The stage is obviously set for the entry of David, the man truly after God’s own heart.Once again, the narrator comes at this important moment from several angles: his anointing by Samuel in Bethlehem, his ability as a musician and the slaying of Goliath. As we meet the shepherd boy we are told he “ruddy, and had beautiful eyes and was handsome”: he has the charismatic looks of a potential hero. That he is the least of the sons of Jesse is emphasized in 16:1-13: once again the Lord has chosen contrary to human expectation. He is anointed in this private way by Samuel, so that now in Israel there are two anointed kings, a situation that obviously needs resolution.
The David and Goliath story, which the narrator tells in detail, introduces David as a warrior in Israel. Like the boy Samuel, the boy David is able to teach his elders something about trust for Yhwh. David’s speech in 17:45ff is a paradigm for holy war. The battle is Yhwh’s: it is he who determines the victor, regardless of the disparity in power or weaponry from a human point of view. It is Hannah’s song fully illustrated once again: the theme is the same! The humble overthrows the mighty. Though his anointing is still secret and David does not appear to act out of a consciousness of being the anointed one, he has by his character displayed the attitude expected of God’s king in battle – not intimidated by enemies but rather trusting completely in the power of Yhwh. His weapon is his faith.
3 comments:
Humans look at outward appearance; God looks on the heart - and then chooses the looker!
Physical appearance plays an important role in Samuel, partly because it is so rarely mentioned in comparison to a modern day novel. Saul is, it is obvious to all, a kingly personage - tall, and warriorlike. David: well I'll have to go and do some research as to what his ruddiness might symbolise (was he Irish in fact?) But he is not so prepossessing, not immediately. God is looking at the heart but it doesn't hurt that it was a rather dishy fellow whose heart was good.
Of course, the other person whose appearance is noted is Absalom, the would be heir to the throne with the rock star looks. And that didn't go so well, did it?
Brueggeman says: 'There is a central incongruity in the selection of David that is surely intended by the narrator. The one anointed is qualified by his "right heart." He needed nothing more. David's physical appearance, by Yahweh's stern standards, is irrelevant'. That is true: in a way, it is a test of Samuel, that he doesn't just fall for David then and there without checking his heart.
But also: are we meant to think of how David's attractiveness later gets him into trouble?
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