Alexander Rybalka. Secrets of Goliath. Biblical heroes David and Goliath. Battle of David and Goliath - Bible

What is less well known is that elsewhere in the Bible the killing of Goliath is not attributed to David at all. Let's quote this place: "

(2 Samuel 21:19)

Could this be some other Goliath?

No, all the signs are the same: “Goliath from Gath” (i.e., a Gathite), “the shaft of his spear is like a weaver’s beam.”

3 And the Philistines stood on the mountain on one side, and the Israelites on the mountain on the other side, and between them there was a valley.
4 And a single combatant named Goliath, from Gath, went out from the camp of the Philistines; He is six cubits and a span tall.
5 A copper helmet is on his head; and he was clothed with armor of scales, and the weight of his armor was five thousand shekels of brass;
6 Brass kneepads were on his feet, and a brass shield on his shoulders;
7 And the shaft of his spear is like a weaver's beam; and his spear was six hundred shekels of iron, and before him went an armor-bearer.
(1 Samuel 17:3-7)

It is clear that both David and Elhanan could not kill the same person, which means that in at least one of these two cases there is an error in the Bible. It is interesting that in another “historical” book of the Old Testament - Chronicles - an attempt is visible to somehow eliminate the contradiction between the two testimonies of the book of Kings.

It says that

5 And again there was war with the Philistines. Then Elhanam the son of Jairus smote Lahmiah the brother of Goliath, the Gathite, whose spear-shaft was like a weaver's beam.
(1 Chronicles 20:5)

Here there is already a third version of the same event. It is interesting that such a name as “Lahmi” does not appear anywhere else; Apparently, the Semitic peoples of Palestine did not have it. It seems that the author of Chronicles, trying to save the version of the heroic deed of David, invented another opponent for Elkhanan (he calls him Elkhanam) and called him the first word he came across.

At the beginning of the story of David's emergence as king, it is said that he defeated a three-meter-tall warrior named Goliath. It is clear that such wars as Goliath will not run and fight with wooden swords, spears, armor, etc. things. He was truly a “healthy” warrior, but we must take into account that all the Philistines, as we know, were not weak, but tall and healthy people.

So, David defeats Goliath at the beginning of his “career”, but then life goes on and goes on as usual. People grow, multiply, mature, go about their business, take care of pressing problems, make plans, etc.

New wars break out, families have not one, but several children, some die in childhood (like one of King David’s brothers), some in their youth, some in adulthood in a war with foreigners. And we read about this in 2 Samuel chapter 21:

15 And war broke out again between the Philistines and Israel. And David and his servants went out with him, and fought against the Philistines; and David grew weary.
16 Then Ishbi, one of the descendants of Rephaim, whose spear weighed three hundred shekels of copper and who was girded with a new sword, wanted to smite David.
17 But Abishai the son of Zerui helped him, and smote the Philistine and killed him. Then the men of David swore, saying, Thou shalt not go out with us again to war, lest the lamp of Israel go out.
18 Then there was another war with the Philistines in Gob; then Sovohai the Hushathite killed Safut, one of the descendants of the Rephaim.
19 There was another battle in Gob; Then Elchanan, the son of Jagare-Orgim of Bethlehem, killed Goliath the Gittite, whose spear shaft was like a weaver's beam.
20 There was also a battle in Gath; and there was [there] one tall man, who had six fingers and toes, twenty-four in all, also from the descendants of Rephaim,
21 And he reviled the Israelites; but Jonathan the son of Saphai, David's brother, killed him.
22 These four were from the family of Rephaim in Gath, and they fell by the hand of David and his servants.
(2 Samuel 21:15-22)

Goliath, whom David killed, could have had a brother, a brother or a cousin. Or, as we would now call a namesake, because the name Goliath can be given to more than one boy. And even from the same city. Moreover, “Rephaim” is the name of the giants; perhaps they had a dynasty and among them was not one Goliath, but several.

