Samuel is sent to Bethlehem, where he anointeth David: who is taken into Saul’s family.
Samuel by Gods commandment annointeth Dauid King. 14. Gods spirite parteth from Saul, and a wicked spirite vexeth him. 16. the vexation is mitigated by Dauids playing on a harpe
1And the Lord said to Samuel: How long wilt thou mourn for Saul, whom I have rejected from reigning over Israel? fill thy horn with oil, and come, that I may send thee to Isai, the Bethlehemite: for I have provided me a king among his sons.E il Signore disse a Samuele: Fino a quando piangerai tu Saul mentre io lo ho rigettato, perchè non regni sopra Israele? Riempi di olio il tuo corno, e vieni, perch'io ti spedisca a casa d'Isai di Bethlehem: perocché tra' figliuoli di lui mi son provveduto un re.AND our Lord said to Samuel: How long doest thou mourne Saul, whom I haue reiected that he rule not ouer Israel? fil thy horne with oile, and come, that I may send thee to Isai the Bethlehemite: for I haue prouided me a king among his sonnes.Dixitque Dominus ad Samuelem: Usquequo tu luges Saul, cum ego projecerim eum ne regnet super Israël ? Imple cornu tuum oleo, et veni, ut mittam te ad Isai Bethlehemitem: providi enim in filiis ejus mihi regem. 2And Samuel said: How shall I go? for Saul will hear of it, and he will kill me. And the Lord said: Thou shalt take with thee a calf of the herd, and thou shalt say: I am come to sacrifice to the Lord.E Samuele disse: Come andrò io? perocché saprallo Saul, e mi ucciderà. E il Signore disse: Condurrai colla tua mano un vitello di branco, e dirai: Son venuto per sacrificare al Signore.And Samuel said: How shal I goe? for Saul wil heare of it, and wil kil me. And our Lord said: A calfe of the heard shalt thou take in thy hand, and shalt say: I am come to immolate vnto our Lord.Et ait Samuel: Quomodo vadam ? audiet enim Saul, et interficiet me. Et ait Dominus: Vitulum de armento tolles in manu tua, et dices: Ad immolandum Domino veni. 3And thou shalt call Isai to the sacrifice, and I will shew thee what thou art to do, and thou shalt anoint him whom I shall shew to thee.E inviterai Isai alla vittima, e io t'insegnerò quello che tu abbia da fare, e ungerai quello che io ti accennerò.And thou shalt cal Isai to the victime, and I wil shew thee what thou must doe, and thou shalt annointe whomsoeuer I shal shew to thee.Et vocabis Isai ad victimam, et ego ostendam tibi quid facias, et unges quemcumque monstravero tibi. 4Then Samuel did as the Lord had said to him. And he came to Bethlehem, and the ancients of the city wondered, and meeting him, they said: Is thy coming hither peaceable?Fece adunque Samuele, come gli avea detto il Signore. E andò a Bethlehem, e ne restarono meravigliati i seniori della città, e gli andarono incontro, e dissero: Porti tu pace?Samuel therefore did as our Lord spake to him. And he came into Bethlehem, and the ancientes of the citie merueled, meeting him, and they said: Is thy entrance peaceable?Fecit ergo Samuel sicut locutus est ei Dominus. Venitque in Bethlehem, et admirati sunt seniores civitatis occurrentes ei: dixeruntque: Pacificusne est ingressus tuus ?
5And he said: It is peaceable: I am come to offer sacrifice to the Lord, be ye sanctified, and come with me to the sacrifice. And he sanctified Isai and his sons, and called them to the sacrifice.Ed egli disse: Porto pace: sono venuto per offerire sacrifizio al Signore: purificatevi, e venite meco affinchè io faccia l'immolazione. Egli adunque purificò Isai, e i suoi figliuoli, e chiamogli al sacrifizio.And he said: Peaceable: I am come to immolate vnto our Lord, be ye sanctified, and come with me that I may immolate. He therefore sanctified Isai and his sonnes, and called them to the sacrifice.Et ait: Pacificus: ad immolandum Domino veni: sanctificamini, et venite mecum ut immolem. Sanctificavit ergo Isai et filios ejus, et vocavit eos ad sacrificium. 6And when they were come in, he saw Eliab, and said: Is the Lord’s anointed before him?E mentre essi entravano (Samuele) gettò gli occhi sopra Eliab, e disse: Sarebb'egli davanti al Signore l'unto di lui?And when they were entered in, he saw Eliab, and said: Is there before our Lord his Christ?Cumque ingressi essent, vidit Eliab, et ait: Num coram Domino est christus ejus ? 7And the Lord said to Samuel: Look not on his countenance, nor on the height of his stature: because I have rejected him, nor do I judge according to the look of man: for man seeth those things that appear, but the Lord beholdeth the heart.Ma il Signore disse a Samuele: Non badare al suo volto, nè alla statura grande di lui, perocché io l'ho rigettato, e io non giudico secondo quel che apparisce allo sguardo dell'uomo: perchè l'uomo vede le cose che dan negli occhi, ma il Signore mira il cuore.And our Lord said to Samuel. Respect not his countenāce, nor the talnes of his stature: because I haue reiected him, neither doe I iudge according to the looke of man: for man seeth those thinges which appeare, but our Lord beholdeth the hart.Et dixit Dominus ad Samuelem: Ne respicias vultum ejus, neque altitudinem staturæ ejus: quoniam abjeci eum, nec juxta intuitum hominis ego judico: homo enim videt ea quæ parent, Dominus autem intuetur cor. 8And Isai called Abinadab, and brought him before Samuel. And he said: Neither hath the Lord chosen this,E Isai chiamò Abinadab, e presentollo a Samuele, il quale disse: neppur questo è l'eletto del Signore.And Isai called Aminadab, and brought him before Samuel. Who said: Neither this hath our Lord chosen.Et vocavit Isai Abinadab, et adduxit eum coram Samuele. Qui dixit: Nec hunc elegit Dominus. 9And Isai brought Samma, and he said of him: Neither hath the Lord chosen this.E Isai gli condusse Samma; e di lui quegli disse: Questo pure non è l'eletto del Signore.And Isai brought Samma, of whom he sayd: This also hath not our Lord chosen.Adduxit autem Isai Samma, de quo ait: Etiam hunc non elegit Dominus.
10Isai therefore brought his seven sons before Samuel: and Samuel said to Isai: The Lord hath not chosen any one of these.Isai adunque fece venire i suoi sette figliuoli dinanzi a Samuele, e Samuele disse ad Isai: nissun di questi è l'eletto dal Signore.Isai therefore brought his seauen sonnes before Samuel: and Samuel sayd to Isai: Our Lord hath not chosen of these.Adduxit itaque Isai septem filios suos coram Samuele: et ait Samuel ad Isai: Non elegit Dominus ex istis. 11And Samuel said to Isai: Are here all thy sons? He answered: There remaineth yet a young one, who keepeth the sheep. And Samuel said to Isai: Send, and fetch him: for we will not sit down till he come hither.E Samuele disse ad Isai: Non hai tu altri figliuoli? E quegli rispose: resta ancora un fanciullo, che pasce le pecore. Samuele disse ad Isai: Fallo condur qua, conciossiachè non ci metteremo a tavola, prima che egli venga.And Samuel sayd to Isai: Are al thy sonnes now fully come? Who answered: Yet there is left a litle one, and he feedeth sheepe. And Samuel sayd to Isai: Send, and bring him: for neither wil we sitte downe til he come hither.Dixitque Samuel ad Isai: Numquid jam completi sunt filii ? Qui respondit: Adhuc reliquus est parvulus, et pascit oves. Et ait Samuel ad Isai: Mitte, et adduc eum: nec enim discumbemus priusquam huc ille veniat. 12He sent therefore and brought him. Now he was ruddy and beautiful to behold, and of a comely face. And the Lord said: Arise, and anoint him, for this is he.Quegli allora mandò a prenderlo, e lo presentò. Or egli era di pelo rosso, di bell'aspetto, e di viso avvenente. E il Signore disse: Su via, ungilo; egli è desso.He sent therefore, and brought him. And he was reade and beautiful to behold, and of a comelie face. And our Lord said: Arise, and annoint him, for he it is.Misit ergo, et adduxit eum. Erat autem rufus, et pulcher aspectu, decoraque facie: et ait Dominus: Surge, unge eum: ipse est enim. 13Then Samuel took the horn of oil, and anointed him in the midst of his brethren: and the Spirit of the Lord came upon David from that day forward: and Samuel rose up, and went to Ramatha.Samuele adunque prese il corno dell'olio, e alla presenza de' suoi fratelli lo unse: e da quel giorno in poi lo spirito del Signore posò sopra Davidde: e Samuele partì e andò a Ramatha.Samuel therefore tooke the horne of oile, and annointed him in the middes of his brethren: and the Spirit of our Lord from that day, and so forward was directed vpon Dauid: and Samuel rising went into Ramatha.Tulit ergo Samuel cornu olei, et unxit eum in medio fratrum ejus: et directus est spiritus Domini a die illa in David, et deinceps. Surgensque Samuel abiit in Ramatha.
