Samuel Goes to Bethlehem

16 Now the Lord said to Samuel, “^(A)How long are you going to mourn for ^[a]Saul, since ^(B)I have rejected him from being king over Israel? ^(C)Fill your horn with oil and go; I will send you to ^(D)Jesse the Bethlehemite, because I have ^(E)chosen a king for Myself among his sons.” ² But Samuel said, “How can I go? When Saul hears about it, he will kill me.” But the Lord said, “^(F)Take a heifer ^[b]with you and say, ‘I have come to sacrifice to the Lord.’ ³ And you shall invite Jesse to the sacrifice, and ^(G)I will let you know what you shall do; and ^(H)you shall anoint for Me the one whom I ^[c]designate to you.” ⁴ So Samuel did what the Lord told him, and he came to ^(I)Bethlehem. Then the elders of the city came trembling to meet him and said, “^(J)Do you come in peace?” ⁵ And he said, “In peace; I have come to sacrifice to the Lord. ^(K)Consecrate yourselves and come with me to the sacrifice.” He also consecrated Jesse and his sons and invited them to the sacrifice.

⁶ When they entered, he looked at ^(L)Eliab and thought, “Surely the Lord’s anointed is standing before Him.” ⁷ But the Lord said to Samuel, “Do not look at his appearance or at the height of his stature, because I have rejected him; for ^[d]God does not see as man sees, since man looks at ^[e]the outward appearance, ^(M)but the Lord looks at the heart.” ⁸ Then Jesse called ^(N)Abinadab and had him pass before Samuel. But he said, “The Lord has not chosen this one, either.” ⁹ Next Jesse had ^[f](O)Shammah pass by. And he said, “The Lord has not chosen this one, either.” ¹⁰ So Jesse had seven of his sons pass before Samuel. But Samuel said to Jesse, “The Lord has not chosen these.” ¹¹ Then Samuel said to Jesse, “Are these all the boys?” And he said, “^(P)The youngest is still left, but behold, he is tending the sheep.” So Samuel said to Jesse, “Send word and bring him; for we will not take our places at the table until he comes here.”

David Anointed

¹² So he sent word and brought him in. Now he was ^[g]reddish, with ^(Q)beautiful eyes and a handsome appearance. And the Lord said, “^(R)Arise, anoint him; for this is he.” ¹³ So Samuel took the horn of oil and ^(S)anointed him in the midst of his brothers; and ^(T)the Spirit of the Lord rushed upon David from that day forward. And Samuel set out and went to Ramah.

^14 (U)Now the Spirit of the Lord left Saul, and ^(V)an evil spirit from the Lord terrified him. ¹⁵ Saul’s servants then said to him, “Behold now, an evil spirit from God is terrifying you. ¹⁶ May our lord now command your servants who are before you. Have them search for a man who is a skillful musician on the harp; and it shall come about whenever the evil spirit from God is upon you, that ^(W)he shall play the harp with his hand, and you will become well.” ¹⁷ So Saul said to his servants, “Now select for me a man who can play well, and bring him to me.” ¹⁸ Then one of the young men responded and said, “Behold, I have seen a son of Jesse the Bethlehemite who is a skillful musician, ^(X)a valiant mighty man, a warrior, skillful in speech, and a handsome man; and ^(Y)the Lord is with him.” ¹⁹ So Saul sent messengers to Jesse ^[h]to say, “Send me your son David, who is with the flock.” ²⁰ And Jesse ^(Z)took a donkey loaded with bread and a jug of wine, and he took a young goat, and sent them to Saul by his son David. ²¹ Then David came to Saul and ^[i](AA)attended him; and Saul greatly loved him, and he became his armor bearer. ²² So Saul sent word to Jesse, saying, “Let David now ^[j]be my attendant for he has found favor in my sight.” ²³ So it came about whenever ^(AB)the evil spirit from God came to Saul, David would take the harp and play it with his hand; and Saul would feel relieved and become well, and the evil spirit would leave him.