New American Standard Bible 1995

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1 Samuel

Note Journal Prayer

17

:

5

“

He had a bronze helmet on his head, and he was clothed with scale-armor which weighed five thousand shekels of bronze.

Lexicon

Verse part Definition: Part of speech: Strong's: Hebrew: Transliteration:
[He had] a bronze copper, bronze Noun H5178 נְחֹ֙שֶׁת֙ ne·cho·shet
helmet helmet Noun H3553 וְכֹ֤ובַע ve·cho·v·va
on his head, head Noun H7218 רֹאשֹׁ֔ו ro·shov,
and he was clothed to put on, wear, clothe, be clothed Verb H3847 לָב֑וּשׁ la·vush;
with scale-armor scale (of fish) Noun H7193 קַשְׂקַשִּׂ֖ים kas·kas·sim
which weighed weight Noun H4948 וּמִשְׁקַל֙ u·mish·kal
five five Noun H2568 חֲמֵשֶׁת־ cha·me·shet-
Analysis:

Five: Incompletion or lacking

For a person to understand the meaning of the number “five”, one must first realize that the meaning of the number ten is completion or wholeness. Since five is half of ten, the idea is that the number five represents incompletion or that which is lacking. A Scripture that expresses this idea is found in the book of John. At a place called Beit Chesed (Bethesda), there was a pool whose waters healed the sick. The reader is told that around the pool there were five porches. It is stated that on these five porches laid individuals who were not whole. Some were paralyzed and the rest of them had a variety of health problems. It is not a chance happening that these people who were lacking their health were on five porches. Another well-known passage that contains the number five is found in I Samuel 17. In the account of David and Goliath, David picks up five stones (see I Samuel 17:40). Why is the reader told the specific number and not simply that David had gathered a few stones? The answer is to assist the reader in understanding that the stone, which David hurled at Goliath, was not the source of victory. Rather, this was only the means that God used to accomplish His victory. In other words, the stone and even David, who hurled this stone at Goliath, were insufficient to bring about this victory.

One of the first places where the idea of "lacking" or "incompleteness" is seen regarding the number five is in the book of Genesis. In chapter 18, two angels are sent to Sodom to destroy the city. God tells Abraham that if 50 righteous people are found in the city, then the city will be free of this punishment (We will learn that the number 50 is related to freedom when this number is studied). This is revealed to Abraham and he responds saying, perhaps the city will lack 50 righteous people by five. It is significant that Abraham uses the number five when referring to the city lacking enough righteous people. 

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thousand a thousand Noun H505 אֲלָפִ֥ים a·la·fim
shekels (a measure of weight) shekel Noun H8255 שְׁקָלִ֖ים she·ka·lim
of bronze. copper, bronze Noun H5178 נְחֹֽשֶֽׁת׃ ne·cho·shet.

Parallel Verses

Removed text
Added text
New American Standard Bible 1995 He had a bronze helmet on his head, and he was clothed with scale-armor which weighed five thousand shekels of bronze.
King James Bible He And he had a bronze an helmet on of brass upon his head, and he was clothed armed with scale-armor which weighed a coat of mail; and the weight of the coat was five thousand shekels of bronze.brass.
Hebrew Greek English He had a bronze helmet on his head, and he was clothed with scale-armor which weighed five thousand shekels of bronze.