Biblical Wisdom
What Samuel Saw
The LORD looks on the heart. He said it to a prophet who had just been impressed by a tall man.
Scripture 1 Samuel 16:6–13 · 1 Samuel 10:23–24
When Jesse’s sons arrive, Samuel looks at the eldest, Eliab, and is sure at once. “Surely here before the LORD is His anointed.”
The correction that follows is spoken to the prophet. “Do not consider his appearance or height… For man sees the outward appearance, but the LORD sees the heart.”
Height is a pointed word to say to Samuel. Earlier in the book, when Saul stood among the people a head taller than any of them, Samuel had asked whether they saw the one the LORD had chosen.
Seven sons pass by. Then the youngest is fetched from the sheep, and the narrator, who has just told us that God does not look at appearances, describes David’s anyway. Ruddy, with beautiful eyes and a handsome appearance.
He sees no contradiction. David’s looks did not disqualify him, and they did not choose him either. The one person in the room who needed the lesson was the man holding the horn of oil.
Scripture in English is from the Berean Standard Bible, placed in the public domain by its publisher on 30 April 2023.