1 Samuel 16

¹Now Elisha the prophet summoned one of the sons of the prophets and said to him, “Tuck your cloak under your belt, take this flask of oil, and go to Ramoth-gilead.

²³For rebellion is like the sin of divination, and arrogance is like the wickedness of idolatry. Because you have rejected the word of the Lord, He has rejected you as king.”

³⁵And to the day of his death, Samuel never again visited Saul. Samuel mourned for Saul, and the Lord regretted that He had made Saul king over Israel.

⁶⁸But He chose the tribe of Judah, Mount Zion, which He loved.

⁶⁹He built His sanctuary like the heights, like the earth He has established forever.

¹²And once more, Isaiah says: “The Root of Jesse will appear, One who will arise to rule over the Gentiles; in Him the Gentiles will put their hope.”

¹Then Samuel took a flask of oil, poured it on Saul’s head, kissed him, and said, “Has not the Lord anointed you ruler over His inheritance?

¹²“Yes, he is ahead of you,” they answered. “Hurry now, for today he has come to the city because the people have a sacrifice on the high place.

²⁹saying, ‘Please let me go, because our clan is holding a sacrifice in the city, and my brother has told me to be there. So now, if I have found favor in your eyes, please let me go and see my brothers.’ That is why he has not come to the king’s table.”

¹⁶Behold, I am sending you out like sheep among wolves; therefore be as shrewd as snakes and as innocent as doves.

³⁴“How can this be,” Mary asked the angel, “since I am a virgin?”

²⁶then tell them, ‘I was presenting to the king my petition that he not return me to the house of Jonathan to die there.’”

²⁷When all the officials came to Jeremiah and questioned him, he relayed to them the exact words the king had commanded him to say. So they said no more to him, for no one had overheard the conversation.

¹¹But Moses asked God, “Who am I, that I should go to Pharaoh and bring the Israelites out of Egypt?”

¹⁶“At this time tomorrow I will send you a man from the land of Benjamin, and you are to anoint him ruler over My people Israel; he will save them from the hand of the Philistines. For I have looked upon My people, because their cry has come to Me.”

¹¹Two hundred men from Jerusalem accompanied Absalom. They had been invited as guests and they went along innocently, for they knew nothing about the matter.

¹²So Jesse sent for his youngest son and brought him in. He was ruddy, with beautiful eyes and a handsome appearance. And the Lord said, “Rise and anoint him, for he is the one.”

¹³So Samuel took the horn of oil and anointed him in the presence of his brothers, and the Spirit of the Lord rushed upon David from that day forward. Then Samuel set out and went to Ramah.

⁶“Now get up and go into the city, and you will be told what you must do.”

¹²“Yes, he is ahead of you,” they answered. “Hurry now, for today he has come to the city because the people have a sacrifice on the high place.

¹³As soon as you enter the city, you will find him before he goes up to the high place to eat. The people will not eat until he comes, because he must bless the sacrifice; after that, the guests will eat. Go up at once; you will find him.”

¹⁴When you enter the land that the Lord your God is giving you and have taken possession of it and settled in it, and you say, “Let us set a king over us like all the nations around us,”

¹⁵you are to appoint over yourselves the king whom the Lord your God shall choose. Appoint a king from among your brothers; you are not to set over yourselves a foreigner who is not one of your brothers.

¹³Now Adonijah son of Haggith went to Bathsheba the mother of Solomon, and she asked, “Do you come in peace?” “Yes, in peace,” he replied.

¹Then David came to Nob, to Ahimelech the priest. And when Ahimelech met David, he trembled and asked him, “Why are you alone? Why is no one with you?”

¹⁷And David went out to meet them, saying, “If you have come to me in peace to help me, my heart will be united with you; but if you have come to betray me to my enemies when my hands are free of violence, may the God of our fathers see it and judge you.”

