Battle of Elah

In the Battle of Elah, David and Goliath fought to settle the dispute between Philistines and Israelites. It didn't stop the war. The idea was for just one man to die. That way, the Philistine and Israelite armies wouldn't have to continue their war. More likely, though, the Philistines just wanted to put the fear of Dagon into the Israelites. They did it by introducing them to someone no one would want to meet on the battlefield. Goliath. David killed Goliath with one stone fired from a sling, the ancient version of mobile artillery. Philistines were supposed to surrender to Israel and live under the thumb of their king. Instead, they ran away. Israelite soldiers chased them all day long. They ran them to the gates of their walled cities of Gath and Ekron. Those were the two Philistine cities closest to the battlefield. David's story comes to life—bigger than life—in 1 Samuel 17.