³⁴ But David persisted. “When I am taking care of my father’s sheep,” he said, “and a lion or a bear comes and grabs a lamb from the flock, ³⁵ I go after it with a club and take the lamb from its mouth. If it turns on me, I catch it by the jaw and club it to death. ³⁶ I have done this to both lions and bears, and I’ll do it to this heathen Philistine too, for he has defied the armies of the living God! ³⁷ The Lord who saved me from the claws and teeth of the lion and the bear will save me from this Philistine!”

Saul finally consented, “All right, go ahead,” he said, “and may the Lord be with you!”

⁴⁵ David shouted in reply, “You come to me with a sword and a spear, but I come to you in the name of the Lord of the armies of heaven and of Israel—the very God whom you have defied. ⁴⁶ Today the Lord will conquer you, and I will kill you and cut off your head; and then I will give the dead bodies of your men to the birds and wild animals, and the whole world will know that there is a God in Israel! ⁴⁷ And Israel will learn that the Lord does not depend on weapons to fulfill his plans—he works without regard to human means! He will give you to us!”

^48-49 As Goliath approached, David ran out to meet him and, reaching into his shepherd’s bag, took out a stone, hurled it from his sling, and hit the Philistine in the forehead. The stone sank in, and the man fell on his face to the ground. ^50-51 So David conquered the Philistine giant with a sling and a stone. Since he had no sword, he ran over and pulled Goliath’s from its sheath and killed him with it, and then cut off his head. When the Philistines saw that their champion was dead, they turned and ran.