How to develop godly discernment (1 Sam 16:1-13)

In my gap year I worked as a volunteer in a hostel in Israel, and one of the guests we got to know started to come along to church with us. To our delight, he also came to faith. He joined in as a regular team member, gave generous gifts to others on the team, loved to cook food from his homeland and made a fun part of our group. Subsequently, when some tension developed between him and the assistant manager, he eventually left. We later found out that he was an accomplished conman who specialised in working on Christians and stole large amounts of money from another Christian establishment in Jerusalem. In retrospect, there were some warning signs about him (like small amounts of money disappearing from the safe during his time), but he was charming and likable, and we were too naïve to make the connection. Discerning what is inside someone is not always easy and that is true whether the decision involves choosing a friend, a spouse, co-workers or a new pastor.

Obstacles in the way of discernment

We pick up the story of the early monarchy with the switch from Saul (Israel’s first king – see my Intro to 1 Samuel, posts on The road to the monarchy and the series on Saul) to the choosing of David. Samuel, the Lord’s prophet, is sent to anoint the new king but his emotional attachment to Saul hinders him in the process (1 Sam 16:1). Developing discernment and listening to God for guidance is never a passive process of waiting for exact directions but involves our full participation. When we are preoccupied with our own concerns or emotionally attached to a person or solution that we desire, it can cloud our judgment and make us resistant to God’s promptings. Samuel’s attitude seems to fit this scenario as his response to God (that he is afraid of being killed by Saul if he anoints a rival king; 1 Sam 16:2) seems oddly out of character for the prophet who fearlessly confronted the monarch before. Nevertheless, he does obey God and follows his instructions for organising a sacrificial banquet (1 Sam 16:4-5).[1]

Appearance and the heart

It is unclear whether David’s anointing is semi-private with just the family around or if the elders are present. These circumstantial details fall away, and the focus is firmly on ‘seeing’: what God sees in a person and what Samuel sees from a human perspective. The words ‘to look’, ‘to see’, and ‘appearance’ all pile up in these couple of verses (1 Sam 16:6-7). In the ancient world, a king was expected to have an imposing stature, and a powerful physique augured well for winning wars against an outside threat. However, Samuel should have learnt from Saul’s story that height and attractive physique (1 Sam 10:23-24) are insufficient. Saul was rejected as king because he repeatedly failed to understand the heart of what God required and chose what only looked good. God, however, cares about the internal attitude and will (the sense of ‘heart’ in the OT). Interestingly, Samuel is not told ahead of time who the Lord’s anointed should be. Rather, he has to make decisions step-by-step by rejecting one son after another and resisting second best when it looks like there are no more options (1 Sam 16:8-11).

Seeking God

Once again, God chooses a younger son (as we have seen in many of the stories in Genesis), from a not particularly prominent family (Jesse is not an elder and has to be invited to the banquet separately, 1 Sam 16:5) in a barely recognisable town (cf. Mic 5:2). Yet if outward appearance should not qualify one from being chosen, neither should it disqualify as David’s attractive appearance shows (1 Sam 16:12).[2] Today, we may be impressed by someone’s good manners, charm, charismatic personality, educated approach or their origins from a good family or the right social background. It is not that we should discount all of these as unimportant but recognise that in themselves they are not enough. Since even the best of us can be swayed by superficial or outward aspects of a person that appeal to us, we need to learn from past mistakes and seek God to discern His will.

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[1] Samuel would have travelled on a circuit around the country, presumably to judge in various matters and give guidance. Such visits may have been marked by offering sacrifices (the meat of which would have been shared with the leaders of the community at a banquet). Bethlehem was only a small town, however, and the elders’ reaction (1 Sam 16:4) suggests that such a prophetic visit was unusual and evoked fear that perhaps the community had done something wrong. Some commentators are also concerned that God is portrayed as encouraging a lie or at least a half-truth here. However, it was only prudent for Samuel not to draw immediate attention to God’s choice and use the normal proceedings of a sacrificial banquet, which did happen (1 Sam 16:5), to dispose of his other errand.

[2] Stephen B. Chapman helpfully points out, ‘Just as Eliab, like Saul, is not to be chosen simply because he looks like a king, David is not to be dismissed because he looks attractive either. To choose or not to choose a king based upon external characteristics is wrong, because in both cases the physical characteristics become the determining criteria for the choice, rather than the internal qualities that God prizes.’ 1 Samuel as Christian Scripture: A Theological Commentary (Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 2016), 148.

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