Moreover, as I already said, the Philistines were not short in stature themselves and they were strong. So, it is not surprising that the Israelis had to deal with a large number of “big guys”, and even with similar names.

P.S. Razon, Rezon, Jethro, Jethro, Jethro, Raguel, Reuel - you may not believe it, but if you believe the biblical encyclopedia, then all these names belong to the same person.

The Jews have such a language that one and the same person can be called by different names and this will not be a mistake. Even in the Russian language there is something similar, and probably in others too. You can call me Sasha, Alexander, Shura, Alex, in German it sounds like Alexander. So, everything looks very clear and transparent if you think a little and look for information about the issue that interests us.

Alexander S., Nizhny Novgorod

One day the Philistines gathered their troops against the people of Israel. The Israelites, led by King Saul, also prepared for war, positioning themselves on a mountain opposite the Philistine troops. David's three older brothers went with Saul's troops. After some time, his father sent David to the Israeli camp to take bread for his brothers and find out about their needs and health. When David came to the Israeli troops, he made his way to his brothers and suddenly saw a huge Philistine named Goliath, dressed in copper armor, a helmet and holding a huge spear and shield. Goliath laughed at the people of God, reviled the living God and said that if any of the Israelites defeated him, the Philistines would be their slaves. However, no one from the Israeli camp dared to go out to fight Goliath, fearing and horrified by his appearance. David, hearing how Goliath reviled the living God and the army of the Israelites, approached Saul with a request to allow him to fight Goliath. Saul said to him: “...You are still a youth, but he has been a warrior from his youth.” But David told Saul how God helped him fight lions and bears while tending the sheep. Then Saul allowed him to fight and dressed him in armor and a copper helmet. But David was not used to such weapons. He took it off, took his staff in his hand, selected five smooth stones from the stream, put them in his shepherd's bag, and confronted the Philistine. Goliath, seeing David coming towards him, began to laugh at him, saying: “Why are you coming at me with a stick? Am I a dog?” David answered him: “You come against me with sword, spear and shield, but I come against you in the name of the Lord of hosts, the God of the armies of Israel, which you have defied.” Then David put his hand into his shepherd's bag, took out a stone, threw it from his sling and struck Goliath so that the stone hit Goliath right on the forehead and he fell dead to the ground. The Philistines, seeing that their strongman had died, began to scatter, and the Israeli army defeated them.

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Boris Mikhailov Young David. 1999

Anastasia Khokhryakova David and Goliath 2002

Pietro da Cortona David takes a lamb from the mouth of a lion 17th century.

Pietro da Cortona David kills Goliath 17th century.

Michelangelo David

He refuses the full armor (because he is not used to it), which Saul gives him, and opposes Goliath only with a sling. With the words: “You come against me with a sword and a spear and a shield, and I come against you in the name of ... the god of the armies of Israel,” David hits the giant with a sling so that a stone pierces his forehead and he falls to the ground.
Then, stepping on Goliath, David cuts off his head. This ensures victory for the Israelis.

Benozzo Gozzoli. David and Goliath

Michelangelo David and Goliath 1509

Julius Schnorr von Carolsfeld David and Goliath

Edgar Degas David and Goliath 1863

James Tissot David and Goliath

The Philistines, seeing that their strongman had died, fled.
According to a briefer summary of the heroic motive of the duel with Goliath, a warrior named Elhanan defeated the giant. Many researchers believe that this is the hero’s true name, while David is his later nickname.

Unknown thin Scenes from the Legend of David and Goliath 1450
Pietro della Vecchia Saul and David with head of Goliath

Rembrandt David Presenting the Head of Goliath to King Saul 1627

Nicolas Poussin The Triumph of David

Nicolas Poussin The Triumph of David 1627-30

Ilya Glazunov Hymn to the heroes 1984

Ostritsky Arkady Gershevich David and Goliath 1994

David with a harp

Awarded the royal squire, who became famous in battles with the Philistines, who dared to fight with a lion and a bear, a skilled musician and poet, David soon became a favorite of the people.
He appears at the court of the Israeli-Jewish king Saul. According to one version, David was called to Saul as a guslar singer to calm the king by playing when he was disturbed by an evil spirit. According to another, David gained the favor of Saul by winning a duel with Goliath.

