

David and the giant Goliath
From the book 1 Samuel: chapter 17
A young shepherd is standing face-to-face with a giant and challenges him. May the best man win! It looks like an impossible fight, but something special is going on here.
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Soon after Samuel had secretly anointed David to be the next
king of Israel, the Philistines gathered an army to fight the
Israelites. The two armies faced each other across a deep valley:
King Saul and the Israelites on one side and the Philistines on the
other.
The first morning, the Israelites stood on their side of the
valley. Suddenly, they saw a huge warrior step out of the
Philistine camp. He was a giant, towering above other men,
wearing a bronze helmet, a massive breastplate of bronze and
carrying a spear as long as a tree trunk.
His name was Goliath, and he struck terrible fear into the
Israelites. He roared at them across the valley, shouting his
challenge, “Choose one of your men to fight me! If he can kill
me, we will become your slaves, but if I kill him first, then you
will become our slaves and serve us forever!”
No man dared move, no one shifted a foot or a hand; they
just stared. Even King Saul, who was the tallest man in Israel,
looked small and weak against this fearful champion.
Goliath came striding down the valley, shaking his spear,
mocking the Israelites and shouting his defiance: “I am one
man against the whole army of Israel! Come on, pick your
champion and let me fight him!”
Still no one moved, and no one stepped forward to
volunteer. The Philistines jeered and laughed as Goliath
returned to their camp.
Every day, for forty days, Goliath repeated his act. He strode
down the valley, roaring his challenge, and stood there in his
gleaming battle gear. No one spoke a word or moved. No one
dared to make a sound.
Meanwhile, David was at home tending his sheep. His three
eldest brothers had joined the battle line with King Saul. Their
father, Jesse, began to worry about his sons, so he sent David
with supplies of food and to find out what was happening to
them.
When David arrived, he saw that the Israelite soldiers were
living in terror. He saw Goliath marching down into the valley,
shouting. And he saw how some of the Israelites were running
away in terror.
David was shocked and angered by this sight.
“Who is this worthless Philistine who dares to mock God’s
people?” he asked.
When David’s brother Eliab heard him talking like this, he
was very angry. “Why did you come here? Go back and guard
your little flock of sheep! You’re too full of yourself.”
“Is it a crime to open my mouth?” asked David, and he went
on asking the other soldiers about Goliath until someone told
King Saul about him. Saul sent for David.
When he saw the boy coming towards him, Saul was
amazed. He looked so young and so utterly fearless.
“Why should anyone lose heart over this Philistine?” asked
David. “I will go and fight him.”
“You?” said Saul, “You’re only a lad and this warrior has been
fighting all his life!”
“Your Majesty,” said David softly, “I have been fighting for
many years too. With my own hands I have killed lions and
bears who have attacked my sheep. Surely, the God who
delivered me from the jaws of the lion and the claws of the
bear can deliver me from the hands of the Philistine!”
“Go on then,” said Saul, “and may God be with you.”
Then Saul dressed David in his own breastplate and helmet,
but the boy said, “I am not used to all this. Let me go as I am.”
So David collected five smooth stones from a stream and put
them in his shepherd’s bag. He took his sling in his hand and
walked down the valley towards Goliath.
When the giant saw that a challenger was at last coming
down to meet him, he marched forward clutching his spear.
But when he realized that it was only a boy, Goliath was
furiously angry.
“You’re treating me like a dog…” he roared to the Israelites,
“throwing little sticks after me!” Then he cursed in the name of
his Philistine god and shouted, “Come here, boy, and I will
feed your flesh to the birds!”
“You are coming against me with a sword and a spear,”
shouted David, “but I am coming against you in the name of
the Lord God of Israel. Today, he will hand you over to me
because the victory is his – the Lord does not need spears and
swords to save his people!”
As Goliath steadied his spear to take aim, David calmly loaded
one smooth stone into his sling, swung it around his head and
let it go. With deadly speed, the stone flew through the air and
struck Goliath in the middle of his forehead.
The great Philistine champion fell to the ground, killed by a
single stone.
David ran forward, took Goliath’s sword from its sheath and
cut off his head. When the Philistines saw that their champion
was dead, they turned and ran off in fear, with the Israelite
army pursuing them.
The Israelites won a great victory that day, and King Saul was
leading them. But it was the shepherd boy David who was now
the talk of Israel.
Reprinted with permission of 'The Story'.
