1 Samuel 16

1And Jehovah saith unto Samuel, 'Till when art thou mourning for Saul, and I have rejected him from reigning over Israel? fill thy horn with oil, and go, I send thee unto Jesse the Beth-Lehemite, for I have seen among his sons for Myself a king.

2And Samuel saith, 'How do I go? when Saul hath heard, then he hath slain me.' And Jehovah saith, 'A heifer of the herd thou dost take in thy hand, and hast said, To sacrifice to Jehovah I have come;

3and thou hast called for Jesse in the sacrifice, and I cause thee to know that which thou dost do, and thou hast anointed to Me him of whom I speak unto thee.'

4And Samuel doth that which Jehovah hath spoken, and cometh in to Beth-Lehem, and the elders of the city tremble to meet him, and one saith, 'Is thy coming peace?'

5and he saith, 'Peace; to sacrifice to Jehovah I have come, sanctify yourselves, and ye have come in with me to the sacrifice;' and he sanctifieth Jesse and his sons, and calleth them to the sacrifice.

6And it cometh to pass, in their coming in, that he seeth Eliab, and saith, 'Surely, before Jehovah is His anointed.'

7And Jehovah saith unto Samuel, 'Look not unto his appearance, and unto the height of his stature, for I have rejected him; for it is not as man seeth — for man looketh at the eyes, and Jehovah looketh at the heart.'

8And Jesse calleth unto Abinadab, and causeth him to pass by before Samuel; and he saith, 'Also on this Jehovah hath not fixed.'

9And Jesse causeth Shammah to pass by, and he saith, 'Also on this Jehovah hath not fixed.'

10And Jesse causeth seven of his sons to pass by before Samuel, and Samuel saith to Jesse, 'Jehovah hath not fixed on these.'

11And Samuel saith unto Jesse, 'Are the young men finished?' and he saith, 'Yet hath been left the youngest; and lo, he delighteth himself among the flock;' and Samuel saith unto Jesse, 'Send and take him, for we do not turn round till his coming in hither.'

12And he sendeth, and bringeth him in, and he is ruddy, with beauty of eyes, and of good appearance; and Jehovah saith, 'Rise, anoint him, for this is he.'

13And Samuel taketh the horn of oil, and anointeth him in the midst of his brethren, and prosper over David doth the Spirit of Jehovah from that day and onwards; and Samuel riseth and goeth to Ramath.

14And the Spirit of Jehovah turned aside from Saul, and a spirit of sadness from Jehovah terrified him;

15and the servants of Saul say unto him, 'Lo, we pray thee, a spirit of sadness from God is terrifying thee;

16let our lord command, we pray thee, thy servants before thee, they seek a skilful man, playing on a harp, and it hath come to pass, in the spirit of sadness from God being upon thee, that he hath played with his hand, and it is well with thee.'

17And Saul saith unto his servants, 'Provide, I pray you, for me a man playing well — then ye have brought him in unto me.'

18And one of the servants answereth and saith, 'Lo, I have seen a son of Jesse the Beth-Lehemite, skilful in playing, and a mighty virtuous man, and a man of battle, and intelligent in word, and a man of form, and Jehovah is with him.'

19And Saul sendeth messengers unto Jesse, and saith, 'Send unto me David thy son, who is with the flock.'

20And Jesse taketh an ass, with bread, and a bottle of wine, and one kid of the goats, and sendeth by the hand of David his son unto Saul.

21And David cometh in unto Saul, and standeth before him, and he loveth him greatly; and he is a bearer of his weapons.

22And Saul sendeth unto Jesse, saying, 'Let David, I pray thee, stand before me, for he hath found grace in mine eyes.'

23And it hath come to pass, in the spirit of sadness from God being on Saul, that David hath taken the harp, and played with his hand, and Saul hath refreshment and gladness, and the spirit of sadness hath turned aside from off him.