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It was strange that Samuel, who had been so disappointed in Saul, whose countenance and stature recommended him, should judge of another man by that rule. We can tell how men look, but God can tell what they are. He judges of men by the heart. We often form a mistaken judgment of characters; but the Lord values only the faith, fear, and love, which are planted in the heart, beyond human discernment. And God does not favour our children according to our fond partiality, but often most honours and blesses those who have been least regarded. David at length was pitched upon. He was the youngest of the sons of Jesse; his name signifies Beloved; he was a type of God's beloved Son. It should seem, David was least set by of all the sons of Jesse. But the Spirit of the Lord came upon David from that day forward. His anointing was not an empty ceremony, a Divine power went with that instituted sign; he found himself advanced in wisdom and courage, with all the qualifications of a prince, though not advanced in his outward circumstances. This would satisfy him that his election was of God. The best evidence of our being predestinated to the kingdom of glory, is, our being sealed with the Spirit of promise, and experience of a work of grace in our hearts.
SDA Bible Commentary (limited)
Volume 1-7
12. Goodly to look to. Or, “handsome.”
Anoint him. Why does God choose certain men to be His representatives, passing others by? What difference was there in His choice of Saul and His choice of David? Being omniscient, God knew precisely the course Saul would take, yet anointed him and promised to be with him (ch.10:7). Contrary to their own best interests and to His will for them, God answered the demand of the people for a king. It is clear that Saul was popular with the people—a king after their heart, but not God’s. They were not thinking of spiritual leadership but of national strength. When chosen, Saul had serious handicaps. God recognized these, yet forewarned him of the dangers he would meet, and gave him definite counsel on how to meet them.
With David the case was different. There is no evidence that the people had become dissatisfied with Saul; in fact they were entirely satisfied with the results of the Amalekite campaign. David was the youngest in his father’s house, and in the Orient age carried with it respect and priority (Gen. 29:25, 26). He was a stripling, with no claim to recognition even from the members of his own household (1 Sam. 17:28). He did not have the lofty stature of Saul, nor the physique of Samson. Saul was called from the plow in response to the urgent pleas of the elders for a king. He had little time for training. David was called from tending sheep, while yet a lad, and had more than a decade in which to prepare for his arduous tasks as leader of the twelve tribes.
Chosen as a youth, David enjoyed the opportunity of a period of training and testing before he assumed the responsibilities of high office. Where David’s character failed in meeting the divine standards, changes could thus be made before his coronation. God deals similarly with every individual whom He invites to be a member of His kingdom, and particularly with those whom he calls to positions of responsibility. All unconsciously man is tested by the common events of life until finally God can say, “Thou hast been faithful over a few things, I will make thee ruler over many things” (Matt. 25:23). Thus far David had shown himself to possess youthful vigor, a loving, gentle spirit, and fearlessness born of confidence in divine power. He was uncorrupted by the world, a meditative soul growing up in the quiet seclusion of the hills of Bethlehem. There, herding the sheep like Moses in Midian, he acquired a sense of responsibility and developed qualities of leadership that were to carry him through life.
Ellen G. White
Counsels to Parents, Teachers, and Students, 43-4
As a church, as individuals, if we would stand clear in the judgment, we must make more liberal efforts for the training of our young people, that they may be better fitted for the various branches of the great work committed to our hands. We should lay wise plans, in order that the ingenious minds of those who have talent may be strengthened and disciplined, and polished after the highest order, that the work of Christ may not be hindered for lack of skillful laborers, who will do their work with earnestness and fidelity.CT 43.1
The church is asleep, and does not realize the magnitude of this matter of educating the children and youth. “Why,” one says, “what is the need of being so particular to educate our youth thoroughly? It seems to me that if you take a few who have decided to follow a literary calling or some other calling that requires a certain discipline, and give due attention to them, that is all that is necessary. It is not required that the whole mass of our youth be so well trained. Will not this answer every essential requirement?”CT 43.2
The elder brothers, from whom Samuel would have chosen, did not possess the qualifications that God saw to be essential in a ruler of His people. Proud, self-centered, self-confident, they were set aside for the one whom they lightly regarded, one who had preserved the simplicity and sincerity of his youth, and who, while little in his own sight, could be trained by God for the responsibilities of the kingdom. So today, in many a child whom the parents would pass by, God sees capabilities far above those revealed by others who are thought to possess great promise.Ed 266.1
And as regards life's possibilities, who is capable of deciding what is great and what is small? How many a worker in the lowly places of life, by setting on foot agencies for the blessing of the world, has achieved results that kings might envy!Ed 266.2
