1 Samuel 17
1 Now the Philistines, gathering their troops for battle, assembled at Socoh of Judah. And they made camp between Socoh and Azekah, within the borders of Dammim.
Now the Philistines got their armies together for war, and came together at Socoh in the land of Judah, and took up their position between Socoh and Azekah in Ephes-dammim.
2 But Saul and the sons of Israel, having gathered together, went to the Valley of Terebinth. And they positioned the army so as to fight against the Philistines.
And Saul and the men of Israel came together and took up their position in the valley of Elah, and put their forces in order against the Philistines.
3 And the Philistines were standing on a mountain on the one side, and Israel was standing on a mountain on the other side. And there was a valley between them.
The Philistines were stationed on the mountain on one side and Israel on the mountain on the other side: and there was a valley between them.
4 And there went out from the camp of the Philistines, a man of illegitimate birth, named Goliath of Gath, whose height was six cubits and a palm.
And a fighter came out from the tents of the Philistines, named Goliath of Gath; he was more than six cubits tall.
5 And he had a helmet of brass upon his head, and he was clothed with a breastplate of scales. Moreover, the weight of his breastplate was five thousand shekels of brass.
And he had a head-dress of brass on his head, and he was dressed in a coat of metal, the weight of which was five thousand shekels of brass.
6 And he had plates of brass on his lower legs, and a small shield of brass was covering his shoulders.
His legs were covered with plates of brass and hanging on his back was a javelin of brass.
7 Now the shaft of his spear was like the beam used by a weaver. And the iron of his spear held six hundred shekels of iron. And his armor bearer went before him.
The stem of his spear was as long as a cloth-worker's rod, and its head was made of six hundred shekels' weight of iron: and one went before him with his body-cover.
8 And standing still, he cried out to the battle lines of Israel, and he said to them: “Why have you arrived, prepared for battle? Am I not a Philistine, and are you not the servants of Saul? Choose one man from among you, and let him descend to do battle alone.
He took up his position and in a loud voice said to the armies of Israel, Why have you come out to make war? Am I not a Philistine and you servants of Saul? Send out a man for yourselves and let him come down to me.
9 If he is able to fight with me and to strike me down, we will be your servants. But if I will prevail over him, and strike him down, you will be the servants, and you will serve us.”
If he is able to have a fight with me and overcome me, then we will be your servants: but if I am able to overcome him, then you will be our servants and do work for us.
10 And the Philistine was saying: “I have reproached the troops of Israel today. Present a man to me, and let him undertake a fight against me alone.”
And the Philistine said, I have put to shame the armies of Israel this day; give me a man so that we may have a fight together.
11 And Saul and all the Israelites, hearing these words of the Philistine in this manner, were stupefied and exceedingly afraid.
And Saul and all Israel, hearing those words of the Philistine, were troubled and full of fear.
12 Now David was the son of an Ephrathite man, the one mentioned above, from Bethlehem of Judah, whose name was Jesse. He had eight sons, and during the days of Saul, he was an elderly man, and of great age among men.
Now David was the son of that Ephrathite of Beth-lehem-judah named Jesse, who had eight sons; and he was an old man in Saul's day, and far on in years.
13 Now his three eldest sons followed Saul into battle. And the names of his three sons, who went to the battle, were Eliab, the firstborn, and the second, Abinadab, and the third Shammah.
And the three oldest sons of Jesse had gone with Saul to the fight: the names of the three who went to the fight were Eliab, the oldest, and Abinadab the second, and Shammah the third.
14 But David was the youngest. Therefore, when the three eldest had followed Saul,
And David was the youngest: and the three oldest were with Saul's army.
15 David went away from Saul, and he returned, so that he might pasture the flock of his father at Bethlehem.
Now David went to and from Saul, looking after his father's sheep at Beth-lehem.
16 Truly, the Philistine advanced morning and evening, and he stood forth, for forty days.
And the Philistine came near every morning and evening for forty days.
