1 Samuel 15:1-3
1 Samuel also said unto Saul, The LORD sent me to anoint thee to be king over his people, over Israel: now therefore hearken thou unto the voice of the words of the LORD.
2 Thus saith the LORD of hosts, I remember that which Amalek did to Israel, how he laid wait for him in the way, when he came up from Egypt.
3 Now go and smite Amalek, and utterly destroy all that they have, and spare them not; but slay both man and woman, infant and suckling, ox and sheep, camel and ass.

Here again Israel comes against the Amalekites, that persistent enemy of Israel whom they had fought in that first battle with Joshua and Moses decades before. Here God sets them up for their ultimate destruction in judgment of their sin. This is the fulfillment of the promise of Jehovah Nissi. Israel now has Saul as their first king, and the Lord of Hosts, Jehovah Tsaba, is who sends him forth to battle. He gives the order, the explicit command to destroy all people and animals. In doing so, Amalek would no longer be able to hurt Israel. But, of course, Saul disobeys. He spares the king and the best of the animals in prideful disobedience, and the consequences are severe both for him and the nation.

As the nation of Israel left God behind as their King and sought a man to rule over them and to fight their battles, this name of God comes to the fore. As they become a kingdom first under Saul, then David and his line, they look to the Lord of Hosts, who never ceases to rule and reign. This is a common name for God beginning in 1 Samuel and is the name used mainly by the prophets as they bring their messages, pleas for repentance, warnings of upcoming judgments, and the revelation of the fierce wrath of God against those who dwell in iniquity, who oppose Him, and who refuse to follow Him.

The Lord of Hosts commands the army, both of His angels and servants and the armies of His people here. He is a fearsome God to those who stand against Him and an immense and infinite source of help and protection to those who choose to follow Him. He will either oppose with infinite strength in a battle or protect with infinite strength as a shelter and a refuge. It is the Lord of Hosts who makes the covenant with David that from His line will come the Messiah. It is the Lord of Hosts who speaks to the prophets of the judgments and future battles to come. It is the Lord of Hosts to whom the desperate can look in times of their own devastation and struggle. It is the Lord of Hosts who is exalted on high, who rules and reigns, who dictates the terms, the tactics, the strategy, and the execution of the battle. And it is He who determines the outcome, for He gains the victory for His just and right cause.

1 Samuel 17:44-47
44 And the Philistine said to David, Come to me, and I will give thy flesh unto the fowls of the air, and to the beasts of the field.
45 Then said David to the Philistine, Thou comest to me with a sword, and with a spear, and with a shield: but I come to thee in the name of the LORD of hosts, the God of the armies of Israel, whom thou hast defied.
46 This day will the LORD deliver thee into mine hand; and I will smite thee, and take thine head from thee; and I will give the carcases of the host of the Philistines this day unto the fowls of the air, and to the wild beasts of the earth; that all the earth may know that there is a God in Israel.
47 And all this assembly shall know that the LORD saveth not with sword and spear: for the battle is the LORD’S, and he will give you into our hands.

Unlike Saul, when David went forth to battle, he went in the name of the Lord of Hosts. In other words, God was his commander, the one from whom he took orders and for whom he was fighting. Goliath had defied God and spoken against Israel. Goliath depended on himself, his weapons, and his own strength and ability to use those weapons. But David went forth with all of God’s power and ability behind him. So even though David ran willingly to the fight with his sling and stones, the battle was the Lord’s, the victory was the Lord’s, and the glory for all of it was the Lord’s.

The same is true for us. Jehovah Tsaba is the God of every battle that we face in our lives. He is on our side. He goes before and behind and beside. We march within His undefeatable army. And so when we, like David, give our battles over to the Lord, it is His strength that opposes our enemies. It is His might that is at work in the difficult situations. It is His ability that conquers and defeats all that rises up to hinder His people and His purpose. It is He who will give us a victory over the giants that try to drive us to despair and defeat.

Psalm 24
1 The earth is the LORD’S, and the fulness thereof; the world, and they that dwell therein.
2 For he hath founded it upon the seas, and established it upon the floods.
3 Who shall ascend into the hill of the LORD? or who shall stand in his holy place?
4 He that hath clean hands, and a pure heart; who hath not lifted up his soul unto vanity, nor sworn deceitfully.
5 He shall receive the blessing from the LORD, and righteousness from the God of his salvation.
6 This is the generation of them that seek him, that seek thy face, O Jacob. Selah.
7 Lift up your heads, O ye gates; and be ye lift up, ye everlasting doors; and the King of glory shall come in.
8 Who is this King of glory? The LORD strong and mighty, the LORD mighty in battle.
9 Lift up your heads, O ye gates; even lift them up, ye everlasting doors; and the King of glory shall come in.
10 Who is this King of glory? The LORD of hosts, he is the King of glory. Selah.

