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.
And the Philistines gather their camps to battle, and are gathered to Shochoh, which [is] to Judah, and encamp between Shochoh 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 have been gathered, and encamp by the Valley of Elah, and set in array [for] battle to meet 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.
And the Philistines are standing on the mountain on this [side], and Israel is standing on the mountain on that [side], and the valley [is] 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 man goes out, the champion from the camps of the Philistines, his name [is] Goliath, from Gath; his height [is] six cubits and a span [[or four cubits and a span]],
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 a helmet of bronze [is] on his head, and he is clothed [with] a scaled coat of mail, and the weight of the coat of mail [is] five thousand shekels of bronze,
6 And he had plates of brass on his lower legs, and a small shield of brass was covering his shoulders.
and a frontlet of bronze [is] on his feet, and a javelin of bronze between his shoulders,
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.
and the wood of his spear [is] like a weavers’ beam, and the flame of his spear [is] six hundred shekels of iron, and the bearer of the buckler is going before him.
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.
And he stands and calls to the ranks of Israel, and says to them, “Why do you come out to set in array for battle? [Am] I not the Philistine, and you the 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 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 fight with me, and has struck me, then we have been for servants to you; and if I prevail against him, and have struck him, then you have been for servants to us, and have served 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 says, “I have reproached the ranks of Israel this day; give a man to me and we 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 hears—and all Israel—these words of the Philistine, and they are broken down and greatly afraid.
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.
And David [is] son of this Ephraimite of Beth-Lehem-Judah, whose name [is] Jesse, and he has eight sons, and the man has become aged among men in the days of Saul;
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 eldest sons of Jesse go, they have gone after Saul to battle; and the name of his three sons who have gone into battle [are] Eliab the firstborn, and his second Abinadab, and the third Shammah.
14 But David was the youngest. Therefore, when the three eldest had followed Saul,
And David is the youngest, and the three eldest have gone after Saul,
15 David went away from Saul, and he returned, so that he might pasture the flock of his father at Bethlehem.
and David is going and returning from Saul, to feed the flock of his father at Beth-Lehem.
16 Truly, the Philistine advanced morning and evening, and he stood forth, for forty days.
And the Philistine draws near, morning and evening, and stations himself [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 says to his son David, “Now take an ephah of this roasted [grain] and these ten loaves for your brothers, and run to the camp 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 cuttings of the cheese to the head of the one thousand, and inspect your brothers for welfare, and receive their pledge.”
19 But they were in the valley of Terebinth, with Saul and all the sons of Israel, fighting against the Philistines.
And Saul, and they, and all the men of Israel, [are] 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 rises early in the morning, and leaves the flock to a keeper, and lifts up, and goes, as Jesse commanded him, and he comes to the path, and to the force which is going out to the rank, and they have shouted for battle;
21 For Israel had positioned their troops, but the Philistines also had prepared themselves against them.
and Israel and the Philistines set in array rank to meet rank.
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 lets down the goods from off him on the hand of a keeper of the goods, and runs into the rank, and comes and asks of his brothers of [their] welfare.
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 he is speaking with them, and behold, a man, the champion, is coming up, his name [is] Goliath the Philistine, from Gath, out of the ranks of the Philistines, and he speaks according to those words, and David hears;
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 see the man, flee from his presence, and are greatly afraid.
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 say, “Have you seen this man who is coming up? For he is coming up to reproach Israel, and it has been—the man who strikes him, the king enriches him with great riches, and he gives his daughter to him, and makes his father’s house 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 speaks to the men who are standing by him, saying, “What is done to the man who strikes this Philistine, and has turned aside reproach from Israel? For who [is] this uncircumcised Philistine that he has reproached the ranks 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 speak to him according to this word, saying, “Thus it is done to the man who strikes 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 eldest brother, hears when he speaks to the men, and the anger of Eliab burns against David, and he says, “Why [is] this—[that] you have come down? And to whom have you left those few sheep in the wilderness? I have known your pride, and the evil of your heart—for you have come down to see the battle.”
29 And David said: “What have I done? Is there any word against me?”
And David says, “What have I done now? Is it not 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 he turns around from him to another, and says according to this word, and the people return him word as the first word.