Murry Watts, Lion Hudson plc, 2006
(Tip the icons and find this story in the app Bible-Fit)
Soon after Samuel had secretly anointed David to be the next
king of Israel, the Philistines gathered an army to fight the
Israelites. The two armies faced each other across a deep valley:
King Saul and the Israelites on one side and the Philistines on the
other.
The first morning, the Israelites stood on their side of the
valley. Suddenly, they saw a huge warrior step out of the
Philistine camp. He was a giant, towering above other men,
wearing a bronze helmet, a massive breastplate of bronze and
carrying a spear as long as a tree trunk.
His name was Goliath, and he struck terrible fear into the
Israelites. He roared at them across the valley, shouting his
challenge, “Choose one of your men to fight me! If he can kill
me, we will become your slaves, but if I kill him first, then you
will become our slaves and serve us forever!”
No man dared move, no one shifted a foot or a hand; they
just stared. Even King Saul, who was the tallest man in Israel,
looked small and weak against this fearful champion.
Goliath came striding down the valley, shaking his spear,
mocking the Israelites and shouting his defiance: “I am one
man against the whole army of Israel! Come on, pick your
champion and let me fight him!”
Still no one moved, and no one stepped forward to
volunteer. The Philistines jeered and laughed as Goliath
returned to their camp.
Every day, for forty days, Goliath repeated his act. He strode
down the valley, roaring his challenge, and stood there in his
gleaming battle gear. No one spoke a word or moved. No one
dared to make a sound.
Meanwhile, David was at home tending his sheep. His three
eldest brothers had joined the battle line with King Saul. Their
father, Jesse, began to worry about his sons, so he sent David
with supplies of food and to find out what was happening to
them.
When David arrived, he saw that the Israelite soldiers were
living in terror. He saw Goliath marching down into the valley,
shouting. And he saw how some of the Israelites were running
away in terror.
David was shocked and angered by this sight.
“Who is this worthless Philistine who dares to mock God’s
people?” he asked.
When David’s brother Eliab heard him talking like this, he
was very angry. “Why did you come here? Go back and guard
your little flock of sheep! You’re too full of yourself.”
“Is it a crime to open my mouth?” asked David, and he went
on asking the other soldiers about Goliath until someone told
King Saul about him. Saul sent for David.
When he saw the boy coming towards him, Saul was
amazed. He looked so young and so utterly fearless.
“Why should anyone lose heart over this Philistine?” asked
David. “I will go and fight him.”
“You?” said Saul, “You’re only a lad and this warrior has been
fighting all his life!”
“Your Majesty,” said David softly, “I have been fighting for
many years too. With my own hands I have killed lions and
bears who have attacked my sheep. Surely, the God who
delivered me from the jaws of the lion and the claws of the
bear can deliver me from the hands of the Philistine!”
“Go on then,” said Saul, “and may God be with you.”
Then Saul dressed David in his own breastplate and helmet,
but the boy said, “I am not used to all this. Let me go as I am.”
So David collected five smooth stones from a stream and put
them in his shepherd’s bag. He took his sling in his hand and
walked down the valley towards Goliath.
When the giant saw that a challenger was at last coming
down to meet him, he marched forward clutching his spear.
But when he realized that it was only a boy, Goliath was
furiously angry.
“You’re treating me like a dog…” he roared to the Israelites,
“throwing little sticks after me!” Then he cursed in the name of
his Philistine god and shouted, “Come here, boy, and I will
feed your flesh to the birds!”
“You are coming against me with a sword and a spear,”
shouted David, “but I am coming against you in the name of
the Lord God of Israel. Today, he will hand you over to me
because the victory is his – the Lord does not need spears and
swords to save his people!”
As Goliath steadied his spear to take aim, David calmly loaded
one smooth stone into his sling, swung it around his head and
let it go. With deadly speed, the stone flew through the air and
struck Goliath in the middle of his forehead.
The great Philistine champion fell to the ground, killed by a
single stone.
David ran forward, took Goliath’s sword from its sheath and
cut off his head. When the Philistines saw that their champion
was dead, they turned and ran off in fear, with the Israelite
army pursuing them.
The Israelites won a great victory that day, and King Saul was
leading them. But it was the shepherd boy David who was now
the talk of Israel.
Reprinted with permission of 'The Story'.
Murry Watts, Lion Hudson plc, 2006