Speaking of David’s mighty men (1 Chronicles 11:12-11, Roth. Vs.) we read “And after him was Eleazar, son of Dodai, the Ahohite, he was among the three heroes; he was with David in Pasdammin where the Philistines were gathered together to battle, and there was a field-plot full of barley, and the people fled from before the Philistines and Yahweh wrought a great victory.”
Eleazar was one of the three men who risked their lives to bring David a drink of water from the well at Bethlehem so great was their love for their king to fulfill his desire. How great is our love for our king Jesus? Are we constrained to give in his name, water to the thirsty (Mt. 10:12) water freely available in the word and rarely done at the risk of our lives?
Eleazar means “God is his helper protecting, aiding, succoring, and surrounding him.” With God at his right hand, Eleazar did not fear the battles of life.
He was the son of Dodai (I Chron, 27:1) or Dodo (K.J.V) Dodai means to be sick, faint, and as a menstrous (bloody) cloth. It’s hard to imagine a woman naming her son this, (was he really that miserable looking at birth?) but it reminds one of the way mankind who has not turned to God is described in Romans; weak 5:5, ungodly 5:6, enemies 5:10 and sinners 5:8. The name seems to indicate the faintness, weakness and frailty of man who is headed for death and the grave, and we are reminded of the words of God to Eve, “I will increase thy pain of pregnancy, in pain shalt thou bear children.”
In contrast, Dodo means “Well-be-loved, to boil with love, a lover, or an uncle, a father’s brother (Would Isa. 9:6 and 22:21 have any connection here?) Dodo is translated well-beloved over 30 times in the Song of Solomon, referring to both Christ and his bride, and in Isa. 5:1, Ezek. 16:8 and 23:17 of the nation of Israel, beloved, even though astray from God. In the change of name from Dodai to Dodo we have the change in status of men from weak, frail sons of Adam to beloved sons of God. God is a helper (Eleazar) to the sons of the weak and faint (Dodai) and makes them his well-beloved (Dodo).
Dodo came from the town of Ahoah meaning “brotherhood and fraternity.” We too, come as sons of God to a brotherhood and fraternity with Christ and all his brethren.
But, there was a battle to be fought, a stand to be taken and we are reminded of I Timothy 1:18 “that thou mightiest war with them the noble warfare” and of Ephesians 6:11-2. “Put on the complete Armour of God, with a view to your having power to stand against the strategies of the adversary: because our struggle is not against the world-holders, against the spiritual forces of wickedness in the heavenlies, of this darkness.” The stand was to be taken at the field of Pas-damming the palm of bloodshed. The palm trees are tall, stately, fruit bearing, long-tasting trees, representing the believers called out of all nations. There is a figurative killing taking place for we put to death the works of the flesh by crucifying (extremely painful) the lusts of the flesh, the lusts of the eyes and the pride of life. Again, from the Song of Solomon 7:6-8 we have the bridegroom speaking of the bride. “How beautiful and how delightful, O dear love, (Dodo) for delights: this thy stature is like to a palm-tree, and thy breasts are like clusters: I said, I will ascend the palm-tree, I will lay hold of its fruit stalks” (in the sense of a husbandman,) pruning tree to make it more fruitful. Again, the pruning may seem to hurt, as do the pricks, but they are vital to our spiritual growth.
The battle is against the Philistines meaning “migratory, rolling in dust, wallowing in self of man is made of the dust.” Do we ever really stop thinking of ourselves? Why does this happen to me? putting me first? We cannot wallow in our own selves, nourish our secret sins loves; or roll from place to place as wandering stones that gather no moss. The Philistine in each of us must be put to death. We need to be anchored to Christ, rooted in faith.
The battle took place to save the field of barley. Barley is from a word meaning ”roughness” the feminine form indicating the plant and the masculine form of the word, indicating the grain. Barley was the food of the common people, the first fruits offered to God. Barley is the only grain that in good conditions will poke through the ground only 3 days after planting – – a type of resurrection. Gideon was compared to a barley-cake tumbling into the camp of the Midianites, and destroying them ( Judges 7:13) Barley is like common people.
Jesus in his mortality was like the barley. ”He had neither beauty nor majesty, when we beheld him, there was nothing to behold, that we should desire him; despised was he, and forsaken of men, man of pains and familiar with sickness, “yea like one from whom the face is hidden, despised and we esteemed him not. Yet surely our sickness he carried, and as for our pains he bare the burden of them, – but we accounted him stricken (word for plague of leprosy ) smitten of God, and humbled, yet he was pierced for transgressions that were ours, was crushed for iniquities that were ours, the chastisement for our well-being was upon him, and by his stripes there is healing for us, we all like sheep had gone astray, every man to his way had we turned, and Yahweh caused to light upon him the guilt of us all.” Isaiah 53:3-6. We are the field of barley, the battle is to save us.
The victory is of Yahweh, and it is a marvelous victory. We can of our own selves do nothing. The nation of Israel experienced the great victories brought by Yahweh against the Egyptians (Exodus 15) : against the Canaanites (Judges 5); the Midianites (Judges 7) and against the Philistines (1 Samuel 7 ). Samuel made an outcry unto Yahweh and Yahweh answered him. Yahweh thundered with a great noise throughout that day over the Philistines. Samuel set up a certain stone and called it the stone of help, for Yahweh bath helped us. (Eleazar – God is my help). We don’t fight battles such as these, but Yahweh is as powerful a rock to help us in our warfare against self as He was when He thundered against Israel’s enemies. So – thanks be to God who is giving us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ. The battle for the barley field is nearly ended and the good seed will be gathered into the kingdom.
The Origin of the Organic World – Part One