- [Narrator] The Last Rephaim.
My dear brothers and sisters,
let us delve deeper
into the mysterious and intriguing subject of the Rephaim
or giants as they are described in the Old Testament.
The name Rephaim,
which literally means terrible ones,
gives us an indication of the intimidating
and fearsome nature of these individuals.
As we delve into the passage of the Old Testament,
that speak of the Rephaim,
we find that the context
of these passages describes them as giants.
And while the term Rephaim is often used
to describe these towering figures,
it is important to note
that the Hebrew word Rephaim has two distinct meanings.
Firstly, in poetic literature,
the word Rephaim is used to refer to departed spirits
whose dwelling place is Sheol.
This meaning is figurative
and serves as a description of the dead,
similar to our concept of a ghost.
Secondly, the word Rephaim is used to describe
a mighty people with tall stature who lived in Canaan.
This meaning does not refer to a specific group
but rather serves as a descriptive term
for a group of people with a specific characteristic.
In this case, tall stature.
Genesis 14:5 is the first time
the people of Rephaim are mentioned.
Genesis 14:5, Amplified Bible,
"In the 14th year,
Chedorlaomer and the three kings
who were with him attacked and subdued the Rephaim
in Ashteroth-karnaim, the Zuzim in Ham,
and the Emim in Shaveh-kiriathaim."
When the Israelites first approached the promised land
after the Exodus from Egypt,
they were filled with fear
and trepidation for the land was said to be filled
with giants on Nephilim as recorded in Numbers 13:33.
These giants, also known as the Sons of Anak,
were widely scattered throughout Canaan.
The Book of Deuteronomy in chapter 2:20-21 describes
the Rephaim as strong and tall similar to the Anakites.
The Israelites were afraid of these giants
because of their reputation as fierce warriors,
but they were also afraid of the unknown.
They had never seen anything like that before.
Deuteronomy 2:20-21,
"It is also regarded as the land of the Rephaim,
of giant stature,
for Rephaim used to live there,
but the Ammonites call them Zamzummin,
a great, numerous people, and tall as the Anakim,
but the Lord destroyed them before the Sons of Ammon.
And they disposed them and settled in their place."
So where did these giants come from?
One theory based on Genesis 6:1-4 is that fallen angels,
the Sons of God,
had sexual relations with women
resulting in the birth of giants.
Genesis 6:1-4 New American Standard Bible.
"Now it came about,
when mankind began to multiply on the face of the land,
the daughters were born to them,
that the Sons of God saw
that the daughters of mankind were beautiful,
and they took wives for themselves,
whomever they chose.
Then the Lord said,
'My spirit will not remain with man forever,
because he's also flesh.
Nevertheless his days shall be 120 years.'
The Nephilim were on the earth in those days,
and also afterward,
when the Sons of God came into the daughters of mankind,
and they bore children to them.
Those were the mighty men who were of old, men of renown."
The last Rephaim documented in the Bible was Og,
king of Bashan.
Og is referred to as the last of the Rephaim
in Deuteronomy 3:11
and later in the Books of Numbers and Joshua.
Apparently, Og was the last of the Rephaim
in his area on the east side of the Jordan River.
Deuteronomy 3:11,
"For only Og King of Bashan was left
of the remnant of the giants known as the Rephaim.
Behold, his bed frame was a bed frame of iron.
Is it not in Rabbah of the Ammonites?
It was 9 cubits, 12 feet long,
and 4 cubits, 6 feet wide, using the cubit of a man,
the forearm to the end of the middle finger."
Let us take a moment to reflect on the powerful story
of King Og of Bashan,
an infamous Amorite king
who reigned in the land of Ashtaroth
during the days of Moses.
As the Israelites journeyed towards the promised land,
they encountered many formidable foes,
and King Og was one of them.
He fought fiercely against the Israelites
and led his entire army against them.
Before the Israelites fought King Og,
they also had to deal with King Sihon of the Amorites,
but the Lord had already given him
and his territory to Israel,
so the Israelites had the victory
before even starting the battle.
Now, the king of Israel had to deal with King Og of Bashan
who also sent his entire army against Israel.
Og was another Amorite king
who posed no threat to Israel
because the Lord had already given him
and his territory to Israel.
Before he even put on his armor,
Og's defeat was a foregone conclusion.
The Israelites then marched towards Bashan
where King Og confronted them at Edrei.
Because of Og's reputation, the Israelites were terrified.
"Do not be afraid of him,
for I have delivered him into your hands,
along with his entire army and his land,"
God assured Moses.
The Book of Deuteronomy includes a narrative of a conflict
that occurred between forces led by Moses
and those led by Og.
According to the biblical account,
Og was the ruler of 60 different world cities,
all of which were taken by the Israelites.
Deuteronomy 3:3-7,
"So the Lord our God also handed over Og, king of Bashan,
and all his people, into our hand,
and we struck him until no survivor was left.
We captured all his cities at that time.
There was not a city that we did not take from them.
60 cities, the whole region of Argob,
the kingdom of Og in Bashan.
All these cities were fortified and unassailable
with their high walls, gates, and bars.
In addition, there were a very great number
of unwalled villages.
We utterly destroyed them,
just as we did to Sihon king of Heshbon,
utterly destroying every city, the men, women, and children.
But we took all the cattle and the spoil of the cities
as plunder for ourselves."
Og, like Sihon, marched out against Israel
with his entire army to fight,
and as in the case of Sihon,
God had already decided to hand over the king
along with his entire army and land to Israel.
Israel slayed the entire forces
and conquered all 60 cities in the kingdom of Og,
which had the same tall walls as Sihon's.