14But the Spirit of the Lord departed from Saul, and an evil spirit from the Lord troubled him.Ma si ritirò da Saul lo Spirito del Signore, e lo vessava (permettendolo il Signore) uno spirito malo.And the Spirit of our Lord departed from Saul, and a wicked spirit vexed him, from our Lord.Spiritus autem Domini recessit a Saul, et exagitabat eum spiritus nequam a Domino. 15And the servants of Saul said to him: Behold now an evil spirit from God troubleth thee.E i cortigiani di Saul dissero a lui: Ecco che tu sei travagliato (permettendolo Dio) da uno spirito malo.And the seruantes of Saul said to him: Behold an euil spirit of God vexeth thee,Dixeruntque servi Saul ad eum: Ecce spiritus Dei malus exagitat te. 16Let our lord give orders, and thy servants who are before thee, will seek out a man skilful in playing on the harp, that when the evil spirit from the Lord is upon thee, he may play with his hand, and thou mayst bear it more easily.Se tu, signor nostro, il comandi, li servi tuoi che stanno intorno a te, cercheranno di un uomo abile in sonar l'arpa, affinchè quando ti prende (permettendolo il Signore) lo spirito malo, ei lo suoni, e tu ne risenta alleggiamento.Let our lord command, and thy seruantes which are before thee, wil seeke a man skilful to play on the harpe, that when the euil spirit of our Lord shal take thee, he may play with his hand, and thou beare it more it more easily.Jubeat dominus noster, et servi tui qui coram te sunt quærent hominem scientem psallere cithara, ut quando arripuerit te spiritus Domini malus, psallat manu sua, et levius feras. 17And Saul said to his servants: Provide me then some man that can play well, and bring him to me.E Saul disse a' suoi servi: Trovatemi adunque qualcheduno che suoni bene, e conducetelo a me.And Saul sayd to his seruantes: Prouid me therefore some man that playeth wel, and bring him to me.Et ait Saul ad servos suos: Providete ergo mihi aliquem bene psallentem, et adducite eum ad me. 18And one of the servants answering, said: Behold I have seen a son of Isai, the Bethlehemite, a skilful player, and one of great strength, and a man fit for war, and prudent in his words, and a comely person: and the Lord is with him.E uno de' servi disse: Poco fa ho veduto il figliuolo d'Isai di Bethlehem che sa sonare, è dotato di gran fortezza, e buono per la guerra, prudente nel parlare, e di bell'aspetto: e il Signore è con lui.And one of the seruantes answering, sayd: Behold I haue seene the sonne of Isai the Bethlehemite skilful to play, and very valiant in strength, and a warlike man, and wise in his wordes, and a beautiful man: and our Lord is with him.Et respondens unus de pueris, ait: Ecce vidi filium Isai Bethlehemitem scientem psallere, et fortissimum robore, et virum bellicosum, et prudentem in verbis, et virum pulchrum: et Dominus est cum eo.
19Then Saul sent messengers to Isai, saying: Send me David, thy son, who is in the pastures.Saul adunque mandò a dire a Isai: mandami Davidde tuo figliuolo, che va alla pastura.Saul therfore sent messengers to Isai saying: Send vnto me Dauid thy sonne, which is in the pastures.Misit ergo Saul nuntios ad Isai, dicens: Mitte ad me David filium tuum, qui est in pascuis. 20And Isai took an ass laden with bread, and a bottle of wine, and a kid of the flock, and sent them by the hand of David, his son, to Saul.E Isai prese un asino carico di pane, e un otre di vino, e un capretto, e mandò il tutto a Saulle per le mani di David suo figliuolo.Isai therefore tooke an asse loaden with loaues, and a flagon of wine, and one kidde of the goates, and sent it by the hand of Dauid his sonne to Saul.Tulit itaque Isai asinum plenum panibus, et lagenam vini, et hædum de capris unum, et misit per manum David filii sui Sauli. 21And David came to Saul, and stood before him: and he loved him exceedingly, and made him his armourbearer.E David andò a trovar Saul, e si presentò dinanzi a lui, ed ei gli pose grandissimo affetto, e lo fece suo scudiere.And Dauid came to Saul, and stoode before him: but he loued him excedingly, & was made his esquier.Et venit David ad Saul, et stetit coram eo: at ille dilexit eum nimis, et factus est ejus armiger. 22And Saul sent to Isai, saying: Let David stand before me: for he hath found favour in my sight.E mandò Saul a dire ad Isai: Si stia David presso di me: perchè ha trovato grazia negli occhi miei.And Saul sent to Isai, saying: Let Dauid stand in my sight: for he hath found grace in myn eies.Misitque Saul ad Isai, dicens: Stet David in conspectu meo: invenit enim gratiam in oculis meis. 23So whensoever the evil spirit from the Lord was upon Saul, David took his harp, and played with his hand, and Saul was refreshed, and was better, for the evil spirit departed from him.Ogni volta pertanto che lo spirito malo (permettendolo il Signore) investiva Saul, Davidde prendeva l'arpa, e la sonava, e Saul si riaveva, e stava meno male, perchè se ne andava da lui il malo spirito.Therefore whensoeuer the euil spirit of our Lord caught Saul, Dauid tooke his harpe, & strooke with his hand, and Saul was refreshed, and waxed better for the euil spirit departed from him.Igitur quandocumque spiritus Domini malus arripiebat Saul, David tollebat citharam, et percutiebat manu sua, et refocillabatur Saul, et levius habebat: recedebat enim ab eo spiritus malus.
16:1
Year of the World about 2934, Year before Christ 1070.
Salien
How long. It seems his tears were not soon dried up, as he lamented the fall of one whom he had formerly so much admired, and perceived what evils would ensue. (Salien)
He had hoped that the decree might have been revokable. But God now convinces him of the contrary, by ordering him to go and anoint a successor.
Calmet
Horn. Such vessels were formerly very common, and were used to contain liquor, and instead of cups, 3 Kings 1:39. (Horace, 2:Sat. 2.) The ancient silver cups, at Athens, resembled horns. (Athen. 11:7.) But the northern nations, particularly Denmark, etc., used horns to drink, as the Georgians still do. The rims are ornamented with silver, etc. (Pliny, [Natural History?] 11:37.) (Chardin) (Calmet)
Menochius
A fragile vile was not used, but a horn, to denote the duration and abundance of David's reign. (Rupert) (Menochius)
16:2
Haydock
Of the herd. Hebrew, "a heifer in thy hand." (Haydock)
Females might be employed as peace-offerings, Leviticus 3:1.
Haydock
Lord. This was one, though not the principal reason. No one doubted but that he might lawfully offer sacrifice, at a distance from the tabernacle, as he was guided by God. The Jews allow that prophets have this privilege, and may dispense with the ceremonial law, (Grotius) when they act by God's authority, as we ought to believe they do, as long as there is no proof to the contrary. (Haydock)
16:3
Calmet
Sacrifice, to partake of the feast, (Menochius) which must be consumed in two days, or thrown into the fire, Leviticus 7:16. (Calmet)
16:4
Menochius
Wondered. Hebrew, "trembled," being full of consternation, (Haydock) as the prophet did not now stir much from home; and fearing lest he had some bad news to impart, or had incurred the king's displeasure, (Calmet) unless he came to punish some of the people at Bethlehem. (Menochius)
16:5
Menochius
Sanctified, prepared by aspersions, washing, and continence, Exodus 19:14. What sorts of uncleanness excluded from the feast, are specified, Leviticus xxii. (Menochius)
16:6
Calmet
Him. Hebrew, "surely the Lord's anointed is in his presence." This he spoke by his own spirit, judging from the comeliness of Eliab. (Calmet)
Haydock
But the beauty of Saul's body had concealed a deformed soul. (Haydock)
16:7
Menochius
Rejected, or not chosen. (Menochius)
Haydock
God had positively rejected this eldest son, as his pride seems to have been the greatest, 1 Kings 17:28. (Haydock)
Worthington
Heart. This is one of God's perfections. Glorified saints see man's heart in his light, for their own and our advantage, (St. Gregory, Mor. 12:11.; St. Augustine) as the prophets have sometimes done, 3 Kings xiv. (Worthington)
16:10
Calmet
Seven. David was absent. Isai had eight sons, 1 Kings 17:12. Yet only seven are mentioned, 1 Paralipomenon 2:13. Perhaps one of those whom he produced on this occasion, might be a grandson, or one is omitted in Chronicles [Paralipomenon]. (Calmet)
16:11
Menochius
Young son, (parvulus,) "a little one;" (Haydock) or the youngest, who might be about 15, (Calmet) or 28. (Seder. olam. iii.) (Menochius)
16:12
Ruddy, like the spouse, Canticle of Canticles 5:10. Some explain it of his hair. So Alexander [the Great] is said to have had reddish or golden locks.
Behold. Hebrew, "with the beauty of the eyes."
16:13
Calmet
Brethren. Some say, without informing him, (Calmet) or them, (Menochius) what the unction meant. If he told the brothers, he would no doubt take the necessary precautions to keep it secret, as the whole family would have been in imminent danger, if the transaction had come to the ears of Saul, ver. 2. Josephus says, that Samuel only informed Isai in private: and David's brothers treated him with no peculiar distinction. Whence it is inferred, that they had not been present when he was anointed. Some witnesses seem, however, to have been requisite, as the title of David to the regal dignity depended on this ceremony, and none were more interested than his own family to assert his pretensions. He now had a right to the kingdom, but not the possession; being like a son expecting his father's estate as his future right, of which, as yet, he cannot dispose. (Calmet)
Menochius
Came upon, to make him prosper. (Menochius)
Calmet
Hebrew, "came with prosperity; (Septuagint) impetuosity." God endued him with all those graces which might render him fit to command. (Calmet)
Haydock
So David prays himself, "with a princely spirit confirm me;" (Psalm 50:14.) or, strengthen me with a perfect spirit. Salien observes, that he did not now receive the spirit of charity, as if he had hitherto been in enmity with God, (chap. 13:14.) but he began to advance in virtue with more rapid strides, while Saul became every day more criminal and abandoned to the devil. (Haydock)
Salien
David received the spirit of fortitude and of prophecy, of which Saul had formerly had some experience, when he was first elevated to that high dignity, 1 Kings 10. He was changed into a new man, and adorned with all that could render a king most glorious. Though he returned to his wonted occupations, the spirit of the Lord enabled him to destroy wild beasts, as in play, (Ecclesiasticus 47:3.) and to compose and sing many of those divine canticles [the Psalms] which we still admire. (Salien, the year of the world 2969.)
