1 Samuel 16

What does it look like to trust God in the midst of transitions? Join us we take a look at the transition from the leadership of Saul to David and gain a greater understanding of God’s working in and through His people.

Transitions are hardly a cake walk. But they are a fact of life.

• You graduate from college in a few months, and then what do you do since you haven’t been placed yet?
• The man you thought you would marry suddenly changed his mind; now he wants to be friends. What do you do? Can you be friends?
• DOGE just wiped out the governmental sector where you had worked for years, and at fifty-five years old, you’re wondering what’s next? Who will hire you? Where do you go?
• You wanted to make Colonel, but after three looks, the committee passed you over. What you thought you had in the bag, and never going to be in the bag. It looks like retirement is near, but you’re only forty-five. Do you stay in this target-rich environment for employment, or do you finally move to a more affordable location with fewer opportunities?
• You applied to three universities you wanted to enter for your future master’s degree, but all three turned you down. The school you were not excited about has accepted your application, but you are wondering why God would send you here. Do you go?
• You made a lateral move to another company, hoping they would see your worth and give you some upward mobility you never received at your last place. After a year, however, you are still doing the same mundane, unchallenging things you did at your previous employment. Is this what God wants from your life, when you have so much more to offer?

If you are working through a tough transition right now, don’t forget that the Lord is the Lord of transitions. In His sovereignty and care for you, He sets them up in order to get you where He needs you for maximum kingdom impact. Are you willing to trust Him fully? Are you desirous of having a positive attitude in your highly negative situation, knowing that all things do work out, as Paul says, for those who know and walk with Jesus Christ (Rom. 8:28ff)?

If anything, First Samuel 16 records one of the most significant transitions Israel had ever seen. Chapters eight through fifteen focused on the quick rise and slow fall of Israel’s first king, Saul. His sinful character flaws, like poor judgment, self-elevation, rash decisions, and complete insubordination to God’s prophet and Word, cost him his role as king and perpetual dynasty. Staring in chapter 16, the Lord slowly transitions the nation from the regal leadership of Saul to an unknown shepherd boy with no political or military experience. His name? David.

Though David will not be formally crowned the king for many years (2 Sam. 2-5), chapters 16 through 31 detail how God carefully and strategically positioned David to become the king in time. That transition starts in chapter 16, as I said, and it teaches us much about who God uses to accomplish His kingdom plans and how He positions and hones them for the task at hand. We can all learn much from this passage because we, like David and ancient Israel, are all too familiar with unpredictable life changes.

Our learning starts as we work our way through the chronological and thematic divisions of the powerful, practical passage:

The Command (1 Sam. 16:1)

An unknown amount of time elapsed between chapters fifteen and sixteen. Samuel couldn’t get over how Saul had imploded so purposefully during this period. Whatever hope Samuel had for this particular “hire” was eviscerated by Saul’s prideful and wicked ways. Samuel must have pondered, as any viable leader would: “How did I miss that this man was the wrong fit for the nation? How did I, of all people, not pick up on small character flaws that would become big problems later? Why didn’t he listen to wisdom and counsel, after all, I had years of leading God’s people effectively? Why was he willing to let his kingship die on a hill of insubordination, when subordination would have been so easy?” As questions led to a grief he couldn’t shake, the Lord spoke most definitively:

¹ Now the LORD said to Samuel, “How long will you grieve over Saul, since I have rejected him from being king over Israel? Fill your horn with oil, and go; I will send you to Jesse the Bethlehemite, for I have selected a king for Myself among his sons.” (1 Sam. 16)

God doesn’t mind that we grieve over what could have been in someone’s life, and He doesn’t mind if we do a little factual and emotional debriefing; however, there comes a time when God says, “It’s time to give up the grief and get to work by going.” Yes, there is a time to stop looking backward and start looking forward. In lieu of this timeless truth, I must ask you: Is this a word from God to you right now? Perhaps, especially if you are frozen in your proverbial tracks by a situation that disintegrated before your eyes.

