1Now the Philistines gathered together their armies to battle, and were gathered together at Shochoh, which belongeth to Judah, and pitched between Shochoh and Azekah, in Ephes-dammim.17.1 Ephes-dammim: or, the coast of Dammim, called Pas-dammim 2And Saul and the men of Israel were gathered together, and pitched by the valley of Elah, and set the battle in array against the Philistines.17.2 set…: Heb. ranged the battle 3And the Philistines stood on a mountain on the one side, and Israel 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 Philistines, named Goliath, of Gath, whose height was six cubits and a span. 5And 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.17.5 armed: Heb. clothed 6And he had greaves of brass upon his legs, and a target of brass between his shoulders.17.6 target: or, gorget 7And 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. 8And he stood and cried unto the armies of Israel, and said unto them, Why are ye come out to set your battle in array? am not I a Philistine, and ye servants to Saul? choose you a man for you, and let him come down to me. 9If 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. 10And the Philistine said, I defy the armies of Israel this day; give me a man, that we may fight together. 11When Saul and all Israel heard those words of the Philistine, they were dismayed, and greatly afraid.
12¶ Now David was the son of that Ephrathite of Beth-lehem-judah, whose name was Jesse; and he had eight sons: and the man went among men for an old man in the days of Saul. 13And the three eldest sons of Jesse 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 Abinadab, and the third Shammah. 14And David was the youngest: and the three eldest followed Saul. 15But David went and returned from Saul to feed his father’s sheep at Beth-lehem. 16And the Philistine drew near morning and evening, and presented himself forty days. 17And Jesse 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 to thy brethren; 18And carry these ten cheeses unto the captain of their thousand, and look how thy brethren fare, and take their pledge.17.18 cheeses: Heb. cheeses of milk17.18 of…: Heb. of a thousand 19Now Saul, and they, and all the men of Israel, were in the valley of Elah, fighting with the Philistines.
20¶ And David rose up early in the morning, and left the sheep with a keeper, and took, and went, as Jesse had commanded him; and he came to the trench, as the host was going forth to the fight, and shouted for the battle.17.20 trench: or, place of the carriage17.20 fight: or, battle array, or, place of fight 21For Israel and the Philistines had put the battle in array, army against army. 22And David left his carriage in the hand of the keeper of the carriage, and ran into the army, and came and saluted his brethren.17.22 his carriage: Heb. the vessels from upon him17.22 saluted…: Heb. asked his brethren of peace 23And as he talked with them, behold, there came up the champion, the Philistine of Gath, Goliath by name, out of the armies of the Philistines, and spake according to the same words: and David heard them. 24And all the men of Israel, when they saw the man, fled from him, and were sore afraid.17.24 from…: Heb. from his face 25And the men of Israel said, Have ye seen this man that is come up? surely to defy Israel 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 Israel. 26And David spake to the men that stood by him, saying, What shall be done to the man that killeth this Philistine, and taketh away the reproach from Israel? for who is this uncircumcised Philistine, that he should defy the armies of the living God? 27And 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. 29And 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.17.30 manner: Heb. word
31And when the words were heard which David spake, they rehearsed them before Saul: and he sent for him.17.31 sent…: Heb. took him
32¶ And David said to Saul, Let no man’s heart fail because of him; thy servant will go and fight with this Philistine. 33And Saul said to David, Thou art not able to go against this Philistine to fight with him: for thou art but a youth, and he a man of war from his youth. 34And 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:17.34 lamb: or, kid 35And 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. 36Thy servant slew both the lion and the bear: and this uncircumcised Philistine shall be as one of them, seeing he hath defied the armies of the living God. 37David said moreover, 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 Philistine. And Saul said unto David, Go, and the LORD 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.17.38 armed David…: Heb. clothed David with his clothes 39And 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.
40And 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 Philistine.17.40 brook: or, valley17.40 bag: Heb. vessel 41And the Philistine came on and drew near unto David; and the man that bare the shield went before him. 42And when the Philistine looked about, and saw David, he disdained him: for he was but a youth, and ruddy, and of a fair countenance. 43And the Philistine said unto David, Am I a dog, that thou comest to me with staves? And the Philistine cursed David by his gods. 44And the Philistine 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. 45Then said David to the Philistine, Thou comest to me with a sword, and with a spear, and with a shield: but I come to thee in the name of the LORD of hosts, the God of the armies of Israel, whom thou hast defied. 46This day will the LORD 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 Philistines 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 a God in Israel.17.46 deliver…: Heb. shut thee up 47And all this assembly shall know that the LORD saveth not with sword and spear: for the battle is the LORD’s, and he will give you into our hands.
