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1 Samuel 16
New American Standard Bible 1995
1 Samuel 16
New American Standard Bible 1995
Samuel Goes to Bethlehem
16 Now the Lord said to Samuel, “(A)How long will you grieve over Saul, since (B)I have rejected him from being king over Israel? (C)Fill your horn with oil and go; I will send you to (D)Jesse the Bethlehemite, for I have (E)selected a king for Myself among his sons.” 2 But Samuel said, “How can I go? When Saul hears of it, he will kill me.” And the Lord said, “(F)Take a heifer with you and say, ‘I have come to sacrifice to the Lord.’ 3 You shall invite Jesse to the sacrifice, and (G)I will show you what you shall do; and (H)you shall anoint for Me the one whom I [a]designate to you.” 4 So Samuel did what the Lord said, and came to (I)Bethlehem. And the elders of the city came trembling to meet him and said, “(J)Do you come in peace?” 5 He said, “In peace; I have come to sacrifice to the Lord. (K)Consecrate yourselves and come with me to the sacrifice.” He also consecrated Jesse and his sons and invited them to the sacrifice.
6 When they entered, he looked at (L)Eliab and thought, “Surely the Lord’s anointed is before Him.” 7 But the Lord said to Samuel, “Do not look at his appearance or at the height of his stature, because I have rejected him; for [b]God sees not as man sees, for man looks at the outward appearance, (M)but the Lord looks at the heart.” 8 Then Jesse called (N)Abinadab and made him pass before Samuel. And he said, “The Lord has not chosen this one either.” 9 Next Jesse made [c](O)Shammah pass by. And he said, “The Lord has not chosen this one either.” 10 Thus Jesse made seven of his sons pass before Samuel. But Samuel said to Jesse, “The Lord has not chosen these.” 11 And Samuel said to Jesse, “Are these all the children?” And he said, “(P)There remains yet the youngest, and behold, he is tending the sheep.” Then Samuel said to Jesse, “Send and [d]bring him; for we will not sit down until he comes here.”
David Anointed
12 So he sent and brought him in. Now he was ruddy, with (Q)beautiful eyes and a handsome appearance. And the Lord said, “(R)Arise, anoint him; for this is he.” 13 Then Samuel took the horn of oil and (S)anointed him in the midst of his brothers; and (T)the Spirit of the Lord came mightily upon David from that day forward. And Samuel arose and went to Ramah.
14 (U)Now the Spirit of the Lord departed from Saul, and (V)an evil spirit from the Lord terrorized him. 15 Saul’s servants then said to him, “Behold now, an evil spirit from God is terrorizing you. 16 Let our lord now command your servants who are before you. Let them seek a man who is a skillful player on the harp; and it shall come about when the evil spirit from God is on you, that (W)he shall play the harp with his hand, and you will be well.” 17 So Saul said to his servants, “Provide for me now a man who can play well and bring him to me.” 18 Then one of the young men said, “Behold, I have seen a son of Jesse the Bethlehemite who is a skillful musician, (X)a mighty man of valor, a warrior, one prudent in speech, and a handsome man; and (Y)the Lord is with him.” 19 So Saul sent messengers to Jesse and said, “Send me your son David who is with the flock.” 20 Jesse (Z)took a donkey loaded with bread and a jug of wine and a young goat, and sent them to Saul by David his son. 21 Then David came to Saul and [e](AA)attended him; and [f]Saul loved him greatly, and he became his armor bearer. 22 Saul sent to Jesse, saying, “Let David now stand before me, for he has found favor in my sight.” 23 So it came about whenever (AB)the evil spirit from God came to Saul, David would take the harp and play it with his hand; and Saul would be refreshed and be well, and the evil spirit would depart from him.
