1 Samuel 17:1–10

David and Goliath

17Now the Philistines gathered their armies together to battle, and were gathered at ^aSochoh, which belongs to Judah; they encamped between Sochoh and Azekah, in Ephes Dammim. ²And Saul and the men of Israel were gathered together, and they encamped in the Valley of Elah, and drew up in battle array against the Philistines. ³The Philistines stood on a mountain on one side, and Israel stood on a mountain on the other side, with a valley between them.

⁴And a champion went out from the camp of the Philistines, named ^bGoliath, from ^cGath, whose height was six cubits and a span. ⁵He had a bronze helmet on his head, and he was ¹armed with a coat of mail, and the weight of the coat was five thousand shekels of bronze. ⁶And he had bronze armor on his legs and a bronze javelin between his shoulders. ⁷Now the staff of his spear was like a weaver’s beam, and his iron spearhead weighed six hundred shekels; and a shield-bearer went before him. ⁸Then he stood and cried out to the armies of Israel, and said to them, “Why have you come out to line up for battle? Am I not a Philistine, and you the ^dservants of Saul? Choose a man for yourselves, and let him come down to me. ⁹If he is able to fight with me and kill me, then we will be your servants. But if I prevail against him and kill him, then you shall be our servants and ^eserve us.” ¹⁰And the Philistine said, “I ^fdefy the armies of Israel this day; give me a man, that we may fight together.”