Year of the Bible
1 Samuel 17
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Commentary on the First Book of Samuel, Chapter 17:
After being introduced to the future King in the settings of his family and the royal court (chapter 16), we now meet David on the battlefield. The Philistines challenge Israel to a battle of champions: each side sends one man to battle and the winner’s nation claims victory and can enslave the defeated people. The Philistine champion is Goliath, a man taller and stronger than anyone else. Although King Saul is the leader of his army and taller than all other men (9:2), he abdicates his responsibility to lead the battle and does nothing for forty days while Goliath taunts the Israelites. When David hears Goliath’s words, he offers to fight the giant. His faith is revealed as he speaks eloquently about the power of God. He refuses the King’s armor, preferring to depend upon what he knows from his time as a shepherd: his skills with a sling and God’s protection. Through him, God brings victory to the Israelites and David becomes publicly known as a warrior.
The First Book of Samuel, Chapter 17:
David and Goliath
1 Now the Philistines gathered their armies for battle; and they were gathered at Socoh, which belongs to Judah, and encamped between Socoh and Azekah, in Ephesdammim. 2 And Saul and the men of Israel were gathered, and encamped in the valley of Elah, and drew up in line of battle against the Philistines. 3 And the Philistines stood on the mountain on the one side, and Israel stood on the mountain on the other side, with a valley between them. 4 And there came out from the camp of the Philistines a champion named Goliath, of Gath, whose height was six cubits and a span. 5 He had a helmet of bronze on his head, and he was armed with a coat of mail, and the weight of the coat was five thousand shekels of bronze. 6 And he had greaves of bronze upon his legs, and a javelin of bronze slung between his shoulders. 7 And the shaft of his spear was like a weaver’s beam, and his spear’s head weighed six hundred shekels of iron; and his shield-bearer went before him. 8 He stood and shouted to the ranks of Israel, “Why have you come out to draw up for battle? Am I not a Philistine, and are you not servants of Saul? Choose a man for yourselves, and let him come down to me. 9 If 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 serve us.” 10 And the Philistine said, “I defy the ranks of Israel this day; give me a man, that we may fight together.” 11 When Saul and all Israel heard these words of the Philistine, they were dismayed and greatly afraid.
12 Now David was the son of an Ephrathite of Bethlehem in Judah, named Jesse, who had eight sons. In the days of Saul the man was already old and advanced in years. 13 The three eldest sons of Jesse had followed Saul to the battle; and the names of his three sons who went to the battle were Eliab the first-born, and next to him Abinadab, and the third Shammah. 14 David was the youngest; the three eldest followed Saul, 15 but David went back and forth from Saul to feed his father’s sheep at Bethlehem. 16 For forty days the Philistine came forward and took his stand, morning and evening.
17 And Jesse said to David his son, “Take for your brothers an ephah of this parched grain, and these ten loaves, and carry them quickly to the camp to your brothers; 18 also take these ten cheeses to the commander of their thousand. See how your brothers fare, and bring some token from them.”
19 Now Saul, and they, and all the men of Israel, were in the valley of Elah, fighting with the Philistines. 20 And David rose early in the morning, and left the sheep with a keeper, and took the provisions, and went, as Jesse had commanded him; and he came to the encampment as the host was going forth to the battle line, shouting the war cry. 21 And Israel and the Philistines drew up for battle, army against army. 22 And David left the things in charge of the keeper of the baggage, and ran to the ranks, and went and greeted his brothers. 23 As he talked with them, behold, the champion, the Philistine of Gath, Goliath by name, came up out of the ranks of the Philistines, and spoke the same words as before. And David heard him. 24 All the men of Israel, when they saw the man, fled from him, and were much afraid. 25 And the men of Israel said, “Have you seen this man who has come up? Surely he has come up to defy Israel; and the man who kills him, the king will enrich with great riches, and will give him his daughter, and make his father’s house free in Israel.” 26 And David said to the men who stood by him, “What shall 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 defy the armies of the living God?” 27 And the people answered him in the same way, “So shall it be done to the man who kills him.”
28 Now Eliab his eldest brother heard when he spoke to the men; and Eliab’s anger was kindled 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 presumption, and the evil of your heart; for you have come down to see the battle.” 29 And David said, “What have I done now? Was it not but a word?” 30 And he turned away from him toward another, and spoke in the same way; and the people answered him again as before.
