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- Now the Philistines gathered their forces for war and assembled at Socoh in Judah. They pitched camp at Ephes Dammim, between Socoh and Azekah.
- Saul and the Israelites assembled and camped in the Valley of Elah and drew up their battle line to meet the Philistines.
- The Philistines occupied one hill and the Israelites another, with the valley between them.
- A champion named Goliath, who was from Gath, came out of the Philistine camp. He was over nine feet tall.
- He had a bronze helmet on his head and wore a coat of scale armor of bronze weighing five thousand shekels ;
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- Now the Philistines gathered their armies for battle; and they were gathered at Socoh which belongs to Judah, and they camped between Socoh and Azekah, in Ephes-dammim.
- Saul and the men of Israel were gathered and camped in the valley of Elah, and drew up in battle array to encounter the Philistines.
- The Philistines stood on the mountain on one side while Israel stood on the mountain on the other side, with the valley between them.
- Then a champion came out from the armies of the Philistines named Goliath, from Gath, whose height was six cubits and a span.
- He had a bronze helmet on his head, and he was clothed with scale-armor which weighed five thousand shekels of bronze.
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- on his legs he wore bronze greaves, and a bronze javelin was slung on his back.
- His spear shaft was like a weaver's rod, and its iron point weighed six hundred shekels. His shield bearer went ahead of him.
- Goliath stood and shouted to the ranks of Israel, "Why do you come out and line up for battle? Am I not a Philistine, and are you not the servants of Saul? Choose a man and have him come down to me.
- If he is able to fight and kill me, we will become your subjects; but if I overcome him and kill him, you will become our subjects and serve us."
- Then the Philistine said, "This day I defy the ranks of Israel! Give me a man and let us fight each other."
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- He also had bronze greaves on his legs and a bronze javelin slung between his shoulders.
- The shaft of his spear was like a weaver's beam, and the head of his spear weighed six hundred shekels of iron; his shield-carrier also walked before him.
- He stood and shouted to the ranks of Israel and said to them, "Why do you come out to draw up in battle array? Am I not the Philistine and you servants of Saul? Choose a man for yourselves and let him come down to me.
- "If he is able to fight with me and kill me, then we will become your servants; but if I prevail against him and kill him, then you shall become our servants and serve us."
- Again the Philistine said, "I defy the ranks of Israel this day; give me a man that we may fight together."
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- On hearing the Philistine's words, Saul and all the Israelites were dismayed and terrified.
- Now David was the son of an Ephrathite named Jesse, who was from Bethlehem in Judah. Jesse had eight sons, and in Saul's time he was old and well advanced in years.
- Jesse's three oldest sons had followed Saul to the war: The firstborn was Eliab; the second, Abinadab; and the third, Shammah.
- David was the youngest. The three oldest followed Saul,
- but David went back and forth from Saul to tend his father's sheep at Bethlehem.
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- When Saul and all Israel heard these words of the Philistine, they were dismayed and greatly afraid.
- Now David was the son of the Ephrathite of Bethlehem in Judah, whose name was Jesse, and he had eight sons. And Jesse was old in the days of Saul, advanced in years among men.
- The three older sons of Jesse had gone after Saul to the battle. And the names of his three sons who went to the battle were Eliab the firstborn, and the second to him Abinadab, and the third Shammah.
- David was the youngest. Now the three oldest followed Saul,
- but David went back and forth from Saul to tend his father's flock at Bethlehem.
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- For forty days the Philistine came forward every morning and evening and took his stand.
- Now Jesse said to his son David, "Take this ephah of roasted grain and these ten loaves of bread for your brothers and hurry to their camp.
- Take along these ten cheeses to the commander of their unit. See how your brothers are and bring back some assurance from them.
- They are with Saul and all the men of Israel in the Valley of Elah, fighting against the Philistines."
- Early in the morning David left the flock with a shepherd, loaded up and set out, as Jesse had directed. He reached the camp as the army was going out to its battle positions, shouting the war cry.
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- The Philistine came forward morning and evening for forty days and took his stand.
- Then Jesse said to David his son, "Take now for your brothers an ephah of this roasted grain and these ten loaves and run to the camp to your brothers.
- "Bring also these ten cuts of cheese to the commander of their thousand, and look into the welfare of your brothers, and bring back news of them.
- "For Saul and they and all the men of Israel are in the valley of Elah, fighting with the Philistines."
- So David arose early in the morning and left the flock with a keeper and took the supplies and went as Jesse had commanded him. And he came to the circle of the camp while the army was going out in battle array shouting the war cry.
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- Israel and the Philistines were drawing up their lines facing each other.
- David left his things with the keeper of supplies, ran to the battle lines and greeted his brothers.
