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1 Samuel 16
1599 Geneva Bible
1 Samuel 16
1599 Geneva Bible
16 1 Samuel is reproved of God, and is sent to anoint David. 7 God regardeth the heart. 13 The Spirit of the Lord cometh upon David. 14 The wicked Spirit is sent upon Saul. 19 Saul sendeth for David.
1 The Lord then said unto Samuel, How long wilt thou mourn for Saul, [a]seeing I have cast him away from reigning over Israel? fill thine horn with oil and come, I will send thee to Jesse the Bethlehemite: for I have provided me a King among his sons.
2 And Samuel said, How can I go? for if Saul shall hear it, he will kill me. Then the Lord answered, Take an heifer [b]with thee, and say, I am come [c]to do sacrifice to the Lord.
3 And call Jesse to the sacrifice, and I will show thee what thou shalt do, and thou shalt anoint unto me him whom I name unto thee.
4 So Samuel did that the Lord bade him, and came to Bethlehem, and the elders of the town were [d]astonished at his coming, and said, Comest thou peaceably?
5 And he answered, Yea: I am come to do sacrifice unto the Lord: sanctify yourselves, and come with me to the sacrifice. And he sanctified Jesse and his sons, and called them to the sacrifice.
6 And when they were come, he looked on Eliab, and said, Surely the Lord’s [e]Anointed is before him.
7 But the Lord said unto Samuel, Look not on his countenance, nor on the height of his stature, because I have refused him: for God seeth not as man seeth: for man looketh on the outward appearance, but the Lord beholdeth the (A)heart.
8 Then Jesse called Abinadab, and made him come before Samuel. And he said, Neither hath the Lord chosen this.
9 Then Jesse made Shammah come. And he said, Neither yet hath the Lord chosen him.
10 Again Jesse made his seven sons to come before Samuel, and Samuel said unto Jesse, The Lord hath chosen none of these.
11 Finally, Samuel said unto Jesse, [f]Are there no more children but these? And he said, There remaineth yet a little one behind, that keepeth the sheep. Then Samuel said unto Jesse, (B)Send and fet him: for we will not sit down, till he be come hither.
12 And he sent, and brought him in: and he was ruddy, and of a good countenance, and comely visage. And the Lord said, Arise, and anoint him: for this is he.
13 Then Samuel took the horn of oil, and anointed him in the midst of his brethren. And the (C)Spirit of the Lord [g]came upon David, from that day forward: then Samuel rose up, and went to Ramah.
14 ¶ But the Spirit of the Lord departed from Saul, and an [h]evil spirit sent of the Lord, vexed him.
15 And Saul’s servants said unto him, Behold now, the evil spirit of God vexeth thee.
16 Let our Lord therefore command thy servants that are before thee, to seek a man that is a cunning player upon the harp: that when the evil spirit of God cometh upon thee, he may play with his hand, and thou mayest be eased.
17 Saul then said unto his servants, Provide me a man, I pray you, that can play well, and bring him to me.
18 Then answered one of his servants, and said, Behold, I have seen a [i]son of Jesse, a Bethlehemite, that can play, and is strong, valiant, and a man of war, and wise in matters, and a comely person, and the Lord is with him.
19 ¶ Wherefore Saul sent messengers unto Jesse, and said, Send me David thy son, which is with the sheep.
20 And Jesse took an ass laden with bread and a flagon of wine and a kid, and sent them by the hand of David his son unto Saul.
21 And David came to Saul, and [j]stood before him: and he loved him very well, and he was his armor bearer.
22 And Saul sent to Jesse, saying, Let David now remain with me: for he hath found favor in my sight.
23 And so when the evil spirit of God came upon Saul, David took an harp and played with his hand, and Saul was [k]refreshed and was eased: for the evil spirit departed from him.
Footnotes
- 1 Samuel 16:1 Signifying, that we ought not to show ourselves more pitiful than God, nor to lament them whom he casteth out.
- 1 Samuel 16:2 Hebrew, in thine hand.
- 1 Samuel 16:2 That is, to make a peace offering, which might be done though the Ark was not there.
- 1 Samuel 16:4 Fearing, lest some grievous crime had been committed, because the Prophet was not wont to come thither.
- 1 Samuel 16:6 Thinking that Eliab had been appointed of God to be made King.
- 1 Samuel 16:11 Hebrew, are the children ended?
- 1 Samuel 16:13 Or, prospered.
