1 Samuel 17
17
David Slays Goliath with Sling and Stone
1Now the Philistines assembled their armies to battle. They were gathered at Socoh of Judah, and camped in Ephes-dammim, between Socoh and Azekah.
2Saul and the men of Israel gathered and camped in the valley of Elah, then lined up in battle array against the Philistines.
3The Philistines were standing on the mountain on one side, and Israel was standing on the mountain on the other side, with the valley between them.
4Then a champion stepped out from the camp of the Philistines, named Goliath, from Gath, whose height was six cubits and a span.
5He had a bronze helmet on his head and a breastplate of scale armor; the weight of the bronze breastplate was 5,000 shekels.
6He also had bronze shin-guards on his legs and a bronze javelin slung between his shoulders.
7The shaft of his spear was like a weaver’s beam, and the head of his spear weighed 600 shekels of iron; and his shield-bearer was marching ahead of him.
8Then he stood and shouted out to the ranks of Israel saying to them, “Why come out to line up in battle array? Am I not the Philistine and aren’t you Saul’s servants? Choose for yourselves a man and let him come down to me.
9If he is able to fight with me and kill me, then will we become your slaves; but if I prevail against him and kill him, then will you become our slaves and serve us.”
10The Philistine added, “Today I defy the ranks of Israel—give me a man, so we may fight together!”
11But when Saul and all Israel heard these words of the Philistine, they were dismayed and very terrified.
12Now David was son of a certain Ephrathite man of Beth-lehem of Judah, whose name was Jesse. He had eight sons and during the days of Saul the man was old, advanced in years among men.
13Now the three oldest sons of Jesse had already left and gone after Saul to the battle; the names of his three sons who went to the battle were Eliab the firstborn, and second to him Abinadab, and the third Shammah.
14David was the youngest. So the three oldest followed Saul.
15Now David would go back and forth from Saul to tending his father’s sheep by Beth-lehem.
16For forty days that Philistine would come out every morning and evening to present himself.
17Then Jesse said to his son David, “Take now, for your brothers, an ephah of this roasted grain and these ten loaves, and carry them quickly to the camp to your brothers.
18Also take these ten slices of cheese to the captain of their thousand—and check out the welfare of your brothers and bring back some token from them.
19They are with Saul and all the men of Israel in the valley of Elah, fighting with the Philistines.”
20So David rose up early in the morning, left the flock with a keeper, took the provisions and went as Jesse had commanded him. When he reached the camp, the army was going out to the battle line shouting the war cry.
21Israel and the Philistines drew up their battle lines, army against army.
22Then David left his baggage in the care of the baggage keeper, and ran to the battle line and entered to check out his brothers’ welfare.
23But as he was talking with them, behold the champion, the Philistine from Gath named Goliath, was coming up from the ranks of the Philistines, and he spoke these same words; and David heard them.
24Upon seeing him, all the men of Israel fled from him in great fear.
25All the men of Israel were saying, “Have you seen this man who keeps coming up? Surely he is coming up to defy Israel! The man who kills him, the king will enrich him with great riches, give him his daughter in marriage and make his father’s house tax-free in Israel!”
26Then David asked the men who were standing by him saying, “What will be done for the man who kills this Philistine and takes away the reproach from Israel? For who is this uncircumcised Philistine that he should defy the ranks of the living God?”
27The people answered him with the same speech saying, “Thus it will be done for the man who strikes him down.”
28Now when Eliab his oldest brother heard him speaking to the men, Eliab’s anger was kindled against David. “Why have you come down here?” he asked. “So with whom did you leave those few sheep in the wilderness? I know your insolence and the wickedness of your heart! For you’ve come down here to watch the battle.”
29“What have I done now?” David said. “It was only a question!”
30Then he turned away from him toward someone else and asked the same question. So the people gave him the same answer as before.
31The words that David said were overheard and reported before Saul. So he was taken to him.
32David said to Saul, “Let no one’s heart fail because of him. Your servant will go and fight with this Philistine.”
33Then Saul said to David, “You can’t go fight this Philistine—for you’re just a youth, and he’s been a warrior since his youth.”
34But David said to Saul, “Your servant has been tending his father’s sheep. When a lion or a bear came and carried off a lamb out of the flock,
35I went out after it, struck it down, and rescued the lamb out of its mouth. If it rose up against me, I grabbed him by its fur, struck it and killed it.
36Your servant has killed both the lion and the bear, so this uncircumcised Philistine will become like one of them—since he has defied the ranks of the living God.”
37Then David said, “Adonai, who has delivered me from the paw of the lion and from the paw of the bear, will deliver me from the hand of this Philistine.” “Go!” said Saul to David, “and may Adonai be with you.”
38Then Saul clothed David with his own garb, put a bronze helmet on his head, and clothed him in armor.
39David strapped his sword on his garment and tried to walk, but he was not used to it. So David said to Saul, “I cannot walk in these, for I am not used to them.” So David took them off.
40Then he took his staff in his hand, chose five smooth stones from the valley, put them in the pocket of the shepherd’s bag that he had, and with his sling in his hand, he approached the Philistine.
41Meanwhile, the Philistine drew nearer and approached David, with his shield-bearer in front of him.
42Now when the Philistine looked and saw David, he disdained him, for he was just a ruddy boy with a handsome appearance.
43Then the Philistine said to David, “Am I a dog, that you come to me with sticks?” Then the Philistine cursed David by his gods.
44The Philistine said to David, “Come to me, so I may give your flesh to the birds of the sky and the beasts of the field.”
