David's Stones and Egypt's Gods
by Pastor Walter Snyder

Q: I read in 1 Samuel 17 that David picked up five smooth stones and I wanted to know
why. Since he used one, is does the Bible to explain the reason for the other four?

A: I don't find any theological evidence why David chose five stones. He likely followed his
normal practice, taking up the first stones he found that were smooth, round, and of the right size
to work well with his sling. I don't think that it shows a lack of trust in God, that he wondered if
one would be enough; frankly, he probably thought only that as the Lord had given him the ability
to battle wild animals with his sling, so also Goliath would be delivered into his hands. While he
demonstrated strong confidence in the Lord, evidently God hadn't prophetically revealed a victory
and shown him all the details. Thus, he was probably prepared to cast several more stones, as he
might have done against a lion or bear.

Here, one was all he needed as God accomplished the rescue of His people. At the same time, the
Lord began building the reputation of the next king of Israel.

Q: I have a funny one for you: While I was gone on a trip, four of my 6th grade students
told the substitute that they refused to do an assignment on ancient Egypt, mummies, and
the pyramids because it "was against their religion." I'm Christian myself and don't
believe that learning about others' beliefs is against my religion. What is your take on this?

A: I think you have students who are either opportunistic schemers using religion as an excuse to
avoid an assignment or else they're woefully misinformed about Christian doctrine and practice.
The latter excuse includes their professed reason, so we'll deal only with it.

Never in Scripture are people forbidden to know anything about other people, cultures, religions,
or social practices. Quite contrary, God often educates His people in detail. Some of this falls into
the general category of "know thy enemy." Thus, while Israel was leaving Egypt, God began
teaching them about the people of Canaan and their gods. Through His prophets, He directly
addressed specifics of idol worship, human sacrifice, and allegiance to any god other than Him,
their true and only God. Included among these "lessons" were oracles against Egypt and her gods.

In the New Testament, among all those Jesus could have called to be His disciples and apostles,
the men from Galilee knew as much about the Gentiles and their beliefs as anyone among the
Children of Israel. Their home territory was often called "Galilee of the Gentiles" because of the
mixed population. They could use this to advantage as they took the Gospel among non-Jews.
Paul and his traveling companions showed even greater knowledge of alien gods and cultures as
they proclaimed Christ. The apostle often referenced pagan poets and philosophers. His time in
Athens, especially on Mars Hill(Acts 17:16ff) shows his familiarity with the pantheon of the
Graeco-Roman world while his "all things to all people (1 Cor 9:22)" comment indicates his
commitment to knowing and addressing his target audience in understandable terms, fitting his
preaching to meet them where they were.

And now back to the Old Testament, particularly to Egypt, since that's the specific area where
your young rebels claimed a problem: The opening chapters of Exodus present a compelling story
of God's saving work for His people. If we read knowing Egyptian history, culture, and religion,
these insights flesh out the account, making it even more vibrant and instructional. This is
especially true as the plagues are pronounced and invoked: If we know about the gods of ancient
Egypt, we see how these events directly challenge the power of these false deities.

Knowing these things helps us understand what the Lord means in saying, "On all the gods of
Egypt I will execute judgements: 'I am the Lord' (Ex 12:12)." These direct confrontations
include Hapi, god of the Nile; Hathor, the cow goddess, and Neith, both protectors of the Nile's
fish; Heqt, the frog goddess; Apis the bull, Khnum the ram, and Set the donkey, among others, as
livestock is destroyed; Nut, the sky god, as hail rained down; and Ra, god of the sun and chief of
all Egypt's gods, along with the others, in darkness and in the death of the firstborn.

I pray that the false god of intentional ignorance toward other religions is removed from your
students. The only excuse I can think of might be that they or their parents fear that knowledge of
a foreign faith might weaken their Christian beliefs. If this is so, then they are actually worried that
our God isn't almighty and that His Word lacks the power that He clearly claims it has.

Scripture quotations, unless otherwise noted, are from ~The Holy Bible, English Standard
Version~<TM>, © 2001 by Crossway Bibles.

Ask the Pastor, © 2003 by Walter P. Snyder. It may be reproduced in totality, including this
disclaimer, by anyone, provided that no profit is generated by said republication and
redistribution. Translations into other languages should similarly note the United States
and any appropriate international copyrights, as well as God's Scriptural injunctions
concerning the property of others.

Walter Snyder is the pastor of Holy Cross Lutheran Church, Emma, Missouri and coauthor of
the book "What Do Lutherans Believe."