1 Samuel 16:6
King James Version (KJV)
And it came to pass, when they were come, that he looked on Eliab, and said, Surely the LORD's anointed is before him.
Translations
1 Samuel 16:6 - Amplified Bible
When they had come, he looked on Eliab [the eldest son] and said, Surely the Lord's anointed is before Him.
1 Samuel 16:6 - American Standard Version
And it came to pass, when they were come, that he looked on Eliab, and said, Surely Jehovahs anointed is before him.
1 Samuel 16:6 - Bible in Basic English
Now when they came, looking at Eliab, he said, Clearly the man of the Lord's selection is before him.
1 Samuel 16:6 - Darby Bible
And it came to pass when they were come, that he looked on Eliab, and said, Surely Jehovah`s anointed is before him.
1 Samuel 16:6 - English Standard Version
When they came, he looked on Eliab and thought, "Surely the
1 Samuel 16:6 - King James Version
And it came to pass, when they were come, that he looked on Eliab, and said, Surely the LORD's anointed is before him.
1 Samuel 16:6 - La Biblia de las Americas
Y aconteciò que cuando ellos entraron, vio a Eliab, y se dijo: Ciertamente el ungido del SEÑOR está delante de El.
1 Samuel 16:6 - The Message
When they arrived, Samuel took one look at Eliab and thought, "Here he is! God’s anointed!"
1 Samuel 16:6 - New American Standard Bible
When they entered, he looked at Eliab and thought, "Surely the LORD's anointed is before Him."
1 Samuel 16:6 - Nueva Biblia Latinoamericana de Hoy
Cuando ellos entraron, Samuel vio a Eliab, y se dijo: "Ciertamente el ungido del SEÑOR está delante de El."
1 Samuel 16:6 - World English Bible
It happened, when they had come, that he looked at Eliab, and said, Surely Yahweh`s anointed is before him.
1 Samuel 16:6 - Young's Living Translation
And it cometh to pass, in their coming in, that he seeth Eliab, and saith, `Surely, before Jehovah [is] His anointed.`
1 Samuel 16:6 - Additional Comments
God waited until the last moment in each case to reveal His will. Note He allowed Samuel to actually bring each son before God. God was both testing them and teaching them. Sometimes you might ask why God allows you to go so far down a wrong path before drawing you down the right one. In His perfect wisdom He knows you and what it takes to both test and teach you. If it was easy, we wouldn't learn.
Samuel, the man of God, made the serious mistake of selecting the king of Israel based on physical appearance, possibly partly because of Saul's striking appearance when he was selected as king (9:2). But then, how would he have known their character, their heart, since he just met them? Was he looking for godly character, and just assumed those with the physical features would be the ones who were on target with God? It is so common to judge people by their features. May we always look beyond to the heart. This was something God had to teach Samuel (vs 7).
The beauty that God sees is what is inside. Ah, if only the outward appearance revealed the heart! How then would so many movie stars look like? And, how remarkable some aged Christians would appear (e.g. Miss Nell). How about you? Would your spouse say you are becoming more beautiful as you age? If you are working to become more of what God wants, you are. If you don't care, and make no effort, you won't. Is it true you either are always advancing or declining in your relationship with God? Are you becoming more beautiful, or the opposite? You may fool most people, but you can't fool God, and you can't fool your family.
This is very encouraging, because this says we can look forward to old age. In Joshua 1:8 we are told that success is obtained by meditating on God's word day and night. Instead of applying more moisturizer each day to soften the skin, we need to be applying the word of God to soften our heart.
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