1 Samuel 16:1-7 (NRSV)
Read 1 Samuel 16:1-7 on biblegateway.com
Chapter 16The Lord said to Samuel, "How long will you grieve over Saul? I have rejected him from being king over Israel. Fill your horn with oil and set out; I will send you to Jesse the Bethlehemite, for I have provided for myself a king among his sons." Verse 2Samuel said, "How can I go? If Saul hears of it, he will kill me." And the Lord said, "Take a heifer with you, and say, 'I have come to sacrifice to the Lord.' Verse 3Invite Jesse to the sacrifice, and I will show you what you shall do; and you shall anoint for me the one whom I name to you." Verse 4Samuel did what the Lord commanded, and came to Bethlehem. The elders of the city came to meet him trembling, and said, "Do you come peaceably?" Verse 5He said, "Peaceably; I have come to sacrifice to the Lord; sanctify yourselves and come with me to the sacrifice." And he sanctified Jesse and his sons and invited them to the sacrifice.
Verse 6When they came, he looked on Eliab and thought, "Surely the Lord's anointed is now before the Lord." Verse 7But the Lord said to Samuel, "Do not look on his appearance or on the height of his stature, because I have rejected him; for the Lord does not see as mortals see; they look on the outward appearance, but the Lord looks on the heart."
Devotion
During Lent we are called back to God’s ancient stories of providing for the well-being of a holy people. We hear this word of caution: “The Lord does not see as mortals see; they look on the outward appearance, but the Lord looks on the heart” (1 Samuel 16:7). It’s tempting to get caught in our own expectations for how God is creating a new future for us and for the world. What are some ways you have been fooled like Samuel into expecting God’s plan to unfold in a predictable fashion?
Prayer
Gracious God, help me stop my inclination to predict how and where you are opening up a new future for me and for this world. Grant me grace to watch for your surprises. In Christ’s name I pray. Amen.