1 Samuel 17
Christian Standard Bible
David versus Goliath
17 The Philistines(A) gathered their forces for war at Socoh in Judah and camped between Socoh(B) and Azekah(C) in Ephes-dammim.(D) 2 Saul and the men of Israel gathered and camped in the Valley of Elah;(E) then they lined up in battle formation to face the Philistines.
3 The Philistines were standing on one hill, and the Israelites were standing on another hill with a ravine between them. 4 Then a champion named Goliath, from Gath,(F) came out from the Philistine camp. He was nine feet, nine inches[a][b] tall 5 and wore a bronze helmet and bronze scale armor that weighed one hundred twenty-five pounds.[c] 6 There was bronze armor on his shins, and a bronze javelin(G) was slung between his shoulders. 7 His spear shaft(H) was like a weaver’s beam, and the iron point of his spear weighed fifteen pounds.[d] In addition, a shield-bearer(I) was walking in front of him.
8 He stood and shouted to the Israelite battle formations, “Why do you come out to line up in battle formation?” He asked them, “Am I not a Philistine and are you not servants of Saul?(J) Choose one of your men and have him come down against me. 9 If he wins in a fight against me and kills me, we will be your servants. But if I win against him and kill him, then you will be our servants and serve us.”(K) 10 Then the Philistine said, “I defy the ranks of Israel today.(L) Send me a man so we can fight each other!” 11 When Saul and all Israel heard these words from the Philistine, they lost their courage and were terrified.
12 Now David was the son of the Ephrathite(M) from Bethlehem of Judah named Jesse. Jesse had eight sons(N) and during Saul’s reign was already an old man. 13 Jesse’s three oldest sons had followed Saul to the war, and their names(O) were Eliab, the firstborn, Abinadab, the next, and Shammah, the third, 14 and David was the youngest.(P) The three oldest had followed Saul, 15 but David kept going back and forth from Saul(Q) to tend his father’s flock in Bethlehem.
16 Every morning and evening for forty days the Philistine came forward and took his stand. 17 One day Jesse had told his son David, “Take this half-bushel[e] of roasted grain along with these ten loaves of bread(R) for your brothers and hurry to their camp. 18 Also take these ten portions of cheese to the field commander.[f] Check on the well-being of your brothers(S) and bring a confirmation from them. 19 They are with Saul and all the men of Israel in the Valley of Elah fighting with the Philistines.”
20 So David got up early in the morning, left the flock with someone to keep it, loaded up, and set out as Jesse had charged him.
He arrived at the perimeter of the camp(T) as the army was marching out to its battle formation shouting their battle cry. 21 Israel and the Philistines lined up in battle formation facing each other. 22 David left his supplies in the care of the quartermaster(U) and ran to the battle line. When he arrived, he asked his brothers how they were. 23 While he was speaking with them, suddenly the champion named Goliath, the Philistine from Gath, came forward from the Philistine battle line and shouted his usual words,(V) which David heard. 24 When all the Israelite men saw Goliath, they retreated from him terrified.
25 Previously, an Israelite man had declared, “Do you see this man who keeps coming out? He comes to defy Israel. The king will make the man who kills him very rich and will give him his daughter.(W) The king will also make the family of that man’s father exempt from paying taxes in Israel.”(X)
26 David spoke to the men who were standing with him: “What will be done for the man who kills that Philistine and removes this disgrace from Israel?(Y) Just who is this uncircumcised Philistine(Z) that he should defy the armies(AA) of the living God?” (AB)
27 The troops told him about the offer, concluding, “That is what will be done for the man who kills him.”(AC)
28 David’s oldest brother Eliab listened as he spoke to the men, and he became angry with him.(AD) “Why did you come down here?” he asked. “Who did you leave those few sheep with in the wilderness? I know your arrogance and your evil heart—you came down to see the battle!”
29 “What have I done now?” protested David. “It was just a question.” 30 Then he turned from those beside him to others in front of him and asked about the offer. The people gave him the same answer as before.(AE)
31 What David said was overheard and reported to Saul, so he had David brought to him. 32 David said to Saul, “Don’t let anyone be discouraged by him;(AF) your servant will go(AG) and fight this Philistine!”
33 But Saul replied, “You can’t go fight this Philistine. You’re just a youth, and he’s been a warrior since he was young.”
