1 Kings 16
16
1And the Lord said to Samuel: How It long wilt thou mourn for Saul, whom I have rejected from reigning over Israel? Fill thy horn with oil, and come, that I may send thee to Isai the Bethlehemite: for I have provided me a king among his sons.
2And Samuel said: How shall I go, for Saul will hear of it, and he will kill me? And the Lord said: Thou shalt take with thee a calf of the herd, and thou shalt say: I am come to sacrifice to the Lord.
3And thou shalt call Isai to the sacrifice, and I will shew thee what thou art to do: and thou shalt anoint him whom I shall shew to thee.
4Then Samuel did as the Lord had said to him. And he came to Bethlehem, and the ancients of the city wondered, and meeting him they said: Is thy coming hither peaceable?
5And he said: It is peaceable. I am come to offer sacrifice to the Lord; be ye sanctified, and come with me to the sacrifice. And he sanctified Isai and his sons, and called them to the sacrifice.
6And when they were come in, he saw Eliab, and said: Is the Lord's anointed before him?
7And the Lord said to Samuel: Look not on his countenance, nor on the height of his stature: because I have rejected him. Nor do I judge according to the look of man: for man seeth those things that appear, but the Lord beholdeth the heart.
8And Isai called Abinadab, and brought him before Samuel. And he said: Neither hath the Lord chosen this.
9And Isai brought Samma, and he said of him: Neither hath the Lord chosen this.
10Isai therefore brought his seven sons before Samuel. And Samuel said to Isai: The Lord hath not chosen any one of these.
11And Samuel said to Isai: Are here all thy sons? He answered: There remaineth yet a young one, who keepeth the sheep. And Samuel said to Isai: Send, and fetch him, for we will not sit down till he come hither.
12He sent therefore and brought him. Now, he was ruddy and beautiful to behold, and of a comely face. And the Lord said: Arise, and anoint him, for this is he.
13Then Samuel took the horn of oil, and anointed him in the midst of his brethren. And the spirit of the Lord came upon David from that day forward: and Samuel rose up, and went to Ramatha.
14But the spirit of the Lord departed from Saul; and an evil spirit from the Lord troubled him.
15And the servants of Saul said to him: Behold now an evil spirit from God troubleth thee.
16Let our lord give orders, and thy servants who are before thee will seek out a man skilful in playing on the harp, that when the evil spirit from the Lord is upon thee he may play with his hand, and thou mayest bear it more easily.
17And Saul said to his servants: Provide me then some man that can play well, and bring him to me.
18And one of the servants answering, said: Behold, I have seen a son of Isai the Bethlehemite, a skilful player, and one of great strength, and a man fit for war, and prudent in his words, and a comely person. And the Lord is with him.
19Then Saul sent messengers to Isai, saying: Send me David thy son, who is in the pastures.
20And Isai took an ass laden with bread, and a bottle of wine, and a kid of the flock, and sent them by the hand of David his son to Saul.
21And David came to Saul, and stood before him: and he loved him exceedingly, and made him his armourbearer.
22And Saul sent to Isai, saying: Let David stand before me; for he hath found favour in my sight.
23So whensoever the evil spirit from the Lord was upon Saul, David took his harp, and played with his hand: and Saul was refreshed, and was better, for the evil spirit departed from him.
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1 Kings 16: DRC1752
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An historical text maintained by the British and Foreign Bible Society.
1 Samuel 16
16
Samuel Anoints David as King
1Now the Lord said to Samuel, “You have mourned long enough for Saul. I have rejected him as king of Israel, so fill your flask with olive oil and go to Bethlehem. Find a man named Jesse who lives there, for I have selected one of his sons to be my king.”
2But Samuel asked, “How can I do that? If Saul hears about it, he will kill me.”
“Take a heifer with you,” the Lord replied, “and say that you have come to make a sacrifice to the Lord. 3Invite Jesse to the sacrifice, and I will show you which of his sons to anoint for me.”
4So Samuel did as the Lord instructed. When he arrived at Bethlehem, the elders of the town came trembling to meet him. “What’s wrong?” they asked. “Do you come in peace?”
5“Yes,” Samuel replied. “I have come to sacrifice to the Lord. Purify yourselves and come with me to the sacrifice.” Then Samuel performed the purification rite for Jesse and his sons and invited them to the sacrifice, too.
6When they arrived, Samuel took one look at Eliab and thought, “Surely this is the Lord’s anointed!”
7But the Lord said to Samuel, “Don’t judge by his appearance or height, for I have rejected him. The Lord doesn’t see things the way you see them. People judge by outward appearance, but the Lord looks at the heart.”
8Then Jesse told his son Abinadab to step forward and walk in front of Samuel. But Samuel said, “This is not the one the Lord has chosen.” 9Next Jesse summoned Shimea,#16:9 Hebrew Shammah, a variant spelling of Shimea; compare 1 Chr 2:13; 20:7. but Samuel said, “Neither is this the one the Lord has chosen.” 10In the same way all seven of Jesse’s sons were presented to Samuel. But Samuel said to Jesse, “The Lord has not chosen any of these.” 11Then Samuel asked, “Are these all the sons you have?”
“There is still the youngest,” Jesse replied. “But he’s out in the fields watching the sheep and goats.”
“Send for him at once,” Samuel said. “We will not sit down to eat until he arrives.”
12So Jesse sent for him. He was dark and handsome, with beautiful eyes.
And the Lord said, “This is the one; anoint him.”
13So as David stood there among his brothers, Samuel took the flask of olive oil he had brought and anointed David with the oil. And the Spirit of the Lord came powerfully upon David from that day on. Then Samuel returned to Ramah.
David Serves in Saul’s Court
14Now the Spirit of the Lord had left Saul, and the Lord sent a tormenting spirit#16:14 Or an evil spirit; also in 16:15, 16, 23. that filled him with depression and fear.
15Some of Saul’s servants said to him, “A tormenting spirit from God is troubling you. 16Let us find a good musician to play the harp whenever the tormenting spirit troubles you. He will play soothing music, and you will soon be well again.”
17“All right,” Saul said. “Find me someone who plays well, and bring him here.”
18One of the servants said to Saul, “One of Jesse’s sons from Bethlehem is a talented harp player. Not only that—he is a brave warrior, a man of war, and has good judgment. He is also a fine-looking young man, and the Lord is with him.”
19So Saul sent messengers to Jesse to say, “Send me your son David, the shepherd.” 20Jesse responded by sending David to Saul, along with a young goat, a donkey loaded with bread, and a wineskin full of wine.
21So David went to Saul and began serving him. Saul loved David very much, and David became his armor bearer.
22Then Saul sent word to Jesse asking, “Please let David remain in my service, for I am very pleased with him.”
23And whenever the tormenting spirit from God troubled Saul, David would play the harp. Then Saul would feel better, and the tormenting spirit would go away.
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Holy Bible, New Living Translation copyright 1996, 2004, 2007, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation.
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