How many times is Philistines mentioned in the Bible?
The word Philistines appears 254 times in the King James Version, in 217 verses. Counting every form (Philistines, Philistine), it appears 287 times in 243 verses across 18 of the 66 books. The World English Bible uses Philistines 254 times (287 with every form).
Philistines in the King James Version and the World English Bible
Each form of Philistines counted in each translation.
| Form | KJV | WEB |
|---|---|---|
| Philistines | 254 | 254 |
| Philistine | 33 | 33 |
| Total | 287 | 287 |
What the name Philistines means
Hitchcock's Bible Names Dictionary glosses Philistines as "those who dwell in villages".
This is the 1869 traditional meaning; modern scholars often read names differently.
See every name and place with its meaning and count on Bible names and their meanings.
Source: Hitchcock's Bible Names Dictionary (1869), checked 2026-10-22.
Which books mention Philistines most
Philistines appears in 18 books of the 66 in the King James Version. 1 Samuel has the most (152), then Judges (34) and 2 Samuel (30).
Also in: Obadiah (1), Zephaniah (1), Zechariah (1).
First and last mention of Philistines
Thus they made a covenant at Beer-sheba: then Abimelech rose up, and Phichol the chief captain of his host, and they returned into the land of the Philistines.
And a bastard shall dwell in Ashdod, and I will cut off the pride of the Philistines.
The verse that uses it most is 1 Samuel 7:7, 3 times:
And when the Philistines heard that the children of Israel were gathered together to Mizpeh, the lords of the Philistines went up against Israel. And when the children of Israel heard it, they were afraid of the Philistines.
Where the two translations differ
1 verse matches in the KJV but not in the World English Bible, and 1 verse matches only in the World English Bible, usually because the other translation chose a different word there.
Psalm 83:7: counted in the KJV only
Gebal, and Ammon, and Amalek; the Philistines with the inhabitants of Tyre;
Gebal, Ammon, and Amalek; Philistia with the inhabitants of Tyre;
Genesis 10:14: counted in the World English Bible only
And Pathrusim, and Casluhim, (out of whom came Philistim,) and Caphtorim.
Pathrusim, Casluhim (which the Philistines descended from), and Caphtorim.
Verses with Philistines on our topic pages
2 verses that use Philistines in the World English Bible are in our topic collections.
Samuel said to Saul, “Why have you disturbed me, to bring me up?” Saul answered, “I am very distressed; for the Philistines make war against me, and God has departed from me, and answers me no more, by prophets, or by dreams. Therefore I have called you, that you may make known to me what I shall do.”
When the inhabitants of Jabesh Gilead heard what the Philistines had done to Saul,
Common questions
How many times is Philistines in the Old Testament and the New Testament?
In the King James Version, counting every form, 287 of the 287 uses are in the Old Testament and 0 in the New Testament. Philistines appears in 18 books of the 66 in the King James Version. 1 Samuel has the most (152), then Judges (34) and 2 Samuel (30).
Where is Philistines first mentioned in the Bible?
The first use in the King James Version is Genesis 21:32: "Thus they made a covenant at Beer-sheba: then Abimelech rose up, and Phichol the chief captain of his host, and they returned into the land of the Philistines." The last is Zechariah 9:6.
What does the name Philistines mean in the Bible?
Hitchcock's Bible Names Dictionary glosses Philistines as "those who dwell in villages".
More word counts: Jews, Egyptians, Amorites, Canaanites, Chaldeans, Pharisees, Sadducees, Hittites, or all 484 words.
Counted by Bible Says About from the full public-domain text of the King James Version (1769 edition) and the World English Bible. Verse text only: headings and psalm titles are left out. A word is a run of letters: a hyphenated name like Beer-sheba counts as two, and an apostrophe stays inside its word (LORD'S is one). Matching ignores capital letters. Data compiled 2026-10-22.