Then a champion named Goliath, who was from Gath, came out from the Philistine camp. He was six cubits and a span in height,
Parallel translations
- WEB A champion out of the camp of the Philistines named Goliath, of Gath, whose height was six cubits and a span went out.
- KJV And there went out a champion out of the camp of the Philistines, named Goliath, of Gath, whose height was six cubits and a span.
- NKJV And a champion went out from the camp of the Philistines, named Goliath, from Gath, whose height was six cubits and a span.
- NASB Then a champion came forward from the army encampment of the Philistines, named Goliath, from Gath. His height was six cubits and a span.
- NLT Then Goliath, a Philistine champion from Gath, came out of the Philistine ranks to face the forces of Israel. He was over nine feet tall!
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
A Philistine champion named Goliath of Gath, of enormous height, steps forward. The formidable giant emerges as Israel's seemingly unbeatable foe.
Overview
Goliath, a towering champion, comes out to represent the Philistines in single combat, a custom that could decide a battle. His extraordinary size embodies the human impossibility that confronts Israel. This sets up the central contrast of the chapter: human might against faith in the living God.
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 9
- Josh 11:22No Anakim were left in the land of the Israelites; only in Gaza, Gath, and Ashdod did any survive.
- 1 Sam 17:23And as he was speaking with them, suddenly the champion named Goliath, the Philistine from Gath, came forward from the Philistines and shouted his usual words, which David also heard.
- 2 Sam 21:16–22Then Ishbi-benob, a descendant of Rapha, whose bronze spear weighed three hundred shekels and who was bearing a new sword, resolved to kill David.
- 1 Chr 20:4–8Some time later, war broke out with the Philistines at Gezer. At that time Sibbecai the Hushathite killed Sippai, a descendant of the Rephaim, and the Philistines were subdued.
- Deut 3:11(For only Og king of Bashan had remained of the remnant of the Rephaim. His bed of iron, nine cubits long and four cubits wide, is still in Rabbah of the Ammonites.)
- 1 Sam 27:4And when Saul learned that David had fled to Gath, he no longer searched for him.
- 1 Sam 21:9–10The priest replied, “The sword of Goliath the Philistine, whom you killed in the Valley of Elah, is here; it is wrapped in a cloth behind the ephod. If you want, you may take it. For there is no other but this one.” And David said, “There is none like it; give it to me.”
- 1 Chr 11:23He also killed an Egyptian, a huge man five cubits tall. Although the Egyptian had a spear like a weaver’s beam in his hand, Benaiah went against him with a club, snatched the spear from his hand, and killed the Egyptian with his own spear.
- Amos 2:9Yet it was I who destroyed the Amorite before them, though his height was like that of the cedars, and he was as strong as the oaks. Yet I destroyed his fruit above and his roots below.
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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 17:4 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
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