The In-Dept Study of the Bible
Samuel 17
1 Now the Philistines gathered together
their armies to battle; and they were gathered together at Socoh, which belongs to
Judah, and encamped between Socoh and
Azekah in Ephesdammim.
2 Saul and the men of Israel were gathered together, and encamped in the valley
of Elah, and set the battle in array against
the Philistines.
3 The Philistines stood on the mountain
on the one side, and Israel stood on the
mountain on the other side: and there was
a valley between them.
4 A champion out of the camp of the
Philistines named Goliath of Gath, whose
height was six cubits and a span† went out.
5 He had a helmet of bronze on his head,
and he wore a coat of mail; and the weight
of the coat was five thousand shekels‡ of
bronze.
6 He had bronze shin armor on his legs
and a bronze javelin between his shoulders.
7 The staff of his spear was like a
weaver’s beam; and his spear’s head
weighed six hundred shekels of iron.§ His
shield bearer went before him.
8 He stood and cried to the armies of
Israel, and said to them, “Why have you
come out to set your battle in array? Am
I not a Philistine, and you servants to Saul?
Choose a man for yourselves, and let him
come down to me.
9 If he is able to fight with me and kill
me, then will we be your servants; but if I
prevail against him and kill him, then you
will be our servants and serve us.”
10 The Philistine said, “I defy the armies
of Israel today! Give me a man, that we
may fight together!”
11 When Saul and all Israel heard those
words of the Philistine, they were dismayed and greatly afraid.
12 Now David was the son of that
Ephrathite of Bethlehem Judah, whose
name was Jesse; andhehadeight sons. The
man was an elderly old man in the days of
Saul.
13 The three oldest sons ofJesse had gone
after Saul to the battle; and the names of his three sons who went to the battle
were Eliab the firstborn, and next to him
Abinadab, and the third Shammah.
14 David was the youngest; and the three
oldest followed Saul.
15 Now David went back and forth from
Saul to feed his father’s sheep at Bethlehem.
16 The Philistine came near morning and
evening, and presented himselfforty days.
17 Jesse said to David his son, “Now
take for your brothers an ephah† of this
parched grain and these ten loaves, and
carry them quickly to the camp to your
brothers;
18 and bring these ten cheeses to the captain of their thousand; and see how your
brothers are doing, and bring back news.”
19 Now Saul, and they, and all the men of
Israel were in the valley of Elah, fighting
with the Philistines.
20 David rose up early in the morning
and left the sheep with a keeper, and took
the provisions and went, as Jesse had commanded him. He came to the place of the
wagons as the army which was going out
to the fight shouted for the battle.
21 Israel and the Philistines put the battle
in array, army against army.
22 David left his baggage in the hand of
the keeper of the baggage and ran to the
army, and came and greeted his brothers.
23 As he talked with them, behold, the
champion, the Philistine of Gath, Goliath
by name, came up out of the ranks of the
Philistines, and said the same words; and
David heard them.
24 All the men of Israel, when they saw
the man, fled from him and were terrified.
25 The men of Israel said, “Have you seen
this man who has come up? He has surely
come up to defy Israel. The king will give
great riches to the man who kills him, and
will give him his daughter, and will make
his father’s house tax-free in Israel.”
26 David spoke to the men who stood
by him, saying, “What shall be done to
the man who kills this Philistine and takes
away the reproach from Israel? For who
is this uncircumcised Philistine, that he
should defy the armies of the living God?”
27 The people answered him in this way,
saying, “So shall it be done to the man who
kills him.”
28 Eliabhis oldestbrotherheard whenhe
spoke to themen; andEliab’s angerburned
against David, and he said, “Why have you
come down? With whom have you left
those few sheep in the wilderness? I know
your pride and the evil of your heart; for
you have come down that you might see
the battle.”
29 David said, “What have I now done? Is
there not a cause?”
30 He turned away from him toward another, and spoke like that again; and the
people answered him again the same way.
