1 Samuel 16:1
King James Version
16 And the Lord said unto Samuel,
How long wilt thou mourn for Saul,
seeing I have rejected him
from reigning over Israel?
fill thine horn with oil,
and go,
I will send thee to Jesse the Bethlehemite:
for I have provided me a king
among his sons.
When people decide on a king -- without God's anointing -- disaster ensues.
Ah, but when GOD decides, glory follows.
Such as when He chose David, the shepherd boy, the one laughed at and set aside by his older brothers.
But it was a tricky thing, for prophet Samuel had not seen Saul, after the latter's failed kingship.
So, God devised a "plan".
1 Samuel 16:2-3
King James Version
2 And Samuel said,
How can I go?
if Saul hear it, he will kill me.
And the Lord said,
Take an heifer with thee,
and say,
I am come to sacrifice to the Lord.
3 And call Jesse to the sacrifice,
and I will shew thee what thou shalt do:
and thou shalt anoint unto me him
whom I name unto thee.
Samuel works the plan, and goes to Bethlehem.
1 Samuel 16:4-10
King James Version
4 And Samuel did that which the Lord spake,
and came to Bethlehem.
And the elders of the town trembled at his coming,
and said,
Comest thou peaceably?
5 And he said,
Peaceably:
I am come to sacrifice unto the Lord:
sanctify yourselves,
and come with me to the sacrifice.
And he sanctified Jesse and his sons,
and called them to the sacrifice.
6 And it came to pass,
when they were come,
that he looked on Eliab,
and said,
Surely the Lord's anointed is before him.
7 But the Lord said unto Samuel,
Look not on his countenance,
or on the height of his stature;
because I have refused him:
for the Lord seeth not as man seeth;
for man looketh on the outward appearance,
but the Lord looketh on the heart.
8 Then Jesse called Abinadab,
and made him pass before Samuel.
And he said,
Neither hath the Lord chosen this.
9 Then Jesse made Shammah to pass by.
And he said,
Neither hath the Lord chosen this.
10 Again,
Jesse made seven of his sons to pass before Samuel.
And Samuel said unto Jesse,
The Lord hath not chosen these.
Befuddled, Samuel wondered if there were any more sons.
1 Samuel 16:11
King James Version
11 And Samuel said unto Jesse,
Are here all thy children?
And he said,
There remaineth yet the youngest,
and, behold, he keepeth the sheep.
And Samuel said unto Jesse,
Send and fetch him:
for we will not sit down till he come hither.
Finally, God's SEAL of APPROVAL.
1 Samuel 16:12-13
King James Version
12 And he sent, and brought him in.
Now he was ruddy,
and withal of a beautiful countenance,
and goodly to look to.
And the Lord said,
Arise,
anoint him: for this is he.
13 Then Samuel took the horn of oil,
and anointed him in the midst of his brethren:
and the Spirit of the Lord came upon David
from that day forward.
So Samuel rose up,
and went to Ramah.
Thing is, when God's Spirit came upon the future king, it left the present king.
1 Samuel 16:14
King James Version
14 But the Spirit of the Lord departed from Saul,
and an evil spirit from the Lord troubled him.
That's what happens when God withholds His SPIRIT from you.
Another spirit takes over, surely NOT of GOD.
God ALLOWED His ungrateful people to have a king -- in Saul -- not chosen by the Lord.
I emphasize the word "ALLOWED".
For GOD doesn't have to.
But in His infinite wisdom, He did.
Even as He bore His people's rejection.
In the process, they suffered greatly for it.
Now, GOD chose His OWN king.
A king who would rule greatly, even as he sinned, too, at one point.
Nevertheless, God's instructions to His prophet Samuel, delivered to Saul, was fulfilled.
1 Samuel 13:14
King James Version
14 But now thy kingdom shall not continue:
the Lord hath sought him a man after his own heart,
and the Lord hath commanded him
to be captain over his people,
because thou hast not kept
that which the Lord commanded thee.
David was the one prophesied "after God's heart".
Don't you LOVE the WAYS of the LORD?
I am in awe.
In VERY GREAT AWE.
Related material:
Image source: Free Bible Images
Updated 20 October 2023
