1 Samuel 16:1-13
Lexham English Bible
David Is Anointed
16 Then Yahweh said to Samuel, “How long[a] 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.” 2 But 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,[b] and you must say, ‘I have come to sacrifice to Yahweh.’ 3 You 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.”
4 So 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?”[c] 5 He 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.
6 When they came,[d] he[e] saw Eliab and said, “Surely his anointed one is before Yahweh!” 7 But 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,[f] but Yahweh looks on the heart.”[g] 8 Then Jesse called Abinadab and made him pass before Samuel, and he said, “This one also Yahweh has not chosen.” 9 So Jesse made Shammah pass before Samuel, but he said, “Yahweh also has not chosen this one.” 10 And Jesse made seven of his sons pass before Samuel, but Samuel said to Jesse, “Yahweh has not chosen any of these.”
11 Then Samuel said to Jesse, “Are all the young men here?”[h] 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[i] until he comes here.” 12 So he sent and brought him. Now he was ruddy with beautiful eyes and of handsome[j] appearance. And Yahweh said, “Arise, anoint him, for this is he.” 13 So 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.[k] Then Samuel got up and went to Ramah.
Read full chapterFootnotes
- 1 Samuel 16:1 Literally “Until when”
- 1 Samuel 16:2 Literally “in/with your hand”
- 1 Samuel 16:4 Literally “Is your coming peace?”
- 1 Samuel 16:6 Literally “And it happened at their coming”
- 1 Samuel 16:6 That is, Samuel
- 1 Samuel 16:7 Literally “sees as far as the eyes”
- 1 Samuel 16:7 Literally “sees as far as the heart”
- 1 Samuel 16:11 Literally “Are the boys finished?”
- 1 Samuel 16:11 Literally “turn”; for “sit down” see HALOT 739 s.v. 2.c
- 1 Samuel 16:12 Literally “good”
- 1 Samuel 16:13 Literally “and forward”
1 Samuel 16:1-13
Christian Standard Bible
Samuel Anoints David
16 The Lord said to Samuel, “How long are you going to mourn for Saul,(A) since I have rejected him as king over Israel?(B) Fill your horn with oil(C) and go. I am sending you to Jesse of Bethlehem(D) because I have selected for myself a king from his sons.”
2 Samuel asked, “How can I go? Saul will hear about it and kill me!”
The Lord answered, “Take a young cow with you and say, ‘I have come to sacrifice to the Lord.’(E) 3 Then invite Jesse to the sacrifice, and I will let you know what you are to do.(F) You are to anoint for me the one I indicate to you.”(G)
4 Samuel did what the Lord directed and went to Bethlehem.(H) When the elders of the town met him, they trembled[a] and asked, “Do[b] you come in peace?” (I)
5 “In peace,” he replied. “I’ve come to sacrifice to the Lord. Consecrate yourselves(J) and come with me to the sacrifice.”[c] Then he consecrated Jesse and his sons and invited them to the sacrifice. 6 When they arrived, Samuel saw Eliab(K) and said, “Certainly the Lord’s anointed one is here before him.”
7 But the Lord said to Samuel, “Do not look at his appearance or his stature because I have rejected him. Humans do not see what the Lord sees,[d] for humans see what is visible, but the Lord sees the heart.”(L)
8 Jesse called Abinadab(M) and presented him to Samuel. “The Lord hasn’t chosen this one either,” Samuel said. 9 Then Jesse presented Shammah,(N) but Samuel said, “The Lord hasn’t chosen this one either.” 10 After Jesse presented seven of his sons to him, Samuel told Jesse, “The Lord hasn’t chosen any of these.” 11 Samuel asked him, “Are these all the sons you have?”
“There is still the youngest,”(O) he answered, “but right now he’s tending the sheep.” Samuel told Jesse, “Send for him. We won’t sit down to eat until he gets here.” 12 So Jesse sent for him. He had beautiful eyes and a healthy,[e] handsome appearance.(P)
Then the Lord said, “Anoint him, for he is the one.”(Q) 13 So Samuel took the horn of oil and anointed him(R) in the presence of his brothers, and the Spirit of the Lord came powerfully on David from that day forward.(S) Then Samuel set out and went to Ramah.
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