31 When the words were heard which
David spoke, they rehearsed them before
Saul; and he sent for him.
32 David said to Saul, “Let no man’s heart
fail because of him. Your servant will go
and fight with this Philistine.”
33 Saul said to David, “You are not able to
go against this Philistine to fight with him;
for you are but a youth, and he a man of
war from his youth.”
34 David said to Saul, “Your servant was
keepinghis father’s sheep; and whena lion
or a bear came and took a lamb out of the
flock,
35 I went out after him, struck him, and
rescued it out of his mouth. When he arose
against me, I caught him by his beard,
struck him, and killed him.
36 Your servant struck both the lion and
the bear. This uncircumcised Philistine
shall be as one of them, since he has defied
the armies of the living God.”
37 David said, “Yahweh, who delivered
me out of the paw of the lion and out of the
paw of the bear, will deliver me out of the
hand of this Philistine.”
Saul said to David, “Go! Yahweh will be
with you.”
38 Saul dressed David with his clothing.
He put a helmet of bronze on his head, and
he clad him with a coat of mail.
39 David strapped his sword on his clothing and he tried to move, for he had not
tested it. David said to Saul, “I can’t go with
these, for I have not tested them.” Then
David took them off.
40 He took his staff in his hand, and chose
for himself five smooth stones out of the
brook, and put them in the pouch of his
shepherd’s bag which he had. His sling
was in his hand; and he came near to the
Philistine.
41 The Philistine walked and came near
to David; and the man who bore the shield
went before him.
42 When the Philistine looked around
and saw David, he disdained him; for he
was but a youth, and ruddy, and had a
good looking face.
43 The Philistine said to David, “Am I a
dog, that you come to me with sticks?” The
Philistine cursed David by his gods.
44 The Philistine said to David, “Come to
me, and I will give your flesh to the birds of
the sky and to the animals of the field.”
45 Then David said to the Philistine, “You
come to me with a sword, with a spear,
and with a javelin; but I come to you in the
name of Yahweh of Armies, the God of the
armies of Israel, whom you have defied.
46 Today, Yahweh will deliver you into
my hand. I will strike you and take your
head from off you. I will give the dead
bodies of the army of the Philistines today
to the birds of the sky and to the wild
animals of the earth, that all the earth may
know that there is a God in Israel,
47 and that all this assembly may know
that Yahweh doesn’t save with sword and
spear; for the battle is Yahweh’s, and he
will give you into our hand.”
48 When the Philistine arose, and walked
and came near to meet David, David hurried and ran toward the army to meet the
Philistine.
49 David put his hand in his bag, took a
stone and slung it, and struck the Philistine
in his forehead. The stone sank into his
forehead, and he fell on his face to the
earth.
50 So David prevailed over the Philistine
with a sling and with a stone, and struck
the Philistine and killed him; butthere was
no sword in David’s hand.
51 Then David ran, stood over the Philistine, took his sword, drew it out of its
sheath, killed him, and cut off his head
with it. When the Philistines saw that their
champion was dead, they fled.
52 The men of Israel and of Judah arose
and shouted, and pursued the Philistines
as far as Gai and to the gates of Ekron. The
wounded of the Philistines fell down by
the way to Shaaraim, even to Gath and to
Ekron.
53 The children of Israel returned from
chasing after the Philistines, and they
plundered their camp.
54 David took the head of the Philistine
and brought it to Jerusalem, but he put his
armor in his tent.
55 When Saul saw David go out against
the Philistine, he said to Abner, the captain
of the army, “Abner, whose son is this
youth?” Abner said, “As your soul lives, O king, I
can’t tell.”
56 The king said, “Inquire whose son the
young man is!”
57 As David returned from the slaughter of the Philistine, Abner took him and
brought him before Saul with the head of
the Philistine in his hand.
58 Saul said to him, “Whose son are you,
you young man?”
David answered, “I am the son of your
servant Jesse the Bethlehemite.”