- 1 Samuel 16:14 The wicked spirits are at God’s commandment to execute his will against the wicked.
- 1 Samuel 16:18 Though David was now anointed King by the Prophet, yet God would exercise him in sundry sorts before he had the use of his kingdom.
- 1 Samuel 16:21 Or, served him.
- 1 Samuel 16:23 God would that Saul should receive this benefit as at David’s hand: that his condemnation might be the more evident, for his cruel hate toward him.
1 Samuel 16
New International Version
1 Samuel 16
New International Version
Samuel Anoints David
16 The Lord said to Samuel, “How long will you mourn(A) for Saul, since I have rejected(B) him as king over Israel? Fill your horn with oil(C) and be on your way; I am sending you to Jesse(D) of Bethlehem. I have chosen(E) one of his sons to be king.”
2 But Samuel said, “How can I go? If Saul hears about it, he will kill me.”
The Lord said, “Take a heifer with you and say, ‘I have come to sacrifice to the Lord.’ 3 Invite Jesse to the sacrifice, and I will show(F) you what to do. You are to anoint(G) for me the one I indicate.”
4 Samuel did what the Lord said. When he arrived at Bethlehem,(H) the elders of the town trembled(I) when they met him. They asked, “Do you come in peace?(J)”
5 Samuel replied, “Yes, in peace; I have come to sacrifice to the Lord. Consecrate(K) yourselves and come to the sacrifice with me.” Then he consecrated Jesse and his sons and invited them to the sacrifice.
6 When they arrived, Samuel saw Eliab(L) and thought, “Surely the Lord’s anointed stands here before the Lord.”
7 But the Lord said to Samuel, “Do not consider his appearance or his height, for I have rejected him. The Lord does not look at the things people look at. People look at the outward appearance,(M) but the Lord looks at the heart.”(N)
8 Then Jesse called Abinadab(O) and had him pass in front of Samuel. But Samuel said, “The Lord has not chosen this one either.” 9 Jesse then had Shammah(P) pass by, but Samuel said, “Nor has the Lord chosen this one.” 10 Jesse had seven of his sons pass before Samuel, but Samuel said to him, “The Lord has not chosen these.” 11 So he asked Jesse, “Are these all(Q) the sons you have?”
“There is still the youngest,” Jesse answered. “He is tending the sheep.”(R)
Samuel said, “Send for him; we will not sit down until he arrives.”
12 So he(S) sent for him and had him brought in. He was glowing with health and had a fine appearance and handsome(T) features.
Then the Lord said, “Rise and anoint him; this is the one.”
13 So Samuel took the horn of oil and anointed(U) him in the presence of his brothers, and from that day on the Spirit of the Lord(V) came powerfully upon David.(W) Samuel then went to Ramah.
David in Saul’s Service
14 Now the Spirit of the Lord had departed(X) from Saul, and an evil[a] spirit(Y) from the Lord tormented him.(Z)
15 Saul’s attendants said to him, “See, an evil spirit from God is tormenting you. 16 Let our lord command his servants here to search for someone who can play the lyre.(AA) He will play when the evil spirit from God comes on you, and you will feel better.”
17 So Saul said to his attendants, “Find someone who plays well and bring him to me.”
18 One of the servants answered, “I have seen a son of Jesse(AB) of Bethlehem who knows how to play the lyre. He is a brave man and a warrior.(AC) He speaks well and is a fine-looking man. And the Lord is with(AD) him.”
19 Then Saul sent messengers to Jesse and said, “Send me your son David, who is with the sheep.(AE)” 20 So Jesse took a donkey loaded with bread,(AF) a skin of wine and a young goat and sent them with his son David to Saul.
21 David came to Saul and entered his service.(AG) Saul liked him very much, and David became one of his armor-bearers. 22 Then Saul sent word to Jesse, saying, “Allow David to remain in my service, for I am pleased with him.”
23 Whenever the spirit from God came on Saul, David would take up his lyre and play. Then relief would come to Saul; he would feel better, and the evil spirit(AH) would leave him.
Footnotes
- 1 Samuel 16:14 Or and a harmful; similarly in verses 15, 16 and 23
1599 Geneva Bible (GNV) 
Geneva Bible, 1599 Edition. Published by Tolle Lege Press. All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, without written permission from the publisher, except in the case of brief quotations in articles, reviews, and broadcasts.
New International Version (NIV) 
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NIV Reverse Interlinear Bible: English to Hebrew and English to Greek. Copyright © 2019 by Zondervan.