48And it came to pass, when the Philistine arose, and came and drew nigh to meet David, that David hasted, and ran toward the army to meet the Philistine. 49And David put his hand in his bag, and took thence a stone, and slang it, and smote the Philistine in his forehead, that the stone sunk into his forehead; and he fell upon his face to the earth. 50So David prevailed over the Philistine with a sling and with a stone, and smote the Philistine, and slew him; but there was no sword in the hand of David. 51Therefore David ran, and stood upon the Philistine, and took his sword, and drew it out of the sheath thereof, and slew him, and cut off his head therewith. And when the Philistines saw their champion was dead, they fled. 52And the men of Israel and of Judah arose, and shouted, and pursued the Philistines, until thou come to the valley, and to the gates of Ekron. And the wounded of the Philistines fell down by the way to Shaaraim, even unto Gath, and unto Ekron. 53And the children of Israel returned from chasing after the Philistines, and they spoiled their tents. 54And David took the head of the Philistine, and brought it to Jerusalem; but he put his armour in his tent.
55¶ And when Saul saw David go forth against the Philistine, 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. 56And the king said, Enquire thou whose son the stripling is. 57And as David returned from the slaughter of the Philistine, Abner took him, and brought him before Saul with the head of the Philistine in his hand. 58And Saul said to him, Whose son art thou, thou young man? And David answered, I am the son of thy servant Jesse the Beth-lehemite.
大衛迎戰歌利亞
1非利士人在猶大的梭哥招聚軍隊，準備作戰。他們在梭哥和亞西加之間的以弗·大憫紮營。 2掃羅和以色列人也聚集起來在以拉谷安營，擺好陣勢準備迎戰。 3雙方的軍隊在兩邊的山上對峙，中間隔著山谷。 4非利士營中有個名叫歌利亞的巨人出來討戰。他來自迦特，身高三米， 5頭戴銅盔，身穿重達五十七公斤的鎧甲， 6腿上有銅護膝，肩背銅戟。 7戟柄粗如織布機的軸，鐵戟頭重七公斤。有衛士拿著他的盾牌走在前面。 8他挑戰以色列人，說：「你們為什麼列陣打仗呢？我是非利士人，你們是掃羅的僕人，你們選一個人下來跟我一比高下。 9如果他打得過我，將我殺了，我們就做你們的奴隸。但如果我戰勝他，把他殺了，你們就要做我們的奴隸，服侍我們。 10我今天向以色列軍隊罵陣，你們找一個人出來跟我比個高下吧！」 11掃羅和所有以色列人聽了非利士人的這些話，都嚇得驚恐不已。
