I Samuel 16

I Samuel 16:1-6:
And the Lord said unto Samuel, How long wilt thou mourn for Saul, seeing I have rejected him from reigning over Israel? fill thine horn with oil, and go, 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? if Saul hear it, he will kill me. And the Lord said, Take an heifer with thee, and say, I am come to sacrifice to the Lord.
3 And call Jesse to the sacrifice, and I will shew thee what thou shalt do: and thou shalt anoint unto me him whom I name unto thee.
4 And Samuel did that which the Lord spake, and came to Bethlehem. And the elders of the town trembled at his coming, and said, Comest thou peaceably?
5 And he said, Peaceably: I am come to 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 it came to pass, when they were come, that he looked on Eliab, and said, Surely the Lord's anointed is before him.

I Samuel 16:7:
But the Lord said to Samuel, "Do not look at his appearance or at the height of his stature, because I have refused him. For the Lord does not see as man sees; for man looks at the outward appearance, but the Lord looks at the heart."

“And he who searches our hearts knows the mind of the Spirit, because the Spirit intercedes for God’s people in accordance with the will of God.”
(Romans 8:27)

“I knew you before I formed you in your mother’s womb.”
(Jeremiah 1:5)

"As for you, my son Solomon, know the God of your father, and serve Him with a whole heart and a willing mind; for the LORD searches all hearts, and understands every intent of the thoughts If you seek Him, He will let you find Him; but if you forsake Him, He will reject you forever.”
(1 Chronicles 28:9)

Judgmentalism thrives on, among other things, human laziness. It’s easier to look at “the outward appearance” (1 Sam. 16:7), then classify and characterize (often emphatically), than it is to consider that the situation may be more than it seems. But both charity and wisdom call us to go beyond merely seeing. We must try to perceive.

The way that seems right often isn’t (Prov. 14:12).
We should not “regard … according to the flesh” (2 Cor. 5:16).
We should try to avoiding hastily answering matters we haven’t adequately investigated (Prov.18:13).
What seems true after the testimony of one, often seems false after hearing more (Prov. 18:17).

It’s true that Paul felt entitled to judge an issue in the Corinthian church without even being there (1 Cor. 5:3), but the context of his statement shows that he had gone to the trouble to gather good information from sources connected both to himself and the congregation (1 Cor. 5:1, 1:11). In any case, Paul either had all the facts he needed to judge the situation or possessed insight as part of his apostolic gifts.
When Jesus told us to evaluate people by their “fruit” (Matt. 7:18-20), He wasn’t calling us to judge only by the most obvious, conspicuous appearances. -Sharper Iron

In the passage in 1 Samuel 16, God contrasted the outward appearance against the inner workings of the heart, declaring that the heart was more important than outward looks. This sentiment is echoed in Isaiah 29:13 when God points out about the Israelites, "This people draw near with their mouth and honor me with their lips, while their hearts are far from me." Despite the Israelites' outward actions and spoken words, God knew their hearts were not in line with their appearances. Jesus also said the same of the Pharisees: "So you also outwardly appear righteous to others, but within you are full of hypocrisy and lawlessness" (Matthew 23:28). With these two examples, God makes it clear that He is more concerned with the inner hearts of people rather than with their outwardly conforming to religious standards—God looks at the heart and is not fooled by our facades. Jesus said that the most important commandment was, "You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind" (Matthew 22:37). God desires our deep love, loyal devotion, and full attention more than our outward obedience
--Compelling Truth

I Samuel 16:8-13:
8 Then Jesse called Abinadab, and made him pass before Samuel. And he said, Neither hath the Lord chosen this.
9 Then Jesse made Shammah to pass by. And he said, Neither hath the Lord chosen this.
10 Again, Jesse made seven of his sons to pass before Samuel. And Samuel said unto Jesse, The Lord hath not chosen these.
11 And Samuel said unto Jesse, Are here all thy children? And he said, There remaineth yet the youngest, and, behold, he keepeth the sheep. And Samuel said unto Jesse, Send and fetch him: for we will not sit down till he come hither.
12 And he sent, and brought him in. Now he was ruddy, and withal of a beautiful countenance, and goodly to look to. And the Lord said, Arise, 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 Spirit of the Lord came upon David from that day forward. So Samuel rose up, and went to Ramah.

I Samuel 16:14:
But the Spirit of the Lord departed from Saul, and a distressing spirit from the Lord troubled him.

"This is a difficult passage for two reasons. First, it seems to imply that a person can lose the Holy Spirit by an act of disobedience. But it must be understood that the presence of the Holy Spirit in the Old Testament was selective and temporary. The Spirit involved with Saul was probably the same Spirit involved with David in verse 13: a special equipping of the Spirit for ruling as God's anointed king. This unique equipping is not the same as the personal relationship in the Spirit that we enjoy with God as His children today." --Neil T. Anderson (The Bondage Breaker)

I Samuel 16:15-21:
15 And Saul's servants said unto him, Behold now, an evil spirit from God troubleth thee.
16 Let our lord now command thy servants, which are before thee, to seek out a man, who is a cunning player on an harp: and it shall come to pass, when the evil spirit from God is upon thee, that he shall play with his hand, and thou shalt be well.
17 And Saul said unto his servants, Provide me now a man that can play well, and bring him to me.
18 Then answered one of the servants, and said, Behold, I have seen a son of Jesse the Bethlehemite, that is cunning 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.
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 bottle of wine, and a kid, and sent them by David his son unto Saul.
21 And David came to Saul, and stood before him: and he loved him greatly; and he became his armourbearer.

I Samuel 16:22-23:
22 And Saul sent to Jesse, saying, Let David, I pray thee, stand before me; for he hath found favour in my sight.
23 And it came to pass, when the evil spirit from God was upon Saul, that David took an harp, and played with his hand: so Saul was refreshed, and was well, and the evil spirit departed from him.

Saul had a stronghold.