1 Kings 17
17
1Now the Philistines, gathering together their troops to battle, assembled at Socho of Juda, and camped between Socho and Azeca in the borders of Dommim.
2And Saul and the children of Israel being gathered together came to the valley of Terebinth: and they set the army in array to fight against the Philistines.
3And the Philistines stood on a mountain on the one side, and Israel stood on a mountain on the other side: and there was a valley between them.
4And there went out a man baseborn from the camp of the Philistines named Goliath, of Geth, whose height was six cubits and a span.
5And he had a helmet of brass upon his head; and he was clothed with a coat of mail with scales. And the weight of his coat of mail was five thousand sicles of brass.
6And he had greaves of brass on his legs; and a buckler of brass covered his shoulders.
7And the staff of his spear was like a weaver's beam, and the head of his spear weighed six hundred sicles of iron. And his armourbearer went before him.
8And standing he cried out to the bands of Israel, and said to them: Why are you come out prepared to fight? Am not I a Philistine, and you the servants of Saul? Choose out a man of you; and let him come down and fight hand to hand.
9If he be able to fight with me, and kill me, we will be servants to you: but if I prevail against him, and kill him, you shall be servants, and shall serve us.
10And the Philistine said: I have defied the bands of Israel this day. Give me a man, and let him fight with me hand to hand.
11And Saul and all the Israelites hearing these words of the Philistine were dismayed, and greatly afraid.
12Now, David was the son of that Ephrathite of Bethlehem Juda before mentioned, whose name was Isai, who had eight sons, and was an old man in the days of Saul, and of great age among men.
13And his three eldest sons followed Saul to the battle: and the names of his three sons that went to the battle, were Eliab the firstborn, and the second Abinadab, and the third Samma.
14But David was the youngest. So the three eldest having followed Saul,
15David went, and returned from Saul, to feed his father's flock at Bethlehem.
16Now the Philistine came out morning and evening, and presented himself forty days.
17And Isai said to David his son: Take for thy brethren an ephi of frumenty, and these ten loaves; and run to the camp to thy brethren.
18And carry these ten little cheeses to the tribune. And go see thy brethren, if they are well: and learn with whom they are placed.
19But Saul, and they, and all the children of Israel were in the valley of Terebinth fighting against the Philistines.
20David therefore arose in the morning, and gave the charge of the flock to the keeper: and went away loaded as Isai had commanded him. And he came to the place of Magala, and to the army, which was going out to fight, and shouted for the battle.
21For Israel had put themselves in array: and the Philistines who stood against them were prepared.
22And David leaving the vessels which he had brought, under the care of the keeper of the baggage, ran to the place of the battle and asked if all things went well with his brethren.
23And as he talked with them that baseborn man whose name was Goliath, the Philistine, of Geth, shewed himself coming up from the camp of the Philistines. And he spoke according to the same words, and David heard them.
24And all the Israelites, when they saw the man, fled from his face, fearing him exceedingly.
25And some one of Israel said: Have you seen this man that is come up, for he is come up to defy Israel? And the man that shall slay him, the king will enrich with great riches, and will give him his daughter, and will make his father's house free from tribute in Israel.
26And David spoke to the men that stood by him, saying: What shall be given to the man that shall kill this Philistine, and shall take away the reproach from Israel? For who is this uncircumcised Philistine, that he should defy the armies of the living God?
27And the people answered him the same words saying: These things shall be given to the man that shall slay him.
28Now, when Eliab his eldest brother heard this, when he was speaking with others, he was angry with David, and said: Why camest thou hither? And why didst thou leave those few sheep in the desert? I know thy pride, and the wickedness of thy heart: that thou art come down to see the battle.
29And David said: What have I done? Is there not cause to speak?
30And he turned a little aside from him to another: and said the same word. And the people answered him as before.
31And the words which David spoke were heard, and were rehearsed before Saul.
