Break-through

Guerilla warfare depends on evasion, stealth and surprise, and David was a master at the game. He had honed his skills through 20 years on the run from King Saul, but now that Saul was dead, David faced an even more formidable foe. The combined Philistine confederacy was moving in for the kill. 2 Samuel 5:17-25.

When David learned this he reverted to guerilla tactics instead of direct assault. He retreated to the caves near the Dead Sea and prayed for God’s counsel. With divine direction he attacked and routed the Philistines decisively.


The victory was so dramatic that David renamed the battle-field, Baal-Perazim, which means ‘The Lord who Bursts Through’. ‘The LORD did it!’ David exclaimed. ‘He burst through my enemies like a raging flood!’ v.20 NLT

David’s imagery comes from the torrential waters of the winter rains that rip through the creek-beds of the Judean badlands, bursting their banks and sweeping away trees, flocks, homes, anything in their path. That was the threat the enemy had presented, but God had out-stormed them. Yahweh was the ultimate flash-flood.

The Philistines re-grouped and came back for another assault. Once again, David prayed for guidance and again ‘he struck down the Philistines all the way from Gibeon to Gezer’ (23-25). This defeat broke the back of the Philistine forces. It spelled the beginning of the end of their occupation of Israel and secured David’s position as king over Israel’s fragmented tribal federation.

Some time later, the warrior poet David wrote a song commemorating God’s victory -
If the LORD had not been on our side-- let Israel say--
if the LORD had not been on our side when men attacked us,
when their anger flared against us, they would have swallowed us alive;
the flood would have engulfed us, the torrent would have swept over us,
the raging waters would have swept us away. Psalm 124:1-4

David likens his foes to the mythological sea-monster Chaos, threatening to engulf God’s people and swallow them up alive or sweep them into oblivion. He doesn’t under-estimate the spiritual hostility assailed against him or the magnitude of Yahweh’s victory.

Despite his military savvy, David never bragged about his exploits, never took personal credit for his victories. He saw God’s hand and power behind it all. No wonder the nation rallied around David, and no wonder God used him so effectively. And no wonder his spiritual influence continues through history to our own day.