Haydock
Whether he composed all the Psalms, as St. Chrysostom endeavours to prove, (praef.) we shall examine hereafter. (Haydock)
16:14
Challoner
From the Lord. An evil spirit, by divine permission, and for his punishment, either possessed or obsessed him. (Challoner)
Haydock
We no longer behold in Saul any generous sentiments. He falls a prey to melancholy, anger, suspicion, and cruelty. "He was seized with an illness, inflicted by the devil, says Josephus, ([Antiquities?] 6:9.) so that he seemed to be choking; nor could the physicians discover any other means of alleviating his distress, except by employing some person skilled in music.... David alone could bring the king to his right senses, by singing hymns with the sound of the harp. Wherefore Jesse consented that his son should remain with the king, since he was so much delighted with his company." (Haydock)
Haydock
The Jews, and many Christians, suppose that Saul's illness was melancholy, or "madness," as St. Chrysostom calls it. It was inflicted by an evil, or even by a good angel, as the minister of God's vengeance, (Exodus 11:4.; Calmet) who punished his former pride and rebellion, by reducing him to so mean a condition. (Haydock)
Worthington
St. Augustine and Ven. Bede suppose, that the evil spirit troubled him by God's permission. (Worthington)
16:16
Calmet
Easily. The effects which have been produced by music are truly surprising, if we may believe what the ancients have related. Our music may not at present be so striking, or we may keep a greater restraint upon our passions, and moderate the exterior demonstrations of our sentiments more than they did. (Calmet)
Haydock
But, in the present case, there was probably some miraculous interference. (Haydock)
Haydock
The disciples of Pythagoras lay a great stress on music, to calm the passions, (Quintil. 9:4.; Menochius) or to rouse them. (p. 439.) (Haydock)
Calmet
It may also frequently contribute to restore health. (Gallien, etc.) See 1 Kings 10:10., and 4 Kings 3:15. (Calmet)
Worthington
But God made it so efficacious here, to shew the virtue of David, and the injustice of Saul. (Worthington)
16:18
Calmet
Him. Some think that this took place before David's victory over Goliath; others believe, that David was only made armour-bearer to Saul, after that event. We must not disturb the order of the sacred historian without some cogent reason: and the courtiers might already have heard of David's prowess and virtue, of which he gave such evident proofs, after he was confirmed by the Holy Spirit, ver. 13. (Calmet)
16:20
Menochius
Laden. So Chaldean. (Menochius)
Haydock
Literally, plenum, "full of." (Haydock)
Calmet
Septuagint, "a gomor," which they seem to have read instead of the Hebrew chamor, "an ass of bread," as Sosibius says, "he eats three asses' panniers of loaves." (Calmet)
Protestants supply, "laden."
16:21
Haydock
Bearer. This was an honourable office. (Haydock)
Calmet
Cyrus had been employed by his grandfather Astyages in the same capacity, before he came to the empire. (Athen. xiv.) (Calmet)
16:22
Calmet
Sight. He had sent him back, as people of a melancholy temper are often hard to please; (Menochius) and before David married Michol, he did not remain with the king, but only came when his presence was deemed necessary. (Calmet)
16:23
Challoner
Departed from him. Chased away by David's devotion. (Challoner)
Reeves
"The melody of David's harp, as some of the Fathers remark, represents that sweet and engaging demeanour, which should distinguish the peaceful ministers of the gospel,...whether they strive to allay the rage, or dispel the fears of a troubled mind." (Reeves)
St. Augustine
Nothing can equal the divine harmony of those sublime truths which are contained in the Psalms of David, and nothing can so powerfully contribute to drive away the spirit of pride from our hearts, and awaken them to the voice of heaven. (St. Augustine)
Haydock
Some of these truths might make some passing impression even on the mind of Saul; and the devil could not bear to hear the praises of God. (Haydock)
16:14
From the Lord.... An evil spirit, by divine permission, and for his punishment, either possessed or obsessed him.
16:23
Departed from him.... Chased away by David’s devotion.
16:7
7. Beholdeth the hart.] It is proper to God to see the secrete cogitations of How Saintes and Prophetes know mens thoughtes. mens hartes, of himselfe and by his owne powre. And glorified Sainctes know our cogitations by seing God, in whom al things appeare, that perteine to their state, and for the profite of others. S. Aug. li. de cura promortuis, c. 15. S. Greg. li. 12 c. 13. Moral. Prophetes being yet mortal, by inspiration do also see secrete cogitations. 1. Reg. 9. 3. Reg. 14. &c.
16:14
By Gods per mission. S. Aug. li 2. q. •. ad Simplician S. Beda. qq. •n 1. Reg. c. 5.
16:16
Naturally (as these men truly iudged) musique helpeth some il disposition of humores, and draweth also the mind from so vehement apprehension of afflictions: but here it semeth more probable, that God supernaturally reliued Saul by Dauids playing on the harpe, together with his sincere deuotion, for more manifest condemnation of the one, and instification of the other Glos. ordin. S. Greg.
16:1
St John Chrysostom † AD 407 The Homilies of St. John Chrysostom 5
… Though again it be Samuel who is doing this, He saith unto him, “Mourn not thou for Saul.”
St Augustine of Hippo † AD 430 Expositions on the Book of Psalms 78.34
… Nor hath he said, He rejected the tabernacle of Benjamin, or the tribe of Benjamin He chose not, out of which a king already had begun to be; for thence there had been chosen Saul; whence because of the very proximity of the time, when he had been rejected and refused, and David chosen,
16:6
St Jerome † AD 420 Against the Pelagians 1.28
xvi. 6 . The Lord sees the heart, not the outward appearance.
16:7
Tertullian † AD 220 The Prescription Against Heretics 3
… and no one is a Christian but he who perseveres even to the end. You, as a man, know any other man from the outside appearance. You think as you see. And you see as far only as you have eyes. But says (the Scripture), “the eyes of the Lord are lofty.” “Man looketh at the outward appearance, but God looketh at the heart.”
Tertullian † AD 220 On the Apparel of Women ii.13
Perhaps some (woman) will say: “To me it is not necessary to be approved by men; for I do not require the testimony of men: God is the inspector of the heart.”
St Cyprian of Carthage † AD 258 On the Lapsed 27
… Be that as it may, he will not be able to escape and avoid God his judge, seeing that the Holy Spirit says in the Psalms, “Thine eyes did see my substance, that it was imperfect, and in Thy book shall all men be written.” And again: “Man seeth the outward appearance, but God seeth the heart.”
St Cyprian of Carthage † AD 258 Three Books of Testimonies Against the Jews 3.57
In the Wisdom of Solomon: “In every place the eyes of God look upon the good and evil.” Also in Jeremiah: “I am a God at hand, and not a God afar off. If a man should be hidden in the secret place, shall I not therefore see him? Do not I fill heaven and earth? saith the Lord.” Also in the first of Kings: “Man looketh on the face, but God on the heart.”
St Gregory of Nazianzus † AD 389 Select Orations of Saint Gregory Nazianzen 40
… for it would be a sad thing for me to be defiled even in the moment of my cleansing.” Do not ask for credentials of the preacher or the baptizer. For another is his judge,
St John Chrysostom † AD 407 The Homilies of St. John Chrysostom 29
But that it belongs to God only to know men’s secrets, hear what saith the prophet, “Thou most entirely alone knowest the hearts;” and again, “God trieth the hearts and reins; ” and Jeremiah too saith, “The heart is deep above all things, and it is man, and who shall know him?” and, “Man shall look on the face, but God on the heart.”
St John Chrysostom † AD 407 Homilies on First Thessalonians 4
… 10 and 18 .) Samuel again, when he was sent to anoint David; “The Lord said to him, Look not on his countenance, nor on the height of his stature; because I have rejected him: for God seeth not as man seeth; for man looketh on the outward appearance, but God looketh on the heart.” (
St Jerome † AD 420 The Letters of St. Jerome 22.38
… Say not: “So-and-so enjoys her own property, she is honored of men, her brothers and sisters come to see her. Has she then ceased to be a virgin?” In the first place, it is doubtful if she is a virgin. For “the Lord seeth not as man seeth; for man looketh upon the outward appearance, but the Lord looketh on the heart.”
St Jerome † AD 420 The Letters of St. Jerome 125.19
… It is not I but an apostle who says: “Be not deceived; God is not mocked.” “Man looketh upon the outward appearance but the Lord looketh upon the heart.”
St Jerome † AD 420 The Letters of St. Jerome 133.2
… Yet the scripture does not say: “in comparison with thee shall no man living be justified” but “in thy sight shall no man living be justified.” And when it says “in thy sight” it means that those who seem holy to men to God in his fuller knowledge are by no means holy. For “man looketh on the outward appearance, but the Lord looketh on the heart.”
St Jerome † AD 420 Against the Pelagians 2
… You ask in what respects Abel, Enoch, Joshua the son of Nun, or Elisha, and the rest of the saints have sinned. There is no need to look for a knot in a bulrush; I freely confess I do not know; and I only wish that, when sins are manifest, I might still be silent. “I know nothing against myself,” says St. Paul, “yet am I not hereby justified.”
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St Irenaeus of Lyons † AD 202 Against Heresies 1.18.3
3. Further, they declare that the arrangement made with respect to the ark in the Deluge, by means of which eight persons were saved, most clearly indicates the Ogdoad which brings salvation. David also shows forth the same, as holding the eighth place in point of age among his brethren.
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St Jerome † AD 420 The Letters of St. Jerome 14.9
… The centurion Cornelius was still a heathen when he was cleansed by the gift of the Holy Spirit. Daniel was but a child when he judged the elders. Amos was stripping mulberry bushes when, in a moment, he was made a prophet. David was only a shepherd when he was chosen to be king.
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St Athanasius of Alexandria † AD 373 Life of Antony. (Vita Antoni.) 67
… and from his bodily movements could be perceived the condition of his soul, as it is written, ‘When the heart is merry the countenance is cheerful, but when it is sorrowful it is cast down .’ Thus Jacob recognised the counsel Laban had in his heart, and said to his wives, ‘The countenance of your father is not as it was yesterday and the day before
St John Chrysostom † AD 407 Homilies on Second Corinthians 7
… By no means. ‘For,’ saith he, ‘he did not even see him whom he commended.’ We are affected, however, somewhat similarly towards beauties also which are described to us, not only which are beheld. But that thou cavil not with us on this point:—David, was he not comely exceedingly, and ruddy with beauty of eyes? (So
St Augustine of Hippo † AD 430 Expositions on the Book of Psalms 76.1
… In these twelve was the tribe of Judah, whence the kings were. For at first from another tribe was given King Saul, and he was rejected as being an evil king; after there was given from the tribe of Judah King David, and out of him from the tribe of Judah were the Kings.
