God Has Samuel Lie to Protect Himself | 1 Samuel 16

[00:00:00]I don't look at the outside appearance, but this guy's got ruddy good looks.

[00:00:06]He's a goodlooking guy. He's handsome.

[00:00:09]What a be. But I look at the heart.

[00:00:17]Hey folks, welcome to Joel Reads Bible.

[00:00:18]I'm Joel and I read Bible just so you don't have to. And we're reading First Samuel. If you're still with me and you're a Christian and you actually were there for the last chapter, what what why are you still a Christian? If you're a Christian, you haven't watched the last chapter, watch it and stop being a Christian. And and if you did watch it, watch it again. We're going to be reading 1st Samuel 16 and it can only go up from here. Stick around to the end of the chapter and I'm going to tell you what I loved about the chapter and also what I loathed. So, let's get right into it. 1st Samuel 16. Yahweh said to Samuel, "How long will you mourn for Saul since I have rejected him from being king over Israel?

[00:01:05]Fill your horn with oil and go.

[00:01:09]I will send you to Jesse the Bethleamite, for I have provided a king for myself among his sons." So Samuel really bummed about Saul. I don't know why.

[00:01:24]Like I don't think there was really much of a relationship built there that I remember and Yahwi was like grow up.

[00:01:31]Maybe there it's just the re relationship there that he's mourning.

[00:01:35]He doesn't really like losing that. And he's like I got a new one. Let's go get him. Samuel said how can I go? If Saul hears it, he will kill me. Oh, ye of little faith. Just picture the scene.

[00:01:55]Someone who talks directly with the God that created the universe. The God who instantly kills people if they look in an ark. The God who sends hail. The God who parts seas.

[00:02:11]Samuel is someone who has one- on-one communication with this guy. And he's nervous that the enemy Saul might hear that he's going to some other place on behalf of Yahweh. And he thinks that that's something to be concerned about. That's so weird. If you had God with you talking to you and you know he's all powerful, you're really feeling any sort of like he might get me. What?

[00:02:45]This is how we know that this is fiction or the character of God isn't triomy. We could save the god if we just take away the triomy attributes. It makes sense if you need it for the plot like as a plot device, right? You need a little bit of fear in Samuel because you need there to be stakes. We're kind of creating a a scenario where there's some stakes.

[00:03:10]But for God to actually be all powerful in any of this supposedly real, uh, this is a a really stupid story. Yahweh said, "Take a hepher with you and say, I have come to sacrifice to Yahweh." Call Jesse to the sacrifice, and I will show you what you shall do. You shall anoint to me him whom I name to you. It seems like Yahweh is saying, act like you're going for a different reason. He might be just ignoring what Samuel said. That could be the case. But if he's responding, just take a heer, pretend like you're going to do a sacrifice. Lie essentially. Be a little deceptive. And then call Jesse to the sacrifice. A little trick. to to throw Saul off the scent and then we'll anoint the right person, blah blah blah.

[00:04:06]If that's the case, then this is God suggesting a lie. This is written in such a way that it's not direct. It's not Yahweh saying trick them by bringing a cow. That would be really handy, but this is more, yeah, bring a cow and then just say like, I'm doing a sacrifice and then we'll anoint the guy. So, I think that that's what's being said here.

[00:04:28]Yahweh is suggesting that Samuel lies or does a deception. Same same thing.

[00:04:35]Samuel did that which Yahweh spoke and came to Bethlehem. The elders of the city came to meet him trembling and said, "Do you come peacefully?"

[00:04:51]Why are you cold? We're scared. We're scared. They're scared. Why? because Samuel's so powerful or is Saul in Bethlehem? I think that that might be it. Is that where the kingdom is? Like is that where the the castle is or whatever? Like they're nervous for Samuel or they're scared of Samuel, but like it's hard for us to know because hasn't really given us that information.

[00:05:16]He said, "Peace, I have come to sacrifice to Yahweh.

[00:05:24]sanctify yourselves and come with me to the sacrifice.

[00:05:30]That's the lie. Christians will say, "No, he was going to do that." But he's only going to do that to distract from the thing that God actually wanted him to do, which was to anoint somebody with oil for the next kinghood.

[00:05:49]All right? So, this is a deception.

[00:05:53]This is another trick and it's a trick that Yahweh has told him to do. He sanctified Jesse and his sons and called them to the sacrifice.

[00:06:04]When they had come, he looked at Elab and said, "Surely anointed is before him." Samuel is so weird. He's such a weirdo. Just the way he just stares after he says things is very strange. filled with evil spirits.

[00:06:24]But Yahweh said to Samuel, "Don't look on his face or on the height of his stature, because I have rejected him.

[00:06:35]For I don't see as man sees." For man looks at the outward appearance, but Yahweh looks at the heart. Samuel looks at Elab and he's like, "That's the guy."

[00:06:50]And you always like, "No, he's a big boy."

[00:06:54]Yeah, he is a big boy. Like, he looks good. But I see the heart. I missed it with Saul.

