All the men of Israel, when they saw the man, fled from him, and were terrified.
Parallel translations
- KJV And all the men of Israel, when they saw the man, fled from him, and were sore afraid.
- BSB When all the men of Israel saw Goliath, they fled from him in great fear.
- NKJV And all the men of Israel, when they saw the man, fled from him and were dreadfully afraid.
- NASB When all the men of Israel saw the man, they fled from him and were very fearful.
- NLT As soon as the Israelite army saw him, they began to run away in fright.
Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
Scripture quotations taken from the (NASB®) New American Standard Bible®, Copyright © 1960, 1971, 1977, 1995, 2020 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission. All rights reserved. lockman.org
Scripture quotations are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.
Quick answer
At the sight of Goliath, all Israel's men flee in terror. The contrast between their fear and David's coming faith is stark.
Overview
Israel's entire army, including the king, retreats in dread before the giant. Their terror reveals that they reckon only with Goliath's size and not with God's power. This collective fear sets in sharp relief the faith David will display, teaching that those who walk by sight are overcome where those who walk by faith prevail.
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 7
- Num 13:33There we saw the Nephilim, the sons of Anak, who come from the Nephilim. We were in our own sight as grasshoppers, and so we were in their sight.”
- Lev 26:36“‘As for those of you who are left, I will send a faintness into their hearts in the lands of their enemies. The sound of a driven leaf will put them to flight; and they shall flee, as one flees from the sword. They will fall when no one pursues.
- Deut 32:30How could one chase a thousand, and two put ten thousand to flight, unless their Rock had sold them, and Yahweh had delivered them up?
- 1 Sam 13:6–7When the men of Israel saw that they were in trouble (for the people were distressed), then the people hid themselves in caves, in thickets, in rocks, in tombs, and in pits.
- 1 Sam 17:11When Saul and all Israel heard those words of the Philistine, they were dismayed, and greatly afraid.
- Isa 7:2David’s house was told, “Syria is allied with Ephraim.” His heart trembled, and the heart of his people, as the trees of the forest tremble with the wind.
- Isa 30:17One thousand will flee at the threat of one. At the threat of five, you will flee until you are left like a beacon on the top of a mountain, and like a banner on a hill.
Themes, concepts, people & topics
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Christ at the center
The rise of the anointed king after Israel's failed first choice points to the true Anointed One (Messiah means 'anointed'), the shepherd-king after God's own heart from Bethlehem.
How 1 Samuel 17:24 points to him is part of the one story that runs through all Scripture — meet Jesus at the heart of the web, or follow a trail that traces him from Genesis to Revelation.
Original language
Each word below is tagged with its Strong’s number — tap one to see the underlying Hebrew word, its meaning, and every verse that uses it.