David went to Saul’s camp

12 David was the son of Jesse. Jesse was from the clan of Ephrath. He lived in Bethlehem, in the area where the descendants of Judah lived. Jesse had eight sons. When Saul was king, Jesse had already become a very old man [DOU]. 13 Jesse’s three oldest sons, Eliab and Abinadab and Shammah, had gone with Saul to fight the Philistines. 14 David was Jesse’s youngest son. While his three oldest brothers were with Saul, 15 David went back and forth: Sometimes he went to Saul’s camp, and sometimes he stayed in Bethlehem to take care of his father’s sheep.

16 For 40 days Goliath came out from the Philistine camp and stood there taunting the Israeli army/telling the Israelis to choose one man to fight with him. He did it twice each day, once in the morning and once in the evening.

17 One day, Jesse said to David, “Here is a sack of roasted grain and ten loaves of bread. Take these quickly to your older brothers. 18 And here are ten large chunks of cheese. Take them to their commander. And see how things are going with your older brothers. Then if they are okay, bring back something to show they are all right.”

19 His brothers were with Saul and all the other Israeli soldiers, camped alongside Elah Valley, preparing to fight the Philistines. 20 So David arranged for another shepherd to take care of the sheep. Early the next morning he took the food and went to the Israeli camp, as Jesse told him to do. He arrived there just as the Israeli soldiers were forming their ranks and going out to the battlefield. As they went, they were shouting a war cry. 21 The Philistine army and the Israeli army stood on the hillsides, facing each other, ready for the battle. 22 David gave the food to the man who was taking care of the war equipment. He told him to take care of the food that he brought, and then he went and greeted his older brothers. 23 While he was talking with them, he saw Goliath coming out from among the Philistine soldiers, shouting to the Israelis, challenging them to send a man to fight him. David heard what Goliath was saying. 24 When all the Israeli soldiers saw Goliath, they were terrified and started to ran away. 25 They were saying to each other, “Look at him coming up toward us! And listen to him as he defies us Israelis! The king says that he will give a big reward to whoever kills this man. He also says that he will give his daughter to that man for him to marry her, and that he will no longer require that man’s family to pay taxes.”

26 David talked to some of the men who were standing near him. He said, “What will be given to whoever kills this Philistine and frees us Israelis from this shame/disgrace? And who does this heathen Philistine think he is, defying/ridiculing the army that serves the all-powerful God?”

27 They told him the same thing that the other men had said, about what the king would do for anyone who killed Goliath.

28 But when David’s oldest brother Eliab heard David talking to the men, he was angry. He said to David, “Why have you come down here? Is someone taking care of those few sheep that you left in the desert? I know you are just a ◄smart-aleck/brat►! You just want to watch the battle!”

29 David replied, “Have I done something wrong? I was merely asking a question!” 30 Then he walked over to another man and asked him the same question, but the man gave him the same answer. Each time he asked someone, he received the same answer. 31 Finally, someone told king Saul what David had asked, and Saul sent someone to bring David to him.

32 David told king Saul, “No one should ◄worry/become a coward► because of that Philistine man. I will go and fight with him!”

33 Saul said to David, “You are only a young man, and he has been a very capable soldier all his life. So you are not able to go and fight with him!”

34 David replied, “I have been taking care of my father’s sheep for many years. Whenever a lion or a bear came and carried away a lamb, 35 I went after the lion or the bear and attacked it and rescued the lamb from the wild animal’s mouth. Then I grabbed the animal by its jaw/throat and struck it and killed it. 36 I have killed both lions and bears. And I will do the same to this heathen Philistine, because he has defied/ridiculed the army of the all-powerful God! 37 Yahweh has rescued me from paws of lions and bears, and he will rescue me from this Philistine!” Then Saul said to David, “All right, go and fight him, and I hope/desire that Yahweh will help you!”

38 Then Saul gave to David his own clothes that he always wore in battles, and he gave him a bronze helmet and a coat made of metal plates. 39 David put these things on. Then he fastened his sword over them, and tried to walk. But he could not walk, because he was not accustomed to wearing those things. So David said to Saul, “I cannot fight wearing all these things, because I am not accustomed to wearing them!” So he took them off.

40 Then he took his walking/shepherd’s stick, and he picked up five smooth stones from the brook/stream. He put them in the pouch of his shoulder-bag. Then he put his sling in his hand and started walking toward Goliath.