32And when he was brought to him, he said to him: Let not any man's heart be dismayed in him. I thy servant will go, and will fight against the Philistine.
33And Saul said to David: Thou art not able to withstand this Philistine, nor to fight against him: for thou art but a boy, but he is a warrior from his youth.
34And David said to Saul: Thy servant kept his father's sheep, and there came a lion, or a bear, and took a ram out of the midst of the flock.
35And I pursued after them, and struck them, and delivered it out of their mouth. And they rose up against me; and I caught them by the throat; and I strangled and killed them.
36For I thy servant have killed both a lion and a bear: and this uncircumcised Philistine shall be also as one of them. I will go now, and take away the reproach of the people. For who is this uncircumcised Philistine, who hath dared to curse the army of the living God?
37And David said: The Lord who delivered me out of the paw of the lion, and out of the paw of the bear, he will deliver me out of the hand of this Philistine. And Saul said to David: Go, and the Lord be with thee.
38And Saul clothed David with his garments, and put a helmet of brass upon his head, and armed him with a coat of mail.
39And David, having girded his sword upon his armour, began to try if he could walk in armour: for he was not accustomed to it. And David said to Saul: I cannot go thus, for I am not used to it. And he laid them off,
40And he took his staff, which he had always in his hands: and chose him five smooth stones out of the brook, and put them into the shepherd's scrip, which he had with him. And he took a sling in his hand, and went forth against the Philistine.
41And the Philistine came on, and drew nigh against David, and his armourbearer before him.
42And when the Philistine looked, and beheld David, he despised him. For he was a young man, ruddy, and of a comely countenance.
43And the Philistine said to David: Am I a dog, that thou comest to me with a staff? And the Philistine cursed David by his gods.
44And he said to David: Come to me, and I will give thy flesh to the birds of the air, and to the beasts of the earth.
45And David said to the Philistine: Thou comest to me with a sword, and with a spear, and with a shield: but I come to thee in the name of the Lord of hosts, the God of the armies of Israel, which thou hast defied.
46This day, and the Lord will deliver thee into my hand, and I will slay thee, and take away thy head from thee. And I will give the carcasses of the army of the Philistines this day to the birds of the air, and to the beasts of the earth: that all the earth may know that there is a God in Israel.
47And all this assembly shall know that the Lord saveth not with sword and spear: for it is his battle; and he will deliver you into our hands.
48And when the Philistine arose and was coming, and drew nigh to meet David, David made haste, and ran to the fight to meet the Philistine.
49And he put his hand into his scrip, and took a stone, and cast it with the sling, and fetching it about struck the Philistine in the forehead. And the stone was fixed in his forehead: and he fell on his face upon the earth.
50And David prevailed over the Philistine, with a sling and a stone: and he struck, and slew the Philistine. And as David had no sword in his hand,
51He ran, and stood over the Philistine, and took his sword, and drew it out of the sheath, and slew him, and cut off his head. And the Philistines, seeing that their champion was dead, fled away.
52And the men of Israel and Juda rising up shouted, and pursued after the Philistines till they came to the valley and to the gates of Accaron. And there fell many wounded of the Philistines in the way of Saraim, and as far as Geth, and as far as Accaron.
53And the children of Israel returning, after they had pursued the Philistines, fell upon their camp.
54And David taking the head of the Philistine brought it to Jerusalem: but his armour he put in his tent.
55Now at the time that Saul saw David going out against the Philistines, he said to Abner the captain of the army: Of what family is this young man descended, Abner? And Abner said: As thy soul liveth, O king, I know not.
56And the king said: Inquire thou, whose son this man is.
57And when David was returned, after the Philistine was slain, Abner took him, and brought him in before Saul, with the head of the Philistine in his hand.
58And Saul said to him: Young man, of what family art thou? And David said: I am the son of thy servant Isai the Bethlehemite.
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1 Kings 17: DRC1752
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An historical text maintained by the British and Foreign Bible Society.
