The Barley Field Standoff Text: 1 Chronicles 11:12-14
Introduction: Where Do You Draw the Line?
We live in an age of retreat. We are specialists in the art of the strategic withdrawal. The evangelical world has become adept at finding theological justifications for giving ground. We are told to pick our battles, which in practice usually means picking no battles at all. We are counseled to be winsome, which has come to mean being willing to surrender any territory the world deems offensive, which is all of it. The enemy advances, and we organize a committee to discuss the appropriate time and place for a tactical retreat to a more "defensible" position. But the defensible positions keep shrinking, and the enemy never stops advancing.
The spirit of our age is the spirit of the fleeing people in our text. When the Philistines, the perennial enemies of God's people, gather for battle, the response of the Israelites is to run. This is the pragmatic, sensible, self-preservationist response. Why die for a patch of barley? There are other fields, are there not? Why make a fuss? Why cause trouble? Why risk it all for something so seemingly insignificant?
This is the question that confronts every generation of Christians. The world will always offer you a thousand good reasons to give up your barley field. It's just a small doctrinal point. It's just a minor ethical compromise. It's just a little pinch of incense to Caesar. It's just a rainbow flag for one month a year. It's just a pronoun. It's just a barley field. But what the men of God in our story understand is that there is no such thing as "just a barley field." Every piece of ground belongs to God, and therefore every piece of ground is worth defending. The line must be drawn somewhere, and the great lesson from men like Eleazar is that the place to draw the line is right here, right now, wherever you happen to be standing.
This brief account of one of David's mighty men is not just an ancient war story. It is a paradigm. It is a case study in what biblical courage looks like. It is a rebuke to our timid, effeminate, compromising generation. And it is a glorious picture of how God uses the unflinching valor of a few to accomplish a great salvation for the many.
The Text
And after him was Eleazar the son of Dodo, the Ahohite, who was one of the three mighty men. He was with David at Pasdammim. Now the Philistines had gathered together there to battle, and there was a portion of the field full of barley; and the people fled from before the Philistines. But they took their stand in the midst of that portion and delivered it, and struck down the Philistines. So Yahweh saved them by a great salvation.
(1 Chronicles 11:12-14 LSB)
The Setting of the Rout (v. 12-13)
Let's look at the scene that is set for us in the first part of our text.
"And after him was Eleazar the son of Dodo, the Ahohite, who was one of the three mighty men. He was with David at Pasdammim. Now the Philistines had gathered together there to battle, and there was a portion of the field full of barley; and the people fled from before the Philistines." (1 Chronicles 11:12-13)
First, we are introduced to the man: Eleazar, son of Dodo. We know little about him, but what we do know is what matters. He was one of the three mightiest men who served King David. This is not a man who stumbled into courage by accident. He had a reputation for it. Valor is a habit, not a fluke. He was with David, which is to say, he was loyal to God's anointed king. His courage was not a freelance operation; it was covenantal. It was exercised in service to his king and his God.
The location is Pasdammim, a place where battles were fought. The Philistines, representing the settled, implacable enemies of God's kingdom, are mustered for war. And what is the prize? What is the strategic high ground they are fighting over? "A portion of the field full of barley." Not a fortress, not a city, not a palace. A field of grain. This is important. The world system, the Philistine system, is always seeking to devour the fruitfulness of God's people. They want your inheritance. They want your children. They want your livelihood. They want your barley field.
And what is the response of God's people? "The people fled." This is the great temptation in every age of conflict. The people looked at the odds. They saw the armored Philistines, they saw the spears and swords, and they made a rational calculation. They calculated that their lives were worth more than the barley. They fled from before the Philistines. They abandoned the ground God had given them. This is the picture of the church in the West for the last century. We have seen the advance of secularism, of Marxism, of sexual chaos, and our response has largely been to flee. We have abandoned the fields of art, science, education, and politics, retreating to the ever-shrinking ghetto of our private spiritual lives. We have decided that those fields are not worth fighting for. But the barley belongs to God.
The Courage of the Stand (v. 14a)
In stark contrast to the fleeing people, we see the action of the mighty men.
