The unheard story of David and Goliath | Malcolm Gladwell

The unheard story of David and Goliath | Malcolm Gladwell

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It’s a classic underdog tale: David, a young shepherd armed only with a sling, beats Goliath, the mighty warrior. The story has transcended its biblical origins to become a common shorthand for unlikely victory. But, asks Malcolm Gladwell, is that really what the David and Goliath story is about?

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37 Comments

  1. Don't like this commentary at all! You are trying to downplay the fact that God was with David. But remember all the rest could not beat Goliath and remember Saul also underestimated the slinger by offering the king's armour and sword. David was the underdog and God was with him whatever else you want to say.

  2. Interesting perspective. I can’t seem to find, in any translation including the original Torah, where it says the shield bearer “led” him onto the field. In every translation, YLST, OJB, NIV, ESV, all agree and say, “1 Samuel 17:7 (JPS 1917): and his shield-bearer went “before”him. Could he have been “led”? Maybe. And Ha’ Sa’Tan changed one word of Gods command to destroy His good creation by fooling Eve. I will be careful sharing this perspective with others until I can resolve this discrepancy.

  3. Goliath was 9.9’ not 6.9’ 3 ft difference and David being a very average Hebrew was probably between 5.6’-5.8’. These giants were related to Anak & Og; King Og’s bed was made of Iron and by today’s measurements would’ve been around 6-7 ft wide by 12-13 ft long if this gives any illustration to the size of these giants which also commonly had two rows of teeth and 6 digits on hands & feet; Goliath didn’t move slow; he wasn’t led he brought his weapons bearer; this guy has a uniquely stupid interpretation; the measurements used were used through Roman inquisition; giants and gigantism are not remotely the same, these giants came from a distinctly different bloodline; this is a man trying to disprove the Bible and I hope he repents. People wouldn’t fear a disabled half blind man, Goliath had been in battles prior so this theory is pure garbage.

  4. If I was an ace shot with a sling and went up against Andre the giant I better not miss because Andre was definitely very dangerous as Goliath probably was. David was still crazy brave for volunteering.

  5. I’m sorry but a 45 mm hand gun does not exist and if it did it would blow your whole arm off. Just for contexts early tanks were fitting with 37-40 mm cannons. (I know he meant 45 caliber but it’s just funny to think of a 45 mm hand gun)

  6. Very interesting point of view. Why then would they allow such a good soldier to attend to his fathers flock while Israel is at war?
    I see David as the underdog. He had no military training and a family that barely remembered him when the prophet Samuel showed up to search for the next king.
    One thing David knew was that an uncircumcised philistine stood no chance against the armies of The Living God!

  7. If the current rulers of the world claim lineage to King David ?
    Who is the good and who was the evil. Maybe giants were the nephilim's offspring .. his story is written by the victor .. not always the righteous .. think about it !

  8. Excellent story telling, but I have a query; why is he comparing David to an experienced war slinger. The only use of a sling that is a associated with herdsmen is a bolus!!!! Before the story of Goliath, there is no record of David using the sling and the stone. Matter of fact, David mostly took on the wild animals that attacked his herd with his bare hands.

    What led a shepherd boy to change a bolus into a weapon of warfare, something he had never tried on anyone before. I partly agree, Goliath might have been ready for purely hand to hand combat but do you explain the pinpoint point assassin-like accuracy?

  9. Of the five stones David carried, the first one successfully meets its target. Why he happened to pick five stones in the first place, if God drove the first one to its right destination?

  10. Confused facts; Goliath saw a little boy and you say he didn't see.
    How can you take a visually impaired guy to war, organizing someone to lead him. Ridiculous!
    David grabbed the lion by his beard and struck it dead, not sling. The same went for the bear.
    Sir, read again your bible

  11. Reading biblical stories as historical fact is… oh dear! ????

    Allegorical and metaphorical stories, whether animals in fables or humans in religious tales anthropomorphised ARE NOT LITERAL.

    So, no David, Adam, Moses, Jesus, et al, ever existed in historical reality.

    Find the principle, moral, the MEANING. ????

    “The literalisation of mythology is the fountainhead of false belief.” – Gerald Massey.

  12. Well it’s definitely not worth a Ted talk. But then again they letting anyone speak on this once profound platform. He makes a statement, then adds a speculation, then assumes his speculation is in fact true, then goes ahead with the next statement and keeps adding to his speculations until he reached his required conclusion. Just pathetic. I thought he really had something here

  13. Why is the obvious not stated? The reason David decided to kill Goliath is because he insulted God therefore pissing off David and David cut his head off. David had God, the one true God!

  14. I'm a little confused why this is a surprise. I was taught, maybe 6 or 7 years old that Goliath had gigantism, called 'some medical term'. Maybe it's because people associate fantasy or fiction to the Bible.

    So, I'll do you one (edit: well, at least three) better. If "giants" were "nephilim" (offspring of Fallen Angels and human women), and we have defined the gigantism to be an actual medical ailment, kind of opens the door, doesn't it?
    1. If gigantism is an "abnormal" growth in the pituitary gland, is there a normal growth somewhere else – say, in the pineal gland?
    2. If we associate giants to a medical fact, could we consider Fallen to be true, as well – maybe less fantasy and more reality? If so, where would they be (given they can't leave the planet)? 
    3. Is there another definition possible for E.T. besides "external"? What about just extra?
    4. Where did the line of Cain go? I digress…another time.

  15. So all his argument is based on his assumption that the Philistines sent a lumbering, sick, blind, stupid and the list goes on 'giant' to be their CHAMPION! ??? And small David had the luck to be the one to swing a weaponized sling shot using dense stones to bring the lumbering sick giant down.

  16. Big problem. Take the glory of God out of the story and you don't have the original story. By the time David confronted Goliath David was already anointed by Samuel by the instruction of God, David already was playing the harp for Saul, suggesting to the readers that if David's songs comforted Saul who at that time was tormented and if David's songs comforted Saul the Psalms might comfort us. It was somewhat of a miracle Saul allowed David who was not in the army. Saul was the big guy in Israel, head and shoulders above all others, and should have fought. David was looked down on by his brothers and took no armor. It was a work of God not a clever strategy of man. The Philistines promised to serve Israel if they lost. Didn't. It was still interesting to hear the stones of that place were especially good causing damage. Since David had God on his side, Goliath was the underdog.

  17. The speaker has a good imagination but seems unaware that the Bible is a spiritual book. David fought bear and lion, not lion and wolf. He ran towards Goliath saying, To paraphrase, I am circumcised, you are not. I am a member of Covenant people. God will help me now ad He did in the bear and lion episodes. But before David agreed to fight, he asked what his reward would be. David called on God under the Covenant. Any Goliath cannot stand against a covenant David.

  18. It is evident that this speaker is oblivious of who Goliath was. Goliath wasn't a giant as a result of some giantism disease, rather, he descended from a family of abnormal human beings well documented in the Bible. They were not giants because of any disease but because they descended from the ungodly sexual relationship between the sons of God and the daughters of men. Read your Bible!