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“The Lord does not see as mortals see; they look on the outward appearance, but the Lord looks on the heart.” These are the words spoken by the Lord God to his prophet Samuel, when Samuel was looking for the Lord’s newly selected king from among the sons of Jesse the Bethlehemite. The Lord God had rejected King Saul and his household as the rulers of His people. Samuel had been sent to Bethlehem to anoint the Lord’s chosen one.
Bethlehem was not a large city. In fact, it was a village known in Judea as the ‘house of bread’, because of its fertile fields in the midst of the Judean desert. It was here in the wheat fields of Bethlehem where Ruth, the Moabite, met Boaz. Ruth and Boaz were Jesse’s grandparents through their son Obed.
In today’s Old Testament reading, we are told “Jesse made seven of his sons pass before Samuel, and Samuel said to Jesse, ‘The Lord has not chose any of these.’ Samuel said to Jesse, ‘Are all your sons here?’ And he said, ‘There remains yet the youngest, but he is keeping the sheep.’”
The feared prophet, Samuel, comes to lowly Bethlehem seeking the Lord’s anointed. He is greeted by the elders of the village. Samuel then invites one of the prominent members of the village to join him with his sons to a sacrifice, which was a rare honor. The prophet assumes that all of Jesse’s sons are present for the sacrifice. He then finds out that the youngest one is absent. Jesse did not even think to bring his youngest, because he is just a lowly shepherd boy.
Although shepherding was a common occupation in Judaic culture, the owner of the sheep would usually hire someone or have one of their sons or daughters tend to the actual care of the flock. The shepherd slept in the fields with the sheep and tended to the daily needs of the flock. The sheep depended upon the shepherd for their protection, food, water and care. When a sheep or lamb would wander off, it was the shepherd’s duty to find the lost animal and bring it back.
Shepherding was an important, but lowly job in society. The thought of bringing such a person into the presence of one so feared and admired as Samuel the Prophet is unthinkable. Yet, the Lord God passes over all seven of Jesse’s respectable sons. In place of King Saul, the Lord had chosen Jesse’s youngest son, David, a shepherd boy, to become the true heir to the throne.
The scriptures read, “And Samuel said to Jesse, ‘Send and bring him; for we will not sit down until he comes here.’” Now don’t you know that must have been one long wait for Jesse and his sons? There they are dressed in their finery to have one of them chosen by the Prophet Samuel and then the prophet insists that their kid brother be brought in from the fields dressed in his shepherd’s clothing smelling of sheep. How embarrassing!
Yet, isn’t that just like us today? How often do we judge others by their appearance and level in society? Do we not want to think ourselves better than the janitor cleaning the toilets or the kid flipping burgers at the local burger joint? Yet, the Lord specifically tells Samuel, “The Lord does not see as mortals see; they look on the outward appearance, but the Lord looks on the heart.”
It doesn’t matter to God whether or not we are wearing the latest fashions or have a prominent position in society. What matters to God is something that only God can see. In Psalm 44, the psalmist laments, “If we had forgotten the name of our God, or spread our hands to a strange god, would not God discover this? For he knows the secrets of the heart.” Even if we close our doors and commit sins against the Lord, telling no one what we have done; there remains One who is All Seeing and All Knowing and that Someone is the Lord God Almighty. Our hearts and minds are like open books for the Lord to read.
The Lord passed over Jesse’s respectable sons, because he knew their hearts. God knew what kind of person could best lead His people. He knew it had to be someone who would be able to love His people like a shepherd loves his sheep.
David was a good shepherd, who protected his father’s sheep against marauding lions and bears. He even rescued lambs from their jaws. It is not surprising that this young shepherd would offer himself to protect the people of God from the Philistines. In one of the most beloved stories of the Bible, young David, slew the giant Goliath with a simple slingshot and a stone causing the Philistine army to flee in fear.
This young shepherd boy, chosen by God to be king, proved to be more courageous than the bravest of King Saul’s soldiers. Among Saul’s soldiers were David’s brothers; the same ones whom God had passed over, because only God knows the secrets of the heart. God knew that only David had the courage to save his people. Only the fearless shepherd boy had what was needed to protect and eventually lead the people of God as their Shepherd King.
In Psalm 23, the Lord is described by the psalmist as a shepherd and not just any shepherd, but as the psalmist’s shepherd. The psalmist’s shepherd meets all the psalmist’s needs. He provides food, water and protection. The divine shepherd guides the psalmist through even the darkest places. He comforts the psalmist and honors him in the presence of his enemies. The divine shepherd blesses the psalmist with goodness and mercy all the days of his life. He even allows the psalmist to live with him in the divine shepherd’s house.
Is it not surprising that this beloved psalm was written by David, the Shepherd King? From the lineage of this same David would come the everlasting Shepherd King, Jesus the Son of God, who would describe himself as the Good Shepherd. As it is written in the Gospel of John, “I am the good shepherd. The good shepherd lays down his life for the sheep. 12The hired hand, who is not the shepherd and does not own the sheep, sees the wolf coming and leaves the sheep and runs away—and the wolf snatches them and scatters them. 13The hired hand runs away because a hired hand does not care for the sheep. 14I am the good shepherd. I know my own and my own know me, 15just as the Father knows me and I know the Father. And I lay down my life for the sheep. 16I have other sheep that do not belong to this fold. I must bring them also, and they will listen to my voice. So there will be one flock, one shepherd. 17For this reason the Father loves me, because I lay down my life in order to take it up again. 18No one takes* it from me, but I lay it down of my own accord. I have power to lay it down, and I have power to take it up again. I have received this command from my Father.”
Jesus, David’s descendant, had the heart of a good shepherd. The shepherd’s heart is like the heart of God. This is why Jesus was able to lay down his life for our sakes. Before Jesus died for our sins we were like lost sheep wandering astray. Only the divine Good Shepherd can guide us to greener pastures and restore our souls. May we trust in the One who already knows our hearts to guide us in all His ways.
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