1 Samuel 17:10

10 Goliath continued, "This very day I dare the soldiers of Israel to send a man down to fight against me."

1 Samuel 17:10 Meaning and Commentary

1 Samuel 17:10

And the Philistine said, I defy the armies of Israel this day,
&c.] Or "reproach" ^F19 them; that is, should they not accept his challenge, and send down a man to fight with them, he should then upbraid them with cowardice; and now he disdained them, as if there was not a man among them that dared to encounter with him:

give me a man that we may fight together;
and so decide the controversy between us; such as were those duels fought between Paris and Menelaus in the Trojan war, and between the Lacedemonians and the Argives in the times of Orthryades, and between the Athenians and Romans by the Horatii and Curiatii, as Grotius observes.

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FOOTNOTES:

F19 (ytprx) "exprobravo". V. L. Pagninus, Montanus; "probro affeci", Tigurine version; "probro affecero", Junius & Tremellius.

1 Samuel 17:10 In-Context

8 Goliath stood and shouted to the soldiers of Israel. He said, "Why do you come out and line up for battle? I'm a Philistine. You are servants of Saul. Choose one of your men. Have him come down and face me.

9 If he's able to fight and kill me, we'll become your slaves. But if I win and kill him, you will become our slaves and serve us."

10 Goliath continued, "This very day I dare the soldiers of Israel to send a man down to fight against me."

11 Saul and the whole army of Israel heard what the Philistine said. They were terrified.

12 David was the son of an Ephrathite. His name was Jesse. He was from Bethlehem in Judah. Jesse had eight sons. When Saul was king, Jesse was already very old.