1 Samuel 17 - Israeli Authorized Version

¹ Now the Plishtim gathered together their armies to battle, and were gathered together at Shochoh, which belongeth to Yhudah, and pitched between Shochoh and Azekah, in Ephesdammim.

² And Saul and the men of Yisrael were gathered together, and pitched by the valley of Elah, and set the battle in array against the Plishtim.

³ And the Plishtim stood on a mountain on the one side, and Yisrael stood on a mountain on the other side: and there was a valley between them.

⁴ And there went out a champion out of the camp of the Plishtim, named Golyat, of Gat, whose height was six cubits and a span.

⁵ And he had an helmet of brass upon his head, and he was armed with a coat of mail; and the weight of the coat was five thousand shekels of brass.

⁶ And he had greaves of brass upon his legs, and a target of brass between his shoulders.

⁷ And the staff of his spear was like a weaver's beam; and his spear's head weighed six hundred shekels of iron: and one bearing a shield went before him.

⁸ And he stood and cried unto the armies of Yisrael, and said unto them, Why are ye come out to set your battle in array? am not I a Plishti, and ye servants to Saul? choose you a man for you, and let him come down to me.

⁹ 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 ye be our servants, and serve us.

¹⁰ And the Plishti said, I defy the armies of Yisrael this day; give me a man, that we may fight together.

¹¹ When Saul and all Yisrael heard those words of the Plishti, they were dismayed, and greatly afraid.

¹² Now David was the son of that Ephrathite of BethlehemYhudah, whose name was Yishai; and he had eight sons: and the man went among men for an old man in the days of Saul.

¹³ And the three eldest sons of Yishai went and followed Saul to the battle: and the names of his three sons that went to the battle were Eliab the firstborn, and next unto him AbiNadav, and the third Shammah.

¹⁴ And David was the youngest: and the three eldest followed Saul.

¹⁵ But David went and returned from Saul to feed his father's sheep at Bethlehem.

¹⁶ And the Plishti drew near morning and evening, and presented himself forty days.

¹⁷ And Yishai said unto David his son, Take now for thy brethren an ephah of this parched corn, and these ten loaves, and run to the camp of thy brethren;

¹⁸ And carry these ten cheeses unto the captain of their thousand, and look how thy brethren fare, and take their pledge.

¹⁹ Now Saul, and they, and all the men of Yisrael, were in the valley of Elah, fighting with the Plishtim.

²⁰ And David rose up early in the morning, and left the sheep with a keeper, and took, and went, as Yishai had Commanded him; and he came to the trench, as the host was going forth to the fight, and shouted for the battle.

²¹ For Yisrael and the Plishtim had put the battle in array, army against army.

²² And David left his carriage in the hand of the keeper of the carriage, and ran into the army, and came and saluted his brethren.

²³ And as he talked with them, behold, there came up the champion, the Plishti of Gat, Golyat by name, out of the armies of the Plishtim, and spake according to the same words: and David heard them.

²⁴ And all the men of Yisrael, when they saw the man, fled from him, and were sore afraid.

²⁵ And the men of Yisrael said, Have ye seen this man that is come up? surely to defy Yisrael is he come up: and it shall be, that the man who killeth him, the king will enrich him with great riches, and will give him his daughter, and make his father's house free in Yisrael.

²⁶ And David spake to the men that stood by him, saying, What shall be done to the man that killeth this Plishti, and taketh away the reproach from Yisrael? for who is this uncircumcised Plishti, that he should defy the armies of the living Elohim?

²⁷ And the people answered him after this manner, saying, So shall it be done to the man that killeth him.

²⁸ And Eliab his eldest brother heard when he spake unto the men; and Eliab's anger was kindled against David, and he said, Why camest thou down hither? and with whom hast thou left those few sheep in the wilderness? I know thy pride, and the naughtiness of thine heart; for thou art come down that thou mightest see the battle.

²⁹ And David said, What have I now done? Is there not a cause?

³⁰ And he turned from him toward another, and spake after the same manner: and the people answered him again after the former manner.

