DAVID ANOINTED AS A KING David’s life as a king and a prophet occupies a great space in the Holy Bible, more than any other king or prophet. His life had been characterized by continuous growth: faithfulness in his youth, in Saul’s palace, and in his own kingdom; and when he happened to fall into sin, he managed to rise by repentance. 1- Anointing David among his brothers 1 – 13. 2- David refreshes Saul’s spirit 14 – 23. 1- ANOINTING DAVID AMONG HIS BROTHERS Samuel, Persisting on his grief for what happened to Saul, as a result of his spirit of rebellion, whose fruit, he and the people would suffer, was told by The Lord: “How long will you mourn for Saul, seeing I have rejected him from reigning over Israel? Fill your horn with oil, and go; I am sending you to Jesse the Bethlehemite. For I have provided myself a king among his sons” (1 Samuel 16: 1). Samuel had for long prayed for Saul’s repentance, and for his return to God. Samuel was known for his big heart, and his persistence on raising prayers, for the benefit of many, except Saul, who refrained from repenting his erroneous ways. St. John Chrysostom says: [The prayers of saints have very great power, on condition of our repentance and doing good. Even Moses, who saved his brother beside 600,000 men from the wrath of God, that was about to befell them, had no power to save his own sister (Exodus 32; Numbers 12)1]. By a divine command, Samuel stopped mourning, to have his heart filled with divine comfort. God transformed the evil of Saul into something good; He ordered Samuel to fill his horn with oil to anoint the son of Jesse the Bethlehemite, as a king. When the world gets dark in the sight of men, In the last watch of the night, God transfigures amid his disciples, to grant them what is beyond their imagination. As the children of Israel lost their hope, and Samuel kept on crying and mourning, the Lord said to him: “I have provided myself a king among his sons (sons of Jesse) “ (1 Samuel 10: 1) God saw what men could not see; He saw among the sons of Jesse, a blessed son, whom He would dedicate to Himself, and would set as a king over His people; who would be capable of working amid the darkness that then prevailed. Therefore, we should realize that God has got certain persons, whom He chooses to work for His kingdom, and whom He would Himself support. Samuel was apprehensive for his safety, having been aware of Saul’s foolishness and aggression; but the Lord planned for him to take a heifer with him and say, “I have come to sacrifice to the Lord’,” and at the same time, to anoint David as a king...; the first part of the plan was to be carried out publicly, while the second part was to be carried out in secret. By that Samuel would not need to lie, if he was asked about the reason for his coming to Bethlehem; but would reveal only a part of the truth. Why was the sacrifice offered in Bethlehem publicly, while David was anointed secretly amid his brothers (1 Samuel 16: 13)? a- To spare Samuel getting killed by Saul, as we said. 1 In Matt. Hom 5. 3 b- The time was not yet ripe to declare David a king, as he would not reign except after the death of Saul. Nevertheless he was given the anointment as a divine grace, to support him to work in preparation for his reign. c- For the sacrifice refers to the cross (The sacrifice of the Lord Christ); whereas the reign, although it began by the cross - as the Lord reigned on a tree - yet that was consummated by His resurrection and His ascension to heavens, to reign and to grant us to reign together with Him by His Holy Spirit. The crucifixion took place publicly on the mountain of Calvary, so that no man could find an excuse not to believe in the free salvation given by the Lord; whereas resurrection and ascension, are two things that represent a glory that is granted only to those close to Him, who have accepted the cross in their life. Let us then get publicly slain, together with Christ every day, in order to have Him reign secretly over our hearts; Let us suffer with Him publicly, to be glorified with Him in secret. The prophet Samuel came to Bethlehem, meaning (House of the bread); about 6 miles south of Jerusalem, in the land of Judah. While the elders of the town trembled at his coming, for fear that they might have transgressed in something, Samuel was rejoicing in his depths because of the coming anointment of a king to the Lord. In that city, the Lord Christ was to be born - the King of Kings - for the terror of Herod and his men, but for the rejoice of heaven, together with the believers, as He was to come for the salvation of the world. What would terrify some, would be