34 David answered Saul, “Your servant has been tending his father’s sheep. Whenever a lion or a bear came and carried off a lamb from the flock, 35 I went after it, struck it down, and rescued the lamb from its mouth.(AH) If it reared up against me, I would grab it by its fur,[g] strike it down, and kill it. 36 Your servant has killed lions and bears; this uncircumcised Philistine will be like one of them, for he has defied the armies of the living God.” 37 Then David said, “The Lord who rescued me from the paw of the lion and the paw of the bear will rescue me from the hand of this Philistine.”(AI)
Saul said to David, “Go, and may the Lord be with you.”(AJ)
38 Then Saul had his own military clothes put on David. He put a bronze helmet on David’s head and had him put on armor. 39 David strapped his sword on over the military clothes and tried to walk, but he was not used to them. “I can’t walk in these,” David said to Saul, “I’m not used to them.” So David took them off. 40 Instead, he took his staff in his hand(AK) and chose five smooth stones from the wadi and put them in the pouch, in his shepherd’s bag. Then, with his sling in his hand, he approached the Philistine.
41 The Philistine came closer and closer to David, with the shield-bearer in front of him. 42 When the Philistine looked and saw David, he despised him(AL) because he was just a youth, healthy[h](AM) and handsome. 43 He said to David, “Am I a dog(AN) that you come against me with sticks?” [i] Then he cursed David by his gods.(AO) 44 “Come here,” the Philistine called to David, “and I’ll give your flesh to the birds of the sky and the wild beasts!” (AP)
45 David said to the Philistine, “You come against me with a sword, spear, and javelin, but I come against you in the name of the Lord of Armies, the God of the ranks of Israel—you have defied him.(AQ) 46 Today, the Lord will hand you over to me. Today, I’ll strike you down, remove your head, and give the corpses[j] of the Philistine camp to the birds of the sky and the wild creatures of the earth. Then all the world will know that Israel has a God,(AR) 47 and this whole assembly will know that it is not by sword or by spear that the Lord saves,(AS) for the battle is the Lord’s.(AT) He will hand you over to us.”
48 When the Philistine started forward to attack him, David ran quickly to the battle line to meet the Philistine.(AU) 49 David put his hand in the bag, took out a stone, slung it, and hit the Philistine on his forehead. The stone sank into his forehead, and he fell facedown to the ground. 50 David defeated the Philistine with a sling and a stone. David overpowered the Philistine and killed him without having a sword. 51 David ran and stood over him. He grabbed the Philistine’s sword,(AV) pulled it from its sheath, and used it to kill him. Then he cut off his head. When the Philistines saw that their hero was dead, they fled.(AW) 52 The men of Israel and Judah rallied, shouting their battle cry, and chased the Philistines to the entrance of the valley and to the gates of Ekron.[k](AX) Philistine bodies were strewn all along the Shaaraim road(AY) to Gath and Ekron.
53 When the Israelites returned from the pursuit of the Philistines, they plundered their camps. 54 David took Goliath’s[l] head and brought it to Jerusalem, but he put Goliath’s weapons in his own tent.
55 [m] When Saul had seen David going out to confront the Philistine, he asked Abner the commander of the army, “Whose son is this youth, Abner?” (AZ)
“Your Majesty, as surely as you live, I don’t know,” Abner replied.
56 The king said, “Find out whose son this young man is!”
57 When David returned from killing the Philistine, Abner took him and brought him before Saul with the Philistine’s head still in his hand.(BA) 58 Saul said to him, “Whose son are you, young man?”
“The son of your servant Jesse of Bethlehem,”(BB) David answered.
Footnotes
- 17:4 DSS, LXX read four cubits and a span; i.e., six and a half feet
- 17:4 Lit was six cubits and a span
- 17:5 Lit 5,000 shekels
- 17:7 Lit 600 shekels
- 17:17 Lit this ephah
- 17:18 Lit the leader of 1,000
- 17:35 LXX reads throat; lit beard
- 17:42 Or ruddy
- 17:43 Some LXX mss add and stones?” And David said, “No! Worse than a dog!”