31 When the words which David spoke were heard, they repeated them before Saul; and he sent for him. 32 And David said to Saul, “Let no man’s heart fail because of him; your servant will go and fight with this Philistine.” 33 And Saul said to David, “You are not able to go against this Philistine to fight with him; for you are but a youth, and he has been a man of war from his youth.” 34 But David said to Saul, “Your servant used to keep sheep for his father; and when there came a lion, or a bear, and took a lamb from the flock, 35 I went after him and struck him and delivered it out of his mouth; and if he arose against me, I caught him by his beard, and struck him and killed him. 36 Your servant has killed both lions and bears; and this uncircumcised Philistine shall be like one of them, seeing he has defied the armies of the living God.” 37 And David said, “The Lord who delivered me from the paw of the lion and from the paw of the bear, will deliver me from the hand of this Philistine.” And Saul said to David, “Go, and the Lord be with you!” 38 Then Saul clothed David with his armor; he put a helmet of bronze on his head, and clothed him with a coat of mail. 39 And David belted on his sword over his armor, and he tried in vain to go, for he was not used to them. Then David said to Saul, “I cannot go with these; for I am not used to them.” And David put them off. 40 Then he took his staff in his hand, and chose five smooth stones from the brook, and put them in his shepherd’s bag or wallet; his sling was in his hand, and he drew near to the Philistine.
41 And the Philistine came on and drew near to David, with his shield-bearer in front of him. 42 And when the Philistine looked, and saw David, he disdained him; for he was but a youth, ruddy and comely in appearance. 43 And the Philistine said to David, “Am I a dog, that you come to me with sticks?” And the Philistine cursed David by his gods. 44 The Philistine said to David, “Come to me, and I will give your flesh to the birds of the air and to the beasts of the field.” 45 Then David said to the Philistine, “You come to me with a sword and with a spear and with 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 defied. 46 This day the Lord will deliver you into my hand, and I will strike you down, and cut off your head; and I will give the dead bodies of the host of the Philistines this day to the birds of the air and to the wild beasts of the earth; that all the earth may know that there is a God in Israel, 47 and that all this assembly may know that the Lord saves not with sword and spear; for the battle is the Lord’s and he will give you into our hand.”
48 When the Philistine arose and came and drew near to meet David, David ran quickly toward the battle line to meet the Philistine. 49 And David put his hand in his bag and took out a stone, and slung it, and struck the Philistine on his forehead; the stone sank into his forehead, and he fell on his face to the ground.
50 So David prevailed over the Philistine with a sling and with a stone, and struck the Philistine, and killed him; there was no sword in the hand of David. 51 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. 52 And the men of Israel and Judah rose with a shout and pursued the Philistines as far as Gath and the gates of Ekron, so that the wounded Philistines fell on the way from Shaaraim as far as Gath and Ekron. 53 And the Israelites came back from chasing the Philistines, and they plundered their camp. 54 And David took the head of the Philistine and brought it to Jerusalem; but he put his armor in his tent.
55 When Saul saw David go forth against the Philistine, he said to Abner, the commander of the army, “Abner, whose son is this youth?” And Abner said, “As your soul lives, O king, I cannot tell.” 56 And the king said, “Inquire whose son the stripling is.” 57 And 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. 58 And Saul said to him, “Whose son are you, young man?” And David answered, “I am the son of your servant Jesse the Bethlehemite.”
*Daily Lectio Divina Question:
In the great scene of David going to battle against Goliath, what is moving me the most about this? David taking off the armor that wasn't his style and is faithful to his own person? The confidence in which this 'no body' faces Goliath? The trust and faith in the Lord in which David abides and acts? Lord, what are you speaking to me through this?
Biblical Commentary provided by the Catholic Biblical School of Michigan. Join a Catholic Biblical School of Michigan class this September at Holy Family in Grand Blanc, or online.
Revised Standard Version; Second Catholic Edition. (San Francisco: Ignatius Press, 2006).
Permission to use the RSV-2CE given for Bishop's Year of the Bible by Ignatius Press. Many thanks to Ignatius for this.
If you're looking for a good Catholic edition of the Bible, look no further.
1 Los filisteos reunieron sus tropas
para la batalla, las congregaron en
Socó de Judá y acamparon entre Socó y
Azecá, en Efes-Damim.
2 Por su parte, Saúl y los hombres de
Israel se reunieron, acamparon en el valle
del Terebinto y formaron en orden
de combate frente a los filisteos. 3 Los filisteos
ocupaban una montaña, los israelitas
ocupaban la opuesta, y entre los
dos quedaba el valle. 4 De las filas filisteas
salió un valiente guerrero, llamado
Goliat de Gat, cuya estatura era de seis
codos y un palmo. 5 Llevaba un yelmo de
bronce sobre su cabeza y vestía una coraza
de escamas que pesaba unos cinco
mil siclos de bronce. 6 En las piernas llevaba
polainas de bronce, y sobre la espalda
una jabalina también de bronce.
