1 Samuel 16

1 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.

And the Lord said to Samuel, How long do you mourn for Saul, whereas I have rejected him from reigning over Israel? Fill your horn with oil, and come, I will send you to Jessae, to Bethleem; for I have seen amongst his sons a king for me.

2 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.

And Samuel said, How can I go? whereas Saul will hear of it, and kill me: and the Lord said, Take a heifer in your hand and you shall say, I am come to sacrifice to the Lord.

3 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.

And you shall call Jessae to the sacrifice, and I will make known to you what you shall do; and you shall anoint him whom I shall mention to you.

4 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.

And Samuel did all that the Lord told him; and he came to Bethleem: and the elders of the city were amazed at meeting him, and said, Do you come peaceably, you Seer?

5 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.

And he said, Peaceably: I am come to sacrifice to the Lord. Sanctify yourselves, and rejoice with me this day: and he sanctified Jessae and his sons, and he called them to the sacrifice.

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

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

7 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.

But the Lord said to Samuel, Look not on his appearance, nor on his stature, for I have rejected him; for God sees not as man looks; for man looks at the outward appearance, but God looks at the heart.

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

And Jessae called Aminadab, and he passed before Samuel: and he said, Neither has God chosen this one.

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

And Jessae caused Sama to pass by: and he said, Neither has God chosen this one.

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

And Jessae caused his seven sons to pass before Samuel: and Samuel said, the Lord has not chosen these.

11 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.

And Samuel said to Jessae, Hast you no more sons? And Jessae said, [There is] yet a little one; behold, he tends the flock. And Samuel said to Jessae, Send and fetch him for we may not sit down till he comes.

12 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.

And he sent and fetched him: and he was ruddy, with beauty of eyes, and very goodly to behold. And the Lord said to Samuel, Arise, and anoint David, for he is good.

13 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.

And 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: and Samuel arose, and departed to Armathaim.

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

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

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

And Saul's servants said to him, Behold now, and evil spirit from the Lord torments you.

16 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.

Let now your servants speak before you, and let them seek for our lord a man skilled to play on the harp; and it shall come to pass when an evil spirit comes upon you and he shall play on his harp, that you shall be well, and he shall refresh you.

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

And Saul said to his servants, Look now out for me a skilful player, and bring him to me.

18 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.

And one of his servants answered and said, Behold, I have seen a son of Jessae the Bethleemite, and he understands playing [on the harp], and the man [is] prudent, and a warrior, and wise in speech, and the man [is] handsome, and the Lord [is] with him.

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

And Saul sent messengers to Jessae, saying, Send to me your son David who is with your flock.

20 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.

And Jessae took a homer of bread, and a bottle of wine, and one kid of the goats, and sent them by the hand of his son David to Saul.

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

And David went in to Saul, and stood before him; and he loved him greatly; and he became his armour-bearer.

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

And Saul sent to Jessae, saying, Let David, I pray you, stand before me, for he has found grace in my eyes.

23 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.

And it came to pass when the evil spirit was upon Saul, that David took his harp, and played with his hand: and Saul was refreshed, and [it was] well with him, and the evil spirit departed from him.