God’s mandated mission was clear to Samuel: Take an animal horn full of oil, and travel ten miles southwest to meet a man named Jesse from Bethlehem. Once you meet him, you will anoint a new king from his sons.” This command is packed with a lot of divine providence designed to impact mankind for all time and eternity.

Jesse just “happened” to be the son of Obed, who, in turn, was the son of the wealthy farmer Boaz from the book of Ruth. From this insignificant man from a small village, translated “the house of bread” in the middle of basically nowheresville, would come Israel’s greatest and godliest king. That king, in turn, would point prophetically to the final king from Bethlehem who would be the essence of the bread of eternal life:

⁴⁷ “Truly, truly, I say to you, he who believes has eternal life. ⁴⁸ I am the bread of life. ⁴⁹ Your fathers ate the manna in the wilderness, and they died. ⁵⁰ This is the bread which comes down out of heaven, so that one may eat of it and not die. ⁵¹ I am the living bread that came down out of heaven; if anyone eats of this bread, he shall live forever; and the bread also which I shall give for the life of the world is My flesh.” (John 6)

Unfortunately, even wise saints are not quick to obey God, but are quick to pose questions they must think God is not aware of. Samuel’s logical question is introduced in the first by of verse 2. It can be labeled . . .

The Concern (1 Sam. 16:2a)

Have you ever posed probing questions to God? Who hasn’t, especially if God has providentially opened a transitional door for you to consider moving through. “Really, God, you want me to talk to them, now? Are you sure? This could be a career buster, you know. Have you thought about that?” Like any of us in a similar situation, Samuel, who possessed clay (cold) feet, paused before he moved out and peppered God with a tough query.

 ² But Samuel said, “How can I go? When Saul hears of it, he will kill me.” (1 Sam. 16)

Samuel’s logical mind connected the geo-political dots. He had previously told King Saul he would lose his kingship because of his utter prideful insubordination in failing to wipe out the Amalekites per God’s strict command (1 Sam. 15:27). Now, God wanted the prophet to go to Bethlehem in the low-lying hills going toward the land of Philistia. To get there on the mountain road near Ramah, he must pass through Saul’s hometown of Gibeah. If Saul caught wind of the purpose of Samuel’s trip, he would most certainly execute him for treasonous activity. In light of this, Samuel wanted to know how God wanted him to proceed.

Lovingly, the Lord responded with what can be classified as . . .

The Counsel (1 Sam. 16:2b-3)

God’s counsel is most interesting:

And the LORD said, “Take a heifer with you, and say, ‘I have come to sacrifice to the LORD.’ ³ “And you shall invite Jesse to the sacrifice, and I will show you what you shall do; and you shall anoint for Me the one whom I designate to you.” (1 Sam. 16)

Did God tell Samuel to lie? No. He just told him not to tell anyone he met along the way the entire intention of his journey. Since the Israelites were used to the prophet offering sacrifice to the living God in the country (1 Sam. 9:12-14; 10:8), no one would be wiser as he quietly walked through Gibeah on their version of Interstate 95.

Once in town, God directed Samuel to personally invite Jesse and his sons for a private time of worship. After the service, Samuel would apply the oil to the next king of Israel, whom God would personally select from these young men. How would Samuel know which man was the man? God would speak to Samuel as He had spoken to him since his childhood in the Temple (1 Sam. 3).

Did Samuel have any more questions? No. He heard God’s Word and set out immediately on his divinely appointed mission. Subordination, not insubordination, marked his career as God’s prophet. It’s too bad Saul never stepped up to the plate like this. That decision would progressively cost him big-time. Sin always does, especially in the life of a saint (Heb. 12:1-2).

Samuel approached the sleepy hamlet of Bethlehem with his heifer walking behind him, and he was prepared to give leadership to . . .

