1 Samuel 17

Scripture Reading      Sunday, June 21, 2015      Johnathon Hamelin

Our Hebrew Lesson comes from 1 Samuel 17:(1a, 4-11, 19-23),

32-49

Now the Philistines gathered their armies for battle; they were gathered at Socoh,

which belongs to Judah, and encamped between Socoh and Azekah, in Ephes-

dammim.

And there came out from the camp of the Philistines a champion named Goliath, of

Gath, whose height was six cubits and a span. He had a helmet of bronze on his head,

and he was armed with a coat of mail; the weight of the coat was five thousand

shekels of bronze. He had greaves of bronze on his legs and a javelin of bronze slung

between his shoulders. 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. 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. 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.” And the Philistine said, “Today I defy the ranks of

Israel! Give me a man, that we may fight together.”  When Saul and all Israel heard

these words of the Philistine, they were dismayed and greatly afraid.

Now Saul, and they, and all the men of Israel, were in the valley of Elah, fighting

with the Philistines. David rose early in the morning, left the sheep with a keeper,

took the provisions, and went as Jesse had commanded him. He came to the

encampment as the army was going forth to the battle line, shouting the war cry. 

Israel and the Philistines drew up for battle, army against army.  David left the things

in charge of the keeper of the baggage, ran to the ranks, and went and greeted his

brothers. As he talked with them, 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.

David said to Saul, “Let no one’s heart fail because of him; your servant will go and

fight with this Philistine.” Saul said to David, “You are not able to go against this

Philistine to fight with him; for you are just a boy, and he has been a warrior from his

youth.” But David said to Saul, “Your servant used to keep sheep for his father; and

whenever a lion or a bear came, and took a lamb from the flock, I went after it and

struck it down, rescuing the lamb from its mouth; and if it turned against me, I would

catch it by the jaw, strike it down, and kill it.  Your servant has killed both lions and

bears; and this uncircumcised Philistine shall be like one of them, since he has defied

the armies of the living God.” David said, “The Lord, who saved me from the paw of

the lion and from the paw of the bear, will save me from the hand of this Philistine.”

So Saul said to David, “Go, and may the Lord be with you!”

Saul clothed David with his armor; he put a bronze helmet on his head and clothed

him with a coat of mail. David strapped Saul’s sword over the armor, and he tried in

vain to walk, for he was not used to them. Then David said to Saul, “I cannot walk

with these; for I am not used to them.” So David removed them. Then he took his

staff in his hand, and chose five smooth stones from the wadi, and put them in his

shepherd’s bag, in the pouch; his sling was in his hand, and he drew near to the

Philistine.

The Philistine came on and drew near to David, with his shield-bearer in front of him.

When the Philistine looked and saw David, he disdained him, for he was only a youth,

ruddy and handsome in 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 said to David, “Come to me, and I will give your flesh to the birds of the air

and to the wild animals of the field.” But David said to the Philistine, “You come to

me with sword and spear and 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. This very 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 Philistine army this very day to the birds of the air

and to the wild animals of the earth, so 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 save by sword

and spear; for the battle is the Lord’s and he will give you into our hand.”

When the Philistine drew nearer to meet David, David ran quickly toward the battle

line to meet the Philistine. David put his hand in his bag, took out a stone, slung it,

and struck the Philistine on his forehead; the stone sank into his forehead, and he fell

face down on the ground.

THE WORD OF GOD FOR THE PEOPLE OF GOD!