Goliath

A champion named Goliath, who was from Gath came out of the Philistine camp. His height was six cubits and a span. He had a bronze helmet on his head and wore a coat of scale armor of bronze weighing five thousand shekels. On his legs he wore bronze greaves, and a bronze javelin was slung on his back. His spear shaft was like a weaver’s rod, and its iron point weighed six hundred shekels. His shield bearer went ahead of him.

Goliath stood and shouted to the ranks of Israel, “Why do you come out and line up for battle? Am I not a Philistine, and are you not the servants of Saul? Choose a man and have him come down to me. If he is able to fight and kill me, we will become your subjects; but if I overcome him and kill him, you will become our subjects and serve us.” Then the Philistine said, “This day I defy the armies of Israel! Give me a man and let us fight each other.” On hearing the Philistine’s words, Saul and all the Israelites were dismayed and terrified.

How Tall Was Goliath?

At first glance it may seem straightforward. The Bible states that Goliath was “six cubits and a span” tall. To interpret that, we first need to understand a cubit is traditionally the distance from a person’s elbow to the tip of their middle finger – a measurement that varies significantly from person to person.

Eventually, most cultures standardized the cubit. The Israelites likely had their own version, although it’s unclear whether it was in use at the time of Goliath. If not, they may have been using the Egyptian cubit which is very similar.

But this calculation raises another issue: the Septuagint. The Septuagint is a Greek translation of the Old Testament and in it, Goliath’s height is listed as four cubits and a span. When calculated this equates to about six feet nine inches-still tall but well within the realm of human possibility and even shorter than some modern athletes.

So which source is more reliable? The Masoretic Text, written in Hebrew, is the traditional basis for most English translations of the Bible. Many prefer it because it is written in the original language, avoiding some of the interpretive liberties than can come with translation.

On the other hand, the Septuagint predates the earliest copies of the Masoretic Text by nearly a thousand years. This leads some scholars to argue that the Septuagint may reflect a Hebrew source text closer to the original. Further complicating the picture are the Dead Sea Scrolls, discovered in the 1940s. These ancient Hebrew manuscripts align with the Septuagint’s shorter height for Goliath, suggesting a second, possible earlier, tradition.

So how do we resolve these differences? While the accounts differ on Goliath’s height, they agree on several key details regarding his armor and weaponry. Both describe him wearing bronze chest scale armor weighing five thousand shekels, along with a helmet, leg armor, a sword, a javelin, and a spear with a head weighing six hundred shekels. Depending on the historical period, a shield could weigh between seven and seventeen grams. For conservative estimates assuming eleven-fourteen grams per shekel, Goliath’s chest armor would weigh around one hundred twenty-five pounds and a spearhead approximately fifteen pounds.

In contrast, an average soldier’s chest armor at the time typically weighted 30-34 pounds and spearheads rarely exceeded 1.25 pounds. This means Goliath’s armor was about three to four times heavier than the standard and his spearhead at least twelve times heavier.

If Goliath stood at six feet nine inches (about 30% taller than the average man of his era), he would likely have been roughly 90% stronger, based on studies comparing power lifting capacities by height. Even so, his armor would still have been three times heavier than expected for someone of his size. And the spearhead wildly beyond plausible use.
Therefore, the only way the described armor and weapons make sense is if Goliath truly stood around nine feet six inches tall, as stated in the Masoretic Text. At that height the extreme weight of his gear becomes more believable though still extraordinary.

This conclusion is further supported by textual criticism. The Septuagint was translated by Jewish scholars in Alexandria who were heavily influenced by Hellenistic culture. There is evidence to suggest that certain textual changes may have been made to make the stories more palatable to Greek readers.

The authors of the Dead Sea Scrolls also deviated from mainstream Jewish traditions. Their scribble practices were less meticulous, sometimes omitting lines and adding corrections in the margins-mistakes that would never have been tolerated in the strict transmission process of the Masoretic tradition, which adhered to precise rules governing spacing, margins, and even individual letters.

Goliath’s Armor

Goliath would have worn a coat of scale armor. Bronze scales were typically attached to a backing, often leather, creating a flexible and protective layer of armor. The scales could be arranged in rows, with each row overlapping the one below it, similar to fish scales.
Goliath “had a bronze helmet on his head.” Archaeologists discovered carvings of Philistine soldiers in the temple of Ramses III in Egypt. According to these carvings, the Philistines wore feathered or leather stripped helmets secured under their chins by leather straps. Headbands holding the feathers of leather strips in place were probably made of metal like bronze.

“On his legs he wore bronze greaves.” Greaves primarily served to shield the tibia, or shinbone, a vulnerable area due to its proximity to the skin and susceptible to attacks. A direct hit to the shin can incapacitate a leg, significantly limiting mobility.

To mitigate this vulnerability, greaves were developed, typically featuring a sturdy metal exterior coupled with an inner layer of felt padding. This padding is crucial as it absorbs the impact, preventing the force of any blow from being directly transmitted from the metal to the shin. This design effectively combines protection with comfort, ensuring the wearer’s ability to move and defend effectively in combat situations.

We are not told whether Goliath’s sword was made of bronze, but it is likely that the event took place during the Late Bronze Age, as his armor was bronze while his spearhead was iron.

Scriptural evidence indicates that Goliath was equipped with both a javelin and a spear. The javelin featured a bronze head, while the spear was tipped with iron. The javelin is one of the oldest weapons. A light throwing weapon, they are lighter than spears, but they are of the same basic form. They were thrown and used as thrusting weapons in hand to hand combat. The soldiers who carried javelins usually had three or four at least.

“His spear shaft was like a weaver’s rod, and its iron point weighed six hundred shekels.” Based off the looms used in that time period, it would be common for a weaver’s beam to be 2 to 2 ½ inches thick and more than five feet long. For the physics of Goliath’s spear to work properly with a sixteen-pound eleven-ounce head and the height of Goliath, a conservative length would be ten feet with a two-inch diameter pole, including a six-pound 1.2-ounce counterweight, giving the spear a total length of twelve feet seven inches.

“His shield bearer went ahead of him.” A shield bearer is someone who carries a shield. Historically, it was carried by a military attendant who aided a warrior by carrying their shield and other equipment. In ancient warfare, they were often part of a larger unit, such as the Macedonian phalanx, where they protected other soldiers.  They carried small round shields and straight swords. Not much is stated about Goliath’s shield, but he most likely had one carried by his shield bearer.

– adapted from an article by Jamin R. Vess