- 17:46 LXX reads give your limbs and the limbs
- 17:52 LXX reads Ashkelon
- 17:54 Lit the Philistine’s
- 17:55 LXX omits 1Sm 17:55–18:5
1 Samuel 17
English Standard Version
David and Goliath
17 Now the Philistines (A)gathered their armies for battle. And they were gathered at (B)Socoh, which belongs to Judah, and encamped between Socoh and (C)Azekah, in (D)Ephes-dammim. 2 And Saul and the men of Israel were gathered, and encamped in (E)the Valley of Elah, and drew up in line of battle against the Philistines. 3 And the Philistines stood on the mountain on the one side, and Israel stood on the mountain on the other side, with a valley between them. 4 And there came out from the camp of the Philistines a champion named (F)Goliath of (G)Gath, whose height was six[a] cubits[b] and a span. 5 He had a helmet of bronze on his head, and he was armed with a coat of mail, and the weight of the coat was five thousand shekels[c] of bronze. 6 And he had bronze armor on his legs, and a (H)javelin of bronze slung between his shoulders. 7 The shaft of his spear was like a weaver's beam, and his spear's head weighed six hundred shekels of iron. (I)And his shield-bearer went before him. 8 He stood and shouted to the ranks of Israel, “Why have you come out to draw up for battle? Am I not a Philistine, and (J)are you not servants of 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 we will be your servants. But if I prevail against him and kill him, then you shall be our servants (K)and serve us.” 10 And the Philistine said, (L)“I defy the ranks of Israel this day. Give me a man, that we may fight together.” 11 When Saul and all Israel heard these words of the Philistine, they were dismayed and greatly afraid.
12 Now David was (M)the son of an (N)Ephrathite of Bethlehem in Judah, (O)named Jesse, (P)who had eight sons. In the days of Saul the man was already old and advanced in years.[d] 13 The three oldest sons of Jesse had followed Saul to the battle. And (Q)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 (R)David was the youngest. The three eldest followed Saul, 15 but David went back and forth from Saul (S)to feed his father's sheep at Bethlehem. 16 For forty days the Philistine came forward and took his stand, morning and evening.
17 And Jesse said to David his son, “Take for your brothers an ephah[e] of this parched grain, and these ten loaves, and carry them quickly to the camp to your brothers. 18 (T)Also take these ten cheeses to the commander of their thousand. (U)See if your brothers are well, and bring some token from them.”
19 Now Saul and they and all the men of Israel were in the Valley of Elah, fighting with the Philistines. 20 And David rose early in the morning and left the sheep with a keeper and took the provisions and went, as Jesse had commanded him. And he came to (V)the encampment as the host was going out to the battle line, shouting the war cry. 21 And Israel and the Philistines drew up for battle, army against army. 22 And David left the (W)things in charge of the keeper of the (X)baggage and ran to the ranks and went and greeted his brothers. 23 As he talked with them, behold, (Y)the champion, the Philistine of Gath, Goliath by name, came up out of the ranks of the Philistines and spoke (Z)the same words as before. And David heard him.
24 All the men of Israel, when they saw the man, fled from him and were much afraid. 25 And the men of Israel said, “Have you seen this man who has come up? Surely he has come up to (AA)defy Israel. And the king will enrich the man who kills him with great riches (AB)and will give him his daughter and make his father's house free in Israel.” 26 And David said to the men who stood by him, “What shall be done for the man who kills this Philistine and takes away (AC)the reproach from Israel? For who is this (AD)uncircumcised Philistine, that he should (AE)defy the armies of (AF)the living God?” 27 And the people answered him in the same way, (AG)“So shall it be done to the man who kills him.”
28 Now Eliab his eldest brother heard when he spoke to the men. And Eliab's anger was kindled against David, and he said, “Why have you come down? And with whom have you left those few sheep in the wilderness? I know your presumption and the evil of your heart, for you have come down to see the battle.” 29 And David said, “What have I done now? Was it not but a word?” 30 And he turned away from him toward another, and spoke (AH)in the same way, and the people answered him again as before.
