The Meaning of 1 Samuel 17:8 Explained

1 Samuel 17:8

KJV: And he stood and cried unto the armies of Israel, and said unto them, Why are ye come out to set your battle in array? am not I a Philistine, and ye servants to Saul? choose you a man for you, and let him come down to me.

YLT: And he standeth and calleth unto the ranks of Israel, and saith to them, 'Why are ye come out to set in array the battle? am not I the Philistine, and ye servants to Saul? choose for you a man, and let him come down unto me;

Darby: And he stood and cried to the ranks of Israel, and said to them, Why are ye come out to set your battle in array? am not I the Philistine, and ye servants of Saul? choose for yourselves a man, and let him come down to me.

ASV: And he stood and cried unto the armies of Israel, and said unto them, Why are ye come out to set your battle in array? am not I a Philistine, and ye servants to Saul? choose you a man for you, and let him come down to me.

KJV Reverse Interlinear

And he stood  and cried  unto the armies  of Israel,  and said  unto them, Why are ye come out  to set [your] battle  in array?  [am] not I a Philistine,  and ye servants  to Saul?  choose  you a man  for you, and let him come down  to me. 

What does 1 Samuel 17:8 Mean?

Context Summary

1 Samuel 17:1-16 - Israel Defied By The Philistine Champion
When their king lost the special consciousness of God's presence and power, the whole kingdom became demoralized, and the Hebrews had the humiliation of hearing in silence a defiant challenge to "the armies of the living God." It looked as if the answer would have to go by default-that Jehovah was a God that could not save. The impotence of the Israelites made Goliath still more defiant. At first he came down from the ranks of his own camp on the southern side of the valley and walked vaingloriously through the level plain between the two hosts; but after forty days had passed, he became bolder and came up the slopes where Israel stood. At his approach they fled in terror. Measuring nine feet, nine inches, covered with mail, and carrying a spear, the head of which weighed eighteen pounds, the giant must have seemed very formidable to the men of Israel. And are there not giants equally determined and terrible that threaten us, in national and individual experience, and find us unable to cope with them? We need David's God and David's faith! [source]

Chapter Summary: 1 Samuel 17

1  The armies of the Israelites and Philistines being ready to battle
4  Goliath challenges a combat
12  David, sent by his father to visit his brothers, takes the challenge
28  Eliab chides him
30  He is brought to Saul
32  shows the reason of his confidence
38  and slays the giant
55  Saul takes notice of David

What do the individual words in 1 Samuel 17:8 mean?

And he stood and cried out to the armies of Israel and said to them why have you come out to line up for battle [am] not I a Philistine and you the servants of Saul Choose for yourselves a man and let him come down to me
וַֽיַּעֲמֹ֗ד וַיִּקְרָא֙ אֶל־ מַעַרְכֹ֣ת יִשְׂרָאֵ֔ל וַיֹּ֣אמֶר לָהֶ֔ם לָ֥מָּה תֵצְא֖וּ ؟ לַעֲרֹ֣ךְ מִלְחָמָ֑ה הֲל֧וֹא אָנֹכִ֣י הַפְּלִשְׁתִּ֗י וְאַתֶּם֙ עֲבָדִ֣ים ؟ לְשָׁא֔וּל בְּרוּ־ לָכֶ֥ם אִ֖ישׁ וְיֵרֵ֥ד אֵלָֽי

וַֽיַּעֲמֹ֗ד  And  he  stood 
Parse: Conjunctive waw, Verb, Qal, Consecutive imperfect, third person masculine singular
Root: עָמַד  
Sense: to stand, remain, endure, take one’s stand.
וַיִּקְרָא֙  and  cried  out 
Parse: Conjunctive waw, Verb, Qal, Consecutive imperfect, third person masculine singular
Root: קָרָא  
Sense: to call, call out, recite, read, cry out, proclaim.
מַעַרְכֹ֣ת  the  armies 
Parse: Noun, feminine plural construct
Root: מַעֲרָכָה  
Sense: row, rank, battle-line.
יִשְׂרָאֵ֔ל  of  Israel 
Parse: Proper Noun, masculine singular
Root: יִשְׂרָאֵל  
Sense: the second name for Jacob given to him by God after his wrestling with the angel at Peniel.
וַיֹּ֣אמֶר  and  said 
Parse: Conjunctive waw, Verb, Qal, Consecutive imperfect, third person masculine singular
Root: אָמַר 
Sense: to say, speak, utter.
לָהֶ֔ם  to  them 
Parse: Preposition, third person masculine plural
לָ֥מָּה  why 
Parse: Interrogative
Root: לָמָּה 
Sense: what, how, of what kind.
תֵצְא֖וּ  have  you  come  out 
Parse: Verb, Qal, Imperfect, second person masculine plural
Root: יׄוצֵאת 
Sense: to go out, come out, exit, go forth.
؟ לַעֲרֹ֣ךְ  to  line  up  for 
Parse: Preposition-l, Verb, Qal, Infinitive construct
Root: עָרַךְ  
Sense: to arrange, set or put or lay in order, set in array, prepare, order, ordain, handle, furnish, esteem, equal, direct, compare.
מִלְחָמָ֑ה  battle 
Parse: Noun, feminine singular
Root: מִלְחָמָה  
Sense: battle, war.
הֲל֧וֹא  [am]  not 
Parse: Adverb, Negative particle
Root: הֲלֹא 
Sense: not, no.
הַפְּלִשְׁתִּ֗י  a  Philistine 
Parse: Article, Proper Noun, masculine singular
Root: פְּלִשְׁתִּי  
Sense: an inhabitant of Philistia; descendants of Mizraim who immigrated from Caphtor (Crete?) to the western seacoast of Canaan.
וְאַתֶּם֙  and  you 
Parse: Conjunctive waw, Pronoun, second person masculine plural
Root: אַתְּ 
Sense: you (second pers.
עֲבָדִ֣ים  the  servants 
Parse: Noun, masculine plural
Root: עֶבֶד  
Sense: slave, servant.
؟ לְשָׁא֔וּל  of  Saul 
Parse: Preposition-l, Proper Noun, masculine singular
Root: שָׁאוּל  
Sense: a Benjamite, son of Kish, and the st king of Israel.
בְּרוּ־  Choose 
Parse: Verb, Qal, Imperative, masculine plural
Root: בָּרָא 
Sense: to eat, consume.
לָכֶ֥ם  for  yourselves 
Parse: Preposition, second person masculine plural
אִ֖ישׁ  a  man 
Parse: Noun, masculine singular
Root: אִישׁ 
Sense: man.
וְיֵרֵ֥ד  and  let  him  come  down 
Parse: Conjunctive waw, Verb, Qal, Conjunctive imperfect, third person masculine singular
Root: יָרַד  
Sense: to go down, descend, decline, march down, sink down.
אֵלָֽי  to  me 
Parse: Preposition, first person common singular
Root: אֶל  
Sense: to, toward, unto (of motion).

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