St Augustine of Hippo † AD 430 Expositions on the Book of Psalms 78.8
… so to Ismael Isaac; so to Esau, though born before him, his twin brother Jacob; so also Phares himself preceded even in birth his twin brother, who had first thrust a hand out of the womb, and had begun to be born: so David was preferred before his elder brother:
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St Gregory of Nazianzus † AD 389 Select Orations of Saint Gregory Nazianzen 43.73
73. Further, to run over the Judges, or the most illustrious of the Judges, there is “Samuel among those that call upon His Name,” who was given to God before his birth, and sanctified immediately after his birth, and the anointer with his horn of kings and priests.
St John Chrysostom † AD 407 A Commentary on the Acts of the Apostles 4
… ii. 10 .) To them it might well be in the form of a book; for they still needed similitudes. Those had to deal with only one nation, and with their own people; but these with the whole world, and with men whom they never knew. Also Elisha receives the grace through the medium of a mantle ( 2 Kings xiii .); another by oil, as David (
Pseudo-Clement The Second Epistle of the Same Clement 10
Does not the case of David instruct thee, whom God “found a man after His heart,”
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Tertullian † AD 220 De Fuga in Persecutione 2
… “And the Spirit of the Lord ,” says Scripture, “departed from Saul, and an evil spirit from the Lord troubled and stifled him;”
St Hippolytus † AD 235 The Refutation of All Heresies 5.4
… And of all men, we Christians alone are those who in the third gate celebrate the mystery, and are anointed there with the unspeakable chrism from a horn, as David (was anointed), not from an earthen vessel, he says, as (was) Saul, who held converse with the evil demon
Origen † AD 254 Origen De Principiis iv.1.8
… upon the children unto the third and fourth generation;” and that “it repenteth Me that I anointed Saul to be king;” and, “I am the Lord , who make peace and create evil;” and again, “There is not evil in a city which the Lord hath not done;” and, “Evils came down from the Lord upon the gates of Jerusalem;” and, “An evil spirit from the Lord plagued Saul;”
Origen † AD 254 Origen De Principiis iv.1-2.8
… fourth generation;” and this, “I repent of having anointed Saul to be king;” and this, “I am a God that maketh peace, and createth evil;” and, among others, this, “There is not wickedness in the city which the Lord hath not done;” and again this, “Evils came down from the Lord upon the gates of Jerusalem;” and, “An evil spirit from the Lord plagued Saul;”
Origen † AD 254 Origen's Commentary on Matthew 2
… For he knows that all the Scripture is the one perfect and harmonised instrument of God, which from different sounds gives forth one saving voice to those willing to learn, which stops and restrains every working of an evil spirit, just as the music of David laid to rest the evil spirit in Saul, which also was choking him.
Aphrahat † AD 346 Aphrahat: Select Demonstrations 6.16
16. I will instruct thee of that which is written, that the Spirit is not at every time found with those that receive it. For thus it is written about Saul, that the Holy Spirit, which he received when he was anointed, departed from him ,
St Athanasius of Alexandria † AD 373 Against the Arians. (Orationes contra Arianos IV.) 3.25
… otherwise he who has fallen is no longer in God (because that Holy Spirit and Paraclete which is in God has deserted him), but the sinner shall be in him to whom he has subjected himself, as took place in Saul’s instance; for the Spirit of God departed from him and an evil spirit was afflicting him
St Basil the Great † AD 379 De Spiritu Sancto 26
… Furthermore as in our bodies is health, or heat, or, generally, their variable conditions, so, very frequently is the Spirit in the soul; since He does not abide with those who, on account of the instability of their will, easily reject the grace which they have received. An instance of this is seen in Saul,
Pseudo-Clement The First Epistle of the Blessed Clement, the Disciple of Peter the Apostle 8
… For this cause justly does the Scripture say regarding such a generation as this: “My Spirit shall not dwell in men for ever, because they are flesh.” “Whosoever, therefore, has not the Spirit of God in him, is none of His:” as it is written, “The Spirit of God departed from Saul, and an evil spirit troubled him, which was sent upon him from God.”
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St Gregory of Nazianzus † AD 389 Select Orations of Saint Gregory Nazianzen 2.88
… What Moses is to conquer him by stretching out his hands upon the mount, in order that the cross, thus typified and prefigured, may prevail? What Joshua, as his successor, arrayed alongside the Captain of the Lord’s hosts? What David, either by harping, or fighting with his sling,
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St Augustine of Hippo † AD 430 Expositions on the Book of Psalms 51.10
… David hath taken upon him the person of mankind, and hath heeded the bonds of all men, hath considered the offspring of death, hath adverted to the origin of iniquity, and he saith, “For, behold, in iniquities I was conceived.” Was David born of adultery; being born of Jesse,
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St Augustine of Hippo † AD 430 Expositions on the Book of Psalms 73.1
… he that singeth praise, not only singeth, but also loveth him of whom he singeth. In praise, there is the speaking forth of one confessing; in singing, the affection of one loving. “There have failed” then “the hymns of David,” he saith: and he hath added, “the son of Jesse.” For David was king of Israel, son of Jesse,
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St Gregory of Nazianzus † AD 389 Select Orations of Saint Gregory Nazianzen 41
… This Spirit, for He is most wise and most loving, if He takes possession of a shepherd makes him a Psalmist, subduing evil spirits by his song,
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HOW LONG WILT THOU MOURN FOR SAUL (and mourning pray for him to be restored), SINCE I HAVE CAST HIM OFF (as disobedient, obstinate and impenitent), THAT HE MAY NOT REIGN OVER ISRAEL? — "For why, as St. Gregory says, is a rejected person bewailed, when a better one is put in his place?" Hear St. Chrysostom, homily 5 On Penance: "The blessed Samuel spent much time beseeching God for Saul, and passed many nights sleepless for the salvation of the offender. But God, rejecting time (for the repentance of the sinner does not accord with the prayer of the prophet), says to the prophet: How long wilt thou weep? How long does it show time, and the perseverance of one beseeching? And God rejected the time of the prophet's supplication. For the repentance of the king did not depend on the intercession of the just." And St. Bernard, in sermon 12 on the Canticles: "Samuel, he says, mourned for Saul, who sought to kill him, his breast burning with the fire of charity, melted within, the fat of piety flowed forth through his eyes." Chrysostom adds that it was otherwise in David, who, when corrected by Nathan for adultery and murder, repented seriously, and therefore immediately heard from him: "The Lord hath transferred thy sin" (II Kings XII). Note here and imitate the mercy and charity of Samuel toward Saul, disobedient to himself and to God. Hear St. Gregory: "What is it that he mourns for him whom he disdains to see, except that the holy Doctors, together with zeal for righteousness, have the affection of great charity; and indeed the greatness of charity is shown in this, that he is said to bewail the rejected king? With what affection, therefore, do they bewail the hidden sins of the elect, who have learned to bewail the rejected reprobate so affectionately? And the persistence of mourning is shown, because it is subjoined: How long wilt thou mourn for Saul?" SAMUEL MOURNED FOR SAUL, — because he grieved that Saul, whom he had anointed, was deprived of the kingdom, and Israel was deprived of so strong and fortunate a king; and he did not know who and what kind of successor would come to him. Add to this, he feared that Saul would be deprived not only of the kingdom, but also of life and eternal salvation; for although here he is only despoiled of the kingdom by God, yet he cast off, and in Hebrew God hath rejected thee, suggests that he is abandoned by God, about to fall into greater crimes, and to die and be damned in them, as indeed appears to have happened. But he mourned, and at the same time mourning he prayed for Saul, that he might either be restored to the kingdom, or at least not fall into further evils. For he hoped that God's decree concerning the rejection of Saul was not altogether absolute and irrevocable, but threatening, and could be bent and changed by prayers. Whence God, in the following chapter, verse 1, asserts that it is absolute; and forbids him to mourn for Saul any longer, but in his place to anoint David as king.
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FOR I HAVE PROVIDED AMONG HIS SONS A KING FOR ME, — that is, I have determined to create one of the sons of Jesse as king, who shall succeed Saul. But why does he not designate him, nor name him? St. Chrysostom gives the reason in Psalm L: "Pay attention carefully. He did not say to Samuel: Go and anoint David for me; but go, anoint for me one of the sons of Jesse. Namely, lest the same thing should happen to David which had happened before to Joseph; for as his brothers, when they understood that he would be king, laid snares for him, in the same way there was danger lest these also should perpetrate the same deed." Theodoret also expressed the same thing, Question XXXVII in Kings: "For," he says, "when even thus with the election made the brothers revealed their envy, having seen their brother in battle, what would they not have done, if it had not been done in this manner?"
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THE ELDERS MARVELLED, — and at the same time were terrified, because it was unusual for so great a Prophet and Judge to come alone; then because he was there unexpectedly, with no prior warning; whence they feared lest he should flee from an angry Saul, and should turn his wrath upon the Bethlehemites, as if they were receiving Samuel; or lest he should announce something sad. Tropologically St. Gregory: "Chosen Doctors," he says, "ought scarcely ever to be seen in public, ought to be frequent in secret, vacant from civil affairs, full of spiritual ones."
