1 Samuel 16
16
David Is Anointed
1Then Yahweh said to Samuel, “How long#Literally “Until when” will you mourn about Saul? I have rejected him from being king over Israel! Fill up your horn with oil and go. I will send you to Jesse the Bethlehemite, for I have chosen a king for myself among his sons.” 2But Samuel said, “How can I go? If Saul hears, he will kill me.” Yahweh said, “You must take a heifer from the herd with you,#Literally “in/with your hand” and you must say, ‘I have come to sacrifice to Yahweh.’ 3You will invite Jesse to the sacrifice and I will make known to you what you must do. You will anoint for me the one whom I tell you.”
4So Samuel did what Yahweh said. He came to Bethlehem, and the elders of the city came trembling to meet him. They said, “Have you come in peace?”#Literally “Is your coming peace?” 5He said, “I come in peace. I have come to sacrifice to Yahweh. Sanctify yourselves and come with me to the sacrifice.” So he sanctified Jesse and his sons and invited them to the sacrifice.
6When they came,#Literally “And it happened at their coming” he#That is, Samuel saw Eliab and said, “Surely his anointed one is before Yahweh!” 7But Yahweh said to Samuel, “Do not look at his appearance or at the height of his stature, because I have rejected him. For God does not see what man sees, for a man looks on the outward appearance,#Literally “sees as far as the eyes” but Yahweh looks on the heart.”#Literally “sees as far as the heart” 8Then Jesse called Abinadab and made him pass before Samuel, and he said, “This one also Yahweh has not chosen.” 9So Jesse made Shammah pass before Samuel, but he said, “Yahweh also has not chosen this one.” 10And Jesse made seven of his sons pass before Samuel, but Samuel said to Jesse, “Yahweh has not chosen any of these.”
11Then Samuel said to Jesse, “Are all the young men here?”#Literally “Are the boys finished?” And he said, “The youngest still remains, but look, he is shepherding the flock.” And Samuel said to Jesse, “Send and bring him, for we cannot sit down#Literally “turn”; for “sit down” see HALOT 739 s.v. 2.c until he comes here.” 12So he sent and brought him. Now he was ruddy with beautiful eyes and of handsome#Literally “good” appearance. And Yahweh said, “Arise, anoint him, for this is he.” 13So Samuel took the horn of oil and anointed him in the midst of his brothers. Then the Spirit of Yahweh rushed upon David from that day on.#Literally “and forward” Then Samuel got up and went to Ramah.
Saul in Torment
14Now the Spirit of Yahweh departed from Saul and an evil spirit from Yahweh tormented him. 15So the servants of Saul said to him, “Look please, an evil spirit from God is tormenting you. 16Please, let our lord command your servants who are before you! Let them seek a man skilled in playing on the lyre. When#Literally “And it will happen that” the evil spirit from God is upon you, he can play on it#Literally “with his hand” and you will feel better.”#Literally “and it will be good for you” 17So Saul said to his servants, “Please select a man who plays a stringed instrument well#Literally “doing well to play a stringed instrument” and bring him to me.”
18One of the servants answered and said, “Look, I have seen a son of Jesse the Bethlehemite who is skillful in playing a stringed instrument, a brave man, a warrior, prudent in speech, and handsome.#Literally “a hero of ability, a man of war, discerning of word, and a man of appearance” And Yahweh is with him.” 19So Saul sent messengers to Jesse and said, “Send me David your son who is with the sheep.” 20And Jesse took a donkey loaded with bread and a skin of wine and one young goat#Literally “kid of a goat” and sent them to Saul by the hand of David his son. 21So David came to Saul and entered his service.#Literally “stood before him” He#That is, Saul loved him greatly and he became Saul’s armor bearer.#Literally “he became for him a carrier of weapons” 22Then Saul sent word to Jesse, saying, “Please let David stand before me, because he has found favor in my sight.”#Literally “in my eyes” 23So whenever the evil spirit from God came to Saul, David would take the stringed instrument and play it with his hand. Then it would bring relief#Literally “it would be relieved” for Saul; he would feel better#Literally “it would be good for him” and the evil spirit would depart from him.
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1 Samuel 16: LEB
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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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