- As he was talking with them, Goliath, the Philistine champion from Gath, stepped out from his lines and shouted his usual defiance, and David heard it.
- When the Israelites saw the man, they all ran from him in great fear.
- Now the Israelites had been saying, "Do you see how this man keeps coming out? He comes out to defy Israel. The king will give great wealth to the man who kills him. He will also give him his daughter in marriage and will exempt his father's family from taxes in Israel."
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- Israel and the Philistines drew up in battle array, army against army.
- Then David left his baggage in the care of the baggage keeper, and ran to the battle line and entered in order to greet his brothers.
- As he was talking with them, behold, the champion, the Philistine from Gath named Goliath, was coming up from the army of the Philistines, and he spoke these same words; and David heard them.
- When all the men of Israel saw the man, they fled from him and were greatly afraid.
- The men of Israel said, "Have you seen this man who is coming up? Surely he is coming up to defy Israel. And it will be that the king will enrich the man who kills him with great riches and will give him his daughter and make his father's house free in Israel."
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- David asked the men standing near him, "What will be done for the man who kills this Philistine and removes this disgrace from Israel? Who is this uncircumcised Philistine that he should defy the armies of the living God?"
- They repeated to him what they had been saying and told him, "This is what will be done for the man who kills him."
- When Eliab, David's oldest brother, heard him speaking with the men, he burned with anger at him and asked, "Why have you come down here? And with whom did you leave those few sheep in the desert? I know how conceited you are and how wicked your heart is; you came down only to watch the battle."
- "Now what have I done?" said David. "Can't I even speak?"
- He then turned away to someone else and brought up the same matter, and the men answered him as before.
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- Then David spoke to the men who were standing by him, saying, "What will be done for the man who kills this Philistine and takes away the reproach from Israel? For who is this uncircumcised Philistine, that he should taunt the armies of the living God?"
- The people answered him in accord with this word, saying, "Thus it will be done for the man who kills him."
- Now Eliab his oldest brother heard when he spoke to the men; and Eliab's anger burned against David and he said, "Why have you come down? And with whom have you left those few sheep in the wilderness? I know your insolence and the wickedness of your heart; for you have come down in order to see the battle."
- But David said, "What have I done now? Was it not just a question?"
- Then he turned away from him to another and said the same thing; and the people answered the same thing as before.
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- What David said was overheard and reported to Saul, and Saul sent for him.
- David said to Saul, "Let no one lose heart on account of this Philistine; your servant will go and fight him."
- Saul replied, "You are not able to go out against this Philistine and fight him; you are only a boy, and he has been a fighting man from his youth."
- But David said to Saul, "Your servant has been keeping his father's sheep. When a lion or a bear came and carried off a sheep from the flock,
- I went after it, struck it and rescued the sheep from its mouth. When it turned on me, I seized it by its hair, struck it and killed it.
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- When the words which David spoke were heard, they told them to Saul, and he sent for him.
- David said to Saul, "Let no man's heart fail on account of him; your servant will go and fight with this Philistine."
- Then Saul said to David, "You are not able to go against this Philistine to fight with him; for you are but a youth while he has been a warrior from his youth."
- But David said to Saul, "Your servant was tending his father's sheep. When a lion or a bear came and took a lamb from the flock,
- I went out after him and attacked him, and rescued it from his mouth; and when he rose up against me, I seized him by his beard and struck him and killed him.
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- Your servant has killed both the lion and the bear; this uncircumcised Philistine will be like one of them, because he has defied the armies of the living God.
- The LORD who delivered me from the paw of the lion and the paw of the bear will deliver me from the hand of this Philistine." Saul said to David, "Go, and the LORD be with you."
- Then Saul dressed David in his own tunic. He put a coat of armor on him and a bronze helmet on his head.
- David fastened on his sword over the tunic and tried walking around, because he was not used to them. "I cannot go in these," he said to Saul, "because I am not used to them." So he took them off.
- Then he took his staff in his hand, chose five smooth stones from the stream, put them in the pouch of his shepherd's bag and, with his sling in his hand, approached the Philistine.
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- "Your servant has killed both the lion and the bear; and this uncircumcised Philistine will be like one of them, since he has taunted the armies of the living God."
- And David said, "The LORD who delivered me from the paw of the lion and from the paw of the bear, He will deliver me from the hand of this Philistine " And Saul said to David, "Go, and may the LORD be with you."
- Then Saul clothed David with his garments and put a bronze helmet on his head, and he clothed him with armor.
- David girded his sword over his armor and tried to walk, for he had not tested them. So David said to Saul, "I cannot go with these, for I have not tested them." And David took them off.