The Choice (1 Sam. 16:4-12)

Samuel no sooner walked into town than the leaders accosted him with a question:

⁴ So Samuel did what the LORD said, and came to Bethlehem. And the elders of the city came trembling to meet him and said, “Do you come in peace?” (1 Sam. 16)

Why did they worry? Word traveled fast that Samuel had killed King Agag with a sword without hesitation. Word traveled fast in a small country… that takes five minutes to fly across from Tel Aviv to the border of Jordan… that King Saul and Samuel were at odds and that Saul had just lost the kingship he so desperately attempted to hold onto. So, no wonder the leaders posed this question to Samuel.

His response is most congenial and comforting:

⁵ And he said, “In peace; I have come to sacrifice to the LORD. Consecrate yourselves and come with me to the sacrifice.” He also consecrated Jesse and his sons, and invited them to the sacrifice. (1 Sam. 16)

The leaders, along with Jesse and his seven sons, were invited to the intimate time of worship.

Somewhere along the worship line, Samuel got to work identifying the next king of Israel. As I’ve said before, if you think the Bible is boring, you haven’t read and studied it. How the inspired storyteller sets up the selection of God’s king for Israel is one for the history books. One by one, starting with the eldest son (1 Sam. 17:28), the boys were paraded before the prophet. Why? They had no idea; they just did as the holy man commanded them.

⁶ Then it came about when they entered, that he looked at Eliab and thought, “Surely the LORD’s anointed is before Him.” (1 Sam. 16)

When Eliab, whose name means “God is my Father,” was presented to Samuel, the prophet looked at his external looks and wrongly surmised, “Ah, this must be the man. He is tall, muscular, and good-looking.” Isn’t it interesting how slowly we learn from past mistakes? Samuel fell into this trap before in the selection of Saul (1 Sam. 9:2; 10:23-24), and he’s snared in the same secular trap again.

How did God respond to the prophet’s sinful slippage? Read His words and you’ll learn for yourself:

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 God sees not as man sees, for man looks at the outward appearance, but the LORD looks at the heart.” (1 Sam. 16)

Whoa. Samuel just got verbally spanked by the Lord. God reminded His prophet about how His criteria for selecting a powerful, effective leader are vastly different than the criteria of the world.

The world looks at height and wrongly associates this with power and dominance. Unfortunately, height doesn’t mean the man in question will not be a coward in battle. Nor does height mean the man will be a commanding leader. He might not know the first thing about leadership. The world looks at a cut, muscular physique and wrongly assumes this man knows how to lead men into battle. It might just mean the guy spent a lot of time in the gym pumping iron with the OT version of Arnold, but he really doesn’t know how to perform under real-life pressure. A young woman might look at a human specimen like Eliab and conclude, “Now, there is a man who’d make a great and loyal husband.” Not so. He might have good looks, but he might not have a clue about how to love a woman sacrificially, how to lead her spiritually, and how to remain faithful to her for a lifetime. Nor does the outer look mean the man is spiritual either. Internally, he might be spiritually shallow.

God, conversely, bases His selection on the interior aspects of the leader. The outer elements have limited value (Samson is a case in point); however, they pale insignificantly compared to the man’s heart and character. God searches hearts for saints He wants to send on life and world-changing missions to advance His kingdom. He wants answers to questions like these:

• Does he think about me often?
• Does he speak to me more often than not?
• Is he conscious of his sin and seeks to gain victory?
• Does he read, meditate on, and apply the Word?
• Is he humble? Does he treat people with dignity and respect?
• Is he committed to advancing my kingdom as opposed to his?
• Is his thought-life under control?
• Does he love to worship me when he has time alone? And so and so forth.

God knows the answers to these questions, too. Many verses remind us of this reality:

²¹ For the ways of a man are before the eyes of the LORD, and He watches all his paths. (Prov. 5)

²¹ For the ways of a man are before the eyes of the LORD, and He watches all his paths. (Prov. 5)

While we cannot know people as God does, and while people can deceive and mislead us (been there, done that), we should, at least, look for things that tell us what a person is like internally and spiritually. Books like Patrick Lencioni’s The Ideal Team Player can assist us to this end, as can J. Oswald Sanders’ Spiritual Leadership.