³¹ And when the words were heard which David spake, they rehearsed them before Saul: and he sent for him.

³² And David said to Saul, Let no man's heart fail because of him; thy servant will go and fight with this Plishti.

³³ And Saul said to David, Thou art not able to go against this Plishti to fight with him: for thou art but a youth, and he a man of war from his youth.

³⁴ And David said unto Saul, Thy servant kept his father's sheep, and there came a lion, and a bear, and took a lamb out of the flock:

³⁵ And I went out after him, and smote him, and delivered it out of his mouth: and when he arose against me, I caught him by his beard, and smote him, and slew him.

³⁶ Thy servant slew both the lion and the bear: and this uncircumcised Plishti shall be as one of them, seeing he hath defied the armies of the living Elohim.

³⁷ David said moreover, YY 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 Plishti. And Saul said unto David, Go, and YY be with thee.

³⁸ And Saul armed David with his armour, and he put an helmet of brass upon his head; also he armed him with a coat of mail.

³⁹ And David girded his sword upon his armour, and he assayed to go; for he had not proved it. And David said unto Saul, I cannot go with these; for I have not proved them. And David put them off him.

⁴⁰ 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, even in a scrip; and his sling was in his hand: and he drew near to the Plishti.

⁴¹ And the Plishti came on and drew near unto David; and the man that bare the shield went before him.

⁴² And when the Plishti looked about, and saw David, he disdained him: for he was but a youth, and ruddy, and of a fair countenance.

⁴³ And the Plishti said unto David, Am I a dog, that thou comest to me with staves? And the Plishti cursed David by his elohim.

⁴⁴ And the Plishti said to David, Come to me, and I will give thy flesh unto the fowls of the air, and to the beasts of the field.

⁴⁵ Then said David to the Plishti, Thou comest to me with a sword, and with a spear, and with a shield: but I come to thee in the name of YY -TZvaot, the Elohim of the armies of Yisrael, whom thou hast defied.

⁴⁶ This day will YY deliver thee into mine hand; and I will smite thee, and take thine head from thee; and I will give the carcases of the host of the Plishtim this day unto the fowls of the air, and to the wild beasts of the earth; that all the earth may know that there is an Elohim in Yisrael.

⁴⁷ And all this assembly shall know that YY saveth not with sword and spear: for the battle is YY 's, and he will give you into our hands.

⁴⁸ And it came to pass, when the Plishti arose, and came, and drew nigh to meet David, that David hastened, and ran toward the army to meet the Plishti.

⁴⁹ And David put his hand in his bag, and took thence a stone, and slang it, and smote the Plishti in his forehead, that the stone sunk into his forehead; and he fell upon his face to the earth.

⁵⁰ So David prevailed over the Plishti with a sling and with a stone, and smote the Plishti, and slew him; but there was no sword in the hand of David.

⁵¹ Therefore David ran, and stood upon the Plishti, and took his sword, and drew it out of the sheath thereof, and slew him, and cut off his head therewith. And when the Plishtim saw their champion was dead, they fled.

⁵² And the men of Yisrael and of Yhudah arose, and shouted, and pursued the Plishtim, until thou come to the valley, and to the gates of Ekron. And the wounded of the Plishtim fell down by the way to Shaaraim, even unto Gat, and unto Ekron.

⁵³ And the children of Yisrael returned from chasing after the Plishtim, and they spoiled their tents.

⁵⁴ And David took the head of the Plishti, and brought it to Yerushalayim; but he put his armour in his tent.

⁵⁵ And when Saul saw David go forth against the Plishti, he said unto Abner, the captain of the host, Abner, whose son is this youth? And Abner said, As thy soul liveth, O king, I cannot tell.

⁵⁶ And the king said, Enquire thou whose son the stripling is.

⁵⁷ And as David returned from the slaughter of the Plishti, Abner took him, and brought him before Saul with the head of the Plishti in his hand.

⁵⁸ And Saul said to him, Whose son art thou, thou young man? And David answered, I am the son of thy servant Yishai the Bethlehemite.