When God chose to hand over an enemy to his people,
even strong fortified cities were no match for the enemy.
Later at the city of Jericho,
the most spectacular demonstration
of that truth would occur.
In addition to this,
he was a very large man
and slept in a bed made of iron
that was 9 cubits long and 4 cubits wide,
13.5 feet long and 6 feet wide.
The inclusion of this detail draws attention
to OG's massive stature.
A man in need of this size bed was most likely tall.
The Israelites did not need to be concerned
about the size of their adversaries.
All they had to do was remember how big their God was.
Through their faith in the Lord
and obedience to his commands,
they were able to conquer
the territories of these powerful kings.
The half-tribe of Manasseh inherited Og's territory,
and this serves as a reminder of the Lord's promise
to his people to give them the land of Canaan.
It was not just a piece of land,
but it was a promise of a new way of living
where they could worship God freely.
According to Deuteronomy 3:11,
Og was a descendant of the Rephaim,
indicating a man of great stature or giant.
His colossal bed frame had become famous
and no doubt had been saved as a memento.
Joshua 12:4,
"And the territory of Og, king of Bashan,
one of the last of the Rephaites,
who reigned in Ashtaroth and at Edrei."
The news of the victory swiftly traveled across Canaan,
striking fear into the hearts of people who lived there.
Rahab, a Jericho prostitute,
believed the Lord had power
even over that heavily fortified city
because she and the others heard
of the victory over Sihon and Og.
Joshua 9:9-10 Amplified Bible,
"They said to him,
'Your servants have come from a country
that is very far away
because of the fame of the Lord, your God,
for we have heard the news about him
and all the remarkable things that he did in Egypt
and everything that he did to the two kings of the Amorites
who were beyond the Jordan,
to Sihon the king of Heshbon
and Og the king of Bashan who lived in Ashtaroth.'"
Deuteronomy 31:4 says that Moses used the victory
to encourage the Israelites as he was about to leave them
in the command of Joshua
and as they were about to enter Canaan.
Deuteronomy 31:4 Amplified Bible,
"The Lord will do to them
just as he did to Sihon and Og, the king of the Amorites,
and to their land, when he destroyed them."
In order to illustrate God's unwavering commitment
to his people throughout the ages,
the Israelites frequently praised him by rehashing the story
of how they had triumphed over Sihon and Og.
Psalms 135:7-11 Amplified Bible,
"Who causes the clouds to rise from the ends of the earth,
who makes lightning for the rain,
who brings the wind from his storehouse,
who struck the firstborn of Egypt,
both of man and animal,
who sent signs and wonders into your midst, O Egypt,
upon Pharaoh and all his servants.
Who struck many nations and killed mighty kings,
Sihon, king of the Amorites,
Og, king of Bashan,
and all the kingdoms of Canaan."
There is nothing too difficult for God.
Nothing is too difficult for Him.
God does not tremble in the presence of giants
and His children should not either.
So often when facing our own giants,
we forget what we ought to remember
and we remember what we ought to forget.
We remember our defeats and we forget the victories.
Most of us can recite
the failures of our lives in vivid detail,
but we're hard pressed
to name the specific remarkable victories
God has pulled off in our past.
Moses used the victories to encourage the Israelites
as he was about to leave them in the command of Joshua
and as they were about to enter Canaan.
David also had an experience with fighting giants.
He remembered that God gave him power
over a lion and a bear.
Perhaps you don't know what lies across the valley,
but look at that worrying comparison to the Lord God himself
and say, by faith the battle is yours, Lord.
It is your battle. I lean on you.
It is God's love for us that causes Him
to bring us to an end of our own strength.
He sees our need to trust Him,
and His love is so great
that He will not let us live another day
without turning over our arms to Him,
our fears, our worries, even our confusion,
so that nothing becomes more significant to us
than Our Father.
Never, ever forget it.
The battle is the Lord's.
In trying times,
it can be difficult to make the choice to have hope.
It is much simpler for us
to become crippled by fear and anxiety
when we are confronted with very real problems
for which there are few solutions.
Why is it so difficult to believe
that God is greater than every challenge that we face?
It's possible that we'll say something like,
"I can see my problems, but I can't see God.
On most days,
it's difficult for me to hear God
because my problems are so loud."
When faced with challenges of this magnitude,
it's easy for me to forget
how great and powerful God has been in the past
and will be again in the future.
Even prophets had times when they needed to be reminded
to be still and trust in God's plan for them.
What challenges are you up against in your life right now?
Is there a large issue coming to attack?
There are times in everyone's life
when it seems like so much is going on around them
that they must be under some kind of assault.
My dear brothers and sisters,
in order to become a true spiritual warrior,
it is essential that we have a bigger view of God.
This goes beyond knowing that God is big
to the heart of believing God is big.
Learning how to make God bigger than your problems is
about faith or trust in the Lord.
Proverbs 3:5-6 New American Standard Bible.
"Trust in the Lord with all your heart
and do not lean on your own understanding.
In all your ways acknowledge Him
and He will make your path straight."
God doesn't save us from having difficult times.
It is imperative that we recognize that God is with us
even in the midst of our trials and tribulations.
As our relationship with God deepens,
we gain the ability to trust Him more and learn to be still
through the experiences of difficulty and testing.
What is God's all-powerful nature?
It's about how He knows all and can do anything
but loves us too much to step in all the time.
Imagine if He did stop all our hard times.
We would be so spoiled and immature.
God is greater than all of your problems.
God is greater than your fears,
and God is more powerful than the adversary.
The same God wants to see your faith grow.
God's plans for your life will require you
to step out in the battle,
but know that you are not alone in the fight.