Editing Sling (weapon) (section)

==== Biblical accounts ====
The sling is mentioned in the [[Bible]], which provides what is believed to be the oldest textual reference to a sling in the [[Book of Judges]], 20:16. This text was thought to have been written {{Circa|6th century BC}},<ref>Knoppers, Gary, "Is There a Future for the Deuteronomistic History?", In Thomas Romer, ''The Future of the Deuteronomistic History'', Leuven University Press, 2000 {{ISBN|978-90-429-0858-1}}, p. 119.</ref> but refers to events several centuries earlier.

The Bible provides a famous slinger account, the battle between [[David]] and [[Goliath]] from the [[Books of Samuel|First Book of Samuel]] 17:34–36, probably written in the 7th or 6th century BC, describing events that might have occurred {{Circa|10th century BC}}. The sling, easily produced, was the weapon of choice for shepherds fending off animals. Due to this, the sling was a commonly used weapon by the Israelite militia.<ref>Yigael Yadin, ''The Art of Warfare in Biblical Lands'' (Jerusalem: International Publishing Company, 1963), 34–35</ref> Goliath was a tall, well equipped and experienced warrior. In this account, the shepherd David persuades [[Saul the King|Saul]] to let him fight Goliath on behalf of the Israelites. Unarmoured and equipped only with a sling, five smooth rocks, and his staff, David defeats the champion Goliath with a well-aimed shot to the head, followed by a decapitation with Goliath's own sword.

Use of the sling is also mentioned in Second Kings 3:25, First Chronicles 12:2, and Second Chronicles 26:14 to further illustrate Israelite use.