1 Samuel 17
17
David and Goliath
1The Philistines gathered their army together for war. They came to Sokoh in Judah. They set up camp at Ephes Dammim. It was between Sokoh and Azekah. 2Saul and the army of Israel gathered together. They camped in the Valley of Elah. They lined up their men to fight against the Philistines. 3The Philistine army was camped on one hill. Israel’s army was on another. The valley was between them.
4A mighty hero named Goliath came out of the Philistine camp. He was from Gath. He was more than nine feet tall. 5He had a bronze helmet on his head. He wore bronze armor that weighed 125 pounds. 6On his legs he wore bronze guards. He carried a bronze javelin on his back. 7His spear was as big as a weaver’s rod. Its iron point weighed 15 pounds. The man who carried his shield walked along in front of him.
8Goliath stood there and shouted to the soldiers of Israel. He said, “Why do you come out and line up for battle? I’m a Philistine. You are servants of Saul. Choose one of your men. Have him come down and face me. 9If he’s able to fight and kill me, we’ll become your slaves. But if I win and kill him, you will become our slaves and serve us.” 10Goliath continued, “This day I dare the soldiers of Israel to send a man down to fight against me.” 11Saul and the whole army of Israel heard what the Philistine said. They were terrified.
12David was the son of an Ephrathite whose name was Jesse. Jesse was from Bethlehem in Judah and had eight sons. When Saul was king, Jesse was already very old. 13Jesse’s three oldest sons had followed Saul into battle. The oldest son was Eliab. The second was Abinadab. The third was Shammah. 14David was the youngest. The three oldest sons followed Saul. 15But David went back and forth from Saul’s camp to Bethlehem. He went to Bethlehem to take care of his father’s sheep.
16Every morning and evening Goliath came forward and stood there. He did it for 40 days.
17Jesse said to his son David, “Get at least half a bushel of grain that has been cooked. Also get ten loaves of bread. Take all of it to your brothers. Hurry to their camp. 18Take along these ten chunks of cheese to the commander of their military group. Find out how your brothers are doing. Bring me back some word about them. 19They are with Saul and all the men of Israel. They are in the Valley of Elah. They are fighting against the Philistines.”
20Early in the morning David left his father’s flock in the care of a shepherd. David loaded up the food and started out, just as Jesse had directed. David reached the camp as the army was going out to its battle positions. The soldiers were shouting the war cry. 21The Israelites and the Philistines were lining up their armies for battle. The armies were facing each other. 22David left what he had brought with the man who took care of the supplies. He ran to the battle lines and asked his brothers how they were. 23As David was talking with them, Goliath stepped forward from his line. Goliath was a mighty Philistine hero from Gath. He again dared someone to fight him, and David heard it. 24Whenever Israel’s army saw Goliath, all of them ran away from him. That’s because they were so afraid.
25The Israelites had been saying, “Just look at how this man keeps daring Israel to fight him! The king will make the man who kills Goliath very wealthy. The king will also give his own daughter to be that man’s wife. The king won’t require anyone in the man’s family to pay any taxes in Israel.”
26David spoke to the men standing near him. He asked them, “What will be done for the man who kills this Philistine? Goliath is bringing shame on Israel. What will be done for the one who removes it? This Philistine isn’t even circumcised. He dares the armies of the living God to fight him. Who does he think he is?”
27The men told David what Israel’s soldiers had been saying. The men told him what would be done for the man who killed Goliath.
28David’s oldest brother Eliab heard him speaking with the men. So Eliab became very angry with him. Eliab asked David, “Why have you come down here? Who is taking care of those few sheep in the desert for you? I know how proud you are. I know how evil your heart is. The only reason you came down here was to watch the battle.”
29“What have I done now?” said David. “Can’t I even speak?” 30Then he turned away to speak to some other men. He asked them the same question he had asked before. And they gave him the same answer. 31Someone heard what David said and reported it to Saul. So Saul sent for David.
