ESV Global Study Bible :: Footnotes for 1 Samuel 17

1 Sam 17:1–54 David has been chosen by the Lord, anointed as king privately, and has been serving in Saul’s court. Now, he defeats Goliath and, as a result, becomes publicly known. David’s victory leads to Saul’s jealousy, which drives the plot of the rest of the book. David shows himself better qualified than Saul to serve as the king of Israel.

1 Sam 17:1–2 The Valley of Elah runs westward from Bethlehem, from the hill country of Judah toward Gath and Ekron (see v. 52). It is immediately south of and parallel to the Sorek Valley (see note on 6:12). Control of this valley would give the Philistines entry into the hill country of Judah.

1 Sam 17:4–11 A champion in ancient Near Eastern literature is a man who steps out to fight between two battle lines. Here Goliath offers to fight, on behalf of his side, against any champion that Israel will put forward. A champion’s personal victory would amount to victory for his side (vv. 8–10). Six cubits and a span is about 9 feet 9 inches (3 m).

1 Sam 17:11 It was Saul’s job to accept the challenge on behalf of Israel. Instead he was greatly afraid (see 15:24), along with everyone else.

1 Sam 17:12 Ephrathite refers to a man from Judean Ephrathah, around Bethlehem (see Ruth 1:2; 4:11; Mic. 5:2).

1 Sam 17:18 their thousand. The Hebrew term usually means “thousand,” but in the present context it probably refers to a military unit of undetermined size.

1 Sam 17:25–26 Have you seen? “You” is plural; the question is not directed toward David. armies of the living God. To David, this battle is fundamentally spiritual (see vv. 45–47; see Eph. 6:12). His father’s house refers to a person’s extended family, smaller than a tribe or clan, with 50 to 100 persons. Free means exempt from taxes and other obligations to the palace.

1 Sam 17:34 a lion, or a bear. Both lions and bears were common in the land during this time.

1 Sam 17:43 sticks. Goliath sees David’s staff (v. 40) but not the true weapon, the sling. Goliath’s gods are probably Dagon (5:2) and Ashtaroth (31:10).

1 Sam 17:44, 46 In Israel, being unburied and exposed to birds and beasts was considered worse than death itself (see 31:8–13; 2 Samuel 21; Ps. 79:2–3).

1 Sam 17:52 men of Israel and Judah. There were divisions between Judah and the rest of Israel from the earliest time of the Davidic monarchy (see 11:8; 15:4; 2 Sam. 19:41–43).

1 Sam 17:54 Jerusalem refers to a suburb in the area around Jerusalem, not the Jebusite walled city that David captured later (see 2 Sam. 5:6–9).

1 Sam 17:55–18:5 Immediately after his defeat of Goliath, everyone loves David. Saul takes him into his service. All of Saul’s officials love David, even though they are potentially his rivals. Even members of Saul’s own family welcome David into the royal court. Jonathan becomes an especially close friend of David, even though he realizes that David will eventually receive the crown that by hereditary right should be his.

1 Sam 17:55–58 whose son is this youth? Even though Saul knew David, he would not remember the name of David’s father. He wants to ask his father to let him keep David permanently (see 18:2).