Jan de Bray David Playing the Harp

It is interesting that de Bray portrayed David as an old man, although according to legend he was a youth. Rembrandt's image looks more truthful.

Rembrandt David playing the harp before Saul 1629

Rembrandt David playing the harp before Saul 1655-60.

Nikolai Zagorsky David plays the harp in front of Saul. 1873

And the next two paintings depict David the harpist, who is fond of playing the instrument, already being a king.

Ivsha King David

Often David appears as a musician with an instrument (usually a harp) in his hands (a book miniature of the Psalter - the so-called Khludov Psalter of the 9th century, stored in the Historical Museum in Moscow, the Parisian Psalter of the 19th century - in the National Library in Paris, etc.; stone carving of the facades of the Church of the Intercession on the Nerl and Demetrius Cathedral in Vladimir, 12th century, stained glass windows of Chartres Cathedral, 13th century).
This also includes the paintings “David plays the harp before Saul” by Pinturicchio. Luke of Leiden, Rembrandt, M. Preti and others.

David won the devoted love of Jonathan, Saul's eldest son, and won the hand of Princess Michal (Mikhali), Saul's daughter. But the more unbearable David becomes for Saul (whenever they returned from another battle, people everywhere said: “Saul killed thousands, and David - tens of thousands”).
The king plots to kill David. David flees from Saul, hiding in the desert, in a cave, in the forest. Having rallied the freemen around himself, David keeps the population in fear. He goes into the service of the king of the city of Gath. In the fight with Saul, David manages to win over the priests from Nova, but Saul incurs the wrath of the worshipers of Yahweh by exterminating the priests of this shrine.
After the death of Saul, defeated by the Philistines, and his sons, Saul’s military commander Abner proclaims Ishbosheth (Ishbaal), Saul’s surviving son, king, while David is proclaimed king in Hebron (i.e., over Judah).
Ishbaal was soon killed by his guards (David publicly executes them for regicide, demonstrating his innocence in the death of the Saulid dynasty), then David is proclaimed king by both the Israelis and the Jews.
“David was thirty years old when he began to reign, and he reigned for forty years,” writes the Old Testament.

David and Bathsheba

David is portrayed as a patriarch, as the father of many children born to his many wives and concubines.

Pedro Berruguete King David 15th century.

The stories about David's love for the smart and beautiful Abigail and especially for Bathsheba (Bathsheba), whom he saw bathing and then took as his wife, and sent her husband, the faithful warrior Uriah the Hittite, to the war with the Ammonites, knowingly to his death, are famous.
Yahweh punishes David with the death of the baby born by Bathsheba, but Bathsheba’s second son, Solomon, turns out to be pleasing to God (the prophet Nathan gives him the name Jedidiah, “beloved of God”).

Lucas Cranach Sr. David and Bathsheba 1526

Ian Masseys David and Bathsheba 1562

Artemisia Gentileschi David and Bathsheba 1640s

Angelika Kaufman Nathan denounces David 1797

The feud with his son Absalom (which began with the murder of Amnon, the son of David, as revenge for the rape by Amnon, Absalom's half-brother, Tamar, Absalom's sister) develops into open rebellion, during which David is forced to flee Jerusalem. This dispute ends with the suppression of the rebellion and the death of the prince (he is killed by the military leader Joab).
David mourns his son (to the bewilderment of those who saved the king by victory). Another son of David, Prince Adonijah, strives to reign during the life of his elderly father, but the prophet Nathan skillfully persuades David to appoint Solomon as heir.

