Revised Common Lectionary (Semicontinuous)

³⁴ Then Samuel went to Ramah, and King Saul went home to Gibeah. ³⁵ As long as Samuel lived, he never again saw the king; but he grieved over him. The Lord was sorry that he had made Saul king of Israel.

David Is Anointed King

16 The Lord said to Samuel, “How long will you go on grieving over Saul? I have rejected him as king of Israel. But now get some olive oil and go to Bethlehem, to a man named Jesse, because I have chosen one of his sons to be king.”

² “How can I do that?” Samuel asked. “If Saul hears about it, he will kill me!”

The Lord answered, “Take a calf with you and say that you are there to offer a sacrifice to the Lord. ³ Invite Jesse to the sacrifice, and I will tell you what to do. You will anoint as king the man I tell you to.”

⁴ Samuel did what the Lord told him to do and went to Bethlehem, where the city leaders came trembling to meet him and asked, “Is this a peaceful visit, seer?”

⁵ “Yes,” he answered. “I have come to offer a sacrifice to the Lord. Purify yourselves and come with me.” He also told Jesse and his sons to purify themselves, and he invited them to the sacrifice.

⁶ When they arrived, Samuel saw Jesse's son Eliab and said to himself, “This man standing here in the Lord's presence is surely the one he has chosen.” ⁷ But the Lord said to him, “Pay no attention to how tall and handsome he is. I have rejected him, because I do not judge as people judge. They look at the outward appearance, but I look at the heart.”

⁸ Then Jesse called his son Abinadab and brought him to Samuel. But Samuel said, “No, the Lord hasn't chosen him either.” ⁹ Jesse then brought Shammah. “No, the Lord hasn't chosen him either,” Samuel said. ¹⁰ In this way Jesse brought seven of his sons to Samuel. And Samuel said to him, “No, the Lord hasn't chosen any of these.” ¹¹ Then he asked him, “Do you have any more sons?”

Jesse answered, “There is still the youngest, but he is out taking care of the sheep.”

“Tell him to come here,” Samuel said. “We won't offer the sacrifice until he comes.” ¹² So Jesse sent for him. He was a handsome, healthy young man, and his eyes sparkled. The Lord said to Samuel, “This is the one—anoint him!” ¹³ Samuel took the olive oil and anointed David in front of his brothers. Immediately the spirit of the Lord took control of David and was with him from that day on. Then Samuel returned to Ramah.

A Prayer for Victory^[a]

⁶ So we are always full of courage. We know that as long as we are at home in the body we are away from the Lord's home. ⁷ For our life is a matter of faith, not of sight. ⁸ We are full of courage and would much prefer to leave our home in the body and be at home with the Lord. ⁹ More than anything else, however, we want to please him, whether in our home here or there. ^10 (A)For all of us must appear before Christ, to be judged by him. We will each receive what we deserve, according to everything we have done, good or bad, in our bodily life.

Friendship with God through Christ

¹¹ We know what it means to fear the Lord, and so we try to persuade others. God knows us completely, and I hope that in your hearts you know me as well. ¹² We are not trying again to recommend ourselves to you; rather, we are trying to give you a good reason to be proud of us, so that you will be able to answer those who boast about people's appearance and not about their character. ¹³ Are we really insane? It is for God's sake. Or are we sane? Then it is for your sake.

¹⁴ We are ruled by the love of Christ, now that we recognize that one man died for everyone, which means that they all share in his death. ¹⁵ He died for all, so that those who live should no longer live for themselves, but only for him who died and was raised to life for their sake.

¹⁶ No longer, then, do we judge anyone by human standards. Even if at one time we judged Christ according to human standards, we no longer do so. ¹⁷ Anyone who is joined to Christ is a new being; the old is gone, the new has come.

The Parable of the Growing Seed

²⁶ Jesus went on to say, “The Kingdom of God is like this. A man scatters seed in his field. ²⁷ He sleeps at night, is up and about during the day, and all the while the seeds are sprouting and growing. Yet he does not know how it happens. ²⁸ The soil itself makes the plants grow and bear fruit; first the tender stalk appears, then the head, and finally the head full of grain. ^29 (A)When the grain is ripe, the man starts cutting it with his sickle, because harvest time has come.

The Parable of the Mustard Seed^(B)

³⁰ “What shall we say the Kingdom of God is like?” asked Jesus. “What parable shall we use to explain it? ³¹ It is like this. A man takes a mustard seed, the smallest seed in the world, and plants it in the ground. ³² After a while it grows up and becomes the biggest of all plants. It puts out such large branches that the birds come and make their nests in its shade.”

³³ Jesus preached his message to the people, using many other parables like these; he told them as much as they could understand. ³⁴ He would not speak to them without using parables, but when he was alone with his disciples, he would explain everything to them.