Footnotes
- 1 Samuel 16:3 Lit say to you
- 1 Samuel 16:7 So with Gr; Heb He does not see what man sees
- 1 Samuel 16:9 In 2 Sam 13:3, Shimeah; in 1 Chr 2:13, Shimea
- 1 Samuel 16:11 Lit take
- 1 Samuel 16:21 Lit stood before him
- 1 Samuel 16:21 Lit he
1 Samuel 16
New International Version
1 Samuel 16
New International Version
Samuel Anoints David
16 The Lord said to Samuel, “How long will you mourn(A) for Saul, since I have rejected(B) him as king over Israel? Fill your horn with oil(C) and be on your way; I am sending you to Jesse(D) of Bethlehem. I have chosen(E) one of his sons to be king.”
2 But Samuel said, “How can I go? If Saul hears about it, he will kill me.”
The Lord said, “Take a heifer with you and say, ‘I have come to sacrifice to the Lord.’ 3 Invite Jesse to the sacrifice, and I will show(F) you what to do. You are to anoint(G) for me the one I indicate.”
4 Samuel did what the Lord said. When he arrived at Bethlehem,(H) the elders of the town trembled(I) when they met him. They asked, “Do you come in peace?(J)”
5 Samuel replied, “Yes, in peace; I have come to sacrifice to the Lord. Consecrate(K) yourselves and come to the sacrifice with me.” Then he consecrated Jesse and his sons and invited them to the sacrifice.
6 When they arrived, Samuel saw Eliab(L) and thought, “Surely the Lord’s anointed stands here before the Lord.”
7 But the Lord said to Samuel, “Do not consider his appearance or his height, for I have rejected him. The Lord does not look at the things people look at. People look at the outward appearance,(M) but the Lord looks at the heart.”(N)
8 Then Jesse called Abinadab(O) and had him pass in front of Samuel. But Samuel said, “The Lord has not chosen this one either.” 9 Jesse then had Shammah(P) pass by, but Samuel said, “Nor has the Lord chosen this one.” 10 Jesse had seven of his sons pass before Samuel, but Samuel said to him, “The Lord has not chosen these.” 11 So he asked Jesse, “Are these all(Q) the sons you have?”
“There is still the youngest,” Jesse answered. “He is tending the sheep.”(R)
Samuel said, “Send for him; we will not sit down until he arrives.”
12 So he(S) sent for him and had him brought in. He was glowing with health and had a fine appearance and handsome(T) features.
Then the Lord said, “Rise and anoint him; this is the one.”
13 So Samuel took the horn of oil and anointed(U) him in the presence of his brothers, and from that day on the Spirit of the Lord(V) came powerfully upon David.(W) Samuel then went to Ramah.
David in Saul’s Service
14 Now the Spirit of the Lord had departed(X) from Saul, and an evil[a] spirit(Y) from the Lord tormented him.(Z)
15 Saul’s attendants said to him, “See, an evil spirit from God is tormenting you. 16 Let our lord command his servants here to search for someone who can play the lyre.(AA) He will play when the evil spirit from God comes on you, and you will feel better.”
17 So Saul said to his attendants, “Find someone who plays well and bring him to me.”
18 One of the servants answered, “I have seen a son of Jesse(AB) of Bethlehem who knows how to play the lyre. He is a brave man and a warrior.(AC) He speaks well and is a fine-looking man. And the Lord is with(AD) him.”
19 Then Saul sent messengers to Jesse and said, “Send me your son David, who is with the sheep.(AE)” 20 So Jesse took a donkey loaded with bread,(AF) a skin of wine and a young goat and sent them with his son David to Saul.
21 David came to Saul and entered his service.(AG) Saul liked him very much, and David became one of his armor-bearers. 22 Then Saul sent word to Jesse, saying, “Allow David to remain in my service, for I am pleased with him.”
23 Whenever the spirit from God came on Saul, David would take up his lyre and play. Then relief would come to Saul; he would feel better, and the evil spirit(AH) would leave him.
Footnotes
- 1 Samuel 16:14 Or and a harmful; similarly in verses 15, 16 and 23
New American Standard Bible 1995 (NASB1995) 
New American Standard Bible®, Copyright © 1960, 1971, 1977, 1995 by The Lockman Foundation. All rights reserved.
New International Version (NIV) 
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NIV Reverse Interlinear Bible: English to Hebrew and English to Greek. Copyright © 2019 by Zondervan.