1 Samuel 16

1 Finally, Yahweh said to Samuel, “I have decided that I will not allow Saul to continue to be the king. So you should not [RHQ] keep feeling sad [about what he has done]. Put some olive oil in a small container and go to Bethlehem [to anoint someone with the oil, and appoint him to be king]. I am sending you there to a man named Jesse, because I have chosen one of his sons to be the king [of Israel].”

And the Lord said unto Samuel, How long wilt thou mourn for Saul, seeing I have rejected him so as not to reign over Israel? fill thy horn with oil, and go, I will send thee to Jesse the Beth-lechemite; for I have selected among his sons unto myself a king.

2 But Samuel said, “I am afraid [RHQ] to do that! If Saul hears about it, he will kill me!” Yahweh said, “Take a (heifer/young female cow) with you, and say to people that you have come to [kill it and] offer it as a sacrifice to me.

And Samuel said, How shall I go? if Saul should hear it, he would kill me. And the Lord said, Take a heifer with thee, and say, To sacrifice unto the Lord am I come.

3 “Invite Jesse to come to the sacrifice. [When he comes, ] I will show you what you should do. And I will show you which of his sons [I have chosen to be the king]. Then you should anoint that one [with the olive oil to be the king].”

And invite Jesse to the sacrifice, and I will let thee know what thou shalt do; and thou shalt anoint unto me the one whom I will say unto thee.

4 Samuel did what Yahweh told him to do. He went to Bethlehem. When the town leaders came to him, they trembled, [because they were worried that Samuel had come to rebuke them about something]. One of them asked him, “Have you come [to speak] peacefully [to us]?”

And Samuel did that which the Lord had spoken, and came to Beth-lechem. And the elders of the town came hastily to meet him, and said, Peace to thee at thy coming.

5 Samuel replied, “Yes. I have come peacefully, to make a sacrifice to Yahweh. [Perform the rituals to] make yourselves acceptable to Yahweh, and then come with me to where they will offer the sacrifice.” Then Samuel performed the ritual to make Jesse and his sons acceptable to God, and he also invited them to the sacrifice.

And he said, Peace: to sacrifice unto the Lord am I come; sanctify yourselves, and come with me to the sacrifice. And he sanctified Jesse and his sons, and invited them to the sacrifice.

6 When they arrived there, Samuel looked at [Jesse’s oldest son] Eliab, and thought, “Surely this is the one whom Yahweh has appointed [to be king]!”

And it came to pass, when they came, that he saw Eliab, and said, Surely the Lord's anointed is [here] before him.

7 But Yahweh said to Samuel, “No, he is not the one whom I have chosen. Don’t pay attention to his being handsome and very tall, because I have not chosen him. I do not evaluate people as people do. You people evaluate people by their appearance, but I evaluate people by what is in their inner beings.”

But the Lord said unto Samuel, Regard not his appearance, nor the height of his stature; because I have rejected him; for not what man looketh on; —for man looketh on the eyes, but the Lord looketh on the heart.

8 Then Jesse told [his next oldest son] Abinadab to step forward and walk in front of Samuel. [But when he did that], Samuel said, “Yahweh has not chosen this one, either.”

Then Jesse called Abinadab, and caused him to pass before Samuel. And he said, This one also hath the Lord not chosen.

9 Then Jesse told [his next oldest son] Shammah to step forward. He stepped forward, but Samuel said, “Yahweh has not chosen this one, either.”

Then Jesse caused Shammah to pass by. And he said, This one also hath the Lord not chosen.

10 Similarly, Jesse told his other four sons to walk in front of Samuel. But Samuel said to Jesse, “Yahweh has not chosen any of these sons of yours.”

And Jesse caused seven of his sons to pass before Samuel: and Samuel said unto Jesse, The Lord hath not made choice of these.

11 Then Samuel asked Jesse, “Do you have any other sons?” Jesse replied, “My youngest son [is not here]; he is out [in the fields] taking care of the sheep.” Samuel said, “Send someone to bring him here! We will not sit down [to eat] until he gets here.”

