3. The Philistines were standing on one hill, and the Israelites on another hill, with the valley between them.
4. Then a champion came out from the camp of the Philistines. His name was Goliath; he was from Gath. He was close to seven feet tall.
5. He had a bronze helmet on his head and was wearing scale body armor. The weight of his bronze body armor was five thousand shekels.
6. He had bronze shin guards on his legs, and a bronze javelin was slung over his shoulders.
7. The shaft of his spear was like a weaver’s beam, and the iron point of his spear weighed six hundred shekels. His shield bearer was walking before him.
8. Goliath stood and called to Israel’s troops, “Why do you come out to prepare for battle? Am I not the Philistine, and are you not the servants of Saul? Choose for yourselves a man so he may come down to me!
9. If he is able to fight with me and strike me down, we will become your servants. But if I prevail against him and strike him down, you will become our servants and will serve us.”
10. Then the Philistine said, “I defy Israel’s troops this day! Give me a man so we can fight each other!”
11. When Saul and all the Israelites heard these words of the Philistine, they were upset and very afraid.
12. Now David was the son of this Ephrathite named Jesse from Bethlehem in Judah. He had eight sons, and in Saul’s days he was old and well advanced in years.
13. Jesse’s three oldest sons had followed Saul to war. The names of the three sons who went to war were Eliab, his firstborn, Abinadab, the second oldest, and Shammah, the third oldest.
14. Now David was the youngest. While the three oldest sons followed Saul,
15. David was going back and forth from Saul in order to care for his father’s sheep in Bethlehem.
16. Meanwhile for forty days the Philistine approached every morning and evening and took his position.
17. Jesse said to his son David, “Take your brothers this ephah of roasted grain and these ten loaves of bread; go quickly to the camp to your brothers.
18. Also take these ten portions of cheese to their commanding officer. Find out how your brothers are doing and bring back their pledge that they received the goods.
19. They are with Saul and the whole Israelite army in the valley of Elah, fighting with the Philistines.”
20. So David got up early in the morning and entrusted the flock to someone else who would watch over it. After loading up, he went just as Jesse had instructed him. He arrived at the camp as the army was going out to the battle lines shouting its battle cry.