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In Christ, Mark
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The scriptures. May God bless the reading of His holy word.
Saul and his son Jonathan and the men with them were staying in Gibeah in Benjamin, while the Philistines camped at Micmash. Raiding parties went out from the Philistine camp in three detachments. One turned toward Ophrah in the vicinity of Shual, another toward Beth Horon, and the third toward the borderland overlooking the Valley of Zeboim facing the desert.
Not a blacksmith could be found in the whole land of Israel, because the Philistines had said, "Otherwise the Hebrews will make swords or spears!" So all Israel went down to the Philistines to have their plowshares, mattocks, axes, and sickles sharpened. The price was two thirds of a shekel for sharpening plowshares and mattocks, and a third of a shekel for sharpening forks and axes and for repointing goads.
So on the day of the battle not a soldier with Saul and Jonathan had a sword or spear in his hand; only Saul and his son Jonathan had them.
Now a detachment of Philistines had gone out to the pass at Micmash. One day Jonathan, son of Saul, said to the young man bearing his armor, "Come, let's go over to the Philistine outpost on the other side." But he did not tell his father.
Saul was staying on the outskirts of Gibeah under a pomegranate tree in Migron. With him were about six hundred men, among whom was Ahijah, who was wearing an ephod. He was a son of Ichabod's brother Ahitub, son of Phinehas, the son of Eli, the Lord's priest in Shiloh. No one was aware that Jonathan had left.
On each side of the pass that Jonathan intended to cross to reach the Philistine outpost was a cliff; one was called Bozez, and the other Seneh. One cliff stood to the north toward Micmash, the other to the south toward Geba.
Jonathan said to his young armor-bearer, "Come, let's go over to the outpost of those uncircumcised fellows. Perhaps the Lord will act in our behalf. Nothing can hinder the Lord from saving, whether by many or by few."
"Do all that you have in mind," his armor-bearer said. "Go ahead; I am with you heart and soul."
Jonathan said, "Come, then; we will cross over toward the men and let them see us. If they say to us, 'Wait there until we come to you,' we will stay where we are and not go up to them. But if they say, 'Come up to us,' we will climb up, because that will be our sign that the Lord has given them into our hands."
So both of them showed themselves to the Philistine outpost. "Look!" said the Philistines. "The Hebrews are crawling out of the holes they were hiding in." The men of the outpost shouted to Jonathan and his armor-bearer, "Come up to us and we'll teach you a lesson."
So Jonathan said to his armor-bearer, "Climb up after me; the Lord has given them into the hand of Israel." Jonathan climbed up, using his hands and feet, with his armor-bearer right behind him.
The Philistines fell before Jonathan, and his armor-bearer followed and killed behind him. In that first attack, Jonathan and his armor-bearer killed some twenty men in an area of about half an acre.
1 Samuel 13:16-23, 14:1-14
This ends our reading from God's holy word. Thanks be to God.
As chapter 13 of 1st Samuel ends, we find the Israelites at a disadvantage because the Philistines had taken control of all blacksmithing services, charging exorbitant prices for “sharpening plowshares and mattocks…forks and axes and…repointing goads”. And so Israel, “on the day of the battle”, was left with “not a soldier…(having) a sword or spear in his hand”. Only Saul and his son Jonathan had a suitable weapon and as we see in the opening verses of chapter 14, Jonathan, Saul’s son, puts his weapon to use.
For we read where he (Jonathan) said to the young man bearing his armor:
“Come, let's go over to the Philistine outpost on the other side."
The armor bearer agreed to go but neither told anyone what they were doing or where they were going. This left the king Saul unaware as he stayed “on the outskirts of Gibeah under a pomegranate tree in Migron” with “six hundred men”.
Well, as Jonathan and his armor bearer traveled to the Philistine outpost, they came to a pass they needed to cross that had a cliff on each side, “one…(standing) to the north toward Micmash, the other to the south toward Geba”. At the pass, we find Jonathan make an important statement to his armor bearer saying:
“Come, let's go over to the outpost of those uncircumcised fellows. Perhaps the Lord will act in our behalf. Nothing can hinder the Lord from saving, whether by many or by few."
To which the armor bearer replied:
“Do all that you have in mind…Go ahead; I am with you heart and soul."
And with that, they prepared to cross over but not before Jonathan shared his strategy with his accomplice:
“Come, then; we will cross over toward the men and let them see us. If they say to us, 'Wait there until we come to you,' we will stay where we are and not go up to them. But if they say, 'Come up to us,' we will climb up, because that will be our sign that the Lord has given them into our hands."
And so the stage was set.
Jonathan and his armor bearer “showed themselves to the Philistine outpost” and got the attention of the soldiers there who issued the following challenge:
“Come up to us and we'll teach you a lesson."
The Philistines soon found out they had it wrong. For it was Jonathan and his armor bearer who would be teaching lessons on this day. The scriptures tell us that Jonathan responded to the Philistine request by telling his armor bearer to “climb up after me; the Lord has given them into the hand of Israel."
And that’s what happened.
For we read where Jonathan and his armor bearer climbed up and attacked as the “Philistines fell before” them both. The end result was devastating for the Philistines for in the attack “some twenty men in an area of about half an acre” were killed. Truly, God had handed the Philistines into the hands of the two Israelites.
So what’s our takeaway from all this today?
The answer comes within Jonathan’s words about the Lord in verse 6, as he says this:
“Nothing can hinder the Lord from saving, whether by many or by few."
Jonathan knew that he and the armor bearer would be outnumbered by the Philistines at the outpost and both could have faced certain death at the hands of a more superior opponent, and yet, they went forth boldly in faith and confidence because they knew they had something the Philistines didn’t. They had the God on their side…a Lord who can’t be hindered from saving when it’s His will to do so.
Indeed, we serve a Lord today who still can’t be hindered.
He can’t be hindered from providing.
He can’t be hindered from protecting.
He can’t be hindered from blessing.
He can’t be hindered from administering justice and discipline.
He can’t be hindered from loving.
And as we’re reminded in this passage, He can’t be hindered from saving.
The bottom line is that our God, the same God of ancient Israel, cannot be hindered from doing anything that he wants to do. He is unstoppable because He is God, absolutely sovereign and omnipotent…with no rival.
Jonathan believed that he could do anything as long as the Lord was with him because the Lord cannot be hindered from saving. And the Lord delivered, honoring his faith.
Later in the New Testament, the Apostle Paul also understood and knew the Lord he served, sharing that he could do all things through the strength of the Lord, the One who can empower believers so they might not be hindered by the difficulties of life (Philippians 4:13). Go back and read about Paul’s missionary ministry and you’ll see why he could write those words for he was delivered by the Lord time and time again as he labored for the cause of the Gospel.
Friends, let us never doubt or lose faith in the Lord’s ability to do anything in our lives as well, no matter the circumstances. For the scriptures assure us that nothing can hinder our Lord and this means that all things are possible in and through Him (Luke 1:37).
Thanks be to God for the hope and peace that comes within that truth.
Amen.
In Christ,
Mark
PS: Feel free to leave a comment and please share this with anyone you feel might be blessed by it. Send any prayer requests to TheChristianWalkPrayers@gmail.com.
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