And Samuel said unto Jesse, Are there not more young men? And he said, There is yet left behind the youngest, and, behold, he is feeding the flocks. And Samuel said unto Jesse, Send and fetch him; for we will not sit down till he have come hither.

12 So Jesse sent [someone] to bring [David there. And when David arrived, Samuel saw that] he was handsome and healthy, and had bright eyes. Then Yahweh said, “This is the one [whom I have chosen]; anoint him [to be king].”

And he sent, and brought him in. Now he was ruddy, having withal handsome eyes, and being of a goodly appearance. And the Lord said, Arise, anoint him; for this is he.

13 So as David [stood there] in front of his older brothers, Samuel took the container of oil that he had brought and poured some of it on David’s head [to set him apart to serve God. After they all ate, Samuel left] and returned to Ramah. But Yahweh’s Spirit came on David powerfully, and stayed with David for the rest of his life.

Then took Samuel the horn of oil, and anointed him from among his brothers; and the Spirit of the Lord came suddenly upon David from that day and forward. And Samuel then rose up, and went to Ramah.

14 But Yahweh’s Spirit left Saul. Instead [of his Spirit staying with Saul], Yahweh sent an evil spirit to Saul to terrify him [repeatedly].

And the Spirit of the Lord departed from Saul, and there troubled him an evil spirit from the Lord.

15 One of his servants said to him, “It is evident that an evil spirit sent by God is terrifying you.

And Saul's servants said unto him, Behold now, an evil spirit from God troubleth thee.

16 So [we suggest that you] allow us, your servants here, to search for a man who plays the harp well. He can play the harp whenever the evil spirit bothers you. Then [you will calm down and] you will be okay again.”

Let our Lord but say [the word], and thy servants, now before thee, will seek out a man, who is skilful as a player on the harp; and it shall come to pass, when the evil spirit from God is upon thee, that he shall play with his hand, that thou mayest be well.

17 Saul replied, “[Fine/Okay], find for me a man who can play [the harp] well, and bring him to me.”

And Saul said unto his servants, Select for me, I pray you, a man that can play well, and bring him to me.

18 One of his servants said to him, “A man named Jesse, in Bethlehem [town], has a son who plays the harp very well. Furthermore, he is a brave man, and is a capable soldier. He is handsome and he always speaks wisely. And Yahweh always protects him.”

Then answered one of the servants, and said, Behold, I have seen a son of Jesse the Beth-lechemite, who is skilful as a player, and a mighty valiant man, and a man of war, and intelligent in speech, and a person of a good form, and the Lord is with him.

19 So Saul sent this message to Jesse: “Send your son David to me, the one who takes care of sheep.”

Thereupon Saul sent messengers unto Jesse, and said, Send me David thy son, who is with the flocks.

20 [So after they went to] Jesse [and told him that, he agreed. He] got a young goat, a container of wine, a donkey on which he put some loaves of bread, and gave them to David to take to Saul [as a present].

And Jesse took an ass laden with bread, and a bottle of wine, and a kid, and sent them through David his son unto Saul.

21 Then David went to Saul and started to work for him. Saul liked David very much, and he became the man who carried Saul’s weapons [when Saul went to fight in battles].

And David came to Saul, and stood before him; and he loved him greatly, and he became his armor-bearer.

22 Then Saul sent [a messenger] to Jesse to tell him, “I am pleased with David. Please let him stay here and work for me.”

And Saul sent to Jesse, saying, Let David, I pray thee, stand before me; for he hath found favor in my eyes.

23 [Jesse agreed, and after that], whenever the evil spirit whom God sent tormented Saul, David played the harp. Then Saul would become calm, and the evil spirit would leave him.

And it came to pass, when the spirit of God was upon Saul, that David took the harp, and played with his hand; so Saul became relieved, and he felt well, and the evil spirit departed from him.