Lives of Scripture
Elhanan (M)
First named in 2 Samuel 21:19
Elhanan, son of Dodo of Bethlehem (called Jair in 1 Chronicles 20:5), was one of David's mighty men and is remembered for killing a Philistine giant, "the shaft of whose spear was like a weaver's beam" (2 Samuel 21:19; 1 Chronicles 20:5). The two accounts differ in an important detail: 2 Samuel 21:19 names Elhanan's opponent as "Goliath the Gittite," the same name given to the giant David famously killed in 1 Samuel 17, while the parallel account in 1 Chronicles 20:5 names the opponent as "Lahmi the brother of Goliath the Gittite." Scripture itself does not explain the discrepancy between the two accounts (see interpretive note). What is not in dispute is Elhanan's inclusion among David's elite warriors, listed by name alongside Bethlehem's other mighty men in the roster of 2 Samuel 23:24 and 1 Chronicles 11:26. Whichever giant he faced, Elhanan's account continues a larger pattern in these chapters: after David's own victory over Goliath, several more of his mighty men went on to strike down other Philistine giants, including a massive warrior with six fingers on each hand and six toes on each foot, and "these were born to the giant in Gath" (2 Samuel 21:15-22). Elhanan's courage under fire was part of Israel's broader victory over the Philistine threat during David's reign.
Thought for Today
After David struck down Goliath, several of his mighty men, Elhanan among them, went on to kill other Philistine giants from the same family. Jesus's own victory over sin and death at the cross is the decisive battle that opens the way for every smaller victory we win afterward -- we're not fighting alone or first.
References: 2 Samuel 21:19; 2 Samuel 23:24; 1 Chronicles 11:26; 1 Chronicles 20:5