- He took his stick in his hand and chose for himself five smooth stones from the brook, and put them in the shepherd's bag which he had, even in his pouch, and his sling was in his hand; and he approached the Philistine.
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- Meanwhile, the Philistine, with his shield bearer in front of him, kept coming closer to David.
- He looked David over and saw that he was only a boy, ruddy and handsome, and he despised him.
- He said to David, "Am I a dog, that you come at me with sticks?" And the Philistine cursed David by his gods.
- "Come here," he said, "and I'll give your flesh to the birds of the air and the beasts of the field!"
- David said to the Philistine, "You come against me with sword and spear and javelin, but I come against you in the name of the LORD Almighty, the God of the armies of Israel, whom you have defied.
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- Then the Philistine came on and approached David, with the shield-bearer in front of him.
- When the Philistine looked and saw David, he disdained him; for he was but a youth, and ruddy, with a handsome appearance.
- The Philistine said to David, "Am I a dog, that you come to me with sticks?" And the Philistine cursed David by his gods.
- The Philistine also said to David, "Come to me, and I will give your flesh to the birds of the sky and the beasts of the field."
- Then David said to the Philistine, "You come to me with a sword, a spear, and a javelin, but I come to you in the name of the LORD of hosts, the God of the armies of Israel, whom you have taunted.
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- This day the LORD will hand you over to me, and I'll strike you down and cut off your head. Today I will give the carcasses of the Philistine army to the birds of the air and the beasts of the earth, and the whole world will know that there is a God in Israel.
- All those gathered here will know that it is not by sword or spear that the LORD saves; for the battle is the LORD's, and he will give all of you into our hands."
- As the Philistine moved closer to attack him, David ran quickly toward the battle line to meet him.
- Reaching into his bag and taking out a stone, he slung it and struck the Philistine on the forehead. The stone sank into his forehead, and he fell facedown on the ground.
- So David triumphed over the Philistine with a sling and a stone; without a sword in his hand he struck down the Philistine and killed him.
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- "This day the LORD will deliver you up into my hands, and I will strike you down and remove your head from you. And I will give the dead bodies of the army of the Philistines this day to the birds of the sky and the wild beasts of the earth, that all the earth may know that there is a God in Israel,
- and that all this assembly may know that the LORD does not deliver by sword or by spear; for the battle is the LORD'S and He will give you into our hands."
- Then it happened when the Philistine rose and came and drew near to meet David, that David ran quickly toward the battle line to meet the Philistine.
- And David put his hand into his bag and took from it a stone and slung it, and struck the Philistine on his forehead. And the stone sank into his forehead, so that he fell on his face to the ground.
- Thus David prevailed over the Philistine with a sling and a stone, and he struck the Philistine and killed him; but there was no sword in David's hand.
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- David ran and stood over him. He took hold of the Philistine's sword and drew it from the scabbard. After he killed him, he cut off his head with the sword. When the Philistines saw that their hero was dead, they turned and ran.
- Then the men of Israel and Judah surged forward with a shout and pursued the Philistines to the entrance of Gath and to the gates of Ekron. Their dead were strewn along the Shaaraim road to Gath and Ekron.
- When the Israelites returned from chasing the Philistines, they plundered their camp.
- David took the Philistine's head and brought it to Jerusalem, and he put the Philistine's weapons in his own tent.
- As Saul watched David going out to meet the Philistine, he said to Abner, commander of the army, "Abner, whose son is that young man?" Abner replied, "As surely as you live, O king, I don't know."
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- Then David ran and stood over the Philistine and took his sword and drew it out of its sheath and killed him, and cut off his head with it When the Philistines saw that their champion was dead, they fled.
- The men of Israel and Judah arose and shouted and pursued the Philistines as far as the valley, and to the gates of Ekron And the slain Philistines lay along the way to Shaaraim, even to Gath and Ekron.
- The sons of Israel returned from chasing the Philistines and plundered their camps.
- Then David took the Philistine's head and brought it to Jerusalem, but he put his weapons in his tent.
- Now when Saul saw David going out against the Philistine, he said to Abner the commander of the army, "Abner, whose son is this young man?" And Abner said, "By your life, O king, I do not know."
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- The king said, "Find out whose son this young man is."
- As soon as David returned from killing the Philistine, Abner took him and brought him before Saul, with David still holding the Philistine's head.
- "Whose son are you, young man?" Saul asked him. David said, "I am the son of your servant Jesse of Bethlehem."
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- The king said, "You inquire whose son the youth is."
- So when David returned from killing the Philistine, Abner took him and brought him before Saul with the Philistine's head in his hand.
- Saul said to him, "Whose son are you, young man?" And David answered, "I am the son of your servant Jesse the Bethlehemite."
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