1 Samuel 16

1 And the LORD said to Samuel, How long wilt thou mourn for Saul, seeing I have rejected him from reigning over Israel? fill thy horn with oil, and go, I will send thee to Jesse the Beth-lehemite: for I have provided me a king among his sons.

And the Lord said to Samuel, How long will you go on sorrowing for Saul, seeing that I have put him from his place as king over Israel? Take oil in your vessel and go; I will send you to Jesse, the Beth-lehemite: for I have got a king for myself among his sons.

2 And Samuel said, How can I go? if Saul shall hear [it], he will kill me. And the LORD said, Take a heifer with thee, and say, I have come to sacrifice to the LORD.

And Samuel said, How is it possible for me to go? If Saul gets news of it he will put me to death. And the Lord said, Take a young cow with you and say, I have come to make an offering to the Lord.

3 And call Jesse to the sacrifice, and I will show thee what thou shalt do: and thou shalt anoint to me [him] whom I name to thee.

And send for Jesse to be present at the offering, and I will make clear to you what you are to do: and you are to put the holy oil on him whose name I give you.

4 And Samuel did that which the LORD spoke, and came to Beth-lehem. And the elders of the town trembled at his coming, and said, Comest thou peaceably?

And Samuel did as the Lord said and came to Beth-lehem. And the responsible men of the town came out to him in fear and said, Do you come in peace?

5 And he said, Peaceably: I have come to sacrifice to the LORD: sanctify yourselves, and come with me to the sacrifice. And he sanctified Jesse and his sons, and called them to the sacrifice.

And he said, In peace: I have come to make an offering to the Lord: make yourselves clean and come with me to make the offering. And he made Jesse and his sons clean, and sent for them to be present at the offering.

6 And it came to pass when they had come, that he looked on Eliab, and said, Surely the LORD'S anointed [is] before him.

Now when they came, looking at Eliab, he said, Clearly the man of the Lord's selection is before him.

7 But the LORD said to Samuel, Look not on his countenance, or on the hight of his stature; because I have refused him: for [the LORD seeth] not as man seeth; for man looketh on the outward appearance, but the LORD looketh on the heart.

But the Lord said to Samuel, Do not take note of his face or how tall he is, because I will not have him: for the Lord's view is not man's; man takes note of the outer form, but the Lord sees the heart.

8 Then Jesse called Abinadab, and made him pass before Samuel. And he said, Neither hath the LORD chosen this.

Then Jesse sent for Abinadab and made him come before Samuel. And he said, The Lord has not taken this one.

9 Then Jesse made Shammah to pass by. And he said, Neither hath the LORD chosen this.

Then Jesse made Shammah come before him. And he said, The Lord has not taken this one.

10 Again, Jesse made seven of his sons to pass before Samuel. And Samuel said to Jesse, The LORD hath not chosen these.

And Jesse made his seven sons come before Samuel. And Samuel said to Jesse, The Lord has not taken any of these.

11 And Samuel said to Jesse, Are here all [thy] children? And he said, There remaineth yet the youngest, and behold, he keepeth the sheep. And Samuel said to Jesse, Send and bring him: for we will not sit down till he hath come hither.

Then Samuel said to Jesse, Are all your children here? And he said, There is still the youngest, and he is looking after the sheep. And Samuel said to Jesse, Send and make him come here: for we will not take our seats till he is here.

12 And he sent, and brought him in. Now he [was] ruddy, [and] also of a beautiful countenance, and a good appearance. And the LORD said, Arise, anoint him: for this [is] he.

So he sent and made him come in. Now he had red hair and beautiful eyes and pleasing looks. And the Lord said, Come, put the oil on him, for this is he.

13 Then 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. So Samuel arose, and went to Ramah.

Then Samuel took the bottle of oil, and put the oil on him there among his brothers: and from that day the spirit of the Lord came on David with power. So Samuel went back to Ramah.

14 But the Spirit of the LORD departed from Saul, and an evil spirit from the LORD troubled him.

Now the spirit of the Lord had gone from Saul, and an evil spirit from the Lord was troubling him.

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

And Saul's servants said to him, See now, an evil spirit from God is troubling you.

16 Let our lord now command thy servants, [who are] before thee, to seek a man [who is] a skillful player on a harp: and it shall come to pass, when the evil spirit from God is upon thee, that he will play with his hand, and thou wilt be well.

Now give orders to your servants who are here before you to go in search of a man who is an expert player on a corded instrument: and it will be that when the evil spirit from God is on you, he will make music for you on his instrument, and you will get well.

17 And Saul said to his servants, Provide me now a man that can play well, and bring [him] to me.

And Saul said to his servants, Then get me a man who is an expert player, and make him come to me.

18 Then answered one of the servants, and said, Behold, I have seen a son of Jesse the Beth-lehemite, [that is] skillful in playing, and a mighty valiant man, and a man of war, and prudent in matters, and a comely person, and the LORD [is] with him.

Then one of the servants in answer said, I have seen a son of Jesse, the Beth-lehemite, who is expert at playing, and a strong man and a man of war; and he is wise in his words, and pleasing in looks, and the Lord is with him.

19 Wherefore Saul sent messengers to Jesse, and said, Send to me David thy son, who [is] with the sheep.

So Saul sent his servants to Jesse and said, Send me your son David who is with the sheep.

20 And Jesse took an ass [laden] with bread, and a bottle of wine, and a kid, and sent [them] by David his son to Saul.

And Jesse took five cakes of bread and a skin of wine and a young goat and sent them to Saul by David.

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

And David came to Saul, waiting before him: and he became very dear to Saul, who made him his servant, giving him the care of his arms.

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

And Saul sent to Jesse saying, Let David be with me, for he is pleasing to me.

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

And whenever the evil spirit from God came on Saul, David took his instrument and made music: so new life came to Saul, and he got well, and the evil spirit went away from him.