7 El asta de su lanza era como el madero
de un tejedor y la punta de la lanza era
de seiscientos siclos de hierro. Su escudero
iba delante de él. 8 Goliat se puso en
pie y gritó a las filas de Israel diciendo:
–¿Por qué habéis salido en orden de
combate? ¿Acaso no soy yo filisteo y vosotros
siervos de Saúl? Elegid a uno de
vosotros y que baje a enfrentarse conmigo.
9 Si se atreve a luchar conmigo y
me vence, seremos siervos vuestros;
pero si yo consigo vencerle, seréis siervos
nuestros y nos serviréis.
10 Y decía el filisteo:
–Yo desafío hoy a todas las huestes
de Israel. Elegid a un hombre valiente y
lucharemos juntos.
11 Al oír las palabras del filisteo, Saúl
y todo Israel se angustiaron y se llenaron
de miedo.
12 David era hijo de un efrateo de Belén
de Judá, llamado Jesé, que tenía ocho
hijos. En tiempos de Saúl este hombre
era ya viejo y entrado en años. 13 Los tres
hijos mayores habían salido con Saúl a
la guerra: se llamaban Eliab, el mayor;
Abinadab, el segundo; y Samá, el tercero.
14 David era el más pequeño. Los tres
mayores estaban con Saúl, 15 y David iba
y volvía del campamento de Saúl para
atender el rebaño de su padre en Belén.
16 El filisteo se presentaba mañana y
tarde, y así durante cuarenta días.
17 Jesé dijo a su hijo David:
–Toma para tus hermanos este efah
de trigo tostado y estos diez panes, y
llévaselos corriendo al campamento;
18 y estos diez quesos llévaselos al jefe
de mando. Entérate de cómo están tus
hermanos y tráeme una prueba de ello.
19 Saúl, ellos mismos y todo Israel están
peleando en el valle del Terebinto contra
los filisteos.
20 Se levantó, pues, David muy de
mañana, dejó el cuidado del rebaño al
guarda y marchó con toda la carga tal
como le había mandado Jesé. Llegó al
centro del campamento en el momento
en que el ejército salía para la batalla
lanzando gritos de guerra. 21 Los israelitas
y los filisteos se pusieron en orden
de combate, ejército frente a ejército.
22 David dejó lo que tenía en manos del
guarda de impedimenta, corrió al lugar
del combate y se interesó por sus hermanos.
23 Estaba hablando todavía con
ellos, cuando el valiente guerrero, llamado
Goliat, filisteo de Gat, salió de las
filas de los filisteos. Y comenzó a decir
las palabras de siempre y David las oyó.
24 Todos los israelitas, al ver a ese hombre,
huyeron de su presencia totalmente
atemorizados. 25 Algún israelita dijo:
–¿Veis a ese hombre que sube? Sube
a provocar a Israel. Al que consiga vencerlo,
el rey le colmará de riquezas, le
dará a su hija por esposa y eximirá a la
casa de su padre de tributar a Israel.
26 Entonces David dijo a los hombres
que estaban con él:
–¿Qué dice que dará al que venza a
ese filisteo y borre la afrenta de Israel?
¿Quién es ese filisteo incircunciso que
desafía al ejército del Dios vivo?
27 El pueblo le repitió las promesas:
–Todo esto le darán al hombre que
consiga vencerlo.
28 Eliab, su hermano mayor, le oyó
hablando con los hombres y se enfadó
con David diciéndole:
–¿Por qué has venido? ¿A quién has
dejado en el desierto al cuidado del pequeño
rebaño? Conozco bien tu arrogancia
y la malicia de tu corazón; has
venido sólo para ver la batalla.
29 David respondió:
–¿Qué he hecho ahora? Sólo he dicho
una palabra.
30 Y apartándose de allí, se dirigió a
otro y le hizo la misma pregunta. Todo
el pueblo le decía lo mismo que al principio.
31 Al conocerse las cosas que decía
David se las comunicaron a Saúl que le
mandó llamar.
32 Entonces David dijo a Saúl:
–Que nadie se acobarde por este filisteo.
Yo, tu siervo, iré y lucharé con él.
33 Y Saúl le respondió:
–Tú no puedes ir a luchar con ese
filisteo porque eres un muchacho, en
cambio él es un guerrero desde su juventud.
34 Pero David dijo a Saúl:
–Tu siervo apacentaba el rebaño de
su padre y cuando venía un león o un
oso y se llevaba una oveja del rebaño,
35 lo perseguía, lo hería y le arrancaba la
presa de sus fauces. Si se revolvía contra
mí, lo sujetaba por el cuello y lo golpeaba
hasta matarlo. 36 Tu siervo ha dado
muerte a leones y a osos. Ese filisteo incircunciso
es como uno de ellos porque
se ha atrevido a desafiar al ejército del
Dios vivo.