31 Now the words that David had spoken were heard and reported in the sight of Saul.
And the words which David has spoken are heard, and they declare [them] before Saul, and he receives 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 says to Saul, “Let no man’s heart fall because of him, your servant goes, and has fought 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 says to David, “You are not able to go to this Philistine, to fight with him, for you [are] a youth, and he [has been] a man of war from his youth.”
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 says to Saul, “Your servant has been a shepherd among the sheep for his father, and the lion has come—and the bear—and has taken away a sheep out of the drove,
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.
and I have gone out after him, and struck him, and delivered [it] out of his mouth, and he rises against me, and I have taken hold on his beard, and struck 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 struck both the lion and the bear, and this uncircumcised Philistine has been as one of them, for he has reproached the ranks 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 says, “YHWH, who delivered me out of the paw of the lion, and out of the paw of the bear, He delivers me from the hand of this Philistine.” And Saul says to David, “Go, and YHWH is 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.
And Saul clothes David with his long robe, and has put a helmet of bronze on his head, and clothes him with a coat of mail.
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 girded his sword above his long robe, and begins to go, for he has not tried [it]; and David says to Saul, “I am not able to go with these, for I had not tried”; and David turns them aside from off him.
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.
And he takes his staff in his hand, and chooses five smooth stones for himself from the brook, and puts them in the shepherds’ vessel that he has, even in the leather pouch, and his sling [is] in his hand, and he draws near to the Philistine.
41 And the Philistine, advancing, went and drew near against David. And his armor bearer was before him.
And the Philistine goes on, going and drawing near to David, and the man carrying the buckler [is] 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 the Philistine looks attentively, and sees David, and despises him, for he was a youth, and ruddy, with a handsome appearance.
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 says to David, “Am I a dog that you are coming to me with sticks?” And the Philistine reviles David by 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 says to David, “Come to me, and I give your flesh to the bird of the heavens, and to the beast 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.
And David says to the Philistine, “You are coming to me with sword, and with spear, and with buckler, and I am coming to you in the Name of YHWH of Hosts, God of the ranks of Israel, which you have reproached!
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 YHWH shuts you up into my hand—and I have struck you, and turned aside your head from off you, and given the carcass of the camp of the Philistines this day to the bird of the heavens, and to the beast of the earth, and all the earth knows that God is for Israel!
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 this assembly knows that YHWH does not save by sword and by spear, for the battle [is] YHWH’s, and He has given you into our hand.”
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.
And it has come to pass, that the Philistine has risen, and goes, and draws near to meet David, and David hurries and runs to the rank to meet the Philistine,
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 puts forth his hand into the vessel, and takes a stone from there, and slings, and strikes the Philistine on his forehead, and the stone sinks into his forehead, and he falls on his face to the earth.
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,
And David is stronger than the Philistine with a sling and with a stone, and strikes the Philistine, and puts him to death, and there is no sword in the hand of David,
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.
and David runs and stands over the Philistine, and takes his sword, and draws it out of its sheath, and puts him to death, and cuts off his head with it; and the Philistines see that their hero [is] dead, and flee.
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 rise—also Judah—and shout, and pursue the Philistines until you enter the valley, and to the gates of Ekron, and the wounded of the Philistines fall in the way of Shaaraim, even to Gath, and to Ekron,
53 And the sons of Israel, returning after they had pursued the Philistines, invaded their camp.
and the sons of Israel return from burning after the Philistines, and spoil their camps.
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 takes the head of the Philistine, and brings it to Jerusalem, and he has put his weapons in his own 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 sees David going out to meet the Philistine, he has said to Abner, head of the host, “Whose son [is] this—the youth, Abner?” And Abner says, “Your soul lives, O king, I have not known.”
56 And the king said, “You shall inquire as to whose son this boy may be.”
And the king says, “Ask whose son this [is]—the young man.”
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 turns back from striking the Philistine, then Abner takes him and brings him in before Saul, and the head of the Philistine [is] 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 says to him, “Whose son [are] you, O youth?” And David says, “Son of your servant Jesse, the Beth-Lehemite.”