45Then David said to the Philistine, “You are coming to me with a sword, a spear and a javelin, but I am coming to you in the Name of Adonai-Tzva’ot, God of the armies of Israel, whom you have defied.
46This very day Adonai will deliver you into my hand, and I will strike you down and take your head off you, and I will give the carcasses of the Philistines’ camp today to the birds of the sky and the wild beasts of the earth. Then all the earth will know that there is a God in Israel,
47and so all this assembly will know that Adonai delivers not with sword and spear—for the battle belongs to Adonai—and He will give you into our hands.”
48Then when the Philistine rose and began to advance, drawing near to meet David, David ran quickly toward the battle line to meet the Philistine.
49David put his hand in his bag, took from it a stone and slung it, striking the Philistine on his forehead. The stone sank into his forehead, so that he fell on his face to the ground.
50So David prevailed over the Philistine with a sling and a stone, struck the Philistine down and killed him. Since there was no sword in David’s hand,
51David ran, stood over the Philistine, picked up his sword, drew it from its sheath, slew him and cut off his head with it. When the Philistines saw that their champion was dead, they fled.
52Then the men of Israel and Judah rose up, shouted and pursued the Philistines all the way to the valley up to the gates of Ekron. The slain Philistines fell down along the way to Shaaraim, even up to Gath and Ekron.
53When Bnei-Yisrael returned from chasing the Philistines, they plundered their camp.
54David took the head of the Philistine and brought it to Jerusalem, but he put his armor in his own tent.
55Now when Saul saw David going out against the Philistine, he asked Abner, the commander of the army, “Abner, whose son is this boy?” Abner said, “As your soul lives, your majesty, I don’t know.”
56So the king said, “Then, find out whose son this young man is.”
57So when David returned from killing the Philistine, Abner took him and brought him before Saul with the head of the Philistine in his hand.
58“Whose son are you, young man?” Saul said to him. David answered, “I am the son of your servant Jesse the Beth-lehemite.”
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1 Samuel 17: TLV
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Copyright © 2014 - Messianic Jewish Family Bible Society
1 Samuel 17
17
1Now 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. 2Saul and the men of Israel were gathered together, and encamped in the valley of Elah, and set the battle in array against the Philistines. 3The 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. 4A champion out of the camp of the Philistines named Goliath of Gath, whose height was six cubits and a span#17:4 A cubit is the length from the tip of the middle finger to the elbow on a man’s arm, or about 18 inches or 46 centimetres. A span is the length from the tip of a man’s thumb to the tip of his little finger when his hand is stretched out (about half a cubit, or 9 inches, or 22.8 cm.) Therefore, Goliath was about 9 feet and 9 inches or 2.97 metres tall. went out. 5He 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#17:5 A shekel is about 10 grams or about 0.35 ounces, so 5000 shekels is about 50 kilograms or 110 pounds. of bronze. 6He had bronze shin armour on his legs and a bronze javelin between his shoulders. 7The staff of his spear was like a weaver’s beam; and his spear’s head weighed six hundred shekels of iron.#17:7 A shekel is about 10 grams or about 0.35 ounces, so 600 shekels is about 6 kilograms or about 13 pounds. His shield bearer went before him. 8He 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. 9If 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.” 10The 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. 12Now David was the son of that Ephrathite of Bethlehem Judah, whose name was Jesse; and he had eight sons. The man was an elderly old man in the days of Saul. 13The three oldest sons of Jesse 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. 14David was the youngest; and the three oldest followed Saul. 15Now 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 himself forty days.
17 Jesse said to David his son, “Now take for your brothers an efah#17:17 1 efah is about 22 litres or about 2/3 of a bushel of this parched grain and these ten loaves, and carry them quickly to the camp to your brothers; 18and bring these ten cheeses to the captain of their thousand; and see how your brothers are doing, and bring back news.” 19Now 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. 21Israel and the Philistines put the battle in array, army against army. 22David left his baggage in the hand of the keeper of the baggage and ran to the army, and came and greeted his brothers. 23As 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. 24All the men of Israel, when they saw the man, fled from him and were terrified. 25The 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.”
28Eliab his oldest brother heard when he spoke to the men; and Eliab’s anger burnt 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?” 30He turned away from him towards another, and spoke like that again; and the people answered him again the same way. 31When the words were heard which David spoke, they rehearsed them before Saul; and he sent for him. 32David 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 keeping his father’s sheep; and when a lion or a bear came and took a lamb out of the flock, 35I 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. 36Your 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.” 37David said, “The LORD, 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! The LORD 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. 39David 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. 41The Philistine walked and came near to David; and the man who bore the shield went before him. 42When the Philistine looked around and saw David, he disdained him; for he was but a youth, and ruddy, and had a good looking face. 43The Philistine said to David, “Am I a dog, that you come to me with sticks?” The Philistine cursed David by his gods. 44The 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 the LORD of Hosts, the God of the armies of Israel, whom you have defied. 46Today, the LORD 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, 47and that all this assembly may know that the LORD doesn’t save with sword and spear; for the battle is the LORD’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 towards the army to meet the Philistine. 49David 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. 50So David prevailed over the Philistine with a sling and with a stone, and struck the Philistine and killed him; but there was no sword in David’s hand. 51Then 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. 52The 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. 53The children of Israel returned from chasing after the Philistines, and they plundered their camp. 54David took the head of the Philistine and brought it to Jerusalem, but he put his armour in his tent. 55When 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, “Enquire 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. 58Saul said to him, “Whose son are you, you young man?”
David answered, “I am the son of your servant Jesse the Bethlehemite.”
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