Making Mighty Men Series

Mighty Men of God

Making Mighty Men of God

22 Benaiah son of Jehoiada was a brave fighter from Kabzeel who did mighty things. He killed two of the best warriors from Moab. He also went down into a pit and killed a lion on a snowy day.

23 Benaiah killed an Egyptian who was about seven and one-half feet tall and had a spear as large as a weaver’s rod. Benaiah had a club, but he grabbed the spear from the Egyptian’s hand and killed him with his own spear.

1 Chronicles 11:23

If you take away David’s mighty men, David is just a leader of a band of men. Conversely, in strengthening David, these mighty men strengthened themselves. David’s success was their success. David’s achievements were their achievements. They had a rare, Spirit-filled, symbiotic relationship in which their sum was greater than their individual parts. They brought out the best in each other.

The Thirty and the Three

There are two groups of mighty men mentioned: the thirty and the three. The three were the "Joint Chiefs of Staff," the Generals of the forces of Israel. Then there were the thirty men who were commanders of various divisions of the army. All had proven themselves to be mighty in battle & men of faith.

Benaiah

Out of the 30, one man: Benaiah the son of Jehoiada became the most prominent. He was made Captain of David’s bodyguard. He was chosen for the place of honor close to the king because of three great events of valor for which he was widely known.

On once occasion, Benaiah struck down 2 of Moab’s best men. On another occasion, he killed a Lion in a pit on a day when snow had fallen. Finally, he was known for the time he killed an Egyptian who was their mighty man. The Egyptian was between 7 ½ and 9 feet tall. (About the same size as Goliath that David killed.) The Egyptian had a spear like a flag pole - about 6 or 7 inches thick.

These three enemies whom Benaiah overcame are all used in Scripture as types or symbols, of enemies of the believer today.

Benaiah was a Mighty Man of David

Benaiah struck down Moab

Who was Moab? The Moabites were a nation on the borders of Israel who were related to the Israelites. Remember when Lot fled from Sodom, he hid in a cave with his two daughters. They thought they would never get married & have children, so the got there father drunk & had sex with him. One of son born was Ammon & the other Moab. They were closely related to the Israelites but always their enemies.

This Old Testament symbol is called "the flesh" referring to our selfish life. We are ashamed of what this "flesh" does and we have a hard time controlling it. Moab is a picture of the flesh throughout Scripture, everything involving an uncontrolled life to physical lust. From addictions to alcohol to addictive lifestyles involving self gratification.

And Benaiah struck down two of the best men in all of Moab!

Benaiah slew an Egyptian

Egypt is used as a type or picture of the world with its armies, temples, libraries, pharaohs, kings, all of the pomp, glory and splendor of man. It is a picture of the superficial, empty glory of the world and its ways.

This is no small enemy. This Egyption had a spear as big as a flag pole! The world with all of its power, allure and temptations is no small enemy.

It’s all about success in the world’s view.

Benaiah also fought the Lion

Peter tells us, "Your adversary, the Devil, prowls around like a roaring lion, seeking someone to devour." The Devil, like a Lion, has tremendous authority and power and he is seeking someone to devour.

The lion is the most dangerous of the three enemies. There is a reason that the Lion is called the king of beasts. The typical male lion is between 350 to 500 pounds of muscle. It is 3 ½ feet tall and 9 feet long from the nose to the tail. With one blow of his paw he can smash the human skull, one of the strongest bones in our bodies. With his jaws he can bite through any bone in the human body.

Not only did Benaiah meet a lion but he met it in the worst possible place: in a pit. A place where you are very close to it and there is no escape. But not just in a pit: in a pit on a day when the snow had fallen. I imagine Benaiah’s anxiety as he faced this lion in such close proximity. His footing was slick. Trying to grip his weapon, his hands were red with the numbness of the cold. The glare of the sun in his eyes forced him to squint to see.