For forty days a giant ten feet tall had been coming out between the armies, and calling upon them to send him one man to fight. Not a man among the children of Israel had appeared to grapple with him; for none durst, and all were sore afraid. Then came a stripling to the armies and brought word to the Captain of his brethren, that he had heard Goliath's scornful speeches.
"Who is this uncircumcised Philistine that he should defy the armies of the living God," said David. "I will go to him, and I shall smite him."
Goliath of Gath
The army of Israel was in a most grievous plight, and sorely pressed by the Philistines. The two hosts had drawn up in array, one against the other, in the narrow valley of Elah. The Israelites held the left and the Philistines the right, while the walled cities of the Philistines crowned the surrounding hills. Thus they were at a great disadvantage, so that neither of the contending kings, Saul of Israel and Apis of the Philistines, durst order an attack. But the Philistines had among them a champion of wonderful valor and stature; his name was Goliath, son of the giant of Gath, a city in the far south.
He was of a wonderful and terrible height, according to the Hebrew measure; the Bible describes him as six cubits and a span, which means about nine feet and six inches in English or metric measure. From his shoulders the bronze-plated corselet hung down to his thighs and weighed a very great many pounds. On his legs were bronze greaves, and a javelin of bronze was slung from his back, while his spear was an exceeding strong weapon, the shaft of which was "like a weaver's beam" and the iron point weighed many pounds. Before him went his shield-bearer; and twice a day in the morning and the evening came the champion out of the host of the Philistines, and stood in the valley between the armies.
"I defie you," cried Goliath; "come on and let us try which of you is strongest! If you slay me, I will be your servant, and if I slay you, you shall be my servant." This fearful challenge he continued for forty days, while King Saul and his host stood trembling, and not one Israelite appeared to grapple with him. But far away in the hills there was a young shepherd called David, youngest son of Jesse the Bethlehemite, and so tender that his three elder brothers went with a messenger to the camp of Saul to bring him home from guarding their father's flocks.
Twice a day for forty days, Goliath strode into the valley between the two armies in full bronze armor and dared Israel to send a man to fight him. Not one soldier stepped forward.
While Jesse's sons tarried in the host of Israel, this fair young stripling came to the armies and saw the monster fighting in the presence of all Israel. But he saw nothing in him that he feared to behold; only a shameless giant who defied the Lord, who claimed that he was too good to die at the hand of any of these weak and cowardly Israelites. "Who is this uncircumcised Philistine," cried David, "that he should defy the armies of the living God."
"Have you come that you may see Israel's men flee before the giant?" grumbled Eliab, the eldest son of Jesse, fiercely; "have you slipped away from the sheep that you may see battle?" But David's voice was heard by King Saul, and he sent for the shepherd-herdsman in haste. "You are a young man," said Saul, "but come to me, that I may make you my armor-bearer."
"You cannot possibly go and fight this giant," said the king. "He has been a foe of battle and war from his youth." Then David told of the lions that had fought against his sheep, and the manner that he had fought them and had slain them, saying that he had been rescued from their paws by the Lord. "Your servant has fought lions and bears, and has smitten them both, and rescued my flock from them," said David; "and this great giant shall also die at the hand of your servant." Then the king gave him his sword and his armor, but the youth said that he did not know how to wield them, and laid them aside in haste.
"Five smooth stones I have here," said the stripling shepherd when he was approaching the giant. He paused by the brook and chose one and put it into his girdle. His weapon was a sling only, which he carried in his hand, but it was an instrument of exceeding mischief in the right hands; and as he went forth to meet the giant of Gath, he told him the message of the Lord of hosts.
David Faces the Giant
"Am I a dog, that you should come to me with sticks?" cried the giant. "You shall be fed to the fowls and beasts of the forest." But David answered him, saying that Goliath had come out against the Lord's anointed with iron and steel, that he had fought with the edge of his spear, and that he would fight him in the name of the Lord of hosts of Israel, and in very truth deliver Israel from his hand.