the cause of joy to others. Why was David chosen, while he was the youngest of his brothers? a- The Lord said to the prophet Samuel, as he wanted to anoint the oldest son ‘Eliab’ {most probably Elihu who later on became a chief over the tribe of Judah]: “Do not look at his appearance or at the height of his stature, because I have refused him. For the Lord does not see as man sees; for man looks at the outward appearance, but the Lord looks at the heart” (1 Samuel 16: 7). And as St. Clement of Alexandria says: [The handsome in appearance was not anointed but he who was handsome in his soul1]. The Lord chose him for his inner purity and the beauty of his soul, rather than for his outer appearance. The Lord had previously given Israel, a tall and a handsome king, according to their demand; But now He is giving them a king according His own heart. So Jesse paraded his seven sons before Samuel {among whom were ‘Abinadab’ and ‘Shammah’, who was called ‘Shimeah’ in 2 Samuel 13: 3); the Lord did not choose any of them. Finally he called the youngest son who was tending to the sheep (1 Samuel 16: 11) to be anointed a shepherd over the sheep of the Lord. b- David who “was faithful over a few things, was mad ruler over many things” (Matthew 25: 21). Because he was the youngest of Jesse’s sons, he was disregarded by his father (1 Samuel 16: 11), and despised by his brothers (1 Samuel 17: 28). But God saw in himthe faithful heart that was worthy of leading His people. For example, he learned from tending the sheep, to love every single one of his father’s flock; and to boldly defend them against the wild beasts (the lion and the bear) (1 Samuel 17: 34). During his keeping the sheep he learned to play the harp, a talent used by God to introduce him to king Saul; He enjoyed nature, to praise God with spiritual psalms; He also learned to strike with the sling, to help him kill the mighty ‘Goliath’. 1 Paed. 3: 2. 4 c- David was the eighth and the youngest among his brothers. Being the eighth refers to the heavenly life (as the number 7 refers to time -7 days of the week - and the number 8 to beyond the time1); as though he symbolized the Lord Christ, the heavenly King who became the last, having “”made Himself of no reputation” for our sake (Philippians 2: 7), occupied the last row, in order to embrace all in Him, and to bring them with His Holy Spirit to the bosom of the heavenly Father. d- The word ‘David’ is probably derived from ‘dod,’ that means (love) or (beloved) 2. God sets from those beloved by Him, who respond to His love, kings to inherit, together with Him, His Kingdom. Without love, a believer would never enjoy eternal life. e- St. Augustine3 sees in choosing the young David, and not another one of his brothers, a symbolic act for choosing the Gentiles as members of the Church of the New Testament, to reign in the Lord, and not the Jews who preceded them in knowledge, but rejected the faith. It is as though the Gentiles, are David, the youngest of his brothers, who received the grace of royalty from God, and not his older brothers. And as the Lord Christ Himself says: “ So the last will be first, and the first last” (Matthew 20: 16). In the same way, Abel was preferred to Cain his older brother; Isaac to Ishmael; Jacob to Esau his twin brother; and also Perez to Zerah (Genesis 38: 29). The choice of David, the youngest among his brothers, as a king, symbolized the Person of the Lord Christ, who occupied the last row of mankind, became a servant for our sake, so as, by the cross, He would reign in our hearts. He is the second Adam, who reigned instead of the first Adam (Romans 5), to become the head of humanity capable of lifting it up and renewing it. 2- DAVID REFRESHES SAUL’S SPIRIT While we hear about David: “The Spirit of the Lord came upon David from that day forward”(1 Samuel 16: 13), We hear about Saul: “The Spirit of the Lord departed from Saul, and a distressing spirit from the Lord troubled him”(1 Samuel 16: 14). The Spirit of the Lord came upon David, the same way it “hovered over the face of the waters” (genesis 1: 2), to create from the void and formless earth, a beautiful world full of life. David therefore enjoyed the Spirit of the Lord, that granted him the grace of royalty - the wise leadership of the people of God - so as not to work on his own, but in the Lord. In the New Testament, the Only begotten Son sent His Holy Spirit, to grant us son hood to God the Father, and to renew our nature, sanctifying it, to become according to the image of the Son and like Him. It is possible for man to partake of the divine nature, but only through the Spirit. St. Cyril the Great4 Once more the Spirit is called “the Spirit of holiness and renewal”...; the apostle Paul writes: “His Son Jesus Christ our Lord... is declared to be the Son of God with power, according to the Spirit of holiness, by the resurrection from the dead” (Romans 1: 4); and also says: “You were washed, but you were sanctified, but you were justified in the name of the Lord Jesus and by the Spirit of our God” (1 Corinthians 6: 11). He wrote to Titus, saying: “But when the kindness and love of 1 Cf. St. Jerome: Om Ps. Hom. 3. 