David Anointed King

16 Now the Lord said to Samuel, ^(A)“How long will you mourn for Saul, seeing I have rejected him from reigning over Israel? ^(B)Fill your horn with oil, and go; I am sending you to ^(C)Jesse the Bethlehemite. For ^(D)I have ^[a]provided Myself a king among his sons.”

² And Samuel said, “How can I go? If Saul hears it, he will kill me.”

But the Lord said, “Take a heifer with you, and say, ^(E)‘I have come to sacrifice to the Lord.’ 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 ^(F)trembled at his coming, and said, ^(G)“Do you come peaceably?”

⁵ And he said, “Peaceably; I have come to sacrifice to the Lord. ^(H)Sanctify^[b] 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 ^(I)Eliab and ^(J)said, “Surely the Lord’s anointed is before Him!”

⁷ But the Lord said to Samuel, ^(K)“Do not look at his appearance or at his physical stature, because I have ^[c]refused him. ^(L)For^[d] the Lord does not see as man sees; for man ^(M)looks at the outward appearance, but the Lord looks at the ^(N)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 ^(O)sheep.”

And Samuel said to Jesse, “Send and bring him. For we will not ^[e]sit down till he comes here.” ¹² So he sent and brought him in. Now he was ^(P)ruddy, ^(Q)with ^[f]bright eyes, and good-looking. ^(R)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 ^(S)the Spirit of the Lord came upon David from that day forward. So Samuel arose and went to Ramah.

⁹ Then he said to me, “Write: ^(A)‘Blessed are those who are called to the marriage supper of the Lamb!’ ” And he said to me, ^(B)“These are the true sayings of God.” ¹⁰ And ^(C)I fell at his feet to worship him. But he said to me, ^(D)“See that you do not do that! I am your ^(E)fellow servant, and of your brethren ^(F)who have the testimony of Jesus. Worship God! For the ^(G)testimony of Jesus is the spirit of prophecy.”

Christ on a White Horse

^11 (H)Now I saw heaven opened, and behold, ^(I)a white horse. And He who sat on him was called ^(J)Faithful and True, and ^(K)in righteousness He judges and makes war. ^12 (L)His eyes were like a flame of fire, and on His head were many crowns. ^(M)He ^[a]had a name written that no one knew except Himself. ^13 (N)He was clothed with a robe dipped in blood, and His name is called ^(O)The Word of God. ^14 (P)And the armies in heaven, ^(Q)clothed in ^[b]fine linen, white and clean, followed Him on white horses. ¹⁵ Now ^(R)out of His mouth goes a ^[c]sharp sword, that with it He should strike the nations. And ^(S)He Himself will rule them with a rod of iron. ^(T)He Himself treads the winepress of the fierceness and wrath of Almighty God. ¹⁶ And ^(U)He has on His robe and on His thigh a name written:

^(V)KING OF KINGS AND
LORD OF LORDS.

Take Up the Cross and Follow Him^(A)

^24 (B)Then Jesus said to His disciples, “If anyone desires to come after Me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and ^(C)follow Me. ²⁵ For ^(D)whoever desires to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for My sake will find it. ²⁶ For what ^(E)profit is it to a man if he gains the whole world, and loses his own soul? Or ^(F)what will a man give in exchange for his soul? ²⁷ For ^(G)the Son of Man will come in the glory of His Father ^(H)with His angels, ^(I)and then He will reward each according to his works. ²⁸ Assuredly, I say to you, ^(J)there are some standing here who shall not taste death till they see the Son of Man coming in His kingdom.”