1 Samuel 16:1–12

David Anointed King

¹Then Yahweh said to Samuel, “^aHow long will you be grieving over Saul? ^bI have rejected him from being king over Israel. ^cFill your horn with oil and go; I will send you to ^dJesse the Bethlehemite, for I ^esee among his sons a king for Me.”

²But Samuel said, “How can I go? Saul will hear of it and will kill me.” Then Yahweh said, “^aTake a heifer with you and say, ‘I have come to sacrifice to Yahweh.’

³“And you shall invite Jesse to the sacrifice, and ^aI will make you know what you shall do; and ^byou shall anoint for Me the one whom I say to you.”

⁴So Samuel did what Yahweh said and came to ^aBethlehem. And the elders of the city came trembling to meet him and said, “^bDo you come in peace?”

⁵And he said, “In peace; I have come to sacrifice to Yahweh. ^aSet yourselves apart as holy and come with me to the sacrifice.” He also set apart Jesse and his sons as holy and invited them to the sacrifice.

⁶Now it happened, when they entered, he looked at ^aEliab and thought, “Surely the anointed of Yahweh is before Him.”

⁷But Yahweh said to Samuel, “Do not look at his appearance or at the height of his stature, because I have rejected him; for ¹God sees not as man sees, for man looks at the outward appearance, ^abut Yahweh looks at the heart.”

⁸Then Jesse called ^aAbinadab and made him pass before Samuel. And he said, “Yahweh has not chosen this one either.”

⁹Next Jesse made ^1aShammah pass by. And he said, “Yahweh has not chosen this one either.”

¹⁰Thus Jesse made seven of his sons pass before Samuel. But Samuel said to Jesse, “Yahweh has not chosen these.”

¹¹And Samuel said to Jesse, “Are these all the young men?” And he said, “^aThere remains yet the youngest, and behold, he is shepherding the sheep.” Then Samuel said to Jesse, “Send and ¹bring him, for we will not turn around until he comes here.”

¹²So he sent and brought him in. Now he was ruddy, with ^abeautiful eyes and a handsome appearance. And Yahweh said, “^bArise, anoint him, for this is he.”