1 Samuel 17:24
in 1 Samuel 17When all the men of Israel saw Goliath, they fled from him in great fear.
BSB
The same verse in ASV and KJV ▾
ASV
And all the men of Israel, when they saw the man, fled from him, and were sore afraid.
KJV
And all the men of Israel, when they saw the man, fled from him, and were sore afraid.
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This verse in 1 Samuel 17
Commentary
4 notes on this verseAnd all the Israelites, when they saw the man, fled, etc. For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God (Rom. 3). Only Christ could say: The prince of this world is coming, and he has no claim on me (John 14). …
This site's exposition
spake according to the same words
on 1 Samuel 17:23-24
David hears with fresh ears what Israel has heard eighty times, and the men around him flee at the sight of the man. The contrast is the point: the army sees a giant and measures itself against him, and David hears a reproach and measures it against God.
The record, by era
The Puritans and the Awakening2 voices
Though he was the tallest of all the men of Israel, and, if he had not been so, while he kept close to God might himself have safely taken up the gauntlet which this insolent Philistine threw down, yet, the Spirit of the Lord having departed from him, he durst not do it, nor press Jonathan to do it; but whoever will do it shall have as good preferment as he can give him,
And all the men of Israel, when they saw the man,....
The words behind it
10 Hebrew wordsEvery Hebrew word of this verse in the order it stands, with what it means and the door to its own study. The last column counts the times a word stands in the whole Bible: the rarer the word, the more the places it appears belong together.
| Hebrew | Sound | Meaning | Word study | In the Bible |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| וְכֹל֙ | vekhol | and every | H3605 → | 5413 times |
| אִ֣ישׁ | ʾish | <the> man of | H376 → | 1663 times |
| יִשְׂרָאֵ֔ל | yisrael | Israel | H3478 → | 2507 times |
| בִּרְאוֹתָ֖ם | birotam | when saw they | H7200 → | 1300 times |
| אֶת־ | ʾet- | <obj.> | H853 → | 10935 times |
| הָאִ֑ישׁ | haish | the man | H376 → | 1663 times |
| וַיָּנֻ֙סוּ֙ | vaiyanusu | and they fled | H5127 → | 159 times |
| מִפָּנָ֔יו | mipanav | from before him | H6440 → | 2123 times |
| וַיִּֽירְא֖וּ | vaiyireu | and they were afraid | H3372 → | 315 times |
| מְאֹֽד׃ | meod | exceedingly | H3966 → | 300 times |
וְכֹל֙and every
vekholH3605 →5413 times
אִ֣ישׁ<the> man of
ʾishH376 →1663 times
יִשְׂרָאֵ֔לIsrael
yisraelH3478 →2507 times
בִּרְאוֹתָ֖םwhen saw they
birotamH7200 →1300 times
אֶת־<obj.>
ʾet-H853 →10935 times
הָאִ֑ישׁthe man
haishH376 →1663 times
וַיָּנֻ֙סוּ֙and they fled
vaiyanusuH5127 →159 times
מִפָּנָ֔יוfrom before him
mipanavH6440 →2123 times
וַיִּֽירְא֖וּand they were afraid
vaiyireuH3372 →315 times
מְאֹֽד׃exceedingly
meodH3966 →300 times
A shaded row is a word that stands 400 times or fewer in the Bible.
The walk
8 stopsEach card is a verse this one points to, and under it the verses that one points to in turn. Where several paths arrive at the same place, that place is listed first: the text keeps returning to it.
Through
Numbers 13:33We even saw the Nephilim there—the descendants of Anak that come from the Nephilim! We seemed like grasshoppers in our own sight, and we must have seemed the same to them!”
it leads to
- Deuteronomy 1:28
Where can we go? Our brothers have made our hearts melt, saying: ‘The people are larger and taller than we are; the cities are large, with walls up to the heavens. We even saw…
- Genesis 6:4
The Nephilim were on the earth in those days—and afterward as well—when the sons of God had relations with the daughters of men. And they bore them children who became the mighty men of…
- Isaiah 40:22
He sits enthroned above the circle of the earth; its dwellers are like grasshoppers. He stretches out the heavens like a curtain, and spreads them out like a tent to dwell in.
- Deuteronomy 9:2
The people are strong and tall, the descendants of the Anakim. You know about them, and you have heard it said, “Who can stand up to the sons of Anak?”
- Deuteronomy 1:28
Through
Isaiah 30:17A thousand will flee at the threat of one; at the threat of five you will all flee, until you are left alone like a pole on a mountaintop, like a banner on a…
it leads to
- Deuteronomy 28:25
The LORD will cause you to be defeated before your enemies. You will march out against them in one direction but flee from them in seven. You will be an object of horror to…
- Deuteronomy 32:30
How could one man pursue a thousand, or two put ten thousand to flight, unless their Rock had sold them, unless the LORD had given them up?
- Deuteronomy 28:25
Through
Leviticus 26:36As for those of you who survive, I will send a faintness into their hearts in the lands of their enemies, so that even the sound of a windblown leaf will put them to…
it leads to
- Ezekiel 21:7
And when they ask, ‘Why are you groaning?’ you are to say, ‘Because of the news that is coming. Every heart will melt, and every hand will go limp. Every spirit will faint, and…
- Isaiah 30:17
A thousand will flee at the threat of one; at the threat of five you will all flee, until you are left alone like a pole on a mountaintop, like a banner on a…
- Ezekiel 21:7
Where this verse is studied
About 1 Samuel

Who and where
1 name in this verse with a page on the site.
This page draws on Bede, Commentary on Samuel; John Gill, Exposition of the Old Testament (1748-1763); Matthew Henry, Commentary on the Whole Bible and W. G. Blaikie, The First Book of Samuel (Expositor's Bible).