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BE SANCTIFIED, — that is, prepare yourselves in a holy manner for a holy sacrifice; to which I invite you to be present at it: although Samuel called only Jesse with his sons to the meal of the sacrifice, so that he might anoint one of his sons as king in secret. AND JESSE WAS SANCTIFIED, AND HIS SONS, AND HE CALLED THEM TO THE SACRIFICE. — "Was sanctified," that is, he ordered them to be sanctified, or purified by abstinence, that is, abstention, and by the sprinkling of lustral water: so that if they had contracted any legal irregularity, they might expiate it by this lustration. See what is said in Numbers xix. The Gentiles imitated the same thing according to that: "Pure things please the Supernal Ones, come with pure garment." And: "Until I shall have washed myself in a living river." Hence that law in Cicero, book II On Laws: "Let them approach the gods chastely." From this St. Gregory collects an argument from the lesser to the greater, and says: "If they do not dare to be present at sacrifices unless sanctified; what is to be thought of those who sacrifice? for to sanctify is to purify. How much therefore ought Pontiffs to be pure, where the people invited to sacrifice are to be admitted only if sanctified? for sanctification of the body is chastity; sanctification of the mind is charity and humility."
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AND WHEN THEY WERE COME — to the meal prepared from Samuel's completed sacrifice, for not in the sacrifice, as it was public before the elders, but in the meal before Jesse and his brothers, Samuel anointed David as king in secret; lest Saul should understand the matter and should plot death against both, namely both against Samuel and against David. AND HE SAW ELIAB, AND SAID: IS NOT THE LORD'S ANOINTED BEFORE HIM? — that is: Samuel saw Eliab, the firstborn of Jesse, and presented him to the Lord, and asked him: Is this he, O Lord, whom thou hast chosen as king, so that thou mayest command him to be anointed by me; and thus let him himself become the Christ, that is, the anointed of the Lord?
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HIS COUNTENANCE (manly, tall and elegant), NOR THE HEIGHT OF HIS STATURE (as King Saul stood out from the shoulders upward above all the people), FOR I HAVE REJECTED HIM. — In Hebrew מאסתיהו meastihu, that is, I have reprobated him; the Septuagint, because I have despised him; the Chaldean, I have removed, namely from the kingdom, that is: I have rejected Eliab, although he is the firstborn, fair and tall, so that he may not be king. Thus St. Gregory, Abulensis, Hugh, Lyran and Dionysius. Others, that is: I have rejected him, that is, my Christ, whom namely I wish to be anointed by you as king; namely I have made David rejected, that is, a young man and the youngest born among the sons of Jesse. FOR MAN SEETH THOSE THINGS THAT APPEAR, BUT THE LORD BEHOLDETH THE HEART. — In Hebrew, man sees (and seeing judges) according to the eyes (according to the appearance of external eyes), but God sees (and seeing judges) according to the heart. Wherefore men are often deceived. "The eyes and countenance often lie," and indicate a wise or upright mind, which is foolish and wicked. But the heart, that is, the mind and will, cannot lie and deceive; because it cannot feign to be other than it really is. God therefore is the Cardiognoster, that is, the inspector of the heart, nay the Lord and possessor of it. The sense is, as if he said: God sees the heart of David to be better than the heart of Eliab; although the countenance and form of Eliab be better and taller than the countenance and form of David: for this reason not to Eliab, but to David will he assign the kingdom. Hence the Septuagint translates, because man shall see in the face, but God in the heart, namely the secrets and intimate things of the heart. And the Chaldean, because the sons of men see with their eyes, and before the Lord the thoughts of the heart are manifest.
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AND JESSE BROUGHT HIS SEVEN SONS. — Jesse therefore had, or Isai (for these two names are one and the same among the Hebrews), in all eight sons. For David was absent as the eighth. You will say: In I Paralipomenon cap. III, with David only seven sons of Isai or Jesse are numbered. I answer, that not all are numbered there, but one is omitted for a reason unknown to us, perhaps because the eighth was born of a concubine, or a secondary wife; as in cap. xiv, vers. 49, three sons of Saul are numbered, and the fourth is omitted, namely Isboseth, of whom in II Kings cap. II. Otherwise Lyra, Cajetan and Dionysius; for they say that the name of the third son was Nathan, or Jonathan; and that he is omitted because he was an adopted son, not a natural one. But we read nowhere of this adoption of his. Hence it is clear that Samuel revealed to Jesse the counsel of God concerning the choosing of one of his sons as king, and anointing him. For this reason Jesse brought all his sons in order of birth to Samuel, that he might see which one God would choose from among them.
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YET THERE REMAINETH THE YOUNGEST. — See here how different are the judgments of God and men. For Jesse esteemed David as a young man and the least, and therefore a shepherd of sheep, and not worthy of the sight of Samuel: wherefore he did not bring him; but God preferred him before all his brothers, and made him king. Whence St. Ambrose, serm. 18 in Psalm. cxviii: "The father's," he says, "sheep he was feeding, sent away in a vile service, he was not presented to the priest (Samuel), as if unworthy to be anointed into the kingdom." THE YOUNGEST. — Hence also, and more from cap. xvii, vers. 23, 42, 58, many think that David, when he was anointed king, was at that time a boy in age, indeed a very young boy, as St. Chrysostom says in Psal. L; so also Josephus, Serarius and others. On the other hand the Hebrews in Seder-Olam cap. XIII, think that David at this time was 29 years old, because they think Saul reigned only two years and lived: when he died David immediately succeeded him, when he was thirty years old, as it is said in II Kings cap. v, vers. 4. The middle opinion is truer, namely that David, when he was anointed, was about twenty years old. For this age is fit for the kingdom and middle between boyhood and manhood. It is proved first, because David vers. 18 is called "very mighty in strength, a man of war and prudent in speech." Therefore he was easily twenty years old. Secondly, because, as I said in the preceding cap., Saul through disobedience in sparing Agag in the seventh year of his reign, was deprived of the kingdom by Samuel; but soon in the following year, namely the eighth of Saul's, he anointed David in his place, already rejected; but Saul afterwards reigned still ten more years: for in all he reigned 18 years. Wherefore when after ten years Saul died, and David succeeding him in the kingdom, was then thirty years old; it must be said that he, in this year in which he was first secretly anointed, was 20 years old. Thus Abulensis, Dionysius, Salianus and others. Add that Saul vers. 21, made David his armor-bearer; but armor-bearers are wont to be young men, not boys. You will say: How then is David here called the youngest? I answer, because with respect to all his brothers he was the youngest, that is the least in age, and therefore a shepherd. Hence in Hebrew it is קטן katan, that is small, as the Chaldean translates it. Hence the Septuagint translates it, the least, that is the least of the brothers. Thus Benjamin is called the youngest, that is the least in age of the sons of Jacob, Genesis cap. xliii, vers. 29, although he had already then begotten ten sons, as appears in Gen. cap. xlvi, vers. 21. AND HE FEEDETH THE SHEEP. — Thus of old the Patriarchs and Princes were farmers and shepherds of sheep, and from sheep they learned to feed and rule men. Such were Adam, Abel, Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, Joseph, Moses. Such also were the Romans, of whom Ovid, lib. I Fastor.: "He gave laws to the people, having laid aside the plow, the Praetor, and the Senator himself fed his own sheep." See the sayings cap. xi, vers. 5. SEND AND BRING HIM, FOR WE WILL NOT SIT DOWN TILL HE COME HITHER. — Hence it is clear that David was anointed before dinner, both because weighty matters are wont to be transacted before dinner; and because prophets zealous, such as Samuel was, urge the precepts of God, and will execute them immediately before other things; and because, as St. Gregory says: "In the observance of fasting the Sacraments of anointing are to be celebrated." Whence also it was ordained that none should receive the sacred chrism in Confirmation except while fasting.
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NOW HE WAS RUDDY. — In Hebrew אדמוני admoni, that is, ruddy, sanguine, red-haired, as if he were another Adam, says Theodoret, and therefore a type and figure of Christ. For the red-haired are beautiful and often of remarkable character. Whence Cedrenus writes that the Emperor Valentinian was seen to be like David, because he was ruddy, with red hair, blue eyes and beautiful. For the red color approaches to tawny, such as that of a lion, which surpasses all animals in strength, and is their king. Aristotle adds in the Physiognomy, cap. x: "Those who have a red color are sharp-witted; because all things which are bodily are reddened by heat from motion." ARISE, AND ANOINT HIM, FOR THIS IS HE — whom I have chosen for king, and I wish to be anointed by you. Moreover, St. Athanasius in the Life of St. Anthony says that David was recognized by Samuel from the gladness of his countenance, just as Anthony was recognized by the same from all among a thousand Monks: "For if anyone ignorant of him desired to see him among a multitude of Monks, without anyone pointing him out, he ran past all others to Anthony, and recognized the purity of soul from his face, and through the mirror of the body beheld the grace of his holy mind. For always bearing a cheerful countenance, he clearly showed that he was thinking of heavenly things, as Scripture says: A merry heart maketh a cheerful countenance, but in continual sorrow the spirit is cast down," says St. Athanasius. Thus Samuel, he says, recognized David: "For he had eyes full of joy and teeth white as milk." Allegorically, David was a type of Christ, who was "ruddy, says St. Gregory, because wounded by the lance; ruddy, because reddened from his passion. Whence also through the prophet it is said to him: Why then is thy garment red? Ruddy indeed he became, who colored the whiteness of such great innocence with the redness of precious blood. Beautiful also in appearance was he, because rising again he put on the beauty of immortality, and with great charity he looked upon us mortals." And further: "Ruddy therefore he was in the world, beautiful in paradise, of fair countenance eternally in heaven; and all this threefold beauty can be known in his conversation in this present life. Ruddy indeed he became, because he loved fervently those for whom he laid down his soul: beautiful in appearance was he, because he knew all things; of fair countenance, because he did all good things."
