Samuel anoints David
1 ① Yahweh asked Samuel, “How long will you be grieving over Saul whom I have rejected as king of Israel? Fill your horn with oil and be on your way to Jesse the Bethlehemite for I have chosen my king from among his sons.”
2Samuel asked, “How can I go? If Saul hears of this, he will kill me!” Yahweh replied, “Take a heifer with you and say, ‘I have come to sacrifice to Yahweh.’ 3Invite Jesse to the sacrifice and I will let you know what to do next. You shall anoint for me the one I point out to you.”
4Samuel did what Yahweh commanded and left for Bethlehem. When he appeared, the elders of the city came to him asking, fearfully, “Do you bring us peace?” 5Samuel replied, “I come in peace; I am here to sacrifice to Yahweh. Cleanse yourselves and join me in the sacrifice.” He also had Jesse and his sons cleansed and invited them to the sacrifice.
6As they came, Samuel looked at Eliab the older and thought, “This must be Yahweh’s anointed.” 7But Yahweh told Samuel, “Do not judge by his looks or his stature for I have rejected him. Yahweh does not judge as man judges; humans see with the eyes; Yahweh sees the heart.”
8Jesse called his son Abinadab and presented him to Samuel who said, “Yahweh has not chosen this one neither.” 9Jesse presented Shammah and Samuel said, “Nor has Yahweh chosen this one.” 10Jesse presented seven of his sons to Samuel who said, “Yahweh has chosen none of them. 11But are all your sons here?” Jesse replied, “There is still the youngest, tending the flock just now.” Samuel said to him, “Send for him and bring him to me; we shall not sit down to eat until he arrives.” 12So Jesse sent for his youngest son and brought him to Samuel. He was a handsome lad with ruddy complexion and beautiful eyes. And Yahweh spoke, “Go, anoint him for he is the one.” 13Samuel then took the horn of oil and anointed him in his brothers’ presence. From that day onwards, Yahweh’s Spirit took hold of David. Then Samuel left for Ramah.
14 ② The spirit of Yahweh had left Saul and an evil spirit sent by Yahweh tormented him. 15Saul’s servants said to him, “We know that an evil spirit sent by God is tormenting you. 16If you so wish, your servants who stand before you will look for someone who can play the lyre so when the evil spirit from God comes over you, he will play and you will feel better.”
17So Saul answered them, “Get someone who can play the lyre well.” 18One of them said, “A son of Jesse, the Bethlehemite, plays very well. He is, moreover, a courageous man, intelligent and pleasant to talk with and Yahweh is with him.”
19So Saul sent messengers to Jesse and asked for his son David who tended the sheep. 20Jesse loaded an ass with bread, a wineskin and a kid and had David take all these to Saul. 21David then left and entered Saul’s service. Saul grew very fond of David and made him his armor-bearer. 22Then he sent word to Jesse, saying, “Let David remain in my service for I am very pleased with him.”
23So, whenever the evil spirit from God overpowered Saul, David would play on the lyre and Saul would feel better for the evil spirit would leave him.
- 1 S 16,1 How long will you be grieving over Saul? Sometimes, we remain grounded, immobile, longing for the past, when events in life are pushing us forward to change plans and directions. Samuel goes to Bethlehem to meet the one whom God has chosen. Bethlehem is the city of David's family. There, Jesus will be born ten centuries later. David, Jesse's son, is tending the flock when they send for him. He is a shepherd before he becomes king. In the Bible, the shepherd is the image of the perfect king who, rather than acting like an important man, attends to persons and serves them as the shepherd does his sheep. Jesus, King and Savior, will introduce himself as the good Shepherd whom the prophets were dreaming of (see Ezk 34 and Jn 10). Humans see with the eyes; Yahweh sees the heart. In the adolescent David, there is yet no evidence of the moral qualities, intelligence and courage which he will display as military chief and politician. Still, God knows whom he chooses. In order to bring his work to completion, God does not choose those who pretend to be greater than they are (See 1 Cor 1:28). In any human group, it is necessary to discover the values of each person and not allow oneself to be deceived by appearances. It is very important for Christian communities that those with responsibility know how to look into the heart of brothers and sisters, whether they be the quiet ones or those who show much zeal. Then it will not be long before they find the persons needed to animate the community, and can bypass the ambitious ones. 1 S 16,14 We find in the Bible different traditions with respect to David's promotion - 16:1-13; 16:14-23;17:17-58. What is history and what is legend in each of these? An evil spirit sent by Yahweh (v. 14). This is an ancient way of saying that God allowed Saul to suffer some psychological disorder.
- 1 S 16,1 How long will you be grieving over Saul? Sometimes, we remain grounded, immobile, longing for the past, when events in life are pushing us forward to change plans and directions. Samuel goes to Bethlehem to meet the one whom God has chosen. Bethlehem is the city of David's family. There, Jesus will be born ten centuries later. David, Jesse's son, is tending the flock when they send for him. He is a shepherd before he becomes king. In the Bible, the shepherd is the image of the perfect king who, rather than acting like an important man, attends to persons and serves them as the shepherd does his sheep. Jesus, King and Savior, will introduce himself as the good Shepherd whom the prophets were dreaming of (see Ezk 34 and Jn 10). Humans see with the eyes; Yahweh sees the heart. In the adolescent David, there is yet no evidence of the moral qualities, intelligence and courage which he will display as military chief and politician. Still, God knows whom he chooses. In order to bring his work to completion, God does not choose those who pretend to be greater than they are (See 1 Cor 1:28). In any human group, it is necessary to discover the values of each person and not allow oneself to be deceived by appearances. It is very important for Christian communities that those with responsibility know how to look into the heart of brothers and sisters, whether they be the quiet ones or those who show much zeal. Then it will not be long before they find the persons needed to animate the community, and can bypass the ambitious ones. 1 S 16,14 We find in the Bible different traditions with respect to David's promotion - 16:1-13; 16:14-23;17:17-58. What is history and what is legend in each of these? An evil spirit sent by Yahweh (v. 14). This is an ancient way of saying that God allowed Saul to suffer some psychological disorder.
