David

May 2

1 Samuel 16:1, 6-13

A young shepherd

Samuel was very sad that Saul had made such a mess of leading God’s people. The Lord said to Samuel, “How long will you be sad for Saul? I have rejected him as king of Israel. Get some olive oil and go to Jesse who lives in Bethlehem, for I have chosen one of his sons as king.”

When Samuel arrived at Jesse’s house and saw his eldest son Eliab, he thought; surely this is the one God has chosen. But the Lord said to Samuel, “Do not look at how tall and handsome he is. I do not judge people by what they look like—I look at the heart.”

One by one, each of Jesse’s seven sons came to show themselves to Samuel; but the Lord turned each one down. “Do you have any more sons?” Samuel asked Jesse.

“I only have one more, but he is my youngest. He is a shepherd out in the field.” So Samuel told Jesse to send for him.

When David came in, the Lord said to Samuel, “This is the one—anoint him.” So Samuel took the olive oil and anointed David in front of all the others; and the Spirit of the Lord came on David and filled him.

What does anoint mean?

Whenever God chose someone to do a special task, a servant of the Lord would anoint the person for the task God wanted him to do. All God’s prophets, priests, and kings were anointed before they started serving Him.

At a special ceremony, oil would be poured on the person’s head as a sign of God’s Spirit being poured on the new leader. From that time on, the Spirit would give that person the power and ability to do what God wanted him to do.

Verse for today

Jesus said, "The Spirit of the Lord is on me, because he has anointed me to preach good news to the poor.” Luke 4:18a