17 Now Jesse said to his son David: “Take, for your brothers, an ephah of cooked grain, and these ten loaves, and hurry to the camp, to your brothers.
And Jesse said to his son David, Take now for your brothers an ephah of this dry grain and these ten cakes of bread, and go quickly with them to the tents to your brothers;
18 And you shall carry these ten little cheeses to the tribune. And visit your brothers, to see if they are doing well. And learn with whom they have been stationed.”
And take these ten cheeses to the captain of their thousand, and see how your brothers are and come back with a sign to say how they are.
19 But they were in the valley of Terebinth, with Saul and all the sons of Israel, fighting against the Philistines.
Now Saul, and they, and all the men of Israel were in the valley of Elah, fighting with the Philistines.
20 And so, David rose up in the morning, and he commended the flock to the caretaker. And he went away burdened, just as Jesse had instructed him. And he went to the place of the battle line, and to the army, which, in going out to fight, was shouting in the conflict.
And David got up early in the morning, and, giving the sheep into the care of a keeper, took the things and went as Jesse had said; and he came to the lines where the carts were, when the army was going out to the fight giving their war-cry.
21 For Israel had positioned their troops, but the Philistines also had prepared themselves against them.
And Israel and the Philistines had put their forces in position, army against army.
22 Then, leaving the items that he had brought under the hand of the keeper of baggage, David ran to the place of the conflict. And he was asking if all was going well with his brothers.
And David gave his parcels into the hands of the keeper of the army stores, and went running to the army and came to his brothers to get knowledge about them.
23 And while he was still speaking with them, there appeared the man of spurious descent, whose name was Goliath, the Philistine of Gath, ascending from the camp of the Philistines. And he was speaking in these same words, which David heard.
And while he was talking to them, the fighter, the Philistine of Gath, Goliath by name, came out from the Philistines' lines and said the same words, in David's hearing.
24 Then all the Israelites, when they had seen the man, fled from his face, fearing him greatly.
And all the men of Israel, when they saw him, went in flight, overcome with fear.
25 And someone of Israel said: “Have you seen this man, who has risen up. For he ascended in order to reproach Israel. Therefore, the man who will strike him down, the king will enrich with great wealth, and will give to him his daughter, and will cause his father’s house to be free of tribute in Israel.”
And the men of Israel said, Have you seen this man? Clearly he has come out to put shame on Israel: and it is certain that if any man overcomes him, the king will give that man great wealth, and will give him his daughter, and make his father's family free in Israel.
26 And David spoke to the men who were standing with him, saying: “What will be given to the man who will have struck down this Philistine, and who will have taken away the disgrace from Israel? For who is this uncircumcised Philistine, that he should reproach the soldiers of the living God?”
And David said to the men near him, What will be done to the man who overcomes this Philistine and takes away the shame from Israel? for who is this Philistine, a man without circumcision, that he has put shame on the armies of the living God?
27 Then the people repeated to him the same words, saying, “These things shall be given to the man who will have struck him down.”
And the people gave him this answer, So it will be done to the man who overcomes him.
28 Now when Eliab, his eldest brother, had heard this, as he was speaking with the others, he became angry against David, and he said: “Why did you come here? And why did you leave behind those few sheep in the wilderness? I know your pride and the wickedness of your heart, that you have come down so that you might see the battle.”
And Eliab, his oldest brother, hearing what David said to the men, was moved to wrath against David, and said, Why have you come here? Into whose care have you given that little flock of sheep in the waste land? I have knowledge of your pride and the evil of your heart, you have come down to see the fight.
29 And David said: “What have I done? Is there any word against me?”
And David said, What have I done now? was it not only a word?
30 And he turned away from him a little, toward another. And he asked the same question. And the people responded to him as before.
And turning away from him to one of the other men, he said the same words: and the people gave him the same answer.
