1 Samuel 17:52 (ASV)

Passage

And the men of Israel and of Judah arose, and shouted, and pursued the Philistines, until thou comest to Gai, and to the gates of Ekron. And the wounded of the Philistines fell down by the way to Shaaraim, even unto Gath, and unto Ekron.

Nearby Context

1 Samuel 17:50 So David prevailed over the Philistine with a sling and with a stone, and smote the Philistine, and slew him; but there was no sword in the hand of David.

1 Samuel 17:51 Then David ran, and stood over the Philistine, and took his sword, and drew it out of the sheath thereof, and slew him, and cut off his head therewith. And when the Philistines saw that their champion was dead, they fled.

1 Samuel 17:52 And the men of Israel and of Judah arose, and shouted, and pursued the Philistines, until thou comest to Gai, and to the gates of Ekron. And the wounded of the Philistines fell down by the way to Shaaraim, even unto Gath, and unto Ekron.

1 Samuel 17:53 And the children of Israel returned from chasing after the Philistines, and they plundered their camp.

1 Samuel 17:54 And David took the head of the Philistine, and brought it to Jerusalem; but he put his armor in his tent.

Study Lenses

The verse centers on "wounded", "israel", "judah", "arose", "shouted", "pursued", "philistines", and "until". It is saying that the verse draws attention to "wounded" and "israel", so its meaning should be read from those terms before moving to application.

The nearby context moves from verse 51's "Then David ran and stood over the..." into verse 53's "And the children of Israel returned from...", so "wounded" and "israel" belong inside that flow. In 1 Samuel context, the local focus is covenant, worship, and faithfulness.

A plain takeaway is to answer the verse's own emphasis on "wounded" and "israel" with trust shaped by these words, not by a vague optimism outside the passage.