1 Samuel 17:44

44 Then the P'lishti said to David, "Come here to me, so I can give your flesh to the birds in the air and the wild animals."

1 Samuel 17:44 Meaning and Commentary

1 Samuel 17:44

And the Philistine said to David, come to me
He seems to have stood still, disdaining: to take another step towards such a pitiful combatant, and therefore bids him come up to him, and he would soon dispatch him; unless he said this, because David was light and nimble, and he heavy and unwieldy because of his bigness, and the burden of armour on him, and therefore could not make such haste as he wished to destroy his adversary, of which he made no doubt:

and I will give thy flesh unto the fowls of the air, and to the beasts
of the field;
the wild beasts he means; though Jarchi thinks he spoke improperly, since it is not the way of the beasts of the field, as sheep, oxen to devour a man, or even to eat any flesh; and therefore he observes, when David comes, he uses another word, which signifies the wild beasts of the earth, and so we render it, ( 1 Samuel 17:46 ) ; but Kimchi shows that even these are comprehended in the word here used, see ( Isaiah 18:6 ) .

1 Samuel 17:44 In-Context

42 The P'lishti looked David up and down and had nothing but scorn for what he saw - a boy with ruddy cheeks, red hair and good looks.
43 The P'lishti said to David, "Am I a dog? Is that why you're coming at me with sticks?"- and the P'lishti cursed David by his god.
44 Then the P'lishti said to David, "Come here to me, so I can give your flesh to the birds in the air and the wild animals."
45 David answered the P'lishti, "You're coming at me with a sword, a spear and a javelin. But I'm coming at you in the name of ADONAI-Tzva'ot, the God of the armies of Isra'el, whom you have challenged.
46 Today ADONAI will hand you over to me. I will attack you, lop your head off, and give the carcasses of the army of the P'lishtim to the birds in the air and the animals in the land. Then all the land will know that there is a God in Isra'el,
Complete Jewish Bible Copyright 1998 by David H. Stern. Published by Jewish New Testament Publications, Inc. All rights reserved. Used by permission.