31 Now the words that David had spoken were heard and reported in the sight of Saul.
And, hearing what David said, they gave Saul word of it: and he sent for him.
32 When he had been led to Saul, he said to him: “Let no one lose heart over him. I, your servant, shall go and fight against the Philistine.”
And David said to Saul, Let no man's heart become feeble because of him; I, your servant, will go out and have a fight with this Philistine.
33 And Saul said to David: “You are not able to withstand this Philistine, nor to fight against him. For you are a boy, but he has been a warrior from his boyhood.”
And Saul said to David, You are not able to go out against this Philistine and have a fight with him: for you are only a boy, and he has been a man of war from his earliest days.
34 And David said to Saul: “Your servant was pasturing the flock of his father. And there approached a lion or a bear, and it took a ram from the midst of the flock.
And David said to Saul, Your servant has been keeper of his father's sheep; and if a lion or a bear came and took a lamb from the flock,
35 And I pursued after them, and I struck them, and I rescued from their mouth. And they rose up against me. And I caught them by the throat, and I strangled and killed them.
I went out after him, and overcame him, and took it out of his mouth: and if, turning on me, he came at me, I took him by the hair and overcame him and put him to death.
36 For I, your servant, have killed both lion and bear. And so this uncircumcised Philistine, too, will be like one of them. Now I will go and take away the reproach of the people. For who is this uncircumcised Philistine, who has dared to curse the army of the living God?”
Your servant has overcome lion and bear: and the fate of this Philistine, who is without circumcision, will be like theirs, seeing that he has put shame on the armies of the living God.
37 And David said, “The Lord who rescued me from the hand of the lion, and from the hand of the bear, he himself will free me from the hand of this Philistine.” Then Saul said to David, “Go, and may the Lord be with you.”
And David said, The Lord, who kept me safe from the grip of the lion and the bear, will be my saviour from the hands of this Philistine. And Saul said to David, Go! and may the Lord be with you.
38 And Saul clothed David with his garments. And he placed a helmet of brass upon his head, and he clothed him with a breastplate.
Then Saul gave David his clothing of war, and put a head-dress of brass on his head and had him clothed with a coat of metal.
39 Then David, having girded his sword over his armor, began to see if he could walk in the armor. But he was not accustomed to it. And David said to Saul: “I cannot move about in this way. For I am not used to it.” And he put them aside.
And David took Saul's sword and put the band round him over the metal coat, and was unable to go forward; for he was not used to them. Then David said to Saul, It is not possible for me to go out with these, for I am not used to them. So David took them off.
40 And he took up his staff, which he held always in his hands. And he chose for himself five very smooth stones from the torrent. And he put them into the shepherd’s bag that he had with him. And he took up a sling in his hand. And he went out against the Philistine.
Then he took his stick in his hand, and got five smooth stones from the bed of the stream and put them in a bag such as is used by sheep-keepers; and in his hand was a leather band used for sending stones: and so he went in the direction of the Philistine.
41 And the Philistine, advancing, went and drew near against David. And his armor bearer was before him.
And the Philistine came nearer to David; and the man who had his body-cover went before him.
42 And when the Philistine had seen and considered David, he despised him. For he was a youth, ruddy and of handsome appearance.
And when the Philistine, taking note, saw David, he had a poor opinion of him: for he was only a boy, red-haired and good-looking.
43 And the Philistine said to David, “Am I a dog, that you approach against me with a staff?” And the Philistine cursed David by his gods.
And the Philistine said to David, Am I a dog, that you come out to me with sticks? And the Philistine put curses on David by all his gods.
44 And he said to David, “Come to me, and I will give your flesh to the birds of the air, and to the beasts of the earth.”
And the Philistine said to David, Come here to me, and I will give your flesh to the birds of the air and the beasts of the field.
45 But David said to the Philistine: “You approach me with sword, and spear, and shield. But I come to you in the name of the Lord of hosts, the God of the armies of Israel, which you have reproached.
