:13

And it came to pass, when Joshua was by Jericho, that he lifted his eyes and looked, and behold, a Man stood opposite him with His sword drawn in His hand. And Joshua went to Him and said to Him, “Are You for us or for our  adversaries?” ¹⁴ So He said, “No, but as Commander of the army of the Lord I have now come.” And Joshua fell on his face to the earth and worshiped, and said to Him, “What does my Lord say to His servant?” ¹⁵ Then the Commander of the Lord’s army said to Joshua, “Take your sandal off your foot, for the place where you stand is holy.” And Joshua did so.

The Lord’s message to Joshua before he entered the Promised Land is the same He gave to Moses before giving Him the Ten Commandments. Once Joshua listens to the Lord’s message to accomplish it, the Lord shows him the strategy to conquer Jericho, which we can read in this Text, where once again it is the hand of the Lord which conquers and not man’s, when he obeys God and gives Him the glory and praise. Similarly we can pray to God in our lives for our situations and conquer of the problems we encounter, so that He conquers them, and the way to win souls for Him following His strategy, the Gospel, the glory and praise to His name: Jesus Christ.

PSalm 44:3

For they did not gain possession of the land by their own sword, nor did their own arm save them; but it was Your right hand, Your arm, and the light of Your countenance, because You favored them. ⁴ You are my King, O God; command victories for Jacob.

If we see this passage literally, we will understand that the hand of the Lord is with us in the battle of life, before and also now in the victories of war against the enemies, in the accomplishment of our goals, in our jobs to provide our families, etc; but if we see it spiritually, we will see the victory in our neighbour’ souls, not with our swords or worldly arguments, and of what is falsely called knowledge, or philosophy, but with the Gospel of Jesus Christ, in the power of His right hand and with the Light of the world.

JeremIAH 2:29

“Why will you plead with me? You all have transgressed against me,” says the Lord. ³⁰ “In vain I have chastened your children; they received no correction. Your sword has devoured your prophets like a destroying lion.

Again, a warning from the prophet of the Lord to the man who does not receive the Word of the Lord and, instead, insists in losing his way by following his own heart full of darkness. Man rejects all those He sends, blinded by his own sword, which he considers to be better guide in life that obedience to God. We already know very well the consequences of living a life far away from the Lord, and not only the consequences in our own individual lives, but also in society and in the whole world. When we deal with this type of people, the Lord instructs us to shake the dust off our feet, because judgment will fall on that land, in their lives. Maybe there is still time for them to repent, like in Nineveh. It is up to them, not us, because in the mercy of the love of God we suffer persecution for taking the message of Salvation – the Gospel - to them, because we are compelled to preach by the Holy Spirit. 1Corinthians 9:16.

Imagine if we were given the cure for cancer, a miracle pill that cures it, and we offered it to those who were ill and they rejected it. Likewise, the man who is blind does not receive the Gospel of Salvation that heals him for this life and for eternal life.

But there is another point of view to expose about the remedy for illness, I refer to those who sell false spiritual remedies, which we can compare with false religions and philosophies, and the false prophets who are not sent by the Lord, or the leaders of some churches and Christian groups who are contaminated by their own leaven, who offer a small dose of good medicine mixed together with lethal poison for the soul and spirit. You will know them by their fruits.

EZEKIEL 21

And the word of the Lord came to me, saying, ² “Son of man, set your face toward Jerusalem, preach against the holy places, and prophesy against the land of Israel; ³ and say to the land of Israel, ‘Thus says the Lord: “Behold, I am against you, and I will draw My sword out of its sheath and cut off both righteous and wicked from you. ⁴ Because I will cut off both righteous and wicked from you, therefore My sword shall go out of its sheath against all flesh from south to north, ⁵ that all flesh may know that I, the Lord, have drawn My sword out of its sheath; it shall not return anymore.”’

The Sword of Yahweh of Hosts in its edge of the Law is death. This text is specific. But the most relevant is that it says He will cut off both righteous and wicked. This means that man in his own righteousness, even if he fears the Lord and tries to fulfill the 613 commandments of the Torah, he cannot make it. Adam and Eve, according to what the Lord says in Genesis 3:22, are like one of them knowing good and evil, but nevertheless the Lord throws man out of paradise even if he knows good.

