Og Is in Your Bible for a Reason!

“Og Is in Your Bible for a Reason!”

When you move through the Word of God, you will notice names and details that at first glance may seem unnecessary. A king here, a battle there, a description that feels unusually specific. But doctrine teaches us that nothing in Scripture is accidental. The Holy Spirit does not waste words. Every name, every event, every recorded detail serves a purpose in revealing God’s plan and teaching us truth.

Og is one of those details.

Most people read past him quickly. But the Bible pauses to describe him, and that alone should make us stop and pay attention.

Deuteronomy 3:11 tells us:

“For only Og king of Bashan remained of the remnant of the giants. Indeed his bedstead was an iron bedstead… nine cubits is its length and four cubits its width.”

Scripture goes out of its way to mention the size of his bed. That is not there for curiosity. It is there to establish something. Og was not an ordinary man. He was part of what the Bible calls a remnant of the giants. He represented something physically intimidating, historically significant, and humanly overwhelming.

He ruled over Bashan, a region filled with fortified cities, high walls, gates, and bars (Deut. 3:5). In human terms, this was an impossible obstacle. Israel stood on the edge of entering what God had promised, and in their path stood a giant king with a strong, entrenched system behind him.

But here is where doctrine helps us think clearly.

The victory over Og was not the result of Israel’s strength, strategy, or numbers. The text makes it very simple:

“So the Lord our God also delivered into our hands Og king of Bashan…” (Deut. 3:3)

That is the key.

God delivered him.

My dad, Pastor McLaughlin, often emphasized that when God makes a promise, the outcome is never dependent on human ability. It rests on divine faithfulness. Israel did not defeat Og because they were superior. They defeated him because God had already determined the result.

And notice the wording. Og is called a remnant of the giants.

A remnant is something left over from a previous time.

Something that still looks impressive, still feels threatening, but does not represent the future.

It represents what is fading.

That detail matters.

After Og was defeated, his land did not remain empty.

It became part of Israel’s inheritance (Deut. 3:12).

What once belonged to a giant became territory given to God’s people.

That is a doctrinal pattern you see throughout Scripture. God removes the obstacle and then turns the very place of opposition into blessing.

But we have to be careful here and stay grounded in sound doctrine.

This is not about turning every problem into a dramatic metaphor. It is not about naming your “Og” as finances, politics, culture, or personal challenges.

Pastor McLaughlin consistently taught that the primary battlefield in the Church Age is not physical.

It is spiritual.

It is in the soul.

The real giants believers face are fear, worry, arrogance, ignorance of doctrine, and the pull of the old sin nature.

These are the things that intimidate and hinder spiritual growth.

And just like in Israel’s day, victory does not come through emotion, panic, or human effort.

It comes through trusting the Lord and applying truth.

Moses reminded the people:

“Do not fear them, for the Lord your God Himself fights for you.” (Deut. 3:22)

That principle still stands. Not in a military sense for the Church, but in the sense that God is the One who sustains, protects, and provides as believers walk in His plan.

There is also an important contrast in the history of Israel.

Years earlier, when the first generation heard about giants in the land, they became afraid. They said they felt like grasshoppers by comparison. Their fear was not really about the size of the giants. It was about a lack of trust in God.

Later, a new generation faced Og — and they did not turn back. The difference was not the size of the enemy. The difference was the condition of the people.

Doctrine teaches us that perspective changes everything.

When the believer focuses on circumstances, every obstacle feels enormous. When the believer focuses on the Lord and His Word, obstacles are seen in their proper place.

Og is recorded in Scripture as a reminder that no human strength, no system, no intimidation factor can stand against the plan of God when God chooses to act.

But the real application for the Church Age believer is not about conquering external enemies. It is about internal stability. It is about growing to spiritual maturity, learning doctrine, and trusting God’s timing and provision.

The God who delivered Israel from Og is the same God who sustains the believer today.

And the lesson is simple and deeply reassuring:

Nothing that stands in the path of God’s plan is permanent.

What looks overwhelming to man is never overwhelming to Him.

And what God promises, He always fulfills.

In Him,

Samantha McLaughlin Medeiros