2 Nelson: A New Catholic Comm., p 314. 3 On Ps. 78 (9). 4 On John, book 10: 5. 5 God our Savior toward man appeared, not by works of righteousness which we have done, but according to His mercy He saved us, through the washing of regeneration and renewing of the Holy Spirit, whom He poured out on us abundantly through Jesus Christ our Savior, that having been justified by His grace we should become heirs according to the hope of eternal life” (Titus 3: 4 - 7). He is the One who does not become holy by any other, nor is he a partner in holiness; but He is Himself, the Grantor of fellowship; and in Him all creation becomes holy. The Spirit is also called the Grantor of life: “He who raised Christ from the dead will also give life to your mortal bodies through His Spirit who dwells in you” (Romans 8: 11) St. Athanasius the apostolic1 St. Basil the Great presents Saul as an example of him who rejects the Spirit of God in him; as the Book says: “The Spirit of the Lord departed from Saul and a distressing Spirit from the Lord troubled him” (1 Samuel 16: 14). St. Basil says: [The Spirit is always present in those who are worthy of it; working according to need: either through prophecies, healing, or any other miracles...; and the Spirit will not stay in those who- because of their lack of steadfastness - reject the grace they got; as for example Saul, and the 70 elders of the children of Israel, except for ‘Eldad’ and ‘Medad’ (Numbers 11: 25, 26) 2]. St. Jerome says in his ninth homily on the psalms: [God withdrew, so a distressing spirit troubled Saul]. We should not get confused by the phrase: “A distressing spirit from the Lord troubled him” (1 Samuel 16: 14); as that does not mean that the distressing spirit is coming from the Lord; or that what befell Saul was from the Lord; The apostle James says: “God can not be tempted by evil, nor does He Himself tempt anyone” (James 1: 13). Saul, rejecting the Spirit of the Lord, set himself a dwelling place, decorated and ready, with no hindrance, for the distressing spirit; so the Lord forsook him to himself.. He gave him his heart’s wish. With the same meaning, the apostle Paul says: “Therefore God gave them up to uncleanness, in the lusts of their hearts, to dishonor their bodies among themselves..., For this reason God gave them up to vile passions..., and even as they did not like to retain God in their knowledge, God gave them over to a debased mind, to do those things which are not fitting” (Romans 1: 24 - 28). When man persists on rejecting God, and on delivering himself to evil, God forsakes him, namely, gives him up to the lusts of his will God will allow to chastise him. Saul’s servants advised him, to seek out a man who would be a skillful player on the harp, to let him refresh his soul; and they actually brought David, the son of Jesse the Bethlehemite, who was skillful in playing the harp, “a mighty man of valor, a man of war, prudent in speech, and a handsome person; and the Lord is with him” (1 Samuel 16: 18) What is that harp that makes man refreshed and well, and lets the distressing spirit depart from him (1 Samuel 16: 23), but the word of God in the New and Old Testaments; including the (strings) of law, prophecies, praises, gospels, and apostolic writings, etc.... The scholar Origen says: [The Holy Book is God’s one, integrated, 1 Ad Serapion 1: 22, 23. 2 On the Spirit, ch 26 (61). 6 and harmonious instrument, that provides, through various tunes, the one voice of salvation, for those willing to learn; That harp which nullifies and resist the work of every distressing spirit; like when David calmed down the distressing spirit that was troubling Saul1]. David appeared as a man of valor, fighting with no weapon to protect the sheep under his care; as a man of war; although he never practiced that sort of life, his natural capabilities qualified him for it; as he was prudent in his speech and sweet in his psalms; and a handsome person. Yet his most prominent attribute was that “the Lord was with him”; that was the true secret of his power. 1 In Matt. Book 2.
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