Rabbenu Bachyai often brings pesukim that express the greatness of Dovid Hamelech’s bitachon. Let us look at the battle between Dovid and Golias, which teaches us several chapters in emunah.
In what did Golias trust? In his mighty power – in his armored clothing, in his courage, and in his awe-inspiring appearance. His height was 30 meters and 60 centimeters! He was also trained in tactics of war – a man of war from his youth.
No one dared start up with him, and the haughty Golias informed all that he was prepared to challenge anyone who would come his way.
The legions of Am Yisrael were stumped. Shaul Hamelech did not know how to confront this evil. The Pelishtim’s maneuvers revealed their intention to bring a huge tragedy upon the dwellers of Eretz Yisrael. Their main commander – Golias – did everything he could to depress the spirits of Am Yisrael, and in his great chutzpah and wickedness, he spoke out against the legions of the living G-d, over the course of forty days.
And then a young man came into the picture, a shepherd who left behind his father’s sheep and came to the battlefront. David’s heart was burning with zealousness for Hashem. He offered himself to battle Golias, and in order to convince Shaul that he was capable of doing so, he mentioned some incidents that had happened: When I was watching the sheep, a lion arrived and grabbed one of the sheep. What did I do? I chased after the lion and pulled its beard, saved the sheep from its mouth, and killed the lion! And the same happened with a bear that came upon the herd, and I saved the sheep from it and killed it.
In recognition of this miracle, Dovid took the skin of the sheep that he had saved from the lion and sewed clothing from it, which he wore. He showed this begged to Shaul, a memento of this event. With these “credentials,” Dovid got permission to go out to battle.
Everyone can learn from this: When something rare and special occurs, something extraordinary, this comes to hint to a person’s task in life. When Dovid Hamelech – then a simple shepherd, abandoned and scorned by his family – saw that Hashem had given him special strengths and unnatural courage to be victorious over the lion and the bear, he understood that this strength was not given to him only in order to save the sheep; and some time later, when Am Yisrael were endangered and there was no one who was able to stand up against the huge, cruel giant who was threatening them, he understood that he needed to use this strength.
Golias’s haughtiness was offended just by seeing the nice-looking young man with peyos and the shepherd’s pack, sent to battle against him. “Am I a dog, that you are coming upon me with sticks?!” he raged. “In one second I will turn you into a pile of bones!” he warned he young man.
But Dovid did not fear. Golias was coming with his limited strengths, and in contrast, Dovid was coming with Hashem Himself! With one hundred percent bitachon that Hashem would help him and he would win. If he’d had had only ninety-nine percent bitachon, it would have been forbidden for him to go out to war, to enter the lion’s den. But, what pesukim of bitachon he spoke! “You are coming against me with the sword and the spear...and I am coming to you in the Name of Hashem! Today Hashem will place you in my hands...and all the congregation will know that it is not by the sword that Hashem will save...for war is Hashem’s, and He will give you into our hands!”
Dovid had with him his shepherd’s pack and five smooth stones, for this is the way of tzaddikim, to dress the miracle up with a natural act. Each rock had a special intention behind it: One was parallel to Hashem, the second to Aharon Hakohen, and the other three to Avraham, Yitzchak, and Yaakov. The stones argued among themselves regarding which of them would merit to sanctify Hashem’s Name, until they all became one stone, exactly as occurred to Yaakov Avinu. Dovid Hemelech aimed this stone at Golias’s forehead. Golias shook and fell to the ground, and the ending is well-known. The young red-haired boy, a shepherd, defeated the bitter enemy, and Hashem’s Name was sanctified.
Emunah. Bitachon. The clear knowledge and deep awareness that Hashem is with us. This is the key to yeshuah.
May Hashem enable us to merit seeing His yeshuah. May He raise our strength against our enemies, and may all know that You, Hashem, and Your Name, are One, King over the entire land; amen.