Armed with this divine fine-tuning coaching session, Samuel interviewed the rest of the sons:

⁸ Then Jesse called Abinadab, and made him pass before Samuel. And he said, “Neither has the LORD chosen this one.” ⁹ Next Jesse made Shammah pass by. And he said, “Neither has the LORD chosen this one.” ¹⁰ Thus Jesse made seven of his sons pass before Samuel. But Samuel said to Jesse, “The LORD has not chosen these.” (1 Sam. 16)

Based on the fact that God said “No” to each one of these regal candidates, Samuel turned and asked a logical question:

¹¹ And Samuel said to Jesse, “Are these all the children?” (1 Sam. 16)

Jesse’s reply is shocking and amusing:

¹¹ And he said, “There remains yet the youngest, and behold, he is tending the sheep.” (1 Sam. 16)

Young David was so insignificant that the father didn’t even bother mentioning him to Samuel. Obviously, Jesse forgot the biblical truth that the firstborn son was, at times, by divine design, displaced by another son: Cain and Abel, Isaac and Ishmael, and Jacob and Esau, as points of historical reference. Again, it is amazing how we tend to forget the Scriptural story when we face real-life events. We shouldn’t do that, but consider how our current situation might be illuminated in the Word.

Once Samuel heard he still needed to evaluate one more son, he gave this command:

¹¹ Then Samuel said to Jesse, “Send and bring him; for we will not sit down until he comes here.” (1 Sam. 16)

Don’t you know you could have cut the tension in the air with a proverbial knife? The brothers must have wondered, “Why does the prophet want to see David, who is nothing more than a young shepherd boy?” They had no idea that a faithful, loyal shepherd was precisely what the Lord was looking for.

What is a faithful shepherd like?

• He guards the sheep with his life.
• He finds them when they wander off and get lost.
• He knows his sheep are valuable to the father.
• He guides the sheep to food and water.
• He knows the sheep individually.
• He is always available to the sheep.
• He is loyal to the core.
• He is alert to the presence of predators.
• He disciplines and corrects the sheep.
• He comforts them when they are hurt or fearful

Ah, a shepherd would make the perfect king, and he would, in time, serve as a precursor to the ultimate King/Shepherd, the Messiah, Jesus (John 10).

The minute Samuel laid eyes on David he knew this youth was God’s man for the new leadership role over the nation.

¹² So he sent and brought him in. Now he was ruddy, with beautiful eyes and a handsome appearance. And the LORD said, “Arise, anoint him; for this is he.” (1 Sam. 16)

Is it contradictory for his outer looks to be described? No. David was “ruddy” insofar as he had that rugged look of a person who had worked hard in the elements and was good-looking. But these outer traits paled into insignificance in light of what God saw in his heart, for here was a young man who loved God intimately. This divine love wedded to what he had learned as a shepherd would make him the best candidate possible for the new role as King of Israel, and, boy, what a king he would become.

Samuel wasted no time pouring the anointing oil on David’s head to set him apart privately for . . .

The ‘Coronation’ (1 Sam. 16:13)

His brothers must have looked in absolute wonder. They must have pondered, “Has old man Samuel lost his mind? What exactly is he doing? Why is he anointing David? Isn’t anointing reserved for special artisans, prophets, priests, and kings?

¹³ Then Samuel took the horn of oil and anointed him in the midst of his brothers; and the Spirit of the LORD came mightily upon David from that day forward. And Samuel arose and went to Ramah. (1 Sam. 16)

Note the cause-and-effect evidence here. No sooner did Samuel anoint David with the holy oil than the Holy Spirit flooded into his life to empower him to be a King of Kings over Israel. And so is how it goes. Whom the Lord calls on a special mission to advance His kingdom work, He empowers. All the strengths David has learned and gained from doing the monotonous work as a shepherd would be enhanced. Now, all those countless hours of talking with God on numerous hillsides during the day and on those starry nights would be met with a personal power from God himself.