This is why man needs God to save him, and recognize his incapacity to save himself by his own efforts. Salvation is not only available in the New Testament, where we can find it in the faith in Jesus Christ and His Blood that cleanses us from our sins; also in the Old Testament, those who feared the Lord, knew that even if they continued to live fulfilling the Law, they needed the Lord’s mercy, who would provide Salvation for them, which they would see when they saw the Messiah coming. Out of them, the Jews, when the Lord gives them faith in His Son, as it is prophesized…“And I will pour on the house of David and on the inhabitants of Jerusalem the Spirit of grace and supplication; then they will look on Me whom they pierced. Yes, they will mourn for Him as one mourns for his only son, and grieve for Him as one grieves for a firstborn”…Zechariah 12:10.

Joel 3

 “For behold, in those days and at that time, when I bring back the captives of Judah and Jerusalem, ² I will also gather all nations, and bring them down to the Valley of Jehoshaphat; and I will enter into judgment with them there on account of My people, My heritage Israel, whom they have scattered among the nations; they have also divided up My land. …⁶Also the people of Judah and the people of Jerusalem you have sold to the Greeks, that you may remove them far from their borders. ⁷ “ Behold, I will raise them out of the place to which you have sold them, and will return your retaliation upon your own head. ⁸ I will sell your sons and your daughters into the hand of the people of Judah, and they will sell them to the Sabeans, to a people far off; for the Lord has spoken.” ⁹ Proclaim this among the nations: “Prepare for war! Wake up the mighty men, let all the men of war draw near, let them come up. ¹⁰ Beat your plowshares into swords and your pruning hooks into spears; Let the weak say, ‘I am strong.’”… ¹⁴ Multitudes, multitudes in the valley of decision!  For the day of the Lord is near in the valley of decision. ¹⁵ The sun and moon will grow dark, and the stars will diminish their brightness.

A prophecy which is still pending fulfillment, it will happen shortly, according to the events that are already happening. All the nations will unite against Israel, because they are going to split their land in two states. On the valley of decision, people will decide which side they are on, whether the world’s or the Lord’s. Beat swords out of the Word of God announcing judgment after having announced the Gospel. The sun and the moon will be darkened, so says Matthew 24 and Revelation 6.

Now it shall come to pass in the latter days that the mountain of the Lord’s house shall be established on the top of the mountains, and shall be exalted above the hills; and peoples shall flow to it. ² Many nations shall come and say, “ Come, and let us go up to the mountain of the Lord, to the house of the God of Jacob; He will teach us His ways, and we shall walk in His paths.” for out of Zion the law shall go forth, and the word of the Lord from Jerusalem. ³ He shall judge between many peoples, and rebuke strong nations afar off; they shall beat their swords into plowshares, and their spears into pruning hooks; nation shall not lift up sword against nation, neither shall they learn war anymore. ⁴ But everyone shall sit under his vine and under his fig tree, and no one shall make them afraid; for the mouth of the Lord of hosts has spoken. ⁵ For all people walk each in the name of his god, but we will walk in the name of the Lord our God forever and ever.

The precious teaching of the Spirit of the Lord shows us that when Jesus Christ comes to a man, the Kingdom of the Lord comes and the same thing happens inside us as when the universal kingdom of Yahweh comes, God’s kingdom; He shall beat their swords into plowshares, to plow the promised land, which apart from the physical one is also the soul of a brother. And their spears into pruning hooks to prune all those who are loaded with fruits to gather the people of the Lord for the marriage of the Lamb, on the air, when the Lord comes in the clouds of the sky.

ZECHARIAH 11:15

And the Lord said to me, “Next, take for yourself the implements of a foolish shepherd. ¹⁶ For indeed I will raise up a shepherd in the land who will not care for those who are cut off, nor seek the young, nor heal those that are broken, nor feed those that still stand. But he will eat the flesh of the fat and tear their hooves in pieces. ¹⁷ “Woe to the worthless shepherd, who leaves the flock! A sword shall be against his arm and against his right eye; His arm shall completely wither, and his right eye shall be totally blinded.”

