1 Samuel 17:34 (DRB)

Passage

And David said to Saul: Thy servant kept his father's sheep, and there came a lion, or a bear, and took a ram out of the midst of the flock:

Nearby Context

1 Samuel 17:32 And when he was brought to Saul, he said to him. Let not any man's heart be dismayed in him: I thy servant will go, and will fight against the Philistine.

1 Samuel 17:33 And Saul said to David: Thou art not able to withstand this Philistine, nor to fight against him: for thou art but a boy, but he is a warrior from his youth.

1 Samuel 17:34 And David said to Saul: Thy servant kept his father's sheep, and there came a lion, or a bear, and took a ram out of the midst of the flock:

1 Samuel 17:35 And I pursued after them, and struck them, and delivered it out of their mouth: and they rose up against me, and I caught them by the throat, and I strangled, and killed them.

1 Samuel 17:36 For I thy servant have killed both a lion and a bear: and this uncircumcised Philistine shall be also as one of them. I will go now, and take away the reproach of the people: for who is this uncircumcised Philistine, who hath dared to curse the army of the living God?

Study Lenses

The verse centers on "sheep", "david", "said", "saul", "servant", "kept", "father's", and "came". It is saying that the verse draws attention to "sheep" and "david", so its meaning should be read from those terms before moving to application.

The nearby context moves from verse 33's "And Saul said to David Thou art..." into verse 35's "And I pursued after them and struck...", so "sheep" and "david" 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 "sheep" and "david" with trust shaped by these words, not by a vague optimism outside the passage.