SkiesBible story
David and Goliath
A retelling of 1 Samuel 17: a shepherd boy, a giant, and a battle that belongs to the LORD.
But David said to the Philistine, “You come against me with sword and spear and javelin, but I come against you in the name of the LORD of Hosts, the God of the armies of Israel, whom you have defied. This day the LORD will deliver you into my hand. This day I will strike you down, cut off your head, and give the carcasses of the Philistine army to the birds of the air and the creatures of the earth. Then the whole world will know that there is a God in Israel. And all those assembled here will know that it is not by sword or spear that the LORD saves; for the battle is the LORD’s, and He will give all of you into our hands.”
1 Samuel 17:45–47
In 1 Samuel 17, the Philistine giant Goliath challenged Israel’s army for forty days and no soldier dared fight him. David, a young shepherd, went out with a sling and five stones, saying, “the battle is the LORD’s.” He struck Goliath with one stone and Israel was saved. The story is about trusting God, not about our own strength.
The story
The armies of Israel and the Philistines faced each other across a valley. Every morning and evening for forty days, a giant warrior named Goliath walked out and shouted: send me a man to fight. King Saul and his soldiers were terrified.
David was the youngest son of Jesse, a young shepherd sent to bring food to his brothers at the front. He heard Goliath and asked, who is this man to defy the armies of the living God? Saul tried to dress him in armour, but David wasn’t used to it and took it off. So David took his shepherd’s staff, his sling and five smooth stones from the stream.
Goliath laughed at him. David answered: “You come against me with sword and spear and javelin, but I come against you in the name of the LORD of Hosts.” He ran toward the giant, slung one stone, and it struck Goliath on the forehead. The giant fell, and the Philistine army fled.
What it means
We often read this story as “you can beat your giants.” But David’s point is different: “the battle is the LORD’s” (v. 47). His courage came from trust in God, learned in quiet years protecting sheep from lions and bears (vv. 34–37).
God had already chosen David because “the LORD sees the heart” (1 Samuel 16:7). The story invites us to face what frightens us with the same trust, and to remember that Christians see a greater fulfilment in Jesus, who faced our greatest enemy for us.
Pray
Lord, you know the giant in front of me. I can’t face it in my own strength. The battle is yours. Give me David’s trust and courage today. Amen.
Read it in the Bible
But the LORD said to Samuel, “Do not consider his appearance or height, for I have rejected him; the LORD does not see as man does. For man sees the outward appearance, but the LORD sees the heart.”
1 Samuel 16:7
Questions people ask
How tall was Goliath?
The traditional Hebrew text says “six cubits and a span,” about nine feet nine inches (1 Samuel 17:4). The Dead Sea Scrolls and the Greek Septuagint say four cubits and a span, about six feet nine inches. Either way, he towered over the Israelite soldiers.
