²⁵ Now the Israelites had been saying, “Do you see how this man keeps coming out? He comes out to defy Israel. The king will give great wealth to the man who kills him. He will also give him his daughter^(A) in marriage and will exempt his family from taxes^(B) in Israel.”

²⁶ David asked the men standing near him, “What will be done for the man who kills this Philistine and removes this disgrace^(C) from Israel? Who is this uncircumcised^(D) Philistine that he should defy^(E) the armies of the living^(F) God?”

²⁷ They repeated to him what they had been saying and told him, “This is what will be done for the man who kills him.”

²⁸ When Eliab, David’s oldest brother, heard him speaking with the men, he burned with anger^(G) at him and asked, “Why have you come down here? And with whom did you leave those few sheep in the wilderness? I know how conceited you are and how wicked your heart is; you came down only to watch the battle.”

²⁹ “Now what have I done?” said David. “Can’t I even speak?” ³⁰ He then turned away to someone else and brought up the same matter, and the men answered him as before. ³¹ What David said was overheard and reported to Saul, and Saul sent for him.

³² David said to Saul, “Let no one lose heart^(H) on account of this Philistine; your servant will go and fight him.”

³³ Saul replied,^(I) “You are not able to go out against this Philistine and fight him; you are only a young man, and he has been a warrior from his youth.”

³⁴ But David said to Saul, “Your servant has been keeping his father’s sheep. When a lion^(J) or a bear came and carried off a sheep from the flock, ³⁵ I went after it, struck it and rescued the sheep from its mouth. When it turned on me, I seized^(K) it by its hair, struck it and killed it. ³⁶ Your servant has killed both the lion^(L) and the bear; this uncircumcised Philistine will be like one of them, because he has defied the armies of the living God. ³⁷ The Lord who rescued^(M) me from the paw of the lion^(N) and the paw of the bear will rescue me from the hand of this Philistine.”

Saul said to David, “Go, and the Lord be with^(O) you.”

³⁸ Then Saul dressed David in his own^(P) tunic. He put a coat of armor on him and a bronze helmet on his head. ³⁹ David fastened on his sword over the tunic and tried walking around, because he was not used to them.

“I cannot go in these,” he said to Saul, “because I am not used to them.” So he took them off. ⁴⁰ Then he took his staff in his hand, chose five smooth stones from the stream, put them in the pouch of his shepherd’s bag and, with his sling in his hand, approached the Philistine.

⁴¹ Meanwhile, the Philistine, with his shield bearer^(Q) in front of him, kept coming closer to David. ⁴² He looked David over and saw that he was little more than a boy, glowing with health and handsome,^(R) and he despised^(S) him. ⁴³ He said to David, “Am I a dog,^(T) that you come at me with sticks?” And the Philistine cursed David by his gods. ⁴⁴ “Come here,” he said, “and I’ll give your flesh to the birds^(U) and the wild animals!^(V)”

⁴⁵ David said to the Philistine, “You come against me with sword and spear and javelin,^(W) but I come against you in the name^(X) of the Lord Almighty, the God of the armies of Israel, whom you have defied.^{(Y) 46} This day the Lord will deliver^(Z) you into my hands, and I’ll strike you down and cut off your head. This very day I will give the carcasses^(AA) of the Philistine army to the birds and the wild animals, and the whole world^(AB) will know that there is a God in Israel.^{(AC) 47} All those gathered here will know that it is not by sword^(AD) or spear that the Lord saves;^(AE) for the battle^(AF) is the Lord’s, and he will give all of you into our hands.”

Woe to Those Who Rely on Egypt

³³ who through faith conquered kingdoms,^(A) administered justice, and gained what was promised; who shut the mouths of lions,^{(B) 34} quenched the fury of the flames,^(C) and escaped the edge of the sword;^(D) whose weakness was turned to strength;^(E) and who became powerful in battle and routed foreign armies.^{(F) 35} Women received back their dead, raised to life again.^(G) There were others who were tortured, refusing to be released so that they might gain an even better resurrection.