"But they took their stand in the midst of that portion and delivered it, and struck down the Philistines." (1 Chronicles 11:14a)
The word "but" is one of the most important words in Scripture. It signals a reversal, a turning of the tide. The people fled, BUT they took their stand. Who is "they"? The parallel account in 2 Samuel 23 mentions Eleazar and Shammah. These men, a tiny remnant, did not follow the crowd. They did not take their cues from the fearful majority. They stood.
Notice where they stood: "in the midst of that portion." They did not stand on the edge, ready to run if things went badly. They planted their feet squarely in the middle of the disputed territory. This is the nature of true Christian resistance. You do not fight from a distance. You stand in the middle of the school board meeting. You stand in the middle of the corporate diversity training. You stand in the midst of the public square and you do not give one inch. You make it clear that to get this barley, they will have to come through you.
And their stand was not passive. They "delivered it, and struck down the Philistines." This was not a protest; it was a battle. They engaged the enemy. Courage is not simply the absence of fear; it is acting righteously in the face of fear. They used the strength God had given them to defend what God had given them. They swung the sword. We are in a spiritual war, and we are called to strike down the arguments and lofty opinions raised against the knowledge of God. We are to use the sword of the Spirit, which is the Word of God, and we are to strike. This is not a time for dialogue with Philistines; it is a time for defiance.
The Source of the Victory (v. 14b)
The verse concludes by revealing the ultimate source of this incredible victory. It was not, in the final analysis, about the might of Eleazar's arm.
"So Yahweh saved them by a great salvation." (Genesis 1:14b)
This is the central lesson. Eleazar stood, Eleazar fought, but Yahweh saved. God is not a passive observer of our battles. He does not simply wind up the world and watch to see who wins. He is the Lord of Hosts, the Divine Warrior. But He delights to work through the faithfulness and courage of His people. God could have sent hornets. He could have rained down fire from heaven. But His ordinary method of operation is to save by means of men who refuse to run.
Notice the grammar. God uses the stand of the mighty men to save "them," which includes the very people who had fled. Their courage brought about a deliverance for the cowards. This is a profound picture of substitution. The few stood for the many. The courage of the remnant provides cover for the fearful. This is how reformation works. It does not begin with a popular vote. It begins when a few men decide that they will no longer give ground, and they take their stand in the barley field, trusting that God will honor their stand.
And the result was a "great salvation." The Hebrew is teshuah gedolah. This is not a minor skirmish. When men stand for God on what seems like a small matter, God often grants a disproportionately large victory. When you refuse to compromise on the small things, you are positioning yourself to see God do great things. Our God is a God of great salvations, but He is waiting for a people of great courage.
Conclusion: Your Barley Field
So what is the application for us? We are not all called to be warriors in a literal field of grain. But every single one of us has a barley field. It is that "portion" of the world that God has entrusted to your stewardship. It is your family. It is your business. It is your classroom. It is your neighborhood. It is your church. And the Philistines are mustered at the border of that field. They want to devour its fruitfulness. They want to teach your children their godless ideologies. They want to impose their corrupt ethics on your business. They want to silence the testimony of your church.
And the great temptation is to flee. The people are fleeing all around you. Your Christian friends and neighbors are compromising. They are pulling their kids out of the fight and hoping the Philistines won't notice them. They are telling you to be reasonable, to not make waves. They are running for the hills.
But God is calling for Eleazars. He is looking for men and women who will say, "But I will take my stand." I will stand in the midst of my marriage and fight for covenant faithfulness. I will stand in the midst of my business and refuse to bow to the idols of the age. I will stand in the midst of my community and speak the truth of Christ, whatever the cost. I will not surrender this ground. This barley belongs to God.
Our courage is not ultimately in ourselves. Our courage comes from the greater David, the Lord Jesus Christ. He stood alone in the ultimate barley field of Golgotha. When all His disciples fled, He stood His ground. He struck down the ultimate Philistine, Satan, and delivered a great salvation for all of us who fled. Because He stood for us, we now have the power and the obligation to stand for Him.
Find your barley field. Plant your feet in the middle of it. And trust that as you stand and as you fight, it is Yahweh who will bring the great salvation. Obedience is ours; the results are God's.