32David said to Saul, “Don’t let anyone lose hope because of that Philistine. I’ll go out and fight him.”
33Saul replied, “You aren’t able to go out there and fight that Philistine. You are too young. He’s been a warrior ever since he was a boy.”
34But David said to Saul, “I’ve been taking care of my father’s sheep. Sometimes a lion or a bear would come and carry off a sheep from the flock. 35Then I would go after it and hit it. I would save the sheep it was carrying in its mouth. If it turned around to attack me, I would grab its hair. I would strike it down and kill it. 36In fact, I’ve killed both a lion and a bear. I’ll do the same thing to this Philistine. He isn’t even circumcised. He has dared the armies of the living God to fight him. 37The Lord saved me from the paw of the lion. He saved me from the paw of the bear. And he’ll save me from the powerful hand of this Philistine too.”
Saul said to David, “Go. And may the Lord be with you.”
38Then Saul dressed David in his own military clothes. He put a coat of armor on him. He put a bronze helmet on his head. 39David put on Saul’s sword over his clothes. He walked around for a while in all that armor because he wasn’t used to it.
“I can’t go out there in all this armor,” he said to Saul. “I’m not used to it.” So he took it off. 40Then David picked up his wooden staff. He went down to a stream and chose five smooth stones. He put them in the pocket of his shepherd’s bag. Then he took his sling in his hand and approached Goliath.
41At that same time, the Philistine kept coming closer to David. The man carrying Goliath’s shield walked along in front of him. 42Goliath looked David over. He saw how young he was. He also saw how healthy and handsome he was. And he hated him. 43He said to David, “Why are you coming at me with sticks? Do you think I’m only a dog?” The Philistine cursed David in the name of his gods. 44“Come over here,” he said. “I’ll feed your body to the birds and wild animals!”
45David said to Goliath, “You are coming to fight against me with a sword, a spear and a javelin. But I’m coming against you in the name of the Lord who rules over all. He is the God of the armies of Israel. He’s the one you have dared to fight against. 46This day the Lord will give me the victory over you. I’ll strike you down. I’ll cut your head off. This day I’ll feed the bodies of the Philistine army to the birds and wild animals. Then the whole world will know there is a God in Israel. 47The Lord doesn’t rescue people by using a sword or a spear. And everyone here will know it. The battle belongs to the Lord. He will hand all of you over to us.”
48As the Philistine moved closer to attack him, David ran quickly to the battle line to meet him. 49He reached into his bag. He took out a stone. He put it in his sling. He slung it at Goliath. The stone hit him on the forehead and sank into it. He fell to the ground on his face.
50So David won the fight against Goliath with a sling and a stone. He struck down the Philistine and killed him. He did it without even using a sword.
51David ran and stood over him. He picked up Goliath’s sword and cut off his head with it.
The Philistines saw that their hero was dead. So they turned around and ran away. 52Then the men of Israel and Judah shouted and rushed forward. They chased the Philistines to the entrance of Gath. They chased them to the gates of Ekron. Bodies of dead Philistines were scattered all along the road to Gath and Ekron. That’s the road that leads to Shaaraim. 53Israel’s army returned from chasing the Philistines. They had taken everything from the Philistine camp.
54David picked up Goliath’s head. He brought it to Jerusalem. He put Goliath’s weapons in his own tent.
55Saul had been watching David as he went out to meet the Philistine. He spoke to Abner, the commander of the army. Saul said to him, “Abner, whose son is that young man?”
Abner replied, “Your Majesty, I don’t know. And that’s just as sure as you are alive.”
56The king said, “Find out whose son that young man is.”
57After David killed Goliath, he returned to the camp. Then Abner brought him to Saul. David was still carrying Goliath’s head.
58“Young man, whose son are you?” Saul asked him.
David said, “I’m the son of Jesse from Bethlehem.”
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