1 Samuel 16

David Anointed King

1 Now the Lord said to Samuel, How long will you mourn for Saul, seeing I have rejected him from reigning over Israel? Fill your horn with oil, and go; I am sending you to Jesse the Bethlehemite. For I have provided Myself a king among his sons. Now the Lord said to Samuel, How long will you mourn for Saul, seeing I have rejected him from reigning over Israel? Fill your horn with oil, and go; I am sending you to Jesse the Bethlehemite. For I have provided Myself a king among his sons.2 And Samuel said, How can I go? If Saul hears it, he will kill me.3 Then invite Jesse to the sacrifice, and I will show you what you shall do; you shall anoint for Me the one I name to you.4 So Samuel did what the Lord said, and went to Bethlehem. And the elders of the town trembled at his coming, and said, Do you come peaceably?5 And he said, Peaceably; I have come to sacrifice to the Lord. Sanctify yourselves, and come with me to the sacrifice. Then he consecrated Jesse and his sons, and invited them to the sacrifice.6 So it was, when they came, that he looked at Eliab and said, Surely the Lords anointed is before Him!7 But the Lord said to Samuel, Do not look at his appearance or at his physical stature, because I have refused him. For the L ord does not see as man sees; for man looks at the outward appearance, but the Lord looks at the heart.8 So Jesse called Abinadab, and made him pass before Samuel. And he said, Neither has the Lord chosen this one.9 Then Jesse made Shammah pass by. And he said, Neither has the Lord chosen this one.10 Thus Jesse made seven of his sons pass before Samuel. And Samuel said to Jesse, The Lord has not chosen these.11 And Samuel said to Jesse, Are all the young men here? Then he said, There remains yet the youngest, and there he is, keeping the sheep.12 So he sent and brought him in. Now he was ruddy, with bright eyes, and good-looking. And the Lord said, Arise, anoint him; for this is the one!13 Then Samuel took the horn of oil and anointed him in the midst of his brothers; and the Spirit of the Lord came upon David from that day forward. So Samuel arose and went to Ramah.

A Distressing Spirit Troubles Saul

14 But the Spirit of the Lord departed from Saul, and a distressing spirit from the Lord troubled him.15 And Sauls servants said to him, Surely, a distressing spirit from God is troubling you.16 Let our master now command your servants, who are before you, to seek out a man who is a skillful player on the harp. And it shall be that he will play it with his hand when the distressing spirit from God is upon you, and you shall be well.17 So Saul said to his servants, Provide me now a man who can play well, and bring him to me.18 Then one of the servants answered and said, Look, I have seen a son of Jesse the Bethlehemite, who is skillful in playing, a mighty man of valor, a man of war, prudent in speech, and a handsome person; and the Lord is with him.19 Therefore Saul sent messengers to Jesse, and said, Send me your son David, who is with the sheep.20 And Jesse took a donkey loaded with bread, a skin of wine, and a young goat, and sent them by his son David to Saul.21 So David came to Saul and stood before him. And he loved him greatly, and he became his armorbearer.22 Then Saul sent to Jesse, saying, Please let David stand before me, for he has found favor in my sight.23 And so it was, whenever the spirit from God was upon Saul, that David would take a harp and play it with his hand. Then Saul would become refreshed and well, and the distressing spirit would depart from him.

1 SAMUEL 16

1  t One day he said, “Samuel, I've rejected Saul, and I refuse to let him be king any longer. Stop feeling sad about him. Put some olive oilt in a small containert and go visit a man named Jesse, who lives in Bethlehem. I've chosen one of his sons to be my king.”

2 Samuel answered, “If I do that, Saul will find out and have me killed.”
“Take a calf with you,” the [Lord] replied. “Tell everyone that you've come to offer it as a sacrifice to me,

3 then invite Jesse to the sacrifice.t When I show you which one of his sons I have chosen, pour the olive oil on his head.”

4 Samuel did what the [Lord] told him and went to Bethlehem. The town leaders went to meet him, but they were terribly afraid and asked, “Is this a friendly visit?”

5 “Yes, it is!” Samuel answered. “I've come to offer a sacrifice to the [Lord]. Get yourselves readyt to take part in the sacrifice and come with me.” Samuel also invited Jesse and his sons to come to the sacrifice, and he got them ready to take part.

6 When Jesse and his sons arrived, Samuel noticed Jesse's oldest son, Eliab. “He has to be the one the [Lord] has chosen,” Samuel said to himself.

7  t But the [Lord] told him, “Samuel, don't think Eliab is the one just because he's tall and handsome. He isn't the one I've chosen. People judge others by what they look like, but I judge people by what is in their hearts.”

8 Jesse told his son Abinadab to go over to Samuel, but Samuel said, “No, the [Lord] hasn't chosen him.”

9 Next, Jesse sent his son Shammah to him, and Samuel said, “The [Lord] hasn't chosen him either.”
10 One by one, Jesse told all seven of his sons to go over to Samuel. Finally, Samuel said, “Jesse, the [Lord] hasn't chosen any of these young men.

11 t Do you have any other sons?”
“Yes,” Jesse answered. “My youngest son David is out taking care of the sheep.”
“Send for him!” Samuel said. “We won't start the ceremony until he gets here.”

12 Jesse sent for David. He was a healthy, good-looking boy with a sparkle in his eyes. As soon as David came, the [Lord] told Samuel, “He's the one! Get up and pour the olive oil on his head.”t

13 Samuel poured the oil on David's head while his brothers watched. At that moment, the Spirit of the [Lord] took control of David and stayed with him from then on.
Samuel returned home to Ramah.

David Plays the Harp //for Saul

16 “Your Majesty, let us go and look for someone who is good at playing the harp. He can play for you whenever the evil spirit from God bothers you, and you'll feel better.”

17 “All right,” Saul answered. “Find me someone who is good at playing the harp and bring him here.”

18 “A man named Jesse who lives in Bethlehem has a son who can play the harp,” one official said. “He's a brave warrior, he's good-looking, he can speak well, and the [Lord] is with him.”

19 Saul sent a message to Jesse: “Tell your son David to leave your sheep and come here to me.”
20 Jesse loaded a donkey with bread and a goatskin full of wine, t then he told David to take the donkey and a young goat to Saul. 21 David went to Saul and started working for him. Saul liked him so much that he put David in charge of carrying his weapons.

22 Not long after this, Saul sent another message to Jesse: “I really like David. Please let him stay with me.”
23  t Whenever the evil spirit from God bothered Saul, David would play his harp. Saul would relax and feel better, and the evil spirit would go away.