Lectionary Calendar
Tuesday, April 29th, 2025
the Second Week after Easter
Attention!
Tired of seeing ads while studying? Now you can enjoy an "Ads Free" version of the site for as little as 10¢ a day and support a great cause!
Click here to learn more!

Read the Bible

Douay-Rheims Bible

1 Samuel 17:5

And he had a helmet of brass upon his head, and he was clothed with a coat of mail with scales, and the weight of his coat of mail was five thousand sicles of brass:

Bible Study Resources

Concordances:

- Nave's Topical Bible - Brass;   Coat of Mail;   Helmet;   Mail;   Thompson Chain Reference - Bible Stories for Children;   Children;   Home;   Pleasant Sunday Afternoons;   Religion;   Stories for Children;   Torrey's Topical Textbook - Arms, Military;   Brass, or Copper;   Philistines, the;  

Dictionaries:

- American Tract Society Bible Dictionary - Brass;   Goliath;   Bridgeway Bible Dictionary - Armour;   Philistia, philistines;   Shekel;   Charles Buck Theological Dictionary - Prayer;   Easton Bible Dictionary - Armour;   Brass;   Coat of Mail;   Copper;   Helmet;   Mail, Coat of;   Fausset Bible Dictionary - Arms;   Philistia;   Holman Bible Dictionary - Bronze;   Coat of Mail;   Copper;   Mediator;   Minerals and Metals;   Philistines, the;   Samuel, Books of;   Weights and Measures;   Hastings' Dictionary of the Bible - Armour, Arms;   David;   Giant;   Samuel, Books of;   Morrish Bible Dictionary - Armour;   Goliath ;   The Hawker's Poor Man's Concordance And Dictionary - Goliath;   People's Dictionary of the Bible - Armor;   Arms;   Goliath;   Smith Bible Dictionary - Arms, Armor;   Copper,;   Metals;   Watson's Biblical & Theological Dictionary - Arms;   Goliath;  

Encyclopedias:

- Condensed Biblical Cyclopedia - Hebrew Monarchy, the;   International Standard Bible Encyclopedia - Armor;   Dress;   Goliath;   Philistines;   Scales;   The Jewish Encyclopedia - Brass;   Breastplate;   Helmet;   Iron;  