"The Lord will deliver him into your hand," cried David; "and I will make the nations know that the Lord saveth His people." "Yea, the battle is the Lord's, and He shall deliver all you into our hands," said David. He was not boasting; that was the meaning of his words. The champion of the Philistines had been hissing out his defiance against the Lord, saying that he thought little of Israel's men and their God, and David knew that it was the Lord who had given him the victory.
Then the terrible giant came towards David, but the shepherd ran swiftly to meet him. He drew a stone from his girdle, and placed it in his sling, and speedily hurled it at the giant's forehead, where it struck him and lodged there. Down fell the giant on his face, and so great was the fright that the Philistines had at this sight, that, when David ran to Goliath's quarters, he took not the least of the young giant's gear or tackle.
But Goliath had a sword that he wore, and this the shepherd took, and cut off the giant's head. When the Philistines saw that Israel's champion had slain the giant of Gath, they were filled with terror, and forthwith their hearts failed them, so that the children of Israel rushed out and sorely smote the host of the Philistines. Truly had David fought the giant of Gath, and the victory over this dreadful foe had been obtained by the youth of Bethlehem.
The shepherd ran toward the giant. One stone from the sling caught Goliath in the forehead. Down he went — and the Philistines who had watched their champion for forty days turned and fled.
A Champion's Fight
This most wonderful and thrilling passage of Scripture tells us how a shepherd-boy in Israel slew Goliath the giant. But it is most interesting to know that the fight took place in the Valley of Elah, a wide valley on the very border of Israel and Philistia. So that the two great camps of the Israelites and the Philistines were drawn up on either side of the valley, and it is said that not one of the Israelites durst fight the champion of the Philistines. For forty days he had taunted and defied them, so that the whole Israelitish host was filled with dismay and despondency. Not one of King Saul's mighty men would stand up to him. But there was not one among the whole Israelitish camp who was so brave and bold and willing to fight as David, the son of Jesse. And so this shepherd came to the armies of King Saul, and he was willing and eager to fight Goliath.
Now, the reason why David was so willing and bold to meet his most fearsome adversary was because he had been fighting and slaying lions and bears while tending his father's sheep in the fields alone. "I have rescued my flock from lions and bears," he said to King Saul. "And this giant shall also die, and the Lord shall deliver him into my hand." The shepherd was not boasting; he said what he thought, and truly meant to slay Goliath the giant. "It was not the strength of the arms that saved me from the lions and bears," replied David. "It was the Lord, who saved and delivered me." So the king gave him a suit of his fine armor, but the shepherd did not like the weight and manner of it, so he took it off and went out fighting as a shepherd.
David took Goliath's own great sword and used it to finish the victory. The sight of their fallen champion broke the Philistines, and Israel pursued them from the battlefield.
Why We Tell It
Today the name of David and Goliath is as familiar as ever, and in countless walks of life the underdog continues to cite this story as one of inspiration. It is a well-known historical incident, for it has been dramatized in literature and on stage countless times, and to this day whenever an underdog scores an upset victory, he credits it to the prophecy that has been recited over and over, "This day the Lord shall deliver you into my hands." However familiar the story may be, it has a most startling and unforgettable picture in all of history. The little shepherd with his slingshot, and the giant of Gath laid out on the battlefield, all are most indelible in the memories of mankind.
But the reason why this story of the shepherd-boy and the giant lives on through the centuries and down to this present age is because it shows the power of faith and courage. For David, the little shepherd, had faced the giant, and it was not merely the bravery of the little shepherd which saved Israel. It was the faith of the little man in the power of his God that saved him. In countless ways and in every part of life, faith is the factor which makes men victorious.
There is a most fascinating theory connected with the story of David and Goliath, and which has its chief value in showing us the power of faith and courage. It is that of the expert marksman with the bow and arrow, who says that a properly thrown stone from the slingshot would have a much greater force than an arrow loosed from the best-made long bow. In addition to this it must not be forgotten that Goliath and his whole Philistine band were in most elaborate bronze armor, while David, the little shepherd-boy, was as nude as the day he was born. Therefore it may well be doubted whether the champion of the Philistines would have stood much of a show against the Israelitish shepherd if he had not worn his corselet of bronze. But, whatever the reason for his confidence in his slingshot may have been, the shepherd-boy laid the giant of Gath on his back and cut off his head.