The sword of the Lord, in its edge of justice, rises against those shepherds who leave the flock unattended. Those shepherds – pastors – of the congregations who only worry about the sheep that are faithful to them and are additionally good Christians, the fat ones, to which they break their hooves so that they don’t run away to other congregations, not giving them spiritual freedom or knowledge, who are not interested in visiting the lost ones, like the prodigal son who wandered away from the Way of the Lord. Those pastors who do not look for the small one, the one that has just known the Way and needs to grow and therefore acts like a child in the faith, and still has a long way to go and therefore the pastor rejects it because it is not perfect. Those pastors who do not bound up the broken, nor the one that has stepped into the hole of the enemy, because she has sinned and the pastor rejects it, instead of inviting her to repentance and the forgiveness of the Lord who is waiting with open arms. And those who do not feed the one that still stands, who do not lay down their lives for their friends, who do not fulfill the law of Christ of Galatians 6:2, not beating one another’s burdens; how can they not be wounded by the sword in the power of God who had given it to them – ministry and anointment are taken away from them, and how will the Lord not make their right eye blind to revelation and visions from the Lord for the ministry. The Lord’s sword also attacks, starting with the Church of the Lord. When we do not obey His word. Therefore, all of you brothers who are pastors and Church leaders, elders and deacons of all Christian denominations: first is the love of God, and after comes your ministry. Your position and your work come last; your ministry is only a tool, not an end, and it cannot be compared to the faith and love of God.

MatTHEW 10:34

Do not think that I came to bring peace on earth. I did not come to bring peace but a sword.

This is how the Lord starts talking about the concept of the sword, teaching us that His word immediately brings fight in this world, because we still don`t live in His Kingdom. The moment we receive Him as Saviour and Lord, we take His Sword of the Spirit, His Word, and we find ourselves living in a word that uses other swords, fight is sure to happen, but so is victory too. It is necessary to be properly trained for its use, in the mercy and the love of the Lord, so that we do not go round condemning the world but, on the contrary, announcing for our neighbours the three things that the Holy Spirit did when it came to the world in Pentecost:… He will convict the world of sin, and of righteousness, and of judgment: of sin, because they do not believe in Me; of righteousness, because I go to My Father and you see Me no more; of judgment, because the ruler of this world is judged. John 16:8-11. This is the sword which we, Christians, use to speak to the world, which does not bring peace to those who reject the Gospel, because they are condemned by their consciences that accuse them from the Lord.

MatTHEW 26:51

⁵¹ And suddenly, one of those who were with Jesus stretched out his hand and drew his sword, struck the servant of the high priest, and cut off his ear. ⁵² But Jesus said to him, “Put your sword in its place, for all who take the sword will perish by the sword. ⁵³ Or do you think that I cannot now pray to My Father, and He will provide Me with more than twelve legions of angels? ⁵⁴ How then could the Scriptures be fulfilled, that it must happen thus?”

Here we are even in spiritual battles, the discernment of the targets we are pursuing must be submitted to the will of the Lord’s plan and not to our justice, which although it may seem correct, there are many times when it is wrong. Therefore we must pray to the Lord, talk with the Holy Spirit to be always alert for His guidance. If we do not obey the Lord and we become obsessed with doing our own justice, the methods and powers we use will turn against us: …all who take the sword will perish by the sword… 

Luke 22

³⁵ And He said to them, “When I sent you without money bag, knapsack, and sandals, did you lack anything?” So they said, “Nothing.” ³⁶ Then He said to them, “But now, he who has a money bag, let him take it, and likewise a knapsack; and he who has no sword, let him sell his garment and buy one. ³⁷ For I say to you that this which is written must still be accomplished in Me: And He was numbered with the transgressors.’ For the things concerning Me have an end.” ³⁸ So they said, “Lord, look, here are two swords.” And He said to them, “It is enough.”

Why does the Lord say “it is enough”, if they have looked for swords? Because they have a wrong concept of the sword, because this is the sword of the mind, not the Lord’s. What the Lord refers to is that he who has a garment, meaning the cover of his own mind which he trusts, which gives confidence to him who believes to be righteous in his own justice – he should sell it, meaning that he should reject it and buy the sword of the Lord instead; he should study the Bible, become an expert in the Scriptures, pray, learn to fight the battles of the Spirit, grow in the faith and that in the love of the Lord he treats his neighbour with the target of the Lord’s plan: the salvation of souls and that they remain in holiness until the end. Spiritual growth like the one Peter shows us as an elder when we receive the faith and we start to climb the steps of the ladder of spiritual growth. The first step, and the one that feeds the rest, is virtue the will to serve God in everything. Therefore we must sell the garment of our mind and buy from the Lord His Word in Spirit, the Gospel, for the Great Commission, and He will cover us with His spiritual cover from High Above.

