I Samuel 17 · שמואל א

Now the Pelishtim gathered together their camps to battle, and were gathered together at Sokho, which belongs to Yehuda, and pitched between Sokho and ῾Azeqa, in Efes-dammim.

And Sha᾽ul and the men of Yisra᾽el were gathered together, and they encamped by the valley of Ela, and set the battle in array against the Pelishtim.

And the Pelishtim stood on a mountain on the one side, and Yisra᾽el stood on a mountain on the other side: and there was a valley between them.

And there went out a champion out of the camps of the Pelishtim, named Golyat, of Gat, whose height was six cubits and a span.

And he had a helmet of brass upon his head, and he was armed with a body armour of scales; and the weight of the body armour was five thousand shekels of brass.

And he had greaves of brass upon his legs, and a javelin of brass between his shoulders.

And the staff of his spear was like a weaver’s beam; and his spear’s head weighed six hundred shekels of iron: and a shieldbearer went before him.

And he stood and cried to the armies of Yisra᾽el, and said to them, Why are you come out to set your battle in array? am not I a Pelishtian, and you are servants to Sha᾽ul? choose a man for yourselves, and let him come down to me.

If he be able to fight with me, and to kill me, then will we be your servants: but if I prevail against him, and kill him, then shall you be our servants, and serve us.

And the Pelishtian said, I defy the ranks of Yisra᾽el this day; give me a man, that we may fight together.

When Sha᾽ul and all Yisra᾽el heard those words of the Pelishtian, they were dismayed, and greatly afraid.

Now David was the son of that Efrati of Bet-leĥem-yehuda, whose name was Yishay; and he had eight sons: and the man was old in the days of Sha᾽ul, an aged man.

And the three eldest sons of Yishay went and followed Sha᾽ul to the battle: and the names of his three sons that went to the battle were Eli᾽av the firstborn, and next unto him Avinadav, and the third Shamma.

And David was the youngest: and the three eldest followed Sha᾽ul.

But David went back and forth from Sha᾽ul to tend his father’s sheep at Bet-leĥem.

And the Pelishtian drew near morning and evening, and presented himself for forty days.

And Yishay said to David his son, Take now for thy brothers an efa of this parched corn, and these ten loaves, and run to the camp to thy brothers;

and carry these ten cheeses to the captain of their thousand, and inquire of thy brothers’ welfare, and take a token from them.

Now Sha᾽ul, and they, and all the men of Yisra᾽el were in the valley of Ela, fighting with the Pelishtim.

And David rose up early in the morning, and left the sheep with a keeper, and took, and went, as Yishay had commanded him; and he came to the barricade, as the host was going out to the frontline, shouting for the battle.

For Yisra᾽el and the Pelishtim were drawn up, army against army.

And David left his baggage in the hand of the keeper of the baggage, and ran into the line of battle, and came and saluted his brethren.

And as he talked with them, behold, there came up the champion, Golyat the Pelishtian was his name, from Gat, out of the ranks of the Pelishtim, and spoke those same words: and David heard them.

And all the men of Yisra᾽el, when they saw the man, fled from him, and were greatly afraid.

And the men of Yisra᾽el said, Have you seen this man that is come up? surely to defy Yisra᾽el is he come up: and it shall be, that the man who kills him, the king will enrich him with great riches, and will give him his daughter, and make his father’s house free in Yisra᾽el.

And David spoke to the men that stood by him, saying, What shall be done to the man that kills yonder Pelishtian, and takes away the reproach from Yisra᾽el? for who is this uncircumcised Pelishtian, that he should taunt the armies of the living God?

And the people answered him after the aforementioned manner, saying, So shall it be done to the man that kills him.

And Eli᾽av his eldest brother heard when he spoke to the men: and Eli᾽av’s anger burned against David, and he said, Why didst thou come down here? and with whom hast thou left those few sheep in the wilderness? I know thy insolence, and thy peevishness; for thou art come down to see the battle.

And David said, What have I now done? It was only a word.

And he turned from him towards another, and spoke after the same manner: and the people answered him again after the former manner.