The Old Testament image of David is contradictory. This, on the one hand, indicates the presence of reliable information about the historical figure, and on the other, contributes to the development of the legend by strengthening some features and smoothing out others.
The chroniclers of David's contemporaries embodied in his biography the concept of God's impartial punishment of the vicious king through the prophets, therefore paying considerable attention in the books of Kings to the description of David's misdeeds.
In the book of the Israeli prophet Amos, David is mentioned as a skilled musician. According to later tradition, he is credited with composing the psalms (collected in the biblical book of Psalms).
The books of Isaiah and Jeremiah, prophets who lived during the period of the threat of loss of independence hanging over the kingdom of Judah, express hopes for the upcoming restoration of the “kingdom of David.”
The image of David, whose descendants continued to rule in the kingdom of Judah for about 400 years, until its conquest in 587/586 BC. e. Babylonian king Nebuchadnezzar II, acquires from the time of the Babylonian captivity the features of an immortal king-savior.
David's appearance has already received attention in the Old Testament texts: he is blond, with beautiful eyes and a pleasant face. The Kabbalistic book “Zohar” says that David’s eyes were the color of the rainbow and sparkled, but after the “sin” with Bathsheba they began to dim.

And finally, a modern look at this legend in the works of an artist living in Kazakhstan - Vyacheslav Luiko.

Vyacheslav Luiko David and Goliath 2002

Vyacheslav Luiko David and Goliath 2008

Information from the site.

The hero of which country is not familiar with the chronicles of great battles? For a true warrior, even religious literature can easily become a useful textbook on battle tactics and psychological pressure. For example, the battle of Goliath is a clear example that faith in one’s own strength can destroy the enemy. With such motivation, one stone is enough to win. It’s a pity that for Goliath such a lesson was the last in his life.

History of appearance

The formidable man is first mentioned in the Bible. The First Book of Samuel contains a detailed description of both the hero and the battle that glorified Goliath's opponent, David. Is it worth reminding that the giant himself is presented in the Old Testament not as a valiant warrior, but as a reckless fool who does not believe in the power of God.

Despite the mythical nature of the legend, perhaps the story of Goliath is not fictional at all. The prototype of the giant warrior is mentioned in the records of the Roman military leader Josephus:

“And then one day a gigantic man named Goliath, from the city of Gitta, came out of the Philistine camp. He was four and a half arshins tall, and his weapons were fully consistent with his gigantic size.”

The second confirmation of the existence of Goliath was the discovery of archaeologists. At excavations in the city of Tel Es-Shafi (it is assumed that the city of Gath used to stand here), a part of a ceramic bowl was found, on which the name of the giant was engraved. This is the first reliable evidence that Goliath actually existed.

Today, the name of the fearsome warrior has become a household name. In the Marvel comic book universe, there are several characters named Goliath, including Bill Foster. No less famous is the namesake of Goliath from the cartoon “Gargoyles”, which, unlike the biblical character, is presented as a positive hero.

Image and character

Goliath was born in the city of Gath, located in the territory of Philistia. The character's mother, a woman named Orpha, led a free lifestyle, so the hero's father is unknown.

Goliath grew up to be a big and strong man; the hero’s height was 2.89 m. The hero’s older brothers also had outstanding appearance. The Bible states that a relative of Goliath was the warrior Lahmi, who was killed by the famous fighter Elhanan ben Yair.

From early childhood, the Philistine was trained in military affairs. The giant towered over his comrades, so from his youth he was used by commanders as a terrifying weapon. The man had many victories, but most often Goliath boasted of capturing the greatest shrine of the Jewish people - the Ark of Revelation.

Despite his fearsome appearance and extensive experience in battle, the giant did not build a career. The man remained a simple soldier; Goliath was not trusted to command an army of thousands. This allows us to conclude that physical strength is the only achievement of a man. Intelligence and military ingenuity were not included in the list of the hero’s virtues.

