1 Samuel 17:43
in 1 Samuel 17“Am I a dog,” he said to David, “that you come at me with sticks?” And the Philistine cursed David by his gods.
BSB
The same verse in ASV and KJV ▾
ASV
And the Philistine said unto David, Am I a dog, that thou comest to me with staves? And the Philistine cursed David by his gods.
KJV
And the Philistine said unto David, Am I a dog, that thou comest to me with staves? And the Philistine cursed David by his gods.
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This verse in 1 Samuel 17
Commentary
6 notes on this verseAm I a dog, that thou comest to me with staves? - It is very likely that Goliath did not perceive the sling, which David might have kept coiled up within his hand. Cursed David by his gods - Prayed his gods to curse him. This long parley between David and Goliath is quite in the style of those times. A Hindoo sometimes in a fit of anger says to his enemy, The goddess Kalee shall devour thee! May Doorga destroy thee!
This site's exposition
the man that bare the shield
on 1 Samuel 17:41-44
Goliath sees a boy with a stick and takes the staff for the weapon, never reckoning the sling, and he curses David by his gods, which makes the duel formally a contest of deities. His taunt, I will give thy flesh unto the fowls of the air, is the exact sentence David will hand back to him at verse 46, enlarged from one body to the carcases of the host. The mockery is recorded at length because the reversal is measured against it.
The record, by era
The Medieval Church2 voices
And the Philistine said to David: Am I a dog? etc. Whether you understand the power of the Savior or the wood of the cross, it refers to the same meaning. For the most arrogant enemy denies that he is like a dog, that is, …
And the Philistine cursed David by his gods, etc. The devil curses the living and true God when he does not fear to present as gods to mortals the spirits deceived by him and for this reason damned and to be damned to eternal fire. …
The Puritans and the Awakening1 voice
And the Philistine said unto David, am I a dog?....
The Nineteenth Century1 voice
A commentator
Jamieson, Fausset & Brown1802–1910
Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible (1871)
This kind of abusive dialogue is common among the Arab combatants still. David's speech, however, presents a striking contrast to the usual strain of these invectives. It was full of pious trust, and to God he ascribed all the glory of the triumph he anticipated.
The words behind it
16 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| וַיֹּ֤אמֶר | vaiyomer | and he said | H559 → | 5305 times |
| הַפְּלִשְׁתִּי֙ | hapelishti | the Philistine | H6430 → | 287 times |
| אֶל־ | ʾel- | to | H413 → | 5510 times |
| דָּוִ֔ד | david | David | H1732 → | 999 times |
| הֲכֶ֣לֶב | hakhelev | ¿ a dog | H3611 → | |
| אָנֹ֔כִי | ʾanokhi | [am] I | H595 → | 359 times |
| כִּֽי־ | ki- | that | H3588 → | 4482 times |
| אַתָּ֥ה | ʾatah | you | H859 → | 1094 times |
| בָֽא־ | va'- | [are] coming | H935 → | 2568 times |
| אֵלַ֖י | ʾelai | against me | H413 → | 5510 times |
| בַּמַּקְל֑וֹת | bamaklot | with <the> sticks | H4731 → | |
| וַיְקַלֵּ֧ל | vaykalel | and he cursed | H7043 → | 82 times |
| הַפְּלִשְׁתִּ֛י | hapelishti | the Philistine | H6430 → | 287 times |
| אֶת־ | ʾet- | <obj.> | H853 → | 10935 times |
| דָּוִ֖ד | david | David | H1732 → | 999 times |
| בֵּאלֹהָֽיו׃ | belohav | by gods his | H430 → | 2601 times |
וַיֹּ֤אמֶרand he said
vaiyomerH559 →5305 times
הַפְּלִשְׁתִּי֙the Philistine
hapelishtiH6430 →287 times
אֶל־to
ʾel-H413 →5510 times
דָּוִ֔דDavid
davidH1732 →999 times
הֲכֶ֣לֶב¿ a dog
hakhelevH3611 →
אָנֹ֔כִי[am] I
ʾanokhiH595 →359 times
כִּֽי־that
ki-H3588 →4482 times
אַתָּ֥הyou
ʾatahH859 →1094 times
בָֽא־[are] coming
va'-H935 →2568 times
אֵלַ֖יagainst me
ʾelaiH413 →5510 times
בַּמַּקְל֑וֹתwith <the> sticks
bamaklotH4731 →
וַיְקַלֵּ֧לand he cursed
vaykalelH7043 →82 times
הַפְּלִשְׁתִּ֛יthe Philistine
hapelishtiH6430 →287 times
אֶת־<obj.>
ʾet-H853 →10935 times
דָּוִ֖דDavid
davidH1732 →999 times
בֵּאלֹהָֽיו׃by gods his
belohavH430 →2601 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
Proverbs 26:2Like a fluttering sparrow or darting swallow, an undeserved curse does not come to rest.
it leads to
- Numbers 23:8
How can I curse what God has not cursed? How can I denounce what the LORD has not denounced?
- Nehemiah 13:2
because they had not met the Israelites with food and water, but had hired Balaam to call down a curse against them (although our God had turned the curse into a blessing).
- Psalms 109:28
Though they curse, You will bless. When they rise up, they will be put to shame, but Your servant will rejoice.
- 2 Samuel 16:12
Perhaps the LORD will see my affliction and repay me with good for the cursing I receive today.”
- Deuteronomy 23:4–5
For they did not meet you with food and water on your way out of Egypt, and they hired Balaam son of Beor from Pethor in Aram-naharaim to curse you.
- Numbers 23:8
Through
2 Samuel 3:8Abner was furious over Ish-bosheth’s accusation. “Am I the head of a dog that belongs to Judah?” he asked. “All this time I have been loyal to the house of your father Saul, to…
it leads to
- 2 Samuel 9:8
Mephibosheth bowed down and said, “What is your servant, that you should show regard for a dead dog like me?”
Reached by 3 separate paths from here.
- 2 Samuel 9:8
Through
1 Samuel 24:14Against whom has the king of Israel come out? Whom are you pursuing? A dead dog? A flea?
it leads to
- 1 Samuel 26:20
So do not let my blood fall to the ground far from the presence of the LORD. For the king of Israel has come out to look for a flea, like one who hunts…
Reached by 2 separate paths from here.
- 1 Samuel 26:20
Through
2 Samuel 9:8Mephibosheth bowed down and said, “What is your servant, that you should show regard for a dead dog like me?”
it leads to
- 2 Samuel 16:9
Then Abishai son of Zeruiah said to the king, “Why should this dead dog curse my lord the king? Let me go over and cut off his head!”
Reached by 2 separate paths from here.
- 2 Samuel 16:9
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 Adam Clarke, Commentary on the Bible; Bede, Commentary on Samuel; Jamieson, Fausset & Brown, Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible; John Gill, Exposition of the Old Testament (1748-1763) and Matthew Henry, Commentary on the Whole Bible.