And when the words were heard which David spoke, they rehearsed them before Sha᾽ul: and he sent for him.

And David said to Sha᾽ul, Let no man’s heart fail because of him; thy servant will go and fight with this Pelishtian.

And Sha᾽ul said to David, thou art not able to go against this Pelishtian to fight with him: for thou art but a youth, and he a man of war from his youth.

And David said to Sha᾽ul, Thy servant kept his father’s sheep, and there came a lion, and a bear, and took a lamb out of the flock:

and I went out after it, and smote it, and delivered it out of its mouth: and when it arose against me, I caught it by its beard, and smote it, and slew it.

Thy servant slew both the lion and the bear: and this uncircumcised Pelishtian shall be as one of them, seeing he has defied the armies of the living God.

And David said, The Lord that delivered me out of the paw of the lion, and out of the paw of the bear, he will deliver me out of the hand of this Pelishtian. And Sha᾽ul said to David, Go, and the Lord be with thee.

And Sha᾽ul armed David with his armour, and he put a helmet of brass upon his head; also he clothed him with a coat of mail.

And David girded his sword upon his armour, and he essayed to go; but he had not tried it out. And David said to Sha᾽ul, I cannot walk with these; for I have not tried them. And David put them off him.

And he took his staff in his hand, and chose him five smooth stones out of the brook, and put them in a shepherd’s bag which he had, and in his knapsack; and his sling was in his hand: and he drew near to the Pelishtian.

And the Pelishtian came on and drew near to David; and the shield-bearer went before him.

And when the Pelishtian looked about, and saw David, he disdained him: for he was but a youth, though ruddy, and good-looking.

And the Pelishtian said to David, Am I a dog, that thou comest to me with sticks? And the Pelishtian cursed David by his gods.

And the Pelishtian said to David, Come to me, and I will give thy flesh to the birds of the sky, and to the beasts of the field.

Then said David to the Pelishtian, Thou comest to me with a sword, and with a spear, and with a javelin: but I come to thee in the name of the Lord of hosts, the God of the armies of Yisra᾽el, whom thou hast taunted.

This day will the Lord deliver thee into my hand; and I will smite thee, and take thy head from thee; and I will give the carcass of the camp of the Pelishtim this day to the birds of the sky, and to the wild beasts of the earth; that all the earth may know that there is a God in Yisra᾽el.

And all this assembly shall know that the Lord saves not with sword and spear: for the battle is the Lord’s, and he will give you into our hands.

And it came to pass, when the Pelishtian arose, and came and drew near to meet David, that David hastened, and ran to the enemy line towards the Pelishtian.

And David put his hand in his bag, and took from there a stone, and slung it, and struck the Pelishtian in his forehead, that the stone buried itself in his forehead; and he fell upon his face to the earth.

So David prevailed over the Pelishtian with a sling and with a stone, and smote the Pelishtian, and slew him; but there was no sword in the hand of David.

Therefore David ran, and stood upon the Pelishtian, and took his sword, and drew it out of its sheath, and slew him, and with it he cut off his head. And when the Pelishtim saw that their champion was dead, they fled.

And the men of Yisra᾽el and of Yehuda arose, and shouted, and pursued the Pelishtim, until the approaches of Gay, and to the gates of ῾Eqron. And the dead of the Pelishtim fell by the way to Sha῾arayim, and to Gat, and to ῾Eqron.

And the children of Yisra᾽el returned from chasing after the Pelishtim, and they plundered their tents.

And David took the head of the Pelishtian, and brought it to Yerushalayim; and he put his armour in his tent.

And when Sha᾽ul saw David go out against the Pelishtian, he said to Avner, the captain of the host, Avner, whose son is this youth? And Avner said, By thy life, O king, I know not.

And the king said, Inquire thou whose son the young man is.

And as David returned from slaying the Pelishtian, Avner took him, and brought him before Sha᾽ul with the head of the Pelishtian in his hand.

And Sha᾽ul said to him, Whose son art thou, lad? And David answered, I am the son of thy servant Yishay, the Bet-hallaĥmite.