Yesterday, we reminded ourselves that David wasn’t alone in his battles – he was surrounded by “Mighty Men” as described in a section that begins…

These are the names of the mighty men whom David had: Josheb-basshebeth a Tahchemonite; he was chief of the three. He wielded his spear against eight hundred whom he killed at one time. (2 Samuel 23.8, ESV)

The text goes on to give specific “what, how, results” descriptions of some of their exploits:

And next to him among the three mighty men was Eleazar the son of Dodo, son of Ahohi. He was with David when they defied the Philistines who were gathered there for battle, and the men of Israel withdrew. He rose and struck down the Philistines until his hand was weary, and his hand clung to the sword. And the LORD brought about a great victory that day… (2 Samuel 23.9, 10, ESV)

And next to him was Shammah, the son of Agee the Hararite. The Philistines gathered together at Lehi, where there was a plot of ground full of lentils, and the men fled from the Philistines. But he took his stand in the midst of the plot and defended it and struck down the Philistines, and the LORD worked a great victory. (2 Samuel 23.11, 12)

Those were “the three” top mighty men. Then follows a list of “the thirty” mighty men. Only a few specifics are given for them, among them this account of Benaiah:

Benaiah son of Jehoiada, a valiant fighter from Kabzeel, performed great exploits. He struck down Moab’s two mightiest warriors. He also went down into a pit on a snowy day and killed a lion. And he struck down a huge Egyptian. Although the Egyptian had a spear in his hand, Benaiah went against him with a club. He snatched the spear from the Egyptian’s hand and killed him with his own spear. (2 Samuel 23.20, 21, NIV, emphasis mine)

This was one tough dude! And he wasn’t tough enough to be among “the three” – just “the thirty.” But the one short sentence highlighted above inspired Mark Batterson to write: In a Pit with a Lion on a Snowy Day: How to Survive and Thrive When Opportunity Roars. I recommend it.

One thing that struck me as I read this section (2 Samuel 23.8 – 39) is that most of these guys and their exploits appear only in this list, reminding us of what I wrote yesterday: God values warriors.

We should remember one other thing, something not explicitly stated in scripture, but it’s plain beginning with David’s encounter with Goliath as recorded in 1 Samuel 17:

David was the first mighty man!

And David said to Saul, “Let no man’s heart fail because of him. Your servant will go and fight with this Philistine.” (1 Samuel 17.32, ESV)

The other mighty men were just following David’s example of trusting God and taking action by faith.

…the people who know their God shall stand firm and take action. (Daniel 11.32, ESV)

…the people who know their God shall be strong, and carry out great exploits. (Daniel 11.32, NKJV)

We follow a different Mighty Man!

And he called to him his twelve disciples and gave them authority over unclean spirits, to cast them out, and to heal every disease and every affliction…These twelve Jesus sent out, instructing them, “…Go rather to the lost sheep of the house of Israel. And proclaim as you go, saying, ‘The kingdom of heaven is at hand.’ Heal the sick, raise the dead, cleanse lepers, cast out demons…” (Matthew 10.1 – 8, ESV)