Jonathan said to his young armor-bearer, “Come, let’s go over to the outpost of those uncircumcised men. 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 on, then; we will cross over toward them 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 14:6-14 NIV
Jonathan was a man of amazing faith. Every time he went into battle he understood the Lord was in complete control of the outcome. God had chosen Israel to represent His name to the surrounding nations so Jonathan realized the battle was God’s to win, not his. When Jonathan referred to the Philistines as “uncircumcised men” he was reminding his armor-bearer of the covenant relationship they shared with God. Circumcision was the sign of the agreement God had made with the nation of Israel, and Jonathan trusted God to be true to that covenant.
Jonathan trusted God, and this young armor-bearer trusted Jonathan. “Do all that you have in mind,” his armor-bearer said. “Go ahead; I am with you heart and soul.” Whatever Jonathan wanted to do, he was all in! In Ephesians 6, we are told to put on the full armor of God. In a very real sense, we are God’s armor-bearers. Do we share the same blind trust in God’s plans as Jonathan’s armor-bearer? Do we allow God to lay out the details of our lives and commit to whatever He chooses with all our heart and soul?
So Jonathan said to his armor-bearer, “Climb up after me.” As they faced the enemy, who was safer, the one in the lead or the one who was following? Jonathan placed himself between the enemy and his young armor-bearer. If the enemy had shot an arrow, it would have to get through Jonathan before it could harm his armor-bearer. Throughout the entire battle, the armor-bearer remained right behind Jonathan and followed after him. He partnered with Jonathan, watched God defeat the enemy and shared in the victory! Though they fought together, he was shielded from the fiercest parts of the battle as his master positioned himself between this young man and the enemy.
Doesn’t our Master, do that for us? As we serve him with all our heart and soul, He stands between us and the enemy! As long as we stay close to Him, He shields and protects us! What a comforting thought to know that the enemy has to get through Him to get to us!
But you, Lord, are a shield around me, my glory, the One who lifts my head high. Psalm 3:3 NIV
My shield is God Most High, who saves the upright in heart. Psalm 7:10 NIV
The Lord is my strength and my shield; my heart trusts in him, and he helps me. Psalm 28:7 NIV
Sovereign Lord, my strong deliverer, you shield my head in the day of battle. Psalm 140:7 NIV