The most famous myth about Goliath is associated with another battle. During the war between the Jews and the Philistines, Goliath challenged any warrior of King Saul to a fair fight. For 40 days, the man called on brave men to go to battle. The only condition is that if the hero wins, then the representatives of the Jewish people will forever become slaves of the inhabitants of Gath.

A formidable man, dressed in armor and armed with a heavy sword, awed the enemy army. Imagine Goliath’s surprise when the young shepherd David answered the man’s call. The young man went out to fight, dressed in casual clothes and with a bag at the ready. To the ridicule of his opponent, David replied that God, at whom Goliath had so imprudently made fun, would lead the young man to victory.

It's amazing how the giant was defeated. David's weapons were a sling and five smooth stones. The young man, quickly swinging a long rope with a loop at the end, drove a pebble into the giant's forehead. Goliath, who did not expect such an attack, did not cover his face. The man fell to the ground from the impact. The shepherd approached the defeated man and realized that the giant had lost consciousness. David cut off the head of the Philistine warrior with Goliath's personal sword.

Goliath in religion

In Christianity, the colorful characters mentioned in the Old Testament carry an unambiguous meaning. In the person of David, the ancient scriptures demonstrate to believers a typological prototype who triumphs over the Supreme Evil, or the devil.

Researchers argue that the comparison of Goliath to Satan is supported by textual evidence. For example, the giant’s height (six cubits and a span) significantly exceeds that of a human, but does not reach the divine figure 7. The myth also mentions the scaly armor of Goliath, referring the reader to the Serpent, which was often called Satan. However, most of the arguments regarding the hidden meaning of the legend are indirect.

The Koran also contains a story telling about the victory of the Islamic prophet over the unfaithful king of the Amalekites. The names of the main characters have been changed (Goliath is called Jalut, and David is called Talut) and minor details. And the death of the giant fully corresponds to the version voiced in the Bible. The parable of Jalut and Talut demonstrates to people the strength and power of God to help them achieve victory. You just need to believe.

The Jewish Holy Scripture (Tanakh) also mentions the legendary battle. David's opponent is still a giant, but the name of the enemy is Golyath from the Plishtim tribe. Another difference from the Old Testament is that the man is equipped with a large number of weapons. In addition to a spear and sword, Golyat is equipped with a bow and arrows. As in other sources, only blind faith in a higher power contributes to David’s victory over the enemy.

Film adaptations

The biblical motif was first shown on television in 1960. The film "David and Goliath" tells the story of a spectacular battle described in religious scriptures. The role of the giant warrior was played by Italian actor Aldo Pedinotti.

In 1985, Paramount released the film King David. The film failed at the box office. New York Times critics wrote negative reviews, pointing out flaws in the script and direction. The image of Goliath in the failed film was embodied by actor George Eastman.

In 2015, Timothy Chey made another film about the famous battle. This time, the role of the fierce warrior went to the novice actor Jerry Sokoloski. The artist’s height is 2.33 m, so the tallest Canadian fits perfectly into the image.

The Wallace brothers showed their own view of the biblical motif in 2016. The film "David and Goliath" again touches on the theme of the battle between the Jews and the Philistines. The role of Goliath was played by Michael Foster, familiar to viewers from the TV series “Conan” and “Beverly Hills 90210: The Next Generation.”

• The name Goliath is derived from the verb “to open.” The full translation is “standing barefaced before God.”
• The victims of Goliath before meeting David were Hofni ben Eli and Pinhas ben Eli, the sons of the judge-high priest.
• The total weight of Goliath's armor reached 60 tons (in another source - 120 tons).
• The Bible contains references to two Goliaths. If the first soldier died at the hands of David, then Elchanan became the killer of the second soldier. For a long time it was believed that the same giant was mentioned in the parables. But the battles took place in different time periods and on different territories.

Most educated people consider the battle of David and Goliath to be an allegory. According to legend, David managed to defeat a giant from the enemy (Philistine) army and thereby ensured the victory of his army. Of course, there cannot be giants, these are all fairy tales...

