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 There went out a champion out of
the camp of the Philistines, named Goliath, of Gath, whose height was six
cubits and a span. 5 He had a helmet of brass on his head, and he was clad
with a coat of mail; and the weight of the coat was five thousand shekels of
brass. 6 He had brass shin-armor on his legs, and a javelin of brass
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: and his
shield-bearer went before him. 8 He stood and cried to the armies of
Israel, and said to them, Why are you come out to set your battle in
array? am I not a Philistine, and you servants to Saul? choose you a man
for you, and let him come down to me. 9 If he be able to fight with me,
and kill me, then will we be your servants; but if I prevail against him, and
kill him, then shall you be our servants, and serve us. 10 The
Philistine said, I defy the armies of Israel this day; 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; and he had
eight sons: and the man was an old man in the days of Saul, stricken in
years among men. 13 The three eldest 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.
14 David was the youngest; and the three eldest followed Saul. 15 Now
David went back and forth from Saul to feed his father’s sheep at Bethlehem.
16 The Philistine drew near morning and evening, and presented himself
forty days. 17 Jesse said to David his son, Take now 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 look how your brothers fare, and take
their pledge. 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, and went, as
Jesse had commanded him; and he came to the place of the wagons, as the host
which was going forth 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,
there came up the champion, the Philistine of Gath, Goliath by name, out of
the ranks of the Philistines, and spoke according to the same words: and
David heard them. 24 All the men of Israel, when they saw the man, fled
from him, and were sore afraid. 25 The men of Israel said, Have you
seen this man who is come up? surely to defy Israel is he come up: and it
shall be, that the man who kills him, the king will enrich him with great
riches, and will give him his daughter, and make his father’s house 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 after this manner,
saying, So shall it be done to the man who kills him. 28 Eliab his eldest
brother heard when he spoke to the men; and Eliab’s anger was kindled against
David, and he said, Why are you come down? and with whom have you left those
few sheep in the wilderness? I know your pride, and the naughtiness 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 after the same manner: and the people answered
him again after the former manner. 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 keeping his father’s sheep; and when there came a lion, or a
bear, and took a lamb out of the flock, 35 I went out after him, and
struck him, and delivered it out of his mouth; and when he arose against me,
I caught him by his beard, and struck him, and killed him. 36 Your servant
struck both the lion and the bear: and this uncircumcised Philistine shall be
as one of them, seeing 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, he will deliver me out of the hand of this
Philistine. Saul said to David, Go, and Yahweh shall be with you. 38 Saul
clad David with his clothing, and he put a helmet of brass on his head, and
he clad him with a coat of mail. 39 David girded his sword on his
clothing, and he tried to go; for he had not proved it. David said to Saul, I
can’t go with these; for I have not proved them. David put them off him.
40 He took his staff in his hand, and chose him five smooth stones out of
the brook, and put them in the shepherd’s bag which he had, even in his
wallet; and his sling was in his hand: and he drew near to the Philistine.
41 The Philistine came on and drew near to David; and the man who bore the
shield went before him. 42 When the Philistine looked about, and saw
David, he disdained him; for he was but a youth, and ruddy, and withal of a
fair 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 said David to the
Philistine, You come to me with a sword, and with a spear, and with a
javelin: but I come to you in the name of Yahweh of hosts, the God of the
armies of Israel, whom you have defied. 46 This day will Yahweh deliver
you into my hand; and I will strike you, and take your head from off you; and
I will give the dead bodies of the host of the Philistines this day 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 It happened, when the
Philistine arose, and came and drew near to meet David, that David hurried,
and ran toward the army to meet the Philistine. 49 David put his hand in
his bag, and took there a stone, and slang it, and struck the Philistine in
his forehead; and 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; but there was no
sword in the hand of David. 51 Then David ran, and stood over the
Philistine, and took his sword, and drew it out of the sheath of it, and
killed him, and cut off his head therewith. 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, until you come to 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 forth against the
Philistine, he said to Abner, the captain of the host, 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.
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