Then David said to the Philistine, You come to me with a sword and a spear and a javelin: but I come to you in the name of the Lord of armies, the God of the armies of Israel on which you have put shame.
46 Today, the Lord will deliver you into my hand, and I will strike you down. And I will take your head from you. And today, I will give the carcasses of the camp of the Philistines to the birds of the air, and to the beasts of the earth, so that all the earth may know that God is with Israel.
This day the Lord will give you up into my hands, and I will overcome you, and take your head off you; and I will give the bodies of the Philistine army to the birds of the air and the beasts of the earth today, so that all the earth may see that Israel has a God;
47 And this entire assembly will know that the Lord does not save by sword, nor by spear. For this is his war, and he will deliver you into our hands.”
And all these people who are here today may see that the Lord does not give salvation by sword and spear: for the fight is the Lord's, and he will give you up into our hands.
48 Then, when the Philistine had risen up, and was approaching, and was drawing near against David, David hurried and ran to the fight against the Philistine.
Now when the Philistine made a move and came near to David, David quickly went at a run in the direction of the army, meeting the Philistine face to face.
49 And he put his hand into his bag, and took out one stone. And swinging it around, he cast it with the sling and struck the Philistine on the forehead. And the stone became imbedded in his forehead. And he fell on his face, upon the ground.
And David put his hand in his bag and took out a stone and sent it from his leather band straight at the Philistine, and the stone went deep into his brow, and he went down to the earth, falling on his face.
50 And David prevailed against the Philistine with a sling and a stone. And he struck and killed the Philistine. But since David held no sword in his hand,
So David overcame the Philistine with his leather band and a stone, wounding the Philistine and causing his death: but David had no sword in his hand.
51 he ran and stood over the Philistine, and he took his sword, and withdrew it from the sheath. And he killed him and cut off his head. Then the Philistines, seeing that their strongest man was dead, fled away.
So running up to the Philistine and putting his foot on him, David took his sword out of its cover, and put him to death, cutting off his head with it. And when the Philistines saw that their fighter was dead, they went in flight.
52 And the men of Israel and Judah, rising up, shouted and pursued after the Philistines, even until they arrived at the valley and as far as the gates of Ekron. And many wounded among the Philistines fell on the way of Shaaraim, and as far as Gath, and as far as Ekron.
And the men of Israel and of Judah got up, and gave a cry, and went after the Philistines as far as Gath and the town doors of Ekron. And the wounded of the Philistines were falling down by the road from Shaaraim all the way to Gath and Ekron.
53 And the sons of Israel, returning after they had pursued the Philistines, invaded their camp.
Then the children of Israel came back from going after the Philistines, and took their goods from the tents.
54 Then David, taking up the head of the Philistine, brought it to Jerusalem. Yet truly, he placed his armor in his own tent.
And David took the head of the Philistine to Jerusalem, but the metal war-dress and the arms he put in his tent.
55 Now at the time that Saul had seen David going out against the Philistines, he said to Abner, the leader of the military, “From what stock is this youth descended, Abner?” And Abner said, “As your soul lives, O king, I do not know.”
And when Saul saw David going out against the Philistine, he said to Abner, the captain of the army, Abner, whose son is this young man? And Abner said, On your life, O king, I have no idea.
56 And the king said, “You shall inquire as to whose son this boy may be.”
And the king said, Make search and see whose son this young man is.
57 And when David had returned, after the Philistine had been struck down, Abner took him, and brought him before Saul, having the head of the Philistine in his hand.
And when David was coming back after the destruction of the Philistine, Abner took him to Saul, with the head of the Philistine in his hand.
58 And Saul said to him, “Young man, from what ancestry are you?” And David said, “I am the son of your servant Jesse of Bethlehem.”
And Saul said to him, Young man, whose son are you? And David in answer said, I am the son of your servant Jesse of Beth-lehem.