Parallel Translations

Christian Standard Bible®
and wore a bronze helmet and bronze scale armor that weighed one hundred twenty-five pounds.
Hebrew Names Version
He had a helmet of brass on his head, and he was clad with a coat of mail; and the weight of the coat was five thousand shekels of brass.
King James Version
And he had an helmet of brass upon his head, and he was armed with a coat of mail; and the weight of the coat was five thousand shekels of brass.
Lexham English Bible
A bronze helmet was on his head, and he was clothed with scale body armor; the weight of the body armor was five thousand bronze shekels.
English Standard Version
He had a helmet of bronze on his head, and he was armed with a coat of mail, and the weight of the coat was five thousand shekels of bronze.
New Century Version
with a bronze helmet on his head and a coat of bronze armor that weighed about one hundred twenty-five pounds.
New English Translation
He had a bronze helmet on his head and was wearing scale body armor. The weight of his bronze body armor was five thousand shekels.
Amplified Bible
He had a bronze helmet on his head, and wore a coat of scale-armor (overlapping metal plates) which weighed 5,000 shekels of bronze.
New American Standard Bible
And he had a bronze helmet on his head, and he wore scale-armor which weighed five thousand shekels of bronze.
Geneva Bible (1587)
Aud had an helmet of brasse vpo his head, & a brigandine vpon him: and the weight of his brigandine was fiue thousand shekels of brasse.
Legacy Standard Bible
And he had a bronze helmet on his head, and he was clothed with scale-armor, and the weight of that scale-armor was five thousand shekels of bronze.
Contemporary English Version
He wore a bronze helmet and had bronze armor to protect his chest and legs. The chest armor alone weighed about one hundred twenty-five pounds. He carried a bronze sword strapped on his back,
Complete Jewish Bible
He had a bronze helmet on his head, and he wore a bronze armor plate weighing 120 pounds.
Darby Translation
And he had a helmet of bronze upon his head, and he was clothed with a corselet of scales; and the weight of the corselet was five thousand shekels of bronze.
Easy-to-Read Version
He had a bronze helmet on his head. He wore a coat of armor that was made like the scales on a fish. This armor was made of bronze and weighed about 125 pounds.
George Lamsa Translation
And he had a helmet of brass upon his head, and he was armed with a coat of mail, and the weight of his coat of mail was five thousand shekels of brass.
Good News Translation
and wore bronze armor that weighed about 125 pounds and a bronze helmet.
Literal Translation
And a bronze helmet was on his head, and he was clothed with scaled body armor; and the weight of the armor was five thousand shekels of bronze.
Miles Coverdale Bible (1535)
and had an helmet of stele on his heade, and a fast habergion vpon him, and the weight of his habergion was fyue thousande Sicles of stele,
American Standard Version
And he had a helmet of brass upon his head, and he was clad with a coat of mail; and the weight of the coat was five thousand shekels of brass.
Bible in Basic English
And he had a head-dress of brass on his head, and he was dressed in a coat of metal, the weight of which was five thousand shekels of brass.
Bishop's Bible (1568)
And had an helmet of brasse vpon his head, and a coate of male about him. And the weight of his coate of mayle, was fiue thousand sicles of brasse.
JPS Old Testament (1917)
And he had a helmet of brass upon his head, and he was clad with a coat of mail; and the weight of the coat was five thousand shekels of brass.
King James Version (1611)
And he had an helmet of brasse vpon his head, and he was armed with a coate of male: and the weight of the coat was fiue thousand shekels of brasse.
Brenton's Septuagint (LXX)
And he had a helmet upon his head, and he wore a breastplate of chain armour; and the weight of his breastplate was five thousand shekels of brass and iron.
English Revised Version
And he had an helmet of brass upon his head, and he was clad with a coat of mail; and the weight of the coat was five thousand shekels of brass.
Berean Standard Bible
and he wore a bronze helmet and bronze coat of mail weighing five thousand shekels.
Wycliffe Bible (1395)
and he was clothid with `an haburioun hokid, ether mailid; forsothe the weiyte of his haburioun was fyue thousynde siclis of bras;
Young's Literal Translation
and a helmet of brass [is] on his head, and [with] a scaled coat of mail he [is] clothed, and the weight of the coat of mail [is] five thousand shekels of brass,
Update Bible Version
And he had a helmet of bronze on his head, and he was clad with a coat of mail; and the weight of the coat was five thousand shekels of bronze.
Webster's Bible Translation
And [he had] a helmet of brass upon his head, and he [was] armed with a coat of mail; and the weight of the coat [was] five thousand shekels of brass.
World English Bible
He had a helmet of brass on his head, and he was clad with a coat of mail; and the weight of the coat was five thousand shekels of brass.
New King James Version
He had a bronze helmet on his head, and he was armed with a coat of mail, and the weight of the coat was five thousand shekels of bronze.
New Living Translation
He wore a bronze helmet, and his bronze coat of mail weighed 125 pounds.
New Life Bible
He had a head covering of brass, and wore brass battle-clothes that weighed as much as 5,000 silver pieces.
New Revised Standard
He had a helmet of bronze on his head, and he was armed with a coat of mail; the weight of the coat was five thousand shekels of bronze.
J.B. Rotherham Emphasized Bible
with a helmet of bronze on his head, and, with a scaly coat of mail, was he clad, - the weight of the coat, being five thousand shekels of bronze;
Revised Standard Version
He had a helmet of bronze on his head, and he was armed with a coat of mail, and the weight of the coat was five thousand shekels of bronze.
New American Standard Bible (1995)
He had a bronze helmet on his head, and he was clothed with scale-armor which weighed five thousand shekels of bronze.

Contextual Overview

1 Now the Philistines gathering together their troops to battle, assembled at Socho of Juda: and camped between Socho and Azeca, in the borders of Dommim. 2 And Saul and the children of Israel being gathered together, came to the valley of Terebinth, and they set the army in array to fight against the Philistines. 3 And the Philistines stood on a mountain on the one side, and Israel stood on a mountain on the other side: and there was a valley between them. 4 And there went out a man baseborn from the camp of the Philistines, named Goliath, of Geth, whose height was six cubits and a span: 5 And he had a helmet of brass upon his head, and he was clothed with a coat of mail with scales, and the weight of his coat of mail was five thousand sicles of brass: 6 And he had greaves of brass on his legs, and a buckler of brass covered his shoulders. 7 And the staff of his spear was like a weaver’s beam, and the head of his spear weighed six hundred sicles of iron: and his armourbearer went before him. 8 And standing, he cried out to the bands of Israel, and said to them: Why are you come out prepared to fight? am not I a Philistine, and you the servants of Saul? Choose out a man of you, and let him come down and fight hand to hand. 9 If he be able to fight with me, and kill me, we will be servants to you: but if I prevail against him, and kill him, you shall be servants, and shall serve us. 10 And the Philistine said: I have defied the bands of Israel this day: give me a man, and let him fight with me hand to hand.