Not only is Jehovah Tsaba the commander of the hosts, but He goes forward to the battle Himself. He is a warrior for His people and against His enemies. He is the King of glory. It is Christ, King of kings and Lord of lords, who undertook the greatest battle ever, the one for the souls of all mankind. He didn’t leave the fight to any other, but led the charge Himself and conquered sin, death, hell, Satan, and the grave with His almighty power. He refused to call down the host of angels, but went willingly to the cross and secured the final victory on our behalf. Though it was His blood that was shed, there is power in that blood to set us free. And when He rose up from the grave, He proved that nothing can overcome or defeat Him. His victory is final and absolute.

Psalm 46
1 God is our refuge and strength, a very present help in trouble.
2 Therefore will not we fear, though the earth be removed, and though the mountains be carried into the midst of the sea;
3 Though the waters thereof roar and be troubled, though the mountains shake with the swelling thereof. Selah.
4 There is a river, the streams whereof shall make glad the city of God, the holy place of the tabernacles of the most High.
5 God is in the midst of her; she shall not be moved: God shall help her, and that right early.
6 The heathen raged, the kingdoms were moved: he uttered his voice, the earth melted.
7 The LORD of hosts is with us; the God of Jacob is our refuge. Selah.
8 Come, behold the works of the LORD, what desolations he hath made in the earth.
9 He maketh wars to cease unto the end of the earth; he breaketh the bow, and cutteth the spear in sunder; he burneth the chariot in the fire.
10 Be still, and know that I am God: I will be exalted among the heathen, I will be exalted in the earth.
11 The LORD of hosts is with us; the God of Jacob is our refuge. Selah.

This all-powerful God, with all authority and sovereignty, is who is with us in whatever we’re facing here. He is with us to help in any kind of trouble. He can go up against anything or anyone that comes against us. So it is He to whom we must look when these kinds of things come into our lives. He is the reason we don’t have to be afraid when very scary things come along. He is the reason we can hope when other things that provide protection or security crumble away. He is the reason we can find strength and stability when everything else on this Earth can seem so tenuous and uncertain. And the reason we can trust Him is because He’s proven Himself to be able to do so many impossible things both in Scripture and in our own lives.

We may have a laundry list of struggles. Chaos rules and reigns in this sinful place. The devil and his armies may appear to have the upper hand. And on our darkest days, all hope might seem lost. But then we can get to a place of stillness, of letting go, of understanding just who is on our side. Just who we can depend on. Just who is offering us a place to rest, to come apart from the wars that are raging and let Him take care of those things we were never meant to handle on our own.

Psalm 89:6-14
6 For who in the heaven can be compared unto the LORD? who among the sons of the mighty can be likened unto the LORD?
7 God is greatly to be feared in the assembly of the saints, and to be had in reverence of all them that are about him.
8 O LORD God of hosts, who is a strong LORD like unto thee? or to thy faithfulness round about thee?
9 Thou rulest the raging of the sea: when the waves thereof arise, thou stillest them.
10 Thou hast broken Rahab in pieces, as one that is slain; thou hast scattered thine enemies with thy strong arm.
11 The heavens are thine, the earth also is thine: as for the world and the fulness thereof, thou hast founded them.
12 The north and the south thou hast created them: Tabor and Hermon shall rejoice in thy name.
13 Thou hast a mighty arm: strong is thy hand, and high is thy right hand.
14 Justice and judgment are the habitation of thy throne: mercy and truth shall go before thy face.

Through all the writings of the kingdom and the psalms and the prophets, the character of Jehovah Tsaba is clear. He is the one who brings righteous judgment upon sinners, the one who commands the angels and rules in heaven, who goes forth to the battle, including the final one where all evil will be defeated forever. And thus He reigns for all time. He defends His people. He redeems sinners. He is the righteous defender of all that is holy and good. He secures the covenants and makes good on His promises. He is the source of hope, protection, safety, and salvation, and then He is the one who is worthy of all praise. There is none like Him, none above Him, none stronger.

The whole of God’s plan stretches out from beginning to end. It unfolds with careful precision. There is a battle that is waging, unseen beyond our field of vision, between His goodness and the worst evil. Along the way, blood was shed. Life was lost. But in the end, it is an ultimate and overwhelming victory. For when the war is over and every battle has been fought, His enemies will all be defeated completely, and His armies will join Him in an eternal victory celebration. He is the hero. He is the conqueror. He has defeated what seemed so undefeatable, that which we could never have any hope to overcome on our own.

The battles we face in this life are not fought with the typical weapons of war. We’re not literally marching forth with a sword and shield. But we can have victory as we look to the Lord of Hosts, if we are trusting Him and what He can do in those seemingly impossible situations. When it seems that the enemy has us outnumbered, when it seems like an impenetrable defense, when it seems there is no way forward, when we’re surrounded on every side, when we’re weak and weary and feel we can hardly go on, then the Lord rises up in those moments. He takes command, charges ahead, and orchestrates a victory on our behalf.