¹⁸Then the Spirit came upon Amasai, the chief of the Thirty, and he said: “We are yours, O David! We are with you, O son of Jesse! Peace, peace to you, and peace to your helpers, for your God helps you.” So David received them and made them leaders of his troops.

²²When Joram saw Jehu, he asked, “Have you come in peace, Jehu?” “How can there be peace,” he replied, “as long as the idolatry and witchcraft of your mother Jezebel abound?”

⁸When Simon Peter saw this, he fell at Jesus’ knees. “Go away from me, Lord,” he said, “for I am a sinful man.”

¹⁸“O man of God,” said the woman to Elijah, “what have you done to me? Have you come to remind me of my iniquity and cause the death of my son?”

¹⁰Then the Lord said to Moses, “Go to the people and consecrate them today and tomorrow. They must wash their clothes

⁷Consecrate yourselves, therefore, and be holy, because I am the Lord your God.

⁸And you shall keep My statutes and practice them. I am the Lord who sanctifies you.

⁵Then Joshua told the people, “Consecrate yourselves, for tomorrow the Lord will do wonders among you.”

¹³Get up and consecrate the people, saying, ‘Consecrate yourselves for tomorrow, for this is what the Lord, the God of Israel, says: Among you, O Israel, there are things devoted to destruction. You cannot stand against your enemies until you remove them.

¹⁴When Moses came down from the mountain to the people, he consecrated them, and they washed their clothes.

¹⁵“Be prepared for the third day,” he said to the people. “Do not draw near to a woman.”

²⁸Each one must examine himself before he eats of the bread and drinks of the cup.

¹³The three older sons of Jesse had followed Saul into battle: The firstborn was Eliab, the second was Abinadab, and the third was Shammah.

¹³Jesse was the father of Eliab his firstborn; Abinadab was born second, Shimea third,

²⁴Stop judging by outward appearances, and start judging justly.”

¹⁰I, the Lord, search the heart; I examine the mind to reward a man according to his way, by what his deeds deserve.

¹⁵So He said to them, “You are the ones who justify yourselves before men, but God knows your hearts. For what is prized among men is detestable before God.

⁸“For My thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways My ways,” declares the Lord.

⁹“For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so My ways are higher than your ways and My thoughts than your thoughts.

⁴but from the inner disposition of your heart, the unfading beauty of a gentle and quiet spirit, which is precious in God’s sight.

²All a man’s ways are pure in his own eyes, but his motives are weighed out by the Lord.

¹³The three older sons of Jesse had followed Saul into battle: The firstborn was Eliab, the second was Abinadab, and the third was Shammah.

¹³Jesse was the father of Eliab his firstborn; Abinadab was born second, Shimea third,

¹³The three older sons of Jesse had followed Saul into battle: The firstborn was Eliab, the second was Abinadab, and the third was Shammah.

³Now Amnon had a friend named Jonadab, the son of David’s brother Shimeah. Jonadab was a very shrewd man,

¹³Jesse was the father of Eliab his firstborn; Abinadab was born second, Shimea third,

¹³Jesse was the father of Eliab his firstborn; Abinadab was born second, Shimea third,

¹⁴Nethanel fourth, Raddai fifth,

⁷⁰He chose David His servant and took him from the sheepfolds;

⁷¹from tending the ewes He brought him to be shepherd of His people Jacob, of Israel His inheritance.

⁸Now then, you are to tell My servant David that this is what the Lord of Hosts says: I took you from the pasture, from following the flock, to be the ruler over My people Israel.

²⁸Now when David’s oldest brother Eliab heard him speaking to the men, his anger burned against David. “Why have you come down here?” he asked. “And with whom did you leave those few sheep in the wilderness? I know your pride and wickedness of heart—you have come down to see the battle!”

⁷Now then, you are to tell My servant David that this is what the Lord of Hosts says: I took you from the pasture, from following the flock, to be the ruler over My people Israel.