Let every child, then, receive an education for the highest service. “In the morning sow thy seed, and in the evening withhold not thine hand: for thou knowest not which shall prosper, whether this or that,” Ecclesiastes 11:6, R.V.Ed 266.3
The Lord Himself directed the education of Israel. His care was not restricted to their religious interests; whatever affected their mental or physical well-being was also the subject of divine providence, and came within the sphere of divine law.PP 592.1
God had commanded the Hebrews to teach their children His requirements and to make them acquainted with all His dealings with their fathers. This was one of the special duties of every parent—one that was not to be delegated to another. In the place of stranger lips the loving hearts of the father and mother were to give instruction to their children. Thoughts of God were to be associated with all the events of daily life. The mighty works of God in the deliverance of His people and the promises of the Redeemer to come were to be often recounted in the homes of Israel; and the use of figures and symbols caused the lessons given to be more firmly fixed in the memory. The great truths of God's providence and of the future life were impressed on the young mind. It was trained to see God alike in the scenes of nature and the words of revelation. The stars of heaven, the trees and flowers of the field, the lofty mountains, the rippling brooks—all spoke of the Creator. The solemn service of sacrifice and worship at the sanctuary and the utterances of the prophets were a revelation of God.PP 592.2
Such was the training of Moses in the lowly cabin home in Goshen; of Samuel, by the faithful Hannah; of David, in the hill dwelling at Bethlehem; of Daniel, before the scenes of the captivity separated him from the home of his fathers. Such, too, was the early life of Christ at Nazareth; such the training by which the child Timothy learned from the lips of his grandmother Lois, and his mother Eunice (2 Timothy 1:5; 3:15), the truths of Holy Writ.PP 592.3
A few miles south of Jerusalem, “the city of the great King,” is Bethlehem, where David, the son of Jesse, was born more than a thousand years before the infant Jesus was cradled in the manger and worshiped by the Wise Men from the East. Centuries before the advent of the Saviour, David, in the freshness of boyhood, kept watch of his flocks as they grazed on the hills surrounding Bethlehem. The simple shepherd boy sang the songs of his own composing, and the music of his harp made a sweet accompaniment to the melody of his fresh young voice. The Lord had chosen David, and was preparing him, in his solitary life with his flocks, for the work He designed to commit to his trust in after years.PP 637.1
Ellen G. White
Testimonies for the Church, vol. 6, 197
No, I answer, most decidedly not. What selection would we be able to make from our youth? How could we tell who would be the most promising, who would render the best service to God? In our human judgment we might do as did Samuel, who, when sent to find the anointed of the Lord, looked upon the outward appearance. But the Lord said to Samuel: “Look not on his countenance, or on the height of his stature; because I have refused him; for the Lord seeth not as man seeth; for man looketh on the outward appearance, but the Lord looketh on the heart.” 1 Samuel 16:7. Not one of the noble-looking sons of Jesse would the Lord accept; but when David, the youngest son, a mere youth and the shepherd of the sheep, was called from the field and passed before Samuel, the Lord said: “Arise, anoint him: for this is he.” Verse 12. Who can determine which one of a family will prove to be efficient in the work of God? All the youth should be permitted to have the blessings and privileges of an education at our schools, that they may be inspired to become laborers together with God.6T 197.1
Many families who, for the purpose of educating their children, move to places where our large schools are established, would do better service for the Master by remaining where they are. They should encourage the church of which they are members to establish a church school where the children within their borders could receive an all-round, practical Christian education. It would be vastly better for their children, for themselves, and for the cause of God if they would remain in the smaller churches, where their help is needed, instead of going to the larger churches, where, because they are not needed, there is a constant temptation to fall into spiritual inactivity.6T 198.1
Ellen G. White
SDA Bible Commentary, vol. 2 (EGW), 1018
28. David and Saul Contrasted—David and Saul stand before us in this history as men widely different in character. The course of David makes manifest the fact that he regarded the fear of the Lord as the beginning of wisdom. But Saul was shorn of his strength, because he failed to make obedience to God's commandments the rule of his life. It is a fearful thing for a man to set his will against the will of God, as revealed in his specified requirements. All the honor that a man could receive on the throne of a kingdom, would be a poor compensation for the loss of the favor of God through an act of disloyalty to heaven. Disobedience to the commandments of God can only bring disaster and dishonor at last. God has given to every man his work, just as truly as he appointed to Saul the government of Israel; and the practical and important lesson to us is to accomplish our appointed work in such a manner that we may meet our life records with joy, and not with grief (The Signs of the Times, September 7, 1888).2BC 1018.1
34, 35. Samuel Active in Retirement—After Israel had rejected Samuel as ruler of the nation, though well qualified for public labor, the prophet sought retirement. He was not superannuated, for he presided as teacher in the school of the prophets. This service for his God was a pleasant service (The Signs of the Times, October 19, 1888).2BC 1018.2
