8. Learning from the Past
Modern military strategists have utilized lessons from the past, including biblical history, more often than you may realize. We find a fascinating example of this in the story of a daring raid that took place at the little-known Michmash some 3,000 years ago in the days of King Saul.
The ancient Michmash (modern Mukhmas) was set on a high area some 5 miles (8 km) north of Jerusalem. Militarily, the area was well positioned, as it was protected on its rear side by a fairly sheer cliff which rose from a surrounding ravine.
During the reign of Saul, invading Philistines took advantage of this natural fortifying aspect of the site and made it the camp for their troops. The Bible tells us that many of the Israelites fled and only a small force stayed with King Saul (1 Samuel 13). As a result, the situation looked grim, but without telling his father, Saul's young son Jonathan and his armor bearer carried out a daring raid by way of the protecting cliffs of the Michmash ravine.
This was no easy task: "On each side of the pass that Jonathan intended to cross to reach the Philistine outpost was a cliff; one was called Bozez and the other Seneh" (1 Samuel 14:4). Bozez appears to mean "slippery" and Seneh means "thorny' or "jagged." But Jonathan was undeterred. The Philistines had naturally posted guards on the protective cliff edge, but when they saw the two Israelite warriors they only arrogantly called down insults, daring the two lone figures to climb up to them.
This is exactly what Jonathan and his armor bearer did, and after scaling the cliffs they dispatched the guards and attacked the Philistine camp, killing some twenty of the enemy. Panic struck the confused Philistines and they began to flee from the site, thinking they were surrounded. As a result, the much smaller Israelite force camped nearby was able to pursue and defeat the invading army (1 Samuel 14:15, 20-23).
Some one hundred years ago, during World War One, General Allenby, along with his Sixtieth British Division, entered the plain near Michmash in a plan to attack nearby Jericho and drive out the Ottoman Turkish army. But the Turks held the protected site of Michmash and blocked any successful advance. One night, however, one of Allenby's Brigade officers, Major Vivian Gilbert, was reading his Bible and found the story of Jonathan's attack from the nearly impregnable cliffs.
Gilbert woke the commander and they planned an attack based on the same strategy. They sent one company through the ravine under cover of darkness and after silently taking out the posted Turkish sentries, they attacked. The Turks woke in confusion and, like the Philistines of thousands of years earlier, they fled – thinking they were surrounded by Allenby's forces. As a result of this success, the combined British and Allied forces were then able to capture the strategic city of Jericho and eventually rout the Turks from Palestine in a victory which profoundly influenced the subsequent history of the Holy Land.
The story of Michmash provides us with a graphic reminder of the importance of knowing the Bible for the warrior of the Way. The Christian warrior may not need its historical details for physical tactical applications, but just as Allenby may not have captured Michmash without Major Gilbert's knowledge of the Bible, Christians need to know the Bible's stories well if we are to profit from them.
The example of Gilbert's application of the story of Jonathan and his armor bearer also teaches us the importance of being able to apply the Bible's stories to our own situations. Christian training involves both true familiarity with our training manual – and ongoing thought as to the application of its ancient stories in our lives today.