However, was Goliath really that great? Let's take a look at TANAKH. This is what the Book of the Prophet Samuel (Samuel) tells us, 1, 17:4:

“And a single combatant named Goliath, from Gath, went out from the camps of the Philistines; his height is six cubits and a span. And he had a copper helmet on his head, and he was dressed in chain mail, and the weight of this chain mail was five thousand shekels of copper. And the copper shields were on his feet, and the copper javelin was on his shoulders. And the shaft of his spear was like a weaver's beam, and the blade of his spear was 600 shekels of iron. And the shield-bearer walked before him.”

Let's first look at the tactical and technical indicators of Goliath.

To measure height, the ancient Jews used the so-called “Egyptian cubit” - this is 48 centimeters. A span is also a well-known measure, approximately 8 centimeters. That is, Goliath’s total height is 2 meters 96 centimeters. A little further we will talk about whether this is a lot or a little.

Each shekel mentioned in the TANAKH is the so-called “sacred shekel”, 22 grams. That is, Goliath’s chain mail weighed 110 kilograms.

Although it is possible that in this case they meant the usual shekel - 11 grams. This brings the entire Goliath chain mail down to 55 kilograms - I think that's not much heavier than the old diving equipment.

The “blade,” that is, the tip of the spear, weighed 600 shekels - that is, 12.5 kilograms (quite feasible for a trained person), or a little more than six kilograms, which is not even too heavy. Let's say the author of this book could easily lift such a spear (although he would no longer be able to fight with it).

The sword of Goliath, according to ancient sources, was first kept in Nob, and then was transferred to Jerusalem.

Let's move on to growth - is it so fantastic? Let's say that today the tallest man on earth is officially the Ukrainian Leonid Stadnik. His height is 2 meters 57 centimeters. That is, Stadnik is only 42 centimeters short of Goliath.

However, Stadnik is not the limit. It has been documented that the tallest man who lived in our time was Robert Pershing Wadlow. He was born in 1918 in Alton, Illinois, USA. Wadlow's height reached 2 meters 72 centimeters. By the way, his arm span reached 288 cm, and his weight reached 223 kg.

So, American Wadlow was only 24 cm behind Goliath. The difference is quite small.

I think that if my average reader is of average height, then he has repeatedly had to meet people who are 24 cm taller than him, and even more. That is, Wadlow wouldn't be all that surprised if he met Goliath.

In our time, it was said about the Terek Cossack Timofey Bakulin that his height was almost three meters. (True, some witnesses claim that Bakulin’s height did not exceed two and a half meters).

In the mid-fifties of the last century, according to memoirs, near the city of Izberbash (New Town) in Dagestan, a father and son, almost three meters tall, lived on a pier near the lighthouse. The reason for the seclusion from ordinary people was not the enormous height of the two men, but the unusual appearance of the younger one, who was completely covered with hair. People called this guy “kaptar”, that is, Bigfoot.

In the mountains of Dagestan there was one village in which people more than two meters tall lived. However, at the end of the fifties of the last century, there was a strong earthquake in the mountains of Dagestan, which buried an village with tall people in the gorge. People say that one of the tall people from the dead village remained alive. The three-meter man was often seen high in the mountains of Dagestan with a flock of sheep. The further fate of the giant is unknown.

But these are already legends (in no way do I want to discredit the people who provided this information, but they did not make scientific observations).

One more giant remained in the memory of previous generations - Fyodor Makhnov.

According to the Russian Book of Records, the tallest man in world history was Russian citizen Fyodor Makhnov! His height was 2 meters 85 centimeters (with a weight of 182 kilograms).

A correspondent for the magazine “7 Days” reports that he personally saw the grave of our hero - at the Staroye Selo railway station, near Vitebsk. Today the giant is called in newspapers either Makhnov or Makhno.