EPHESIANS 6:17

¹⁷ And take the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God;

This is the key verse of the whole teaching on the Sword of the Lord.

HebreWs 4:12

¹² For the word of God is living and powerful, and sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing even to the division of soul and spirit, and of joints and marrow, and is a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart. ¹³ And there is no creature hidden from His sight, but all things are naked and open to the eyes of Him to whom we must give account.

If the previous one is the key verse on the Sword of the Lord, this one is the key Text about its function inside us.

Do you remember the message of that righteous and devout man, Simeon, who was waiting for the consolation of Israel, and the Holy Spirit was upon him. It had been revealed to him by the Holy Spirit that he would not die before he had seen the Lord's Christ? Simeon said to Mary, when she and Joseph took the child Jesus to the Temple, as the Law of Moses required: … And a sword will pierce your own soul too. Luke 2:35. Mary, as daughter of Zion,  

Man can be delivered from the sword of the Lord’s judgment through faith in His Son Jesus Christ, who is the Verb, the Word, the Sword of the Spirit, but we cannot deliver our beloved ones, they need to receive the faith in the Lord themselves. Ezekiel 14:17. Let this be a warning for all of us who are fathers or mothers, because our children must receive the Lord themselves, through faith. But we have a promise from the Lord in the words of Paul and Silas to the jailer: …Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and you will be saved, you and your household. Then they spoke the word of the Lord to him and to all who were in his house. And he took them the same hour of the night and washed their stripes. And immediately he and all his family were baptized. Acts 16:29-33. This is the sign of whoever has received the faith, the work of justice. When he believed, he washed their wounds. When they saw the response of his heart, they baptized him with all his family that night, to seal his compromise with the Lord.

Following are two prophetic Texts that do not require any comment: 

REVELATION 2:12

¹² “And to the angel of the church in Pergamos write, ‘These things says He who has the sharp two-edged sword:… … ¹⁶ Repent, or else I will come to you quickly and will fight against them with the sword of My mouth. ¹⁷ “He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches.

REVELATION 19:15

¹⁵ Now out of His mouth goes a sharp sword, that with it He should strike the nations. And He Himself will rule them with a rod of iron. He Himself treads the winepress of the fierceness and wrath of Almighty God. ¹⁶ And He has on His robe and on His thigh a name written: KING OF KINGS AND LORD OF LORDS… …²¹ And the rest were killed with the sword which proceeded from the mouth of Him who sat on the horse. And all the birds were filled with their flesh.

CONCLUSION

…And the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God…Ephesians 6:17. He who is the Verb and the Word of God is Jesus Christ. The Son of God is the Sword of God. Christ is our Sword. When we preach about Him, we obtain victory on those who receive Him in His promised land: their souls, the New Jerusalem. The love of God is the source of faith. True faith feeds on the love of God. The fear of the Lord and the faith on Jesus Christ in a man’s heart. John 3:3.

Jesus said to Peter: “Simon, Simon! Indeed, Satan has asked for you, that he may sift you as wheat.  But I have prayed for you, that your faith should not fail…” Luke 22:31. We can see that faith is the stone and that on the stone or rock which is Jesus Christ, He gives us victory, and thus the Lord emphasizes it when He exhorts us to have faith as a mustard seed…Matthew 17:20. Let’s ask like the apostles do: …Lord increase our faith…Luke 17:5 so that “When the Son of Man comes” it may not be true what the Lord goes on to say: “Will He really find faith on the earth?” Luke 18:8

Therefore, brethren, let us trust our Lord, as He says to us: …Not by might nor by power, but by My Spirit, says the Lord of hosts. Zechariah 4:6.

May the Lord pour His Spirit over us so that we may guard our most valuable treasure, the gift that the Lord has given us: faith in Him. Lord, increase our faith and your love! Praised be Your Name YHWH. Amen.