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HE TOOK THEREFORE A HORN OF OIL AND ANOINTED HIM IN THE MIDST OF HIS BRETHREN. — "Not," as Josephus says, "as if Samuel had whispered in his ear; but, that all his brethren might see the anointing and understand it, and that they might thereafter hold him in greater esteem and labour under less envy, when they saw him preferred before them," says Theodoret, Question XXXVII. Moreover, he was anointed, not that he should reign immediately, but that he should succeed Saul dying in the kingdom. Hence it is clear that the father and brethren of David knew that he was anointed by Samuel to be king. Thus Abulensis, although Cajetan denies it. David was anointed three times: first, here privately; second, publicly, when he was made king of the tribe of Judah; third, when he was made king of all the tribes. II Kings, cap. ii and v. In the Greek codices of the Psalter is added Psalm cli, which treats of this anointing, where David thus sings of himself: "I was small among my brethren, and the youngest in the house of my father; I kept my father's sheep, etc. He himself sent his angel, and took me from my father's sheep, and anointed me with the oil of his anointing. My brethren were fair and great; and the Lord was not well pleased in them." Tropologically, St. Gregory: "The horn of oil is taken up," he says, "that the master of the Church may strive to be a man of great mercy in the excellent liquid. The head of the king is anointed with oil, because he ought to shine upon the candlestick through the flame of the word. The horn receives oil, that by rebuking it may purge, and by pitying through gentleness may draw. The horn also receives in the sublimity of order oil for the fostering of virtue. But with a full horn is he anointed, that the virtue of the Pontiff may be taught to be full. For the horn has fullness in its anointing, if he is perfect both in the virtue of mercy, and of charity and of the word; the horn is also known to have fullness in its anointing, whose whole power is dispensed through mercy." And after more: "For with oil in the midst of others is he anointed, because he who is placed as an example to others ought to have no part of himself obscure, so that all may behold him, and from him take the example of light." And with a few things interjected: "Or in the midst of his brethren is he anointed, that the anointed one may always consider himself to be in the midst. Let him therefore acknowledge his dignity, and exercise the force of dignity, because he is anointed; let him see himself in the midst, and a man of common condition, that he may recognize those to whom he excels to be his equals. In the midst therefore of his brethren is he anointed, that if humble and exalted, exalted in order, humble in estimation. In the midst likewise is he anointed, that he may not love himself with private love, but from all that he excels in, may seek the gains of others. And here St. Gregory ends his moral exposition in the book of Kings." AND THE SPIRIT OF THE LORD CAME UPON DAVID FROM THAT DAY FORWARD. — You will ask, what was this spirit? I answer first, it was a spirit of fortitude both of mind and of body, which made him warlike and victorious; whence after this anointing David slew both the lion and the bear, as well as Goliath the giant. Hence the Septuagint translates, the spirit of the Lord leaped upon him, as it leaped upon Samson, and rushed upon him, whenever he undertook some heroic work of fortitude. Thus Lyran, Abulensis and Vatablus, who translates, the spirit of the Lord began to move him; the Chaldean, the spirit of fortitude from God remained upon David. Second, it was a spirit of great and kingly mind. For just as God, calling Saul from the asses to the kingdom, changed his rustic heart into a magnanimous and kingly one: so now he transferred the same spirit from Saul to David, that he who before thought of nothing but feeding sheep, should now think of governing and defending all Israel: therefore he imparted to him great and new minds, new spirits, new thoughts, new counsels, new desires and vows; for this is what the Hebrew תצלח tislach signifies. Third, it was a spirit of Poetry and Music, namely of singing psalms and composing and singing psalms: for from the anointing he began to sing and compose psalms. Thus Abulensis, Dionysius and others. Fourth, it was a spirit of prudence, that in all his words and deeds he might be wonderfully prudent, discreet, provident, and might govern not only himself and his family, but also the whole kingdom most wisely. Whence Solomon, the son of David, sought and obtained the same from God, III Kings, cap. III, vers. 12. Finally, the Hebrew tislach, which our translator renders, came upon, with Marinus and others you would translate, prospered, was fortunate, directed to a happy effect; so that namely David might accomplish all things prudently and happily, and bring them to the desired end. Fifth, it was a spirit of prophecy: for David was a prophet, and in the Psalms not only does he sing, but also prophesies concerning Christ, and Christ's life, death, Apostles, Church, etc. Thus St. Jerome, Josephus and others. Moreover, this spirit did not depart, but remained constantly in David, at least as to some of his operations. For this is what τὸ from that day and thereafter signifies. Thus St. Gregory. Therefore David suddenly, through the anointing of God and Samuel, was made from an abject shepherd of sheep a most mighty and prudent king, and a divine Psalmist and prophet: for if he had possessed any of these things before, surely his father and brothers would not have so despised him as to keep him with the sheep, but would have held him in greater esteem. IN DAVID. — David is named from love, as if lovable. For David in Hebrew is the same as דוד dod, that is, beloved, or love and affection, according to that in Canticles I: "Thy loves are better than wine" (in Hebrew דודיך dodecha). Hence also Solomon his son received the same name from God, and was called Jedidiah, that is, "beloved of the Lord," II Kings cap. xii, vers. 25. Moreover St. Augustine, lib. XXII Against Faustus cap. lxxxvii, and in Psalm xxxiv: "David," he says, "is the same as strong of hand or desirable," so that David is said as if דיד dai iad, that is, sufficient (that is, strong, mighty) of hand. Hear St. Chrysostom, homily On David and Goliath, comparing and preferring David to Saul: "I have found for myself David, a man after my own heart, who shall do all my will. O blessed David, merit of the most holy, whom God praises, whom the Lord proclaims, whom the highest judge prefers! For since David, most holy, is a man after the heart of God, whatever God thinks, he does; whatever he conceives in mind, he accomplishes. For since, I say, David joins his own heart to the heart of God, and attaches his mind to His mind; that is, so that what God wills, he wills; and what He does not will, he likewise does not will; thus the Lord loved him with an undivided love and joined charity." And with a few things interjected: "This one is chosen from the sheep for the kingdom, that one is destined from the kingdom to the sword. This one is promoted by holy life, that one is rejected by contempt of the commandments. David, still a shepherd, overcomes the lion, kills the bear; Saul, despising the Lord, provokes an evil spirit in himself. David, most holy, reigns, but secretly: Saul, reprobate, becomes manifest. This one is already king, that one is thought to be; this one already obtains, that one is merely called; this one possesses hidden dignity, that one has the public image of the kingdom; David is inundated by God with the Holy Spirit, Saul truly is deserted by this Spirit. Finally Saul persecutes David the innocent, and David exhibits the sinner delivered to him unharmed; so that in David the Holy Spirit might be gentle, and in Saul the evil spirit might rage against the innocent, so that the diversity of life might already demonstrate diverse merits, and these causes might be attributed to men, not to God, who either takes away or confers the kingdom on those acting badly or well."
16:14
NOW THE SPIRIT OF THE LORD DEPARTED FROM SAUL, — namely the spirit of fortitude, goodness, prudence, magnanimity, of a liberal and kingly mind, etc., "departed from Saul," and he himself fell back into his original depravity of mind, dejection, imprudence, baseness, pusillanimity: whence he who was formerly keen and victorious in wars, thereafter became unwarlike, cowardly, sluggish, and accomplished nothing of distinction. AND AN EVIL SPIRIT FROM THE LORD TROUBLED HIM. — You will ask, what was this "evil spirit troubling Saul?" First, the Hebrew, Josephus, Cajetan, Genebrard in Chron. year of the world 3066, Delrio, lib. III Magic. cap. iv, hold that it was black bile, or melancholy and mania, which created for Saul sad images, suspicions, envies, sorrows, anxieties, despairs, rages, delirium, madness: for he conceived these from the fact that he saw himself rejected by God and deprived of the kingdom by Samuel. First it is proved, because the Septuagint translates, an evil spirit suffocated him; the Chaldean, it terrified him; Vatable, it disturbed him. Second, because by Josephus this spirit is called "a perturbation and disease inflicted by a demon, which created for him suffocations and strangulations." Third, because troubled by this spirit he envied David the succession to the kingdom, and therefore wished to kill him, cap. xviii vers. 19. Fourth, because this disease of Saul was relieved by the music of David playing the harp, because namely music gladdens, and thus drives away sadness. Furthermore, how malignant the melancholic humor is, Galen, Fernelius and Levinus Lemnius the physician teach, lib. De Complexionibus, toward the end, pag. 162, where he recounts the wonderful phantasms of melancholics and their cures. "For the first," he says, "had persuaded himself that a nose had grown for him like the proboscis of an elephant. The physician brought a sausage to his nostrils, and finally cut off the last skin of the nose with a knife: and thus he tore away the imaginary nose for him. The second believed that frogs and toads were boring through his intestines. The physician purged him with a clyster through the bowels, and catching the excrement in a basin, threw frogs and toads into the same basin. Behold, he says, the frogs and toads of your belly: know that you are now freed from them, and thus he drove away this phantom from him. The third imagined that his thighs were made of glass; wherefore he dared neither to sit, nor to touch anything, lest they be shattered and broken. The fourth believed himself to be dead, and therefore refused to take food: and he had already persisted fasting for seven days (the physicians consider the seventh day of fasting to be lethal) the physician sent certain masked men wrapped in linen into his bedroom, who said they were dead, and yet feasted sumptuously before him. Invited by him both by the voice of those feasting, and by the odor of delicacies, he began to taste and finally to eat more abundantly: and after the meal a healthful sleep crept upon him, when a liquor had been prepared for him; and thus he returned to life and mind." This is the true sense; but it is not sufficient in this place. Second, others hold that it was a good angel, sent by God to Saul, to afflict him, so that he might exact just penalties for his disobedience from him. Third and more truly, others hold that it was the devil, who not only vexed Saul outwardly, as he vexed St. Job; but also possessed him inwardly, and afflicted him with dire phantasms, sadnesses, sorrows, anxieties, pains, and troubled him by turns; for this is properly and called an "evil spirit:" therefore Saul was possessed by him, and became an energumen and demoniac, so that troubled by him by turns he raved, went mad, raged, as we shall hear cap. seq. vers. 10 and seq. Thus hold Josephus, Rupert, Isidore, Eucherius, Lyran, Hugh, Abulensis, Dionysius, Vatable, Serarius, Sanchez here, and St. Gregory, lib. II Moral. cap. vi, and Theodoret here Quaest. XXXVIII: "When," he says, "the divine spirit had departed, the malign spirit obtained the place; thus when the Apostolic grace had left Judas, the devil entered into him." Furthermore, this spirit is called of the Lord, because it was sent or permitted by God to Saul to punish his sins. Thus Paul, II Corinth. II, delivered the fornicator to Satan. Hear St. Gregory: "Therefore the same spirit is called both of the Lord, and evil: of the Lord, by the permission of just power; evil, by the desire of unjust will." For this power, on the part of God punishing Saul through the devil, was just; but on the part of the devil as tyrant and tyrannically tormenting Saul, was unjust. But the devil could do nothing against Saul, except by power received from God, who had limited it, so that he could afflict him only so much and no more, as he did in St. Job.
