1 Samuel 17:58 - Printer Friendly

ESV: And Saul said to him, "Whose son are you, young man?" And David answered, "I am the son of your servant Jesse the Bethlehemite."

NIV: "Whose son are you, young man?" Saul asked him. David said, "I am the son of your servant Jesse of Bethlehem."

NASB: Then Saul said to him, 'Whose son are you, young man?' And David answered, 'I am the son of your servant Jesse the Bethlehemite.'

CSB: Saul said to him, "Whose son are you, young man?" "The son of your servant Jesse of Bethlehem," David answered.

NLT: Tell me about your father, young man,' Saul said. And David replied, 'His name is Jesse, and we live in Bethlehem.'

KJV: And Saul said to him, Whose son art thou, thou young man? And David answered, I am the son of thy servant Jesse the Bethlehemite.

NKJV: And Saul said to him, “Whose son are you, young man?” So David answered, “ I am the son of your servant Jesse the Bethlehemite.”

Although King Saul knew David (1 Samuel 16:14–23; 17:31–40), he did not recall whose son David was (1 Samuel 17:55). Now David returns to the king, this time carrying the freshly severed head of the Philistine champion after bringing the giant down with a sling and a stone (1 Samuel 17:48–51, 57).

Saul asks David about his father directly. He calls David "young man," showing once again just how young David must have been when he killed Goliath (1 Samuel 17:33). He was old enough to be an honorary armor-bearer (1 Samuel 16:21), but young enough to be expected to watch his father's sheep instead of going to battle with the Philistines (1 Samuel 17:15).

David tells the king that his father is Jesse of Bethlehem. When David first enters the narrative of this chapter, he is introduced as "the son of an Ephrathite of Bethlehem in Judah, named Jesse" (1 Samuel 17:12). David came to the battle that morning because his father sent him with a load of provisions for his brothers (1 Samuel 17:17–20). The young man could not know that the Lord would use that seemingly mundane errand to bring David to the field of battle. There, his boldness and confidence in the Lord would bring him to a fight to the death with Goliath. Now he stood before Israel's king with the head of Israel's greatest enemy in his hands.

Saul seems to have wanted to know the name of David's father so he could take David into his permanent service (1 Samuel 18:2). David's days of watching his father's sheep had likely ended. Saul, or his administrators, would also need to know which household to reward (1 Samuel 17:25).

First Samuel 17:55–58 depicts the meeting between King Saul and David immediately after David defeats the gigantic Philistine champion, Goliath. Saul has already met and employed David (1 Samuel 16:18–21); yet this victory has greatly increased the king's interest. Neither realize that this is the public beginning of a rivalry which will end in Saul's death and David's kingship. It will be God's judgment (1 Samuel 15:26), not any ambition from David (1 Samuel 24:9–11), which will bring down the jealous king (1 Samuel 18:7–9).

David, delivering food to his brothers at the Israelite army camp, hears the Philistine Goliath's defiant challenge. Single man combat could decide the battle, but no Israelite wanted to face the massive warrior. David is appalled that a Philistine would defy the armies of the living God. He volunteers to fight, and King Saul agrees. Before the battle, David declares that the Lord will give victory and thereby show the world that there is a God in Israel. David quickly kills and beheads Goliath. The Israelites chase the Philistines back to their own territory and plunder their camp. David brings Goliath's head to Saul.

Saul was made king of Israel (1 Samuel 9—10) and had many early successes (1 Samuel 11—14). However, his disobedience resulted in God's plan for a different king (1 Samuel 15). The prophet Samuel anointed David as this future monarch (1 Samuel 16:11–13). David has been serving as a musician for Saul (1 Samuel 16:18–21) and comes visit his brothers during a standoff between Israelite and Philistine forces. This leads to the famous story of David and Goliath. David's victory publicly triggers his rise to power, paralleled by Saul's collapse. In the end, Saul will die in disgrace (1 Samuel 31:4–7) and David will be appointed the new king of Israel (1 Samuel 2:45:1–3).

First Samuel introduces the key figures who led Israel after the era of the judges. The books of 1 and 2 Samuel were originally part of a single text, split in certain translations shortly before the birth of Christ. Some of the Bible’s most famous characters are depicted in this book. These including the prophet Samuel, Israel’s first king, Saul, her greatest king, David, and other famous names such as Goliath and Jonathan. By the end of this book, Saul has fallen; the book of 2 Samuel begins with David’s ascension to the throne.