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 about Saul? I have rejected him as king of Israel. Fill your horn with 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 before Samuel, but the Lord did not choose any of them. “Do you have any more sons?” Samuel asked Jesse.

“I have one more, but he is the 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 oil and anointed David in front of 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 that person for the work God wanted him to do. God’s prophets, priests, and kings were all anointed before they began serving Him.

At a special ceremony, oil was poured on the person’s head as a sign of God’s Spirit being poured out on the new leader. From that time on, the Spirit gave 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

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