16:16
LET HIM PLAY WITH HIS HAND, AND YOU SHALL BEAR IT MORE EASILY. — How the demon is driven away by playing I shall say vers. 23.
16:18
MOST MIGHTY IN STRENGTH AND A MAN OF WAR. — The Rabbis according to St. Jerome in Questions and Lyra think that Doeg the Idumean, hostile to David, said and fabricated this, namely that he praised David in a hostile manner, so that while he stood before the raging Saul, he might create danger to his life; but David's virtue and fame had not yet so increased that Doeg could know and hate him. Hence it is clear that David, having received in his anointing the spirit of fortitude, immediately displayed his remarkable fortitude to the amazement of those beholding, and performed certain notable deeds of martial strength: those who saw these brought word to Saul and commended David to him.
16:19
WHO IS IN THE PASTURES. — See here the modesty of David, who although he was already anointed as king and destined as Saul's successor, nevertheless immediately returned to his sheep and became a shepherd, just as Saul, although anointed as king, returned to his oxen and ploughs, cap. xi, 5.
16:23
DAVID TOOK THE HARP AND PLAYED WITH HIS HAND, AND SAUL WAS REFRESHED AND IT WAS WELL WITH HIM; — namely because he was gladdened by music, and thus his melancholy was diminished, and from this the following anguishes and evil passions of the soul. For music is wonderfully effective in mitigating or driving away these. Cassiodorus, lib. II of the Variae, cap. xl: "Music," he says, "makes harmful sadness joyful, diminishes swollen rages, makes bloody cruelty gentle, stirs up idleness and drowsy languor, renders to the wakeful most healthful rest, heals the weariness of the mind with good thoughts always opposed to it." St. Augustine, lib. X of the Confessions, cap. xxxiii, asserts: "All the affections of our spirit according to their diversity have their own modes in voice and song, by which I know not what hidden familiarity they are aroused." Moreover Seneca from Pythagoras, lib. III On Anger, cap. ix: "Pythagoras," he says, "composed the perturbations of the soul with the lyre. But who does not know that trumpets and tubes are incitements; just as certain songs are blandishments by which the mind is dissolved?" Asclepiades the physician μάθη, that is, was accustomed to soothe and calm the passions and diseases of the mind with music. Timotheus, an excellent lyre-player, by playing the lyre so stirred up Alexander the Great that he rushed to arms. See Alexander from Alexander, lib. II Genial. cap. xvii. "The Greek cities," says Marianus Capella, "ordained that the diseases of souls and bodies be cured to the modes of the lyre. Whence those who provided remedies to the sick were formerly said to sing beforehand, says Macrobius, and Xenocrates freed the mad from madness by the modulations of songs. Paracelsus says that the pains of those with sciatica are soothed by the gentle modes of Phrygian pipes, and that a piper singing in modulation heals the bites of vipers." Continual and daily experience has taught and teaches the Italians especially in Apulia that those whom the tarantula has bitten and stupefied, so that seized by lethargy they sleep a lethal sleep, cannot be aroused by any art of physicians, unless by a modulated song, which they bend into various rhythms and harmonies, until they find that which responds to this disease and stupor as a remedy; they then persist in singing; the sick person is aroused to wakefulness and dancing; by leaping he draws out sweat, and thus dispels all the poison, and is restored to himself and to mind and health. Who would not marvel at this miracle of music and song? But what could the music and harp of David avail against the demon agitating Saul? The Platonists answer, and those following them, Cajetan in cap. II to the Ephesians, Augustine Niphus, lib. III On Demons, cap. v and seq., Eugubinus, book VIII On Perennial Philosophy, cap. xxvi, that demons have some subtle body, and therefore can hear music and be moved by it. But this is already an error. For it is certain that Angels and demons are entirely incorporeal, and pure and mere spirits. Secondly, some think that God can subject, indeed does from time to time subject demons to certain corporeal things, for example to melody, to the smoke of liver, Tob. cap. vi, to hypericum, rosemary, etc. Thus Levinus Lemnius and Francis Valesius, Sacred Philosophy, cap. xxviii: "To the liver of the fish of Tobias," he says, "a supernatural virtue was granted, of illuminating the eyes of Tobias; just as to the fire of hell was granted the power of tormenting demons, and to blessed water was given the power of putting them to flight and of washing the soul from sins." Valesius adds and says: "Some exorcists say that demons are driven away by the smoke of stag horn, and of any dung especially human, likewise by rue and hypericum: by the two former, because the demon does not bear to be despised, being most proud. But I," he himself says, "think they came to this opinion because all physicians testify that by the smoke of those things epilepsy is manifested. Immediately therefore when the epileptic senses the smoke of those things, he is seized by a paroxysm of epilepsy and agitation and tossing of all his limbs, or if he already labors under its paroxysm, it worsens: but those exorcists attribute this to the demon and think he is visiting him. But that rue and hypericum are beneficial for curing epilepsy is clear from the fact that they drive away flatus, which agitate the brain of epileptics." But although it is certain that God can subject demons to a corporeal thing, such as music; nevertheless it is uncertain whether he has in fact subjected them to it. Thirdly, therefore, it is more true that David by singing drove away the demon of Saul by a force partly natural, partly supernatural: natural, because music gladdens, and thus drives away melancholy, which the demon used to torment Saul. For no humor is more opportune than this for the devil to vex men, tempt them, and incite them to sadness, envy, anger, desperation. Wherefore the demon, who acts through natural causes, makes especially use of the melancholic humor to drive men into anguish, scruples, distrust, dissensions, aversions, hatreds, quarrels, murders, etc. Such was that lunatic healed by Christ, who as the moon waxed was more agitated by the demon in melancholy and mania, Matt. xvii, 14. Hence Francis Valesius, Sacred Philosophy xxviii: "Demons," he says, "invade the melancholic, or bring melancholic diseases upon men, because the melancholic humor is above all most disposed to drive a man into insanity and desperation: which those most wicked spirits greatly desire. For the melancholic humor depresses the heart, weighs it down, saddens it, and clouds the brain with dark smoke, as it were with darkness; so that through it all things appear dark, sad, harmful, hostile, horrible." Wherefore, whoever wishes to escape the temptations of the devil, let him beware of melancholy; if from nature or chance he has sadness, let him fight against it, and to all its imaginings and suggestions let him resist manfully and steadfastly, for example when it brings suspicions, fears, anguishes, scruples, let him say: I do not believe you; for you proceed from my enemy, namely from the demon and melancholy: false are, inept, foolish the things which you present to me; therefore the contrary things, which are true, apt and prudent, I shall embrace. Thus indeed we say to him who, laboring under vertigo, thinks all things turn and spin: you are deceived, friend, nothing spins except your brain; and by its vertigo which spins you, it comes about that all things which are at rest appear to you to spin with your spinning brain. Hence St. Antony, as St. Athanasius testifies, said, "nothing is more efficacious for overcoming demons than spiritual joy." And St. James, epistle cap. v, 13: "Is any one of you sad? let him pray: Is he of good cheer? let him sing psalms." For this reason the Church uses singing and music in the divine office, that she may stir the faithful to devotion, cheerfulness, joy, by which they may serve God, resist the devil, and proceed eagerly to every work of virtue. This St. Augustine experienced in himself, at the beginning of his conversion, thus he says in book IX of the Confessions cap. vi: "How much did I weep in your hymns and canticles, moved sharply by the sweet-sounding voices of your Church. Those voices flowed into my ears, and your truth was distilled into my heart, and from it the affection of piety swelled up, and tears ran, and it was well with me in them." And St. Basil in the Preface to the Psalms: "The Psalm," he says, "is a certain amulet for routing demons and driving them away: a conciliator of angelic protection, a shield of security amid nocturnal fears, a rest from daytime labors, a guardian protection of infants, the glory and ornament of those in the flower of age, the solace of the elderly. Finally, it is most suitable for adorning women." And with some things interjected: "The Psalm is the tranquility of souls, the arbiter of entering into peace, at whose nod overflowing and tumultuous thoughts contract and grow quiet, etc. The Psalm is the work of Angels, a spiritual incense." And that I may pass over many others, St. Ambrose, Preface to the Psalms: "The Psalm," he says, "is a blessing of the people, praise of God, laudation of the people, applause of all, discourse of all, voice of the Church, sonorous confession of faith, devotion full of authority, joy of liberty, cry of gladness, resounding of joy. It softens anger, banishes anxiety, alleviates sadness. Nocturnal arms, daytime teachings. A shield in fear, a feast in holiness. An image of tranquility, a pledge of peace and concord: in the manner of a lyre expressing one song from diverse and disparate voices. The rising of day resounds with a psalm, the setting resounds with a psalm." For this reason Eliseus, preparing himself to receive prophecy from God, ordered a psalterer to be brought, that by his psalmody his mind might be elevated to God, and made apt for divine illumination, IV Kings III. The natural force, therefore, of music and David's lyre, soothing the melancholy of Saul, consisted in two things: first, that it would divert his imagination from the thought of sad things, to attending to the sounds and songs of joyful music; second, that the very pleasure of the song would gladden him, and thus drive away or diminish melancholy. Thus Lyran, Abulensis, Valesius, Sanchez, Serarius and others. But the more powerful force of this harp was supernatural, namely that David by striking the harp would stir