David, Goliath and the FA Cup

One of the most anticipated sporting weekends of the year has arrived, even though 2021 has only just begun. I am of course talking about the FA Cup third round weekend, when the big boys of the Premier League and Championship enter the fray in English football’s national cup competition. As in most years, there are some all-Premier League ties with Aston Villa hosting Liverpool and Wolves at home to Crystal Palace on Friday night. But what makes the weekend so intriguing is when non-league minnows, who have battled their way through several previous rounds, get to swim with the top flight’s big fish. This comes as an incredible reward for all their effort.

This year’s third round has thrown up arguably the greatest of these gulf-spanning clashes as Marine host Spurs. Northern Premier League side Marine are only the second eighth tier team to have reached the last 64 in the competition’s history, while Spurs were top of the Premier League at the time the draw was made and boast a fearsome array of international talent. Whatever happens at Marine’s Rossett Park ground on Sunday, the Merseyside club can relish an occasion they will scarcely have dreamt possible as they began their FA Cup campaign against Barnoldswick Town on September 12. It is without doubt the tie of the weekend and Marine will look to make it as difficult as possible for their illustrious London visitors.

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Even the most optimistic Marine fan will struggle to give their side any chance of causing what might be the greatest upset in English football history, but what makes third round weekend so special is that such shock results have occurred. Non league clubs have occasionally upset top-flight rivals, with Hereford overcoming Newcastle in 1972 and Sutton United toppling Coventry City in 1989 two of the most famous occurrences. Such victories and often even those where a couple of divisions separate the teams have come to be known as ‘giant-killings’ as this BBC montage illustrates. Before such matches take place, they are also often labelled ‘David versus Goliath’ clashes. 

Such talk and the huge interest in and celebration of giant-killings are an example of a Bible story that has become part of popular culture. They are headlines that are consistently used, even at a time when people are less and less familiar with most of what the Good Book says. The account of David and Goliath in 1 Samuel 17 therefore remains one of the Bible’s most enduring stories. If you’re not familiar with the narrative, why not check it out?

It is an amazing story and has captured people’s attention for millennia, but it is far more than simply a cunning young shepherd’s prowess with a sling toppling a mighty warrior who had seemed unbeatable. David makes that clear himself. In verse 47 as he predicts his against-the-odds victory, he says this: 

All those gathered here will know that it is not by sword or spear that the Lord saves; for the battle is the Lord’s, and he will give all of you into our hands.

David says that it is God (the Lord) who will give him victory and enable his people to defeat the Philistines who were attacking them. God does not need a mighty army to save his people, he can and does bring this about by a shepherd who does not even know how to wear armour. David’s victory over Goliath points us forward to the victory achieved by his descendent Jesus 1,000 years later. Jesus was despised by the rulers and authorities he faced and died an ignominious criminal’s death on a Roman cross. This seemed an even less likely way for God to save than the armour-less shepherd boy David, but it actually brought about a far greater salvation. Not temporary salvation from military enemies, but everlasting forgiveness for all those who would turn to God. Jesus described what he would do like this:

‘For even the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many.’

Jesus died to set many free, he literally paid the ransom price for them. The many are all those who believe and trust in him. This is the greatest way God saves, far greater even than David’s spectacular victory over Goliath.

Marine beating Spurs on Sunday would be one of the greatest upsets in the history of sport and history instead suggests a comfortable win for Jose Mourinho’s men. This is simply footballing logic. Even a below full-strength Spurs side will be packed with top-quality professional players, while Marine are part-timers with day jobs to focus on.

However, when it comes to the original giant killing and Jesus’ victory over death on the cross that the story points us to, human logic is turned on its head because God gets involved. David appeared an unlikely war hero and Jesus a defeated preacher, but God had a far greater plan. Ultimately, the greatest giant killing of all saw death defeated on a cross outside Jerusalem 2,000 years ago. Unlike any potential FA Cup upsets this weekend, the great news is that this victory was never in doubt. The question is, are you ready to receive the ransom Jesus paid?