1 Samuel 17:6

6 He wore bronze shin guards and carried a bronze sword.

1 Samuel 17:6 Meaning and Commentary

1 Samuel 17:6

And he had greaves of brass upon his legs
Which were a sort of boots, or leg harnesses, which covered the thighs and legs down to the heels; such as Iolaus F11 and the Grecians usually wore, as described by Homer; which are supposed to be double the weight of the helmet, reckoned at fifteen pounds, so that these must weigh thirty pounds of avoirdupois weight:

and a target of brass between his shoulders;
the Targum is,

``a spear or shield of brass, which came out of the helmet, and a weight of brass upon his shoulders.''

Jarchi says the same, and that it was in the form of a spear to defend the neck from the sword; it seems to be a corslet of brass, worn between the helmet and the coat of mail for the defence of the neck, supposed to weigh thirty pounds F12


FOOTNOTES:

F11 Hesiod. Scutum Herc. ver. 122.
F12 Vid. Hostii Monomach. David & Goliath, c. 5.

1 Samuel 17:6 In-Context

4 A giant nearly ten feet tall stepped out from the Philistine line into the open, Goliath from Gath.
5 He had a bronze helmet on his head and was dressed in armor - 126 pounds of it!
6 He wore bronze shin guards and carried a bronze sword.
7 His spear was like a fence rail - the spear tip alone weighed over fifteen pounds. His shield bearer walked ahead of him.
8 Goliath stood there and called out to the Israelite troops, "Why bother using your whole army? Am I not Philistine enough for you? And you're all committed to Saul, aren't you? So pick your best fighter and pit him against me.
Published by permission. Originally published by NavPress in English as THE MESSAGE: The Bible in Contemporary Language copyright 2002 by Eugene Peterson. All rights reserved.