Verse 13 clearly shows the slow but perceptible ascent of King David, while verse 14 introduces us to the descent of the insubordinate King Saul. I call this section . . .

The Condemnation (1 Sam. 16:14-15)

Let’s read the text and then make some salient observations:

¹⁴ Now the Spirit of the LORD departed from Saul, and an evil spirit from the LORD terrorized him. ¹⁵ Saul’s servants then said to him, “Behold now, an evil spirit from God is terrorizing you. (1 Sam. 16)

Unlike the NT, the Spirit could be removed from a saint in the OT because of sinful activity. This is impossible in the NT, as Paul demonstrates in Ephesians 1:13-15 and 4:25-32. Those whom the Spirit seals are sealed until the day of redemption, regardless of their obedience or disobedience. OT times were different, but a divine principle still exists: God will chastise an unrepentant saint to get their attention and to hopefully move them onward and upward in their spiritual walk (Heb. 6:1-7; 12:1-3).

These verses pose a thorny theological question: Did God send a demon to plague Saul mentally? Or was this “evil spirit” a mental disease that God sent to Saul for his perpetual insubordination? Scholars are divided on this. Some say it was a demon and that his presence caused mental issues. Others say it was merely a mental issue, something akin to, say, a malady like being bi-polar or manic-depressive. The Hebrew phrase doesn’t help. It is only used in First Samuel and in Judges 9:23, where God sent an “evil spirit” between Abimelech and the men of Shechem.

Nowhere in in the OT does this phrase denote a demon outright; however, when God asks for an angel (i.e., one from the hosts of heaven, 1 Kings 22:19) to go and speak a lie to King Ahab to set him up for divine judgment, this angel is called a spirit (‎הָר֗וּחַ , ruah,1 Ki. 22:2) and within the context he will bring evil (‎רָ֔ע , ra,1 Ki. 22:8), which is the same word used in 1 Samuel 16:14-15. Based on this, I think this was a demonic spirit. Dr. Erwin Lutzer’s helpful book God’s Devil reminds us that even our Adversary does God’s bidding, and this passage from Samuel, I think, underscores this reality. Hence, as God removed the divine protective barrier from Job so the Devil could test him, here God removed the Holy Spirit from the King and sent him an evil spirit to discipline him for his years of wayward walking. This is a sobering thought.

This divinely ordained ascent of David and descent of Saul causes us to see verses 13 through 14 as highly pivotal in the entire book. They are a hinge, as it were. From here on out, the book will look forward to the slow but sure ascent of a shepherd boy to the throne of the once mighty King Saul. God will take a young man from a place of insignificance and propel him to a place of great national significance. Such are His ways. The first, indeed, shall be the last as God works out His kingdom program on earth. And from this, we encounter a timeless truth we should not just understand but apply to our lives:

God chooses the seemingly insignificant to do a significant work based on inner versus outer characteristics.

You might need to read that one more time. This time, let it sink into the rich soil of your soil. You may think you are insignificant in the scope of God’s plan, but you aren’t. You are pivotal and important, and as you grow and mature in your inner man, God will be preparing all the events of your life to place you for maximum spiritual impact strategically. Put differently, God is shaping and honing your “mundane” life right now, and as you respond positively to Him, as you walk obediently with Him, He will bless and use you in ways you never anticipated (Psalm 147:10-11; Prov. 21:2-3; Jer. 17:9-10; Matt. 5:8; Eph. 6:5-6; Heb. 10:22; 1 Pet. 1:22).

When Saul’s attendants, who knew him well, sensed and witnessed that things were not right in his mind and life, they compassionately sought help. Funny how none of them thought to call on God, but at least they acted humanely by looking for. . .