³Now Amnon had a friend named Jonadab, the son of David’s brother Shimeah. Jonadab was a very shrewd man,

¹²Now David was the son of a man named Jesse, an Ephrathite from Bethlehem of Judah who had eight sons. And in the days of Saul, Jesse was old and well along in years.

¹³The three older sons of Jesse had followed Saul into battle: The firstborn was Eliab, the second was Abinadab, and the third was Shammah.

¹⁰My beloved is dazzling and ruddy, outstanding among ten thousand.

⁷Her dignitaries were brighter than snow, whiter than milk; their bodies were more ruddy than rubies, their appearance like sapphires.

⁴²When the Philistine looked and saw David, he despised him because he was just a boy, ruddy and handsome.

¹⁹You once spoke in a vision; to Your godly ones You said, “I have bestowed help on a warrior; I have exalted one chosen from the people.

²⁰I have found My servant David; with My sacred oil I have anointed him.

¹⁷When Samuel saw Saul, the Lord told him, “Here is the man of whom I spoke; he shall rule over My people.”

²The kings of the earth take their stand and the rulers gather together, against the Lord and against His Anointed One:

⁶Then the Spirit of the Lord will rush upon you, and you will prophesy with them; and you will be transformed into a different person.

⁹You have loved righteousness and hated wickedness; therefore God, Your God, has anointed You above Your companions with the oil of joy.”

³⁴For the One whom God has sent speaks the words of God, for God gives the Spirit without limit.

¹Then Samuel took a flask of oil, poured it on Saul’s head, kissed him, and said, “Has not the Lord anointed you ruler over His inheritance?

⁹As Saul turned to leave Samuel, God changed Saul’s heart, and all the signs came to pass that day.

¹⁰When Saul and his servant arrived at Gibeah, a group of prophets met him. Then the Spirit of God rushed upon him, and he prophesied along with them.

¹⁸And the Lord replied to Moses, “Take Joshua son of Nun, a man with the Spirit in him, and lay your hands on him.

¹¹Cast me not away from Your presence; take not Your Holy Spirit from me.

¹²So Saul was afraid of David, because the Lord was with David but had departed from Saul.

²³God sent a spirit of animosity between Abimelech and the leaders of Shechem and caused them to treat Abimelech deceitfully,

¹⁵Then Samuel said to Saul, “Why have you disturbed me by bringing me up?” “I am deeply distressed,” replied Saul. “The Philistines are fighting against me, and God has turned away from me. He no longer answers me, either by prophets or by dreams. So I have called on you to tell me what to do.”

¹⁰The next day a spirit of distress sent from God came upon Saul, and he prophesied inside the house while David played the harp as usual. Now Saul was holding a spear,

²⁰Then she called out, “Samson, the Philistines are here!” When Samson awoke from his sleep, he thought, “I will escape as I did before and shake myself free.” But he did not know that the Lord had departed from him.

¹⁵But now, bring me a harpist.” And while the harpist played, the hand of the Lord came upon Elisha

⁸How blessed are your men! How blessed are these servants of yours who stand continually before you and hear your wisdom!

¹⁰The next day a spirit of distress sent from God came upon Saul, and he prophesied inside the house while David played the harp as usual. Now Saul was holding a spear,

⁹But as Saul was sitting in his house with his spear in his hand, a spirit of distress from the Lord came upon him. While David was playing the harp,

²¹When David came to Saul and entered his service, Saul loved him very much, and David became his armor-bearer.

²²Then Saul sent word to Jesse, saying, “Let David remain in my service, for I am pleased with him.”

⁴⁶Now Joseph was thirty years old when he entered the service of Pharaoh king of Egypt. And Joseph left Pharaoh’s presence and traveled throughout the land of Egypt.

¹⁹And Samuel grew, and the Lord was with him, and He let none of Samuel’s words fall to the ground.

²³The warden did not concern himself with anything under Joseph’s care, because the Lord was with Joseph and gave him success in whatever he did.

²And the Lord was with Joseph, and he became a successful man, serving in the household of his Egyptian master.

