1 Samuel 16 Study Notes

16:1 How much time had passed since the end of chap. 15 is unknown. At any rate, God wanted to move ahead with his plan. The command, fill your horn with oil, meant God had someone in mind for Samuel to anoint as king. Jesse appears here for the first time in the book. His connection with Bethlehem is spelled out in the book of Ruth (Ru 4:17,22).

16:2 Samuel had told Saul that God had rejected his kingship and had chosen another to lead Israel. Consequently, Samuel’s travels would be of great interest to Saul. Samuel feared Saul would consider it treason if he anointed another man as king. A young cow might be sacrificed in a region where an unsolved murder had occurred (Dt 21:1-9). It is also possible that bringing a sacrifice to the Lord merely provided a pretext for Samuel to hide the primary purpose of his journey.

16:3 The presence of Jesse was crucial since one of his sons was to succeed Saul.

16:4 The trembling of the elders of the town may indicate they feared Saul’s wrath if they gave support to Samuel.

16:5 Consecrate means to set oneself apart to God. It involved entering into ritual cleanness. No set “consecration checklist” appears in Scripture, though bathing, putting on clean garments, avoiding contact with a dead body, and suspension of sexual relations are mentioned in various consecration contexts. He consecrated Jesse and his sons probably means Samuel oversaw their consecration at their home.

16:6 Jesse’s son Eliab later served in Saul’s army (17:13,28); he apparently looked like kingly material to Samuel.

16:7 Saul also had appearance and stature, but he had proved unworthy.

16:8-9 Jesse’s sons Abinadab and Shammah also served in Saul’s army (17:13).

16:10-11 The task of tending the sheep often fell to the youngest. In Bedouin cultures, such work was often the task of young girls (Gn 29:9), but David’s sister Zeruiah (1Ch 2:16) is not mentioned in the narrative.

16:12 The Hebrew word behind healthy is related to the word for “red” and may describe either David’s reddish-toned hair or skin. Beautiful eyes and a . . . handsome appearance might help a king’s credibility, but ultimately God looks at the heart.

16:13 Despite God’s choice of David through Samuel, apparently at least Eliab doubted David’s heart (17:28). It is also possible that Samuel did not reveal to David’s brothers the mission to which God was calling David. The Spirit of the Lord came powerfully on David just as he had done with Saul earlier (10:6,10; 11:6), empowering David for God’s service. Samuel’s route from Bethlehem to Ramah would have normally taken him directly past or through Gibeah.

16:14 The theological difficulty of the expression evil spirit . . . from the Lord may be resolved in one of two ways. God may have intended the evil spirit as redemptive—designed to turn Saul to repentance. Or God may have intended the evil spirit as his instrument of judgment against the rebellious king. God is completely righteous, hates evil, and never does anything unjust, yet he makes use of demons (against their evil intention) to accomplish his good purposes (cp. Jb 1:6-12).

16:15-17 Every ancient society believed music had the power to counteract demonic influence (P. Kyle McCarter). The lyre in particular was believed to have divine power (D. T. Tsumura).

16:18 One of the young men of Saul’s court apparently knew David well because he described several good qualities beyond David’s musical skill. Warrior may be anticipatory (suggesting David seemed to have the qualities that would make a good warrior) since it does not seem that at this stage of life David was accustomed to fighting in battle (17:14-15). The Lord is with him describes David’s spiritual qualifications, which would prove important as the drama unfolded.

16:19-20 The items donkey . . . bread . . . wineskin, and goat were either Jesse’s gift to Saul or a contribution to David’s sustenance in the royal court. No biblical evidence indicates when Saul initiated a national tax system for providing the palace’s needs, but such taxes are assumed in 17:25.

16:21-22 David became King Saul’s armor-bearer, a position that would keep him closer to Saul, who loved him very much.

16:23 Being close to Saul also meant David could pick up his lyre quickly and play if the king felt troubled. Meanwhile, God was continuing to prepare David for the day he would become king.