The Comfort (1 Sam. 16:16-23)

I’ll read this last part of our narrative, and then follow up to offer some wrap-up observations. I will say up front that irony is carefully woven throughout this section. And this occurs as God sovereignly and providentially moves you from insignificance to significance to utilize your gifts to impact lives for time and eternity. Watch how irony surfaces in these closing words of this narrative:

¹⁶ Let our lord now command your servants who are before you. Let them seek a man who is a skillful player on the harp; and it shall come about when the evil spirit from God is on you, that he shall play the harp with his hand, and you will be well. (1 Sam. 16)

How ironic. Health and wholeness for the savage beast, Saul, is proposed to be found not in prayer but in a player . . . a player skilled with a harp. I wonder who is a master in Israel with this instrument? Could it be David? Yes. All that time honing his skill in the rolling hillsides of Israel was about to be used extraordinarily. Likewise, those special skills you are learning in your time of insignificance can be used by God at a key juncture in your life. So, stand by.

Further…

¹⁷ So Saul said to his servants, “Provide for me now a man who can play well, and bring him to me.” ¹⁸ Then one of the young men answered and said, “Behold, I have seen a son of Jesse the Bethlehemite who is a skillful musician, a mighty man of valor, a warrior, one prudent in speech, and a handsome man; and the LORD is with him.” (1 Sam. 16)

Once can, can you say “How ironic”? One of the servants just happened to know all about David’s ability with a harp. Had he heard him at a local gig in Bethlehem? We don’t know, but he was personally aware of David’s prowess with the harp. In addition, he learned about David’s character as a man, too. He must have heard him speak articulately, and somewhere along the line, he heard how skilled David was as a mighty man. Did he know about David single-handedly taking down a powerful and fierce lion and a menacing bear (1 Sam. 17:34)? He must have. Who can do something like this? A courageous, fearless, and skilled fighter, that’s who.

Likewise, all those victories that you win as God works in your life in Nowheresville can be used in the future by people who become familiar with you. Things you humbly played down can be played up later to propel you forward to do more incredible things for God. How ironic is this particular attendant’s presence before King Saul?

Let me get a little personal. Right now, if you are reeling from the DOGE cuts or anticipating the worst, be not fearful. Even with the “mundane” job you did or are doing, I know you have met people who know about you over the years. When the time comes, God will bring you to mind to move you where He wants you to work for Him. Trust him. David did.

There’s more irony:

¹⁹ So Saul sent messengers to Jesse, and said, “Send me your son David who is with the flock.” ²⁰ And Jesse took a donkey loaded with bread and a jug of wine and a young goat, and sent them to Saul by David his son. (1 Sam. 16)

Saul went out looking for lost donkeys in the middle of nowhere and found a role as a king over a kingdom. Now, a young musician slash shepherd came to Saul with a donkey laden with lovely gifts, and this young man will not only console the King, he will become the king! How God works is simply jaw-dropping.

Finally, it is utterly ironic that the young musician who helped the king in his hour of need and was loved by the king for his soothing work, will within time be hated by the king because he would be the king’s divine replacement.

²¹ Then David came to Saul and attended him, and Saul loved him greatly; and he became his armor bearer. ²² And Saul sent to Jesse, saying, “Let David now stand before me; for he has found favor in my sight.” ²³ So it came about whenever the evil spirit from God came to Saul, David would take the harp and play it with his hand; and Saul would be refreshed and be well, and the evil spirit would depart from him. (1 Sam. 16)

Times were good here at this juncture. An insignificant young man was about to become a significant man to the entire nation, but first, that young man would have to be further shaped and honed in the furnace of leadership affliction to be the real leader God needed. And, oh, what a leader he would be at the right time. The same is true in your life. God is moving you from insignificance to significance in His bid to use you mightily in His kingdom, and as He moves you, please realize He’s most focused on the growth of your inner as opposed to your outer man.