28 David Anointed King – Part 2

The fact that the young man (probably a teenager at the time) David, had been anointed to be the next king of Israel, didn’t mean he would automatically ascend to the throne. It would be a period of twenty-five years before he would be recognized as king.

His anointing had been a very private affair, with only his family being present. So, for much of those twenty-five years, it was not widely known that God had chosen David to become the next king.

1 Saul’s Rejection Ratified

Because Saul remained on the throne a long while after the Lord declared that He would remove Saul from the throne, we must understand, that those initial words from Samuel to Saul, were much like a verdict being rendered, but not the full adjudication.

Only the Lord knew, exactly when the kingdom would be torn from Saul.

However, at some point after Samuel advised Saul of God’s declaration, Saul’s spiritual condition took a decided turn for the worse.

Under the Old Covenant, the Holy Spirit interacted with God’s people differently than He does in the New Testament.

Old Testament believers had a more distant relationship with the Lord than those under the New Testament.

Therefore, under the Old Covenant, the Holy Spirit was “with” God’s people, whereas under the New, He lives “within” us:

John 14:17

In the original Greek, the word translated as “dwell” means to “tabernacle with” and therefore, denotes a place of permanence.

Therefore, it speaks of having a permanent relationship with the Holy Spirit.

There was an interesting development when David was anointed as king, the Holy Spirit came upon and remained with him:

1 Samuel 16:13

However, there something else of interest, as it was during this time in which the Holy Spirit departed from Saul.

The passage indicates that Sauk was afflicted by a distressing spirit from the Lord.

It doesn’t mean that God sent the demonic spirit, but He allowed it, in essence, giving Saul over to his own desires, since the Holy Spirit had departed from the king, who opened himself up to the demonic, due to his rebellion.

The king’s servants became concerned seeing the monarch in such a state, and suggested he allow for a skilled musician to sooth his torment with the pleasing sounds of a harp.

2 God’s Providence at Hand

As seen throughout the book, the Lord was working behind the scenes, bringing about His will:

1 Samuel 16:17-23

Saul was agreeable to the suggestion, and instructed his servants to find a skillful musician who might play in such a manner as to sooth his troubled spirit.

In verse 18, the servants reported they had found such a musician, the son of Bethlehemite named Jesse.

Of course, Saul had no idea that this musician was the man whom Samuel had already anointed to be his replacement as king.

• As for David, we see that after his anointing, he continued living his life as he’d always done, remaining in Bethlehem, tending his father’s sheep.
• However, he also become a skilled musician.

The Hebrew word we have translated as “skillful” not only speaks of someone who’s mastered the technical abilities of his craft, but who also gave great care and dedication to it.

• Even at his young age, he was also described as “a mighty man of valor, a man of war” showing that he’d served well fighting on behalf of Israel.
• David was also described as being “prudent in speech” which shows that he was “careful and diplomatic in s speech, which is vital for any good leader.
• Then, he was described as being a handsome man, which didn’t only refer to features, but of his presence. He was certainly someone who was very much presentable but didn’t call attention to himself.
• Finally, it was said “the Lord is with him”. The irony is that while the Holy Spirit had left Saul. But He was with David.

Verses 19-23 records David entering the service of the king.

Saul then requested Jesse allow his son David to serve in his court. Jesse not only obliged, by sending David, but he sent the king gifts as well.

Saul was so pleased with David’s service, that he then requested Jesse allow him to remain full-time, and even made David his armorbearer, which was a highly trusted position.

So, as David would play upon the harp (possibly some of the psalms which he composed) the king’s troubled was calmed.