Who killed Goliath-answear

Saturday, April 29, 2000 11:06 AM

From: Daniel Puravet

Hi

I am not a big shot that studies the bible alot, but to my understanding of your question #69 of, "Who killed Goliath?" is that in 1st Samuel 17, David was a boy and he did kill Goliath (the giant) it says it plainly. But in 2nd Samuel 21, David is King and there was a battle in Gob with the Philistines and Elhanan killed the BROTHER of Goliath. So David did kill Goliath. In the KJV it says it plainly that it was his brother, but in the NIV it does not say that plainly.

2nd Samuel 21:19 KJV
"And there was again a battle in Gob with the Philistines, where Elhanan the son of Jaareoregim, a Bethlehemite, slew the brother of Goliath the Gittite, the staff of whose spear was like a weaver's beam."

If you read more of chapter 21 you will find out that there were more than one giant that was born to yet another giant in Gath.

Also it says in the NIV in 1 Chronicles 20

1 Chronicles 20:5 NIV
"In another battle with the Philistines, Elhanan son of Jair killed Lahmi the brother of Goliath the Gittite, who had a spear with a shaft like a weaver's rod."

I don't have that much experience but this is how I understood it. If you still believe that there is a contradiction tell me, and tell me why. But if you now believe that #69 is not a contradiction please remove it from your website or say that there is no contradiction in that.

If you have time please reply.

Dan Puravet

Hi Dan,

Thanks for writing in.

I consider the Revised Standard Version a much more reliable translation of the Bible than I do the King James Version. The King James version was written with much poetic license and, as such, missed out on the true translation of the original language in countless places. The 2 Samuel verse is one such place.

Speaking Hebrew as I do, I can tell you that the Hebrew word for brother is ACH (rhyming with Bach but with a more guttaral sound on the CH). This word is not found in this verse. As such, it is my position that the translater of the King James Bible missed on this verse, possibly due to the fact that this was contradictory to the prior verse. The Revised Standard captured the true meaning of 2 Samuel 21:19.

Thanks,
Cygnus