12大衛是以法他人耶西的兒子。掃羅執政期間，耶西已經年紀老邁，住在猶大的伯利恆，有八個兒子。 13他的三個兒子已經跟隨掃羅去打仗了，他們是長子以利押、次子亞比拿達和三子沙瑪。 14大衛年紀最小，他的三個哥哥跟隨掃羅期間， 15他有時去掃羅的軍營，有時回伯利恆為他父親放羊。 16這非利士人早晚都出來罵陣，長達四十天。
17一天，耶西對大衛說：「你帶上十公斤烤麥和十個餅，趕快到軍營中送給你的哥哥們。 18再帶十塊奶餅送給他們的千夫長，看望一下他們，帶個信兒回來。 19他們跟隨掃羅率領的以色列軍在以拉谷跟非利士人打仗。」
20大衛清早起來把羊交給一個牧人看顧，然後照父親的吩咐帶著食物出發了。他來到軍營的時候，大軍正吶喊著出戰。 21以色列人與非利士人擺好陣勢，兩軍對壘。 22大衛把帶來的東西交給負責看守的人保管，自己跑到陣中去問候哥哥們。 23他們正在交談的時候，非利士軍中的迦特人歌利亞出來像往常一樣向以色列軍罵陣，大衛都聽見了。 24以色列人一看見歌利亞都競相奔逃，極其害怕。 25以色列人彼此議論說：「看那個人！他是來向以色列軍罵陣的。誰要能殺死他，王必有重賞，還會把女兒嫁給他為妻，並免去他父親家在以色列應繳的賦稅。」 26大衛問站在旁邊的人：「如果有人殺了這非利士人，洗掉以色列人的羞辱，他會得到什麼呢？這個未受割禮的非利士人是誰？竟敢向永活上帝的軍隊罵陣！」 27他們就把剛才的話一一告訴大衛。
28大衛的長兄以利押聽見他跟人說話，就憤怒地對他說：「你來這裡做什麽？你把曠野的那幾隻羊交給誰了？我知道你驕傲自大，心懷惡意，你來只是想看打仗。」 29大衛說：「我做錯了什麼？我問一下都不行嗎？」 30他又去問其他人同樣的問題，得到了同樣的答覆。 31有人聽見了大衛的話，就去告訴掃羅，掃羅便派人來召大衛。 32大衛對掃羅說：「大家不要因這個非利士人而喪膽，讓僕人去戰他。」 33掃羅說：「你不能去，你年紀還小，他卻是一個久經沙場的戰士。」 34大衛說：「我一直替父親放羊，有時候獅子或熊會從羊群中叼走羊， 35我會去追打牠，把羊從牠口中救出來。如果牠起來攻擊我，我就揪著牠的鬍子把牠打死。 36我曾打死過獅子和熊。這未受割禮的非利士人竟敢向永活上帝的軍隊罵陣，他的下場也必像獅子和熊一樣。 37耶和華曾經從獅子和熊的利爪下拯救我，祂也必從非利士人手中拯救我。」掃羅對大衛說：「去吧，願耶和華與你同在。」 38掃羅把自己的戰袍給大衛穿上，又給他戴上自己的頭盔，穿上自己的鎧甲。 39大衛把刀挎在戰袍上，試著走了幾步，卻不習慣這種裝束，就對掃羅說：「我穿著這些無法作戰，因為我不習慣。」他便摘下頭盔，卸下鎧甲， 40然後拿著杖，在溪裡撿了五塊光滑的石頭放進牧人用的袋子，拿著投石器向歌利亞走去。
41歌利亞也迎著大衛走來，衛士拿著他的盾牌走在前面。 42歌利亞見大衛是個面色紅潤、相貌英俊的少年，就藐視他。 43他對大衛說：「你拿著棍子來戰我，難道我是一條狗嗎？」他就憑自己的神明咒詛大衛， 44又說：「你過來，我要把你的肉丟給天上的飛禽和地上的走獸。」 45大衛答道：「你是靠刀槍劍戟來攻擊我，我是靠萬軍之耶和華的名，就是你所蔑視的以色列軍隊的上帝來迎戰你。 46今天，耶和華必把你交在我手中，我必殺死你，砍掉你的頭，用非利士軍兵的屍體餵天上的飛禽和地上的走獸，使普天下都知道以色列有上帝。 47這裡所有的人都必知道耶和華拯救人不靠刀槍，因為祂掌管戰爭的勝負。祂必把你們交在我們手中。」 48歌利亞迎面走來的時候，大衛就飛快地跑上去應戰， 49他從袋裡拿出一塊石子用投石器猛力拋去，石子擊中歌利亞的額頭，嵌了進去，他迎面栽倒在地。
50大衛就這樣不用刀劍，只用投石器和一塊石子戰勝了那個非利士人，殺死了他。 51大衛跑到那非利士人身邊，從他刀鞘裡拔出刀殺了他，並割下他的頭顱。非利士人看見自己的英雄死了，紛紛逃跑。 52以色列人和猶大人乘勢吶喊，追殺非利士人，直追到迦特和以革倫的城門。通往迦特和以革倫的沙拉音大道上到處是非利士人的屍體。 53以色列軍隊追殺非利士人回來，又擄掠了他們的營地。 54大衛把那非利士人的頭顱帶到耶路撒冷，把那人的兵器存放在自己的帳篷中。
55掃羅看見大衛出去迎戰歌利亞，就問押尼珥元帥：「押尼珥啊，那少年是誰的兒子？」押尼珥答道：「王啊，我向你發誓，我真的不知道。」 56掃羅王說：「你去查查他是誰的兒子。」 57大衛殺了歌利亞回來，押尼珥就把他帶到掃羅那裡，他手上還拿著那非利士人的頭顱。 58掃羅問他：「年輕人，你是誰的兒子？」大衛答道：「我是你僕人伯利恆人耶西的兒子。」