37 Y añadió:
–El Señor, que me ha librado de las
garras de leones y de osos, me librará
también de la mano de ese filisteo.
Entonces Saúl le dijo:
–Vete y que el Señor esté contigo.
38 Saúl mandó vestir a David con sus
propias vestiduras, puso un casco de
bronce sobre su cabeza y le colocó una
coraza. 39 Después David se ciño la espada
de Saúl sobre su armadura e intentó
caminar, pero no podía porque no estaba
acostumbrado. Dijo entonces David
a Saúl:
–No puedo caminar así porque nunca
lo he hecho.
Y se quitó todo. 40 Tomó el cayado
en la mano, escogió en el torrente cinco
cantos lisos, los puso en el zurrón que
usaba también como saco de piedras y,
con la honda en la mano, se aproximó al
filisteo. 41 El filisteo avanzaba y se acercaba
a David precedido de su escudero.
42 Cuando el filisteo miró y vio a David,
lo despreció; era sólo un muchacho rubio
y de buena presencia.
43 El filisteo dijo a David:
–¿Soy yo un perro para que te acerques
a mí con un cayado?
Y maldijo a David por sus dioses falsos.
44 Luego dijo a David:
–Ven hasta mí, que voy a entregar
tus carnes a las aves del cielo y a las fieras
del campo.
45 David contestó al filisteo:
–Tú vienes a mí con espada, lanza
y jabalina. Yo, en cambio, voy a ti en
el nombre del Señor de los ejércitos, del
Dios de las huestes de Israel a las que
has escarnecido. 46 Hoy el Señor te va a
entregar en mis manos, te venceré y te
arrancaré la cabeza; hoy mismo les daré
tu cadáver y los cadáveres de los campamentos
filisteos a las aves del cielo y
a las fieras de la tierra para que todo el
mundo sepa que hay un Dios en Israel.
47 Y toda esta asamblea conocerá que el
Señor obtiene la salvación no con espada
y lanza: que del Señor es esta guerra y
Él os entregará en nuestras manos.
48 Cuando se levantó el filisteo y fue
acercándose a David, éste se apresuró
y fue corriendo a la pelea contra el filisteo;
49 echó mano al zurrón, sacó una
piedra, la lanzó con la honda e hirió al
filisteo en la frente. La piedra se le clavó
en la frente y se desplomó de bruces.
50 Así venció David al filisteo con la
honda y la piedra. Lo hirió y lo mató.
Y como no tenía espada en su mano,
51 fue corriendo, se quedó en pie sobre
el filisteo, agarró su misma espada, la
desenvainó, lo mató y le cortó la cabeza.
Los filisteos, al ver que había muerto
su soldado más valiente, se dieron
a la fuga. 52 Los hombres de Israel y de
Judá, en cambio, se levantaron gritando
y persiguieron a los filisteos hasta
llegar a Gat y hasta las puertas de Acarón.
53 Los hijos de Israel volvieron después
de haber derrotado a los filisteos
y saquearon sus campamentos. 54 David
tomó la cabeza del filisteo y la llevó a
Jerusalén. Pero sus armas las colocó en
su tienda. 55 Al ver Saúl a David saliendo
contra el filisteo, preguntó a Abner,
su lugarteniente:
–¿A qué tribu pertenece este joven,
Abner?
Él le respondió:
–Por tu vida, mi rey, que no lo conozco.
56 El rey insistió:
–Pregunta de quién es hijo este muchacho.
57 Y cuando regresó David de haber
vencido al filisteo, lo llamó Abner y lo
presentó ante Saúl con la cabeza del filisteo
en la mano. 58 Saúl le preguntó:
–¿De qué familia eres, muchacho?
David respondió:
–Soy hijo de tu siervo Jesé, de Belén.
Pregunta de Lectio Divina del día de hoy
En la gran escena de David yendo a la batalla contra Goliat, ¿qué es lo que más me conmueve? ¿Que David se quite la armadura que no era de su estilo y sea fiel a su propia persona? ¿La confianza con la que este "sin ser alguien especial" se enfrenta a Goliat? ¿La confianza y la fe en el Señor en la cual David permanece y actúa? Señor, ¿Qué me quieres decir con esto?
La Biblia de Navarra
Permiso para usar esta versión de la primera edición de la Biblia de Navarra
para el Año de la Biblia del Obispo
dado por Ediciones Universidad de Navarra, S.A. (EUNSA).