This is How Tall Goliath REALLY Was

This is how tall Goliath really was…

Goliath is one of the most infamous characters recalled within the pages of the Bible. His name has become synonymous with all things great or large – especially those obstacles we face which, upon first glance seem insurmountable.

1 Samuel 17:4 gives us Goliath’s height as six cubits and a span, roughly 9-1/2 to 10 feet tall by our modern standards of measurement. This height has also been roughly attributed to other figures from the biblical text who are remembered as, “giants.” This in part has fueled the efforts of some to look for artifacts and remains that would correspond to these enormously large humans.

However, is this really how tall Goliath was?

To be sure, every modern English translation of the Bible will document Goliath’s height as six cubits and a span. This is because the Hebrew text that underlies the English translation is based upon what’s known as the Masoretic Text. The form of this text we possess dates from roughly 1,000 A.D.The reason the Masoretic Text is the text used to translate into English is because it is the oldest text we have access to that accounts for the entirety of the Old Testament in the original language.

But, we also have access to other witnesses of the Old Testament that pre-date the Masoretic Text – two of which are the Septuagint (or the LXX), the Greek version of the Old Testament and the Dead Sea Scrolls.

The Septuagint, or the Greek Old Testament’s translation dates from roughly 250 B.C. This text represents the oldest translation of the Old Testament. You might be asking, “if it’s older than the Masoretic Text, why isn’t it used for my English Bible?” The reason is because it, itself is a translation, rather than a text of the original language.

The Dead Sea Scrolls are a collection of books found near the Dead Sea in 1947, with dates of composition ranging from roughly 400 B.C. through 100 A.D. Among their contents are fragments of the entirety of the books of the Old Testament, all of which are in the original Hebrew language. Again, you might be asking, “if it’s older than the Masoretic Text, why isn’t it used for my English Bible?” Even though the Dead Sea Scrolls are written in Hebrew, they are fragmentary, rather than complete.

Even though both the Greek Septuagint and the Dead Sea Scrolls are not used as the basis for the translation of the modern English Old Testament, they are still incredibly useful in helping Bible scholars understand the content of the Old Testament text from pre-Christian times.

Coming back to Goliath, we find something interesting when we compare the text of 1 Samuel 17:4 in the Masoretic text to the Septuagint. Where the Masoretic text lists Goliath’s height as six cubits and a span, the Septuagint, in contrast, gives his height as four cubits and a span. Rather than being somewhere between 9-1/2 – 10 feet tall, four cubits and a span would make Goliath between 6-1/2 – 7 feet tall; about the size of most NBA players.

This is what’s called a textual variant – a portion of the Biblical text in which multiple readings are attested among the tradition of manuscripts. The study of textual variation (known as textual criticism) is the pursuit to determine what the scriptures said when they were first written down.

Regarding Goliath’s height in 1 Samuel 17:4, how do we know which reading is the original one? Prior to 70 years ago, the best we could do would be to speculate. But, with the discovery of the Dead Sea Scrolls, we now have an ancient source in the original language, roughly contemporaneous, if not older than the Septuagint that can help us identify the text of the Hebrew at this time.

So, what do the Dead Sea Scrolls say at 1 Samuel 17:4?

As it happens, the Dead Sea Scrolls’ reading of 1 Samuel 17:4 lists Goliath’s height as four cubits and a span, the same as the Greek Septuagint. This leads me, and many others, to believe that this number is the accurate representation of Goliath’s height, rather than the reading of 6 cubits and a span common to our modern English Bible.

It’s of little consequence whether Goliath was 10 feet tall or 7 feet tall. Still, the process of identifying a textual discrepancy and reconciling it with the collective witness of manuscripts in history reenforces our ability to accurately and honestly transmit God’s word in the modern day.

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