1 Samuel 16:8-20
Mistaken in thinking that Eliab was the one the Lord had chosen, Samuel was now prepared to wait on the Lord, and so one by one six more of Jesse’s sons passed before him, but he said, “The Lord hath not chosen these.” He then asked Jesse if these were all the sons he had, and Jesse replied that he had one more, the youngest named David who kept the sheep. We see another contrast between David and Saul here, for Saul had been hunting for his father’s asses, those stubborn unclean animals, when Samuel found him to anoint him as king, but David was keeping sheep. Jesse then sent for David, and Samuel said, “We will not sit down till he come hither.” How beautifully we see in all this the figure of the true Son of David, the Lord Jesus Christ. He was despised and forgotten because of the lowly place He took to save His “sheep,” nevertheless He is the rightful King. Just as Samuel said they would not sit down till David came, so we ought not to expect rest here in this world where He was cast out. We cannot “sit down”—we cannot rest—until He comes, but then when He has His rightful place we shall rest with Him above.
When David came in and Samuel saw his beautiful countenance, he recoized at once that he was the chosen king, for the Lord said, “Arise, anoint him: for this is he.” Surely in this way we can say of our blessed Lord, the true King, that He is “the chiefest among ten thousand... yea, He is altogether lovely.” Song of Sol. 5:10, 16. The nation of Israel, His brethren, could not see any beauty in Him, but despised Him, as was David by his brethren, but blessed be His name, He has opened our eyes to see His loveliness.
Samuel then anointed David in the midst of his brethren, and the Spirit of the Lord came upon him from that day forward. Again we see a picture here of the Lord Jesus anointed by the Spirit (Luke 4:18) in the midst of His brethren, yet recognized only by a small remnant of them as the rightful king (John 1:49).
But we read “The Spirit of the Lord departed from Saul.” How solemn this was. Perhaps we should remark here that the Spirit of God did not indwell believers until the day of Pentecost (John 7:39). That which marks out the present dispensation as distinct from all others is the presence on earth now of the Holy Spirit of God. He dwells here as a divine Person (1 Peter 1:12), as well as in the bodies of all believers (1 Cor. 6:19). This was not so in the Old Testament, for then the Holy Spirit came upon those who prophesied, but did not indwell them. The Holy Spirit, who now indwells believers, will never leave them, though we can grieve this divine guest within. Thus we read, “Grieve not the Holy Spirit of God, whereby ye are sealed unto the day of redemption.” Ephesians 4:30.
When the Spirit of the Lord, who had once come upon Saul, departed from him, then an evil spirit from the Lord troubled him. Such is the government of God upon one who is given up to the power of the enemy. Saul’s sernts suggested that a man be found who could play a harp, so that when Saul was troubled by the evil spirit the sweet music would relieve him. One of his servants suggested that David should be brought before Saul, for he was a skilled harpist as well as a prudent man, and the Lord was with him. Saul therefore sent for David to stand before him and he loved him greatly.
ML 09/19/1954