³²And David said to Saul, “Let no man’s heart fail on account of this Philistine. Your servant will go and fight him!”

³³But Saul replied, “You cannot go out against this Philistine to fight him. You are just a boy, and he has been a warrior from his youth.”

⁷When these signs have come, do as the occasion demands, for God is with you.

²⁰and teaching them to obey all that I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, even to the end of the age.”

¹⁵but David went back and forth from Saul to tend his father’s sheep in Bethlehem.

¹¹And Samuel asked him, “Are these all the sons you have?” “There is still the youngest,” Jesse replied, “but he is tending the sheep.” “Send for him,” Samuel replied. “For we will not sit down to eat until he arrives.”

⁷⁰He chose David His servant and took him from the sheepfolds;

⁷¹from tending the ewes He brought him to be shepherd of His people Jacob, of Israel His inheritance.

¹⁸As Jesus was walking beside the Sea of Galilee, He saw two brothers, Simon called Peter and his brother Andrew. They were casting a net into the sea, for they were fishermen.

¹⁹“Come, follow Me,” Jesus said, “and I will make you fishers of men.”

¹⁹So Elijah departed and found Elisha son of Shaphat. He was plowing with twelve teams of oxen, and he was with the twelfth team. Elijah passed by him and threw his cloak around him.

¹Meanwhile, Moses was shepherding the flock of his father-in-law Jethro, the priest of Midian. He led the flock to the far side of the wilderness and came to Horeb, the mountain of God.

²There the angel of the Lord appeared to him in a blazing fire from within a bush. Moses saw the bush ablaze with fire, but it was not consumed.

²⁷But some worthless men said, “How can this man save us?” So they despised him and brought him no gifts; but Saul remained silent about it.

¹⁶A man’s gift opens doors for him, and brings him before great men.

¹⁸Take also these ten portions of cheese to the commander of their unit. Check on the welfare of your brothers and bring back an assurance from them.

¹⁸Then Abigail hurried and took two hundred loaves of bread, two skins of wine, five butchered sheep, five seahs of roasted grain, a hundred clusters of raisins, and two hundred cakes of figs. She loaded them on donkeys

¹¹Then their father Israel said to them, “If it must be so, then do this: Put some of the best products of the land in your packs and carry them down as a gift for the man—a little balm and a little honey, spices and myrrh, pistachios and almonds.

¹When David had gone a little beyond the summit, Ziba the servant of Mephibosheth was there to meet him. He had a pair of saddled donkeys loaded with two hundred loaves of bread, a hundred clusters of raisins, a hundred summer fruits, and a skin of wine.

²“Why do you have these?” asked the king. Ziba replied, “The donkeys are for the king’s household to ride, the bread and summer fruit are for the young men to eat, and the wine is to refresh those who become exhausted in the wilderness.”

⁴⁶Now Joseph was thirty years old when he entered the service of Pharaoh king of Egypt. And Joseph left Pharaoh’s presence and traveled throughout the land of Egypt.

²⁹Do you see a man skilled in his work? He will be stationed in the presence of kings; he will not stand before obscure men.

³Put not your trust in princes, in mortal man, who cannot save.

⁹It is better to take refuge in the Lord than to trust in princes.

⁸At that time the Lord set apart the tribe of Levi to carry the ark of the covenant of the Lord, to stand before the Lord to serve Him, and to pronounce blessings in His name, as they do to this day.

⁹Lowborn men are but a vapor; the exalted are but a lie. Weighed on the scale, they go up; together they are but a vapor.

¹⁴Now the Spirit of the Lord departed from Saul, and a spirit of distress from the Lord began to torment him.

¹⁵Saul’s servants said to him, “Surely a spirit of distress from God is tormenting you.

¹⁰The next day a spirit of distress sent from God came upon Saul, and he prophesied inside the house while David played the harp as usual. Now Saul was holding a spear,

¹¹and he hurled it, thinking, “I will pin David to the wall.” But David eluded him twice.