Samuel & King Saul

Then one of the young men answered, and said, “Behold, I have seen a son of Jesse the Bethlehemite, who is skillful in playing, a mighty man of valor, a man of war, prudent in speech, and a comely person; and the LORD is with him.”

Therefore Saul sent messengers to Jesse, and said, “Send me David your son, who is with the sheep.”

Jesse took a donkey loaded with bread, and a bottle of wine, and a young goat, and sent them by David his son to Saul.

David came to Saul, and stood before him. He loved him greatly; and he became his armor bearer.

Saul sent to Jesse, saying, “Please let David stand before me; for he has found favor in my sight.”

When the spirit from God was on Saul, David took the harp, and played with his hand: so Saul was refreshed, and was well, and the evil spirit departed from him.

Now the Philistines gathered together their armies to battle; and they were gathered together at Socoh, which belongs to Judah, and encamped between Socoh and Azekah, in Ephesdammim.

Saul and the men of Israel were gathered together, and encamped in the valley of Elah, and set the battle in array against the Philistines.

The Philistines stood on the mountain on the one side, and Israel stood on the mountain on the other side: and there was a valley between them.

There went out a champion out of the camp of the Philistines, named Goliath, of Gath, whose height was six cubits and a span.

He had a helmet of brass on his head, and he was clad with a coat of mail; and the weight of the coat was five thousand shekels of brass.

He had brass shin armor on his legs, and a javelin of brass between his shoulders.

The staff 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 cried to the armies of Israel, and said to them, “Why have you come out to set your battle in array? Am I not a Philistine, and you servants to Saul? Choose a man for yourselves, and let him come down to me.

If he be able to fight with me, and kill me, then will we be your servants; but if I prevail against him, and kill him, then you will be our servants, and serve us.”

The Philistine said, “I defy the armies of Israel this day! Give me a man, that we may fight together!”

When Saul and all Israel heard those words of the Philistine, they were dismayed, and greatly afraid.

Now David was the son of that Ephrathite of Bethlehem Judah, whose name was Jesse; and he had eight sons: and the man was an old man in the days of Saul, stricken among men.

The three eldest sons of Jesse had gone after Saul to the battle: and the names of his three sons who went to the battle were Eliab the firstborn, and next to him Abinadab, and the third Shammah.

David was the youngest; and the three eldest followed Saul.

Now David went back and forth from Saul to feed his father’s sheep at Bethlehem.

The Philistine drew near morning and evening, and presented himself forty days.

Jesse said to David his son, “Now take for your brothers an efah of this parched grain, and these ten loaves, and carry them quickly to the camp to your brothers;

and bring these ten cheeses to the captain of their thousand, and see how your brothers are doing, and bring back news.”

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