up his mind (just as Elisha did, as I have said), so that he might pray to God more fervently for Saul's salvation: whence God hearing him, on account of David's fervent prayers and merits, he drove the demon away from Saul, and restored Saul to himself and to his right mind. Thus Josephus (who adds that David by playing the harp recited psalms), Theodoret, Lyra, Abulensis, Serarius. In a similar manner St. Francis calmed the minds of the Sienese, which were stirred up in mutual hatred by the demon, through the canticle of the sun (which I reviewed at Ecclesiastes xliii, verse 2) and brought them back to their former harmony. Allegorically, the harp represents the cross of Christ; for just as the strings in a harp are stretched, so Christ was stretched out on the cross. Hear Angelomus: "For the power was not so great in itself, but the mystery of the cross of Christ through wood was mystically borne by the extension of the strings, in which also the passion was sung." Thus also Prosper, part II of the Preaching, chapter xxv. Indeed Angelomus, Eucherius and Bede hold that the evil spirit was driven from Saul by the power of the cross of Christ to come, of which the harp of David was a type: just as the Hebrews were freed from the Angel striking and from Egypt through the blood of the Paschal Lamb, which was a type of the blood of Christ to be sacrificed on the cross. Hence St. Augustine, sermon 3 On the Seasons, teaches that the harp represents the flesh of Christ. Hear him: "Still consider the harp, so that it may render a musical melody with sweet sounds; three things appear to be present together: art, hand and string; and yet one sound is heard: art dictates, hand touches, string resounds. Three things work together, but only the string produces the sound that is heard; neither art nor hand produces sound; but they work together with the string: thus neither the Father nor the Holy Spirit took on flesh; and yet they work together with the Son: the string alone produces the sound, flesh alone Christ takes on; the operation consists in three, but because the production of sound belongs only to the string, so the taking on of human flesh belongs only to Christ." The same Augustine in Psalm xxxvi, at those words: Arise, psaltery and harp: "In the psaltery, he says, the strings receive sound from above, but in the harp from the lower part; thus through his flesh he worked two kinds of deeds, miracles and sufferings. Miracles were from above; sufferings were from below: for those things which he did as miracles were divine, but he did them through his body, through his flesh. Flesh therefore working divinely is a psaltery: flesh human suffering is a harp. Let the psaltery sound, let the blind be enlightened, let the deaf hear, let the paralyzed be bound, let the lame walk, let the sick rise, let the dead rise again; this is the sound of the psaltery. Let the harp also sound, let him hunger, thirst, sleep, be seized, be scourged, be mocked, be crucified, be buried." Hence also the saints, who either underwent martyrdom, or mortified the flesh and crucified it with vices, play the harp to God on their harps, Apocalypse xiv, 2. See the things said there. Symbolically, Rupert understands by the harp the sweetness of the preaching of the Gospel: for this by its own pleasantness drew all nations to itself. "Amphion moved stones by singing:" much more did Christ break stony hearts by preaching. Tropologically, the spiritual harp is gentle and soft speech; likewise learned and pious preaching or exhortation: further psalmody and prayer, by which hard, proud, angry and avaricious human minds are softened and bent to piety, according to that in Proverbs xv, 1 and 4: "A soft answer breaketh wrath, a peaceable tongue is a tree of life." A gentle man is a physician of the heart. And Ecclesiasticus vi, 5: "A sweet word multiplieth friends, and mitigateth enemies." Thus concerning the Jews hearing Christ, Luke says, chapter iv, verse 22: "They wondered at the words of grace that proceeded from his mouth." Thus Angelomus: "When the sense of the powerful, he says, is turned to fury by pride, it is fitting that for the salvation of the mind, by the tranquility of our speech, as it were by the sweetness of a harp, it be recalled." The same Eucherius has in the same words. Finally, he who praises God in both adversities and prosperities, and gives him thanks, he plays the harp to God and to men. Hear St. Augustine in Psalm xxii: "Confess to the Lord on the harp: whether something abounds for you, give thanks to him who gave it; whether something is lacking for you, or perhaps something is taken from you by loss, play the harp securely. For he is not taken from you who gave, although that which he gave has been taken from you. Even thus, I say, play the harp securely, certain in your God, touch the strings in your heart, and say as if on a harp sounding well in the lower part: The Lord gave, the Lord hath taken away; as it hath pleased the Lord, so it is done, blessed be the name of the Lord." THE EVIL SPIRIT DEPARTED FROM HIM. — It appears therefore that the demon, who previously at the striking of the harp by the same stroke often repeated and continued was at length completely overcome, departed from Saul. For in place of "departed" the Hebrew and Greek have "departed," and therefore Saul, now healed, sent David back to the house of his father Jesse. Whence in the following chapter Saul did not recognize David returning to him; but after the victory obtained by David against Goliath, hearing the people acclaiming him: "Saul hath slain his thousands, and David his ten thousands;" burning with envy and hatred toward him, he began again to be agitated by a demon, as is evident in chapter xviii, 10; nor is he read to have been freed from it thereafter, because he could not bear David, as a rival, and his harp any longer. Moreover David, dismissed by Saul, returned to his father and his sheep; not because war was threatening Saul from the Philistines, as Josephus and Abulensis say, but because Saul, now cured, had no need of David, and David loved a cottage more than a court, that is, a private life rather than a courtly one. Then indeed, says Chrysostom, hom. in Psal. L: "David, a youth, fleeing indeed cities and crowds, but philosophizing through the wilderness, having nothing in common with worldly things, not business dealings, not usuries, not anything difficult of this world, but even at a tender age dwelling in the desert of silence; and as in a tranquil harbor, sitting in the wilderness and having care of sheep, he meditated upon the kingdom of heaven: and not by bodily strength, but by the virtue of faith, he slew bears and lions attacking his flock," as he himself says in the following chapter, verses 35 and 36.
Machine translation from the Latin, not reviewed.
16:1
whose ruin he wept bitter tears (I Sam. 15:11-35; 16:1). In character, however, he was austere. …
16:3
… Indeed, the furnishings employed in divine service were anointed: the tabernacle and the altar with all their vessels (Ex. 29:36) and the bronze laver for the priests (Ex. 40:9); kings, to signify that the spirit of the Lord was imparted to them (1 Sam. 16:3), whence the title of "anointed" (χριστός, messiah); priests, who were thereby sanctified and consecrated for their ministry; prophets, when the prophetic mission had not been entrusted …
16:4
Jesse (HEB. ISHAJ; VULG. JESSE)
Although he was one of the "elders" of Bethlehem (I Sam. 16, 4-5) and of a family that was not obscure - his grandfather Boaz had been famous for warlike valor (Ruth 2, 1) - I. was at bottom "just anyone," and Saul will gladly vent his contempt …
16:6
… The substantivized māfiah always means the "king" or "sovereign" elected and constituted by God (cf. I Sam. 16:6-7), and is always (except Dan. 9:26 and Eccl. Gr. 46:19) followed by the genitive of Yahweh (or of an equivalent pronoun): "the anointed of Yahweh" (ὁ χριστὸς Κυρίου); 15 times in …
16:9
Semei (Heb. Šim'î "[The Lord] Has Heard Me")
Among the other S.s, some belong to the age of David: a brother of his (II Sam. 21, 21), elsewhere called Shammah (I Sam. 16, 9; 17, 13); a partisan of Solomon during Adonijah's attempt (I Kings 1, 8); a Levite among David's singers (I Chron. 25, 3). Mention should also be made of: a grandson of Levi (Ex. 6, …
Semma (Heb. Šammā' or Šammāh; Vulgate Semma or Semmaa)
1. Son of Jesse, brother of David and father of Jonadab (II Sam. 13:3, 32). In I Sam. 16:9; 17:13 he is called Shammah, Simmaa in I Chron. 2:13 and Shamaa in I Chron. 20:7 (Heb. Šimā').
16:12
… Everything that precedes in the first book — the story of Eli ([v.] chaps. 1-3), of the Ark ([v.] chaps. 4-6), of Samuel (chaps. 7-8) — is nothing but preparation for the coming of Saul ([v.] chaps. 9-31). David (v.), although he enters the scene at the middle of book I (I Sam. 16:12 ff.), dominates the narrative only in book II (II Sam. 2-4, king of Judah; 5-9, king of all Israel; 10-20, David's sin and manifold atonement). …
16:13
… her husband after the outrage that the inhabitants of Gibeah committed upon her (Judg. 19); but the renown of B. in ancient Israel comes from its having been the homeland of the stock of David (Ruth 4, 17-22), who was anointed king there by Samuel (1 Sam. 16, 13), for which it is also called the city of David (1 Sam. 20, 6; Lk. 2, 4, 11). In the continuous guerrilla warfare between David and the Philistines, the latter came to take possession …
is inspired by the Bible (I Sam. 16:13; II Par. 23:11; Ez. 16:8-14); nevertheless the first example of a royal anointing is found among the Visigoths in Spain. …
16:14
appears distinct, to the "evil spirit" (opposed to the "spirit of Yahweh" which abandons Saul when the latter breaks [with him]: 1 Sam. 16:14-16; 18:10-12; 19:9; 26:19; 28:15-16), referred to divine causality by virtue of an absolute theocentrism; the "evil spirit" works as a spirit of discord (Judg. 9:23), is a "lying spirit" …
Saul (Heb. Šāʾūl "Obtained with Prayer")
… Undermined by neurasthenia, seized by furious crises, he summoned David to his court, who by playing the harp calmed him. He made him his armor-bearer and his son-in-law (ibid. 16, 14-23; 18, 17-30). But, blinded by morbid envy at the acclamations that David received, S. twice tried to pierce him with his spear, and forced him to flee and hide; he finally sent him …
Douay-Rheims (Challoner) · Vulgata Clementina · original Douay-Rheims (Douay 1609-10), transcription by EEBO-TCP (CC0) · La Sacra Bibbia, tradotta dalla Volgata da Antonio Martini (1769-1781) (LaParola (laparola.net), Martini OSIS text, Public domain (LaParola's electronic edition marks it 'Dominio pubblico')). Public domain.