Bible Verse Review
  from Treasury of Scripure Knowledge

armed: Heb. clothed, 1 Samuel 17:38

Reciprocal: 2 Samuel 21:16 - of the sons Ephesians 6:17 - the helmet

Cross-References

Genesis 17:2
And I will make my covenant between me and thee: and I will multiply thee exceedingly.
Genesis 17:4
And God said to him: I am, and my covenant is with thee, and thou shalt be a father of many nations.
Genesis 17:15
God said also to Abraham: Sarai thy wife thou shalt not call Sarai, but Sara.
Genesis 17:21
But my covenant I will establish with Isaac, whom Sara shall bring forth to thee at this time in the next year.
Genesis 17:23
And Abraham took Ismael his son, and all that were born in his house: and all whom he had bought, every male among the men of his house: and he circumcised the flesh of their foreskin forthwith the very same day, as God had commanded him.
Genesis 32:28
But he said: Thy name shall not be called Jacob, but Israel; for if thou hast been strong against God, how much more shalt thou prevail against men?
Numbers 13:16
(13-17) These are the names of the men, whom Moses sent to view the land: and he called Osee the son of Nun, Josue.
2 Samuel 12:25
And he sent by the hand of Nathan the prophet, and called his name, Amiable to the Lord, because the Lord loved him.
Nehemiah 9:7
Thou O Lord God, art he who chosest Abram, and broughtest him forth out of the fire of the Chaldeans, and gavest him the name of Abraham.
Isaiah 65:15
And you shall leave your name for an execration to my elect: and the Lord God shall slay thee, and call his servants by another name.

Gill's Notes on the Bible

And he had an helmet of brass upon his head,.... This was a piece of armour, which covered the head in the day of battle; these were usually made of the skins of beasts, of leather, and which were covered with plates of iron, or brass; and sometimes made of all iron, or of brass g; as this seems to have been:

and he was armed with a coat of mail; which reached from the neck to the middle, and consisted of various plates of brass laid on one another, like the scales of fishes h, so close together that no dart or arrow could pierce between:

and the weight of the coat was five thousand shekels of brass: which made one hundred and fifty six pounds and a quarter of zygostatic or avoirdupois weight; and therefore he must be a very strong man indeed to carry such a weight. So the armour of the ancient Romans were all of brass, as this man's; their helmets, shields, greaves, coats of mail, all of brass, as Livy says i; and so in the age of the Grecian heroes j.

g Vid. Lydium "de re militari": l. 3. c. 5. p. 63. h "----Rutilum thoraca indutus a‰nis Horrebat squamis----" Virgil. Aeneid. l. 11. i Hist. l. 1. c. 22. j Pausan. Messenica, l. 3. p. 163. So Homer frequently describes the Grecians with a coat of mail of brass.

Barnes' Notes on the Bible

Coat of mail - Or “breastplate of scales.” A kind of metal shirt, protecting the back as well as the breast, and made of scales like those of a fish; as was the corselet of Rameses III, now in the British Museum. The terms, helmet, coat, and clothed (armed the King James Version) are the same as those used in Isaiah 59:17.

Five thousand shekels - Probably about 157 pounds avoirdupois (see Exodus 38:12). It is very probable that Goliath’s brass coat may have been long preserved as a trophy, as we know his sword was, and so the weight of it ascertained.

Clarke's Notes on the Bible

Verse 1 Samuel 17:5. He was armed with a coat of mail — The words in the original, שרון קשקשים shiryon kaskassim, mean a coat of mail formed of plates of brass overlapping each other, like the scales of a fish, or tiles of a house. This is the true notion of the original terms.

With thin plates of brass or iron, overlapping each other, were the ancient coats of mail formed in different countries; many formed in this way may be now seen in the tower of London.

The weight - five thousand shekels — Following Bishop Cumberland's tables, and rating the shekel at two hundred and nineteen grains, and the Roman ounce at four hundred and thirty-eight grains, we find that Goliath's coat of mail, weighing five thousand shekels, was exactly one hundred and fifty-six pounds four ounces avoirdupois. A vast weight for a coat of mail, but not all out of proportion to the man.


 
adsfree-icon
Ads FreeProfile