31 When the words that David spoke were heard, they repeated them before Saul, and he sent for him. 32 And David said to Saul, (AI)“Let no man's heart fail because of him. (AJ)Your servant will go and fight with this Philistine.” 33 And 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 has been a man of war from his youth.” 34 But David said to Saul, “Your servant used to keep sheep for his father. And when there came a lion, or a bear, and took a lamb from the flock, 35 I went after him and struck him and delivered it out of his mouth. And if he arose against me, I caught him by his beard and struck him and killed him. 36 Your servant has struck down both lions and bears, and this uncircumcised Philistine shall be like one of them, (AK)for he has defied the armies of the living God.” 37 And David said, (AL)“The Lord who delivered me from the paw of the lion and from the paw of the bear will deliver me from the hand of this Philistine.” And Saul said to David, “Go, (AM)and the Lord be with you!”
38 Then Saul clothed David with his armor. He put a helmet of bronze on his head and clothed him with a coat of mail, 39 and David strapped his sword over his armor. And he tried in vain to go, for he had not tested them. Then David said to Saul, “I cannot go with these, for I have not tested them.” So David put them off. 40 Then he took his staff in his hand and chose five smooth stones from the brook and put them in his shepherd's pouch. His sling was in his hand, and he approached the Philistine.
41 And the Philistine moved forward and came near to David, (AN)with his shield-bearer in front of him. 42 And when the Philistine looked and saw David, he disdained him, for he was but a youth, (AO)ruddy and handsome in appearance. 43 And the Philistine said to David, “Am I (AP)a dog, that you come to me with sticks?” And the Philistine cursed David by his gods. 44 The Philistine said to David, “Come to me, and I will give your flesh (AQ)to the birds of the air and to the beasts of the field.” 45 Then David said to the Philistine, “You come to me with a sword and with a spear and with (AR)a javelin, but I come to you in the name of the Lord of hosts, the God of the armies of Israel, (AS)whom you have defied. 46 This day the Lord will deliver you into my hand, and I will strike you down and cut off your head. (AT)And I will give the dead bodies of the host of the Philistines this day (AU)to the birds of the air and to the wild beasts of the earth, (AV)that all the earth may know that there is a God in Israel, 47 and that all this assembly may know that (AW)the Lord saves not with sword and spear. (AX)For the battle is the Lord's, and he will give you into our hand.”
48 When the Philistine arose and came and drew near to meet David, David ran quickly toward the battle line to meet the Philistine. 49 And David put his hand in his bag and took out a stone and slung it and struck the Philistine on his forehead. The stone sank into his forehead, and he fell on his face to the ground.
50 So David prevailed over the Philistine with a sling and with a stone, and struck the Philistine and killed him. There was no sword in the hand of David. 51 Then David ran and stood over the Philistine (AY)and took his sword and drew it out of its sheath and killed him and cut off his head with it. When the Philistines saw that their champion was dead, (AZ)they fled. 52 And the men of Israel and Judah rose with a shout and pursued the Philistines as far as Gath[f] and the gates of (BA)Ekron, so that the wounded Philistines fell on the way from (BB)Shaaraim as far as (BC)Gath and Ekron. 53 And the people of Israel came back from chasing the Philistines, and they plundered their camp. 54 And David took (BD)the head of the Philistine (BE)and brought it to Jerusalem, but he put his armor in his tent.
55 As soon as Saul saw David go out against the Philistine, he said to Abner, (BF)the commander of the army, “Abner, (BG)whose son is this youth?” And Abner said, (BH)“As your soul lives, O king, I do not know.” 56 And the king said, “Inquire whose son the boy is.” 57 And as soon as David returned from the striking down of the Philistine, Abner took him, and brought him before Saul (BI)with the head of the Philistine in his hand. 58 And Saul said to him, “Whose son are you, young man?” And David answered, (BJ)“I am the son of your servant Jesse the Bethlehemite.”
Footnotes
- 1 Samuel 17:4 Hebrew; Septuagint, Dead Sea Scroll and Josephus four
- 1 Samuel 17:4 A cubit was about 18 inches or 45 centimeters
- 1 Samuel 17:5 A shekel was about 2/5 ounce or 11 grams
- 1 Samuel 17:12 Septuagint, Syriac; Hebrew advanced among men
- 1 Samuel 17:17 An ephah was about 3/5 bushel or 22 liters
- 1 Samuel 17:52 Septuagint; Hebrew Gai
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The Holy Bible, English Standard Version. ESV® Text Edition: 2016. Copyright © 2001 by Crossway Bibles, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers.
