BOYS OF THE BIBLE. 163

Rehearsing his deeds of valor in the defense of his flock,
and tracing his successes on these occasions to the help of
God, he said, ‘The Lord that delivered me out of the paw of
the lion, and out of the paw of the bear, He will deliver me out
of the hand of this Philistine.’ This was precisely the spirit
that was needed for the stern encounter; and Saul, recog-
nizing in it that in which he was himself so deficient, at
once made answer, ‘Go, and the Lord be with thee!’

“ At first the King proposed that he should array himself
in the royal armor; but David was not at home in that, and,
with a true stroke of military genius, he determined to go
forth with the weapons with which he was most familiar. ele
took his shepherd’s staff in his left hand, and his sling in his
right, and, having his satchel suspended from his neck, he went
out in front of the lines. As he crossed the dry bed of the
brook he selected some smooth stones, one of which he fixed
in his sling, and the others he dropped into his bag. It has
been commonly supposed that, in laying aside Saul’s armor
and preferring his own sling, David was giving up every advan
tage, and that the chances of his success were materially lessened
by the fact that he was thus, comparatively speaking, defense-:
less. But that is a mistake. The genius of David was made
manifest in the choice of his weapons, and so soon as he had
determined to use the sling the issue was not doubtful. The
giant was open to attack only on the forehead; but then he
was cased in such heavy armor that he could not move with
swiftness, and so he could prove a formidable foe only when
he was fighting at close quarters. David, on the other hand,
was free, and could run with swiftness and agility; while using
the sling he could begin the attack from a distance, and out of
the range of his adversary’s weapons. So far, therefore, as
weapons were concerned, the advantage was clearly on David’s