The Portrait of David

Today's Reading: 1 Samuel 16

1 Samuel 16:18 (ESV) "One of the young men answered, 'Behold, I have seen a son of Jesse the Bethlehemite, who is skillful in playing, a man of valor, a man of war, prudent in speech, and a man of good presence, and the LORD is with him. '"

Confession: I struggle with my expectations for other people. Whether those expectations are realistic or unrealistic, I desperately want people to keep their word and follow through with their actions. Often, I end up extremely disappointed when they fail to meet those expectations. And when this happens, I quickly resort to taking matters into my own hands. Which, as you can imagine, doesn't ever work out the way I want it to...

Similarly, Israel tried to take matters into their own hands by asking God for a king. When the judges God appointed didn't meet the people's expectations as leaders, Israel looked at other nations and wanted to be like them. Despite God's warning about an earthy king, they wanted one anyway. (1 Samuel 8) But their first king, Saul, failed to meet a lot of their expectations.

In today's passage, we meet Saul's replacement: David. David would come to be a very different kind of king. A king who would be a portrait of the true King who Israel desired: Jesus.

These two kings were so very similar. Both Jesus and David were …

Shepherds. (1 Samuel 16:11; John 10:11)

From Bethlehem. (1 Samuel 16:4; Matthew 2:1)

Anointed. (1 Samuel 16:13; Luke 4:18)

Patient to wait years before they revealed their anointings as kings. (2 Samuel 5:3; Matthew 3:17)

Moved to tears over betrayal on the Mount of Olives. (2 Samuel 15:30; Luke 19:31)

In physical appearance, not what Israel wanted. (1 Samuel 16:7; Isaiah 53:2)

Rejected by those they loved most. (2 Samuel 15; Luke 22:54-62)

Men after God's own heart. (1 Samuel 13:14; John 5:19)

The similarities go on, but there was one big difference between them: King David couldn't save himself from his own sin and shame.

While Jesus was fully God and fully human, David was just human. And fallen humans don't make for very good heroes. Over the course of David's life, his list of sins grew. He committed adultery and murder. (2 Samuel 11) He failed to be the king that would save Israel. Even David needed to be saved. But only one King was sinless and could sacrifice Himself to save us.

Jesus came to be the King who sets us free. In Jesus, we are saved from the grip of our own sin and shame. Through His death on the cross and His resurrection, we are given new life. When we put our faith in Jesus and follow Him, we become citizens of His Kingdom. (Philippians 3:20) This means we have eternal life with God.

When we look for our own earthly versions of a king to save us, we would do well to remember this: We can't expect people to solve our problems or our pain. But we can look to the person of Jesus. The true and better King who has defeated death and who is seated at the right hand of the Father. (Romans 8:34) Jesus is the King of kings who is coming back to make all things right and will rule and reign forever in a Kingdom that never ends. (Revelation 21)

Prayer: God, thank You for the glimpses of Jesus we get to see in David. Thank You for the signposts You give to point us to the true and better King. When we are tempted to look to earthly kings to save us, remind us of the only One who can save us. In Jesus' name, amen.

More Moments About 1 Samuel 16

Have you ever felt so very overlooked? Whether in a relationship, at work or something in between, it can feel so disheartening not to be seen.

I wonder if David felt the same way when his father didn't include him. In today's reading, all of Jesse's sons were invited to meet Samuel, except David. While they were being looked at as potential kings, David was left out in a field, tending to sheep. Did Jesse think to include him? Or did he just forget? Was there something about David that wasn't deemed worthy enough for him to be included?

Jesus, too, was rejected by His own family. Some of them didn't believe He was the Messiah King who would save Israel. (John 7:5) However, He was chosen by His Father. He knew His calling and assignment was not based on what people around Him thought about Him, but it was based on His identity as God's Son.

In Christ, we are also God's children. Our identity comes from Christ alone, not from what the people around us think.

In the moments you feel overlooked, remember this: You were handpicked by the God who made you. He sees you and knows you by name.

Major Moment: David was the great king Israel longed for to free them from oppression, but King Jesus came to free us from the grip of our own sin and shame.

This was originally published as a teaching from Seeing Jesus in the Old Testament: He’s Never Absent, We’re Never Alone in the First 5 app.