[00:07:04]Remember when Saul was so tall? He was a great looking guy, very tall. And I did choose him. And I ah I missed the thing where he wouldn't want to kill literally everyone that I told him to kill. So, h that was my big mistake that last time I screwed that up. But now I now I've started look I don't I don't see like other guys. Now I'm seeing the inside part. Now I look at the heart part. So he's really changed his ways. Fool me once, says Yahweh.

[00:07:40]Shame on you. Fool me twice. Shame on me. I'm going to start using my omniscience.

[00:07:46]Then Jesse called Abinadab and made him pass before Samuel. He said, "Yahweh has not chosen this one either."

[00:08:00]Then Jesse made Shama to pass by. He said, "Yah has not chosen this one either."

[00:08:09]Jesse made seven of his sons to pass before Samuel. Samuel said to Jesse, "Yeah, in this."

[00:08:18]Samuel said to Jesse, "Are all your children here?

[00:08:25]Where is where? There's got to be another one." He said, "There remains yet the youngest. Behold, he is keeping the sheep."

[00:08:36]Samuel said to Jesse, "Send him along, for we will not sit down until he comes here. You don't have to stand the whole time. You can you can have a seat. I will not sit.

[00:08:49]I will not." He sent and brought him in.

[00:08:53]Now he was ruddy with a handsome face and a good appearance. Yahweh said, "Arise, anoint him, for this is he."

[00:09:08]So, he does I don't look at the outside appearance, but this guy's got ruddy good looks. He's a good-looking guy.

[00:09:17]He's handsome. What a be. But I look at the heart.

[00:09:22]Then Samuel took the horn of oil and anointed him in the middle of his brothers. Then Yahweh's spirit came mightily on David from that day forward.

[00:09:35]So Samuel rose up and went to Rama. So David is covered in Yahweh's spirits come all of his mighty come all over him.

[00:09:47]He's just like Samson or other people that Yahweh came on. The thing is that like that doesn't mean anything. Doesn't mean he's going to be a good guy. Uh he could still be also an idiot because Yahweh just has a really bad taste in everyone. He's not good at looking at the heart. It seems he needs glasses.

[00:10:07]Now Yahweh's spirit departed from Saul and an evil spirit from Yahweh troubled him. What?

[00:10:14]Okay, this is a big theological point.

[00:10:17]Yahweh's spirit departs and an evil spirit from Yahweh. Yahweh's like, "Go get into him. Get into him." He needs an evil spirit inside him. I'm leaving. You go into him. This is God controlling all the spirits, right? Is there any sort of passage so far which gives us an idea of some sort of other spiritual world, the bad spirits that do anything?

[00:10:46]No. We always have like Yahweh has the angel of death. Yahweh has in this case an evil spirit that he controls.

[00:10:54]I don't know why we would believe that there is any other spiritual world other than Yahweh's evil spiritual world. I guess we have other gods. I guess we do have other gods, but so far the ones that are doing anything are uh Yahweh's in control of them. And this goes back to Dubai 13.

[00:11:16]where it says that Yahweh will like send evil spirits or or bad guys that are going to like have these evil spirits that are there to deceive you and they can do magic tricks, but he's the one that sends the guy. He's the one that sends the deceivers. That's where it's like he's playing both sides every time, which is obnoxious and and um unfair.

[00:11:39]Saul's servants said to him, "See now, an evil spirit from God troubles you.

[00:11:44]Let our Lord now command your servants who are in front of you to seek out a man who is a skillful player on the harp. Then when the evil spirit from God is on you, he will play with his hand and you will be well. You can scare away evil spirits with a harp.

[00:12:06]music scares away evil spirits or or or makes them leave or something. That what this is interesting. This is an interesting like little rule. I wonder if this is why people use like sound therapy. You know, they've got the big bowls or something. It's like and you just sit there like this. I don't know if they do this. You just sit there cross-legged wearing linen pants and not showering and then you Oh my goodness. I feel something. I don't know. I've never done it. But you feel some sort of transcendental experience or something. Maybe that's what you know the harp can do and it's really just evil spirits leaving you. Maybe that's maybe that's evidence of this stuff being true. likely just a plot point, just a literary device. But it'd be cool if it were true because then you could actually test it. If people were having evil spirits, whatever that seemed like, whatever, however you could tell that, just play some really nice music on the harp. Because I was raised at a time when playing rock and roll music could get the evil spirits there. So, it can go either way. Saul said to his servants, "Provide me now a man who can play well and bring him to me."

[00:13:36]Then one of the young men answered and said, "Behold, I have seen a son of Jesse the Bethlite, who is skillful in playing, a mighty man of valor, a man of war, prudent in speech, and a handsome person. And Yahweh is with him." It's David, obviously. But what I want us to notice, this is very surprising to me.

[00:14:02]This is before the David and Goliath story. We've just met David. And we're learning that he's a man of war.

[00:14:12]He's a mighty man of valor. And yes, he was a shepherd, but he is not a little boy who just tends sheep.

[00:14:26]That's not the case. We don't have this little shepherd who has I don't know what to do. I guess I'll just throw just to use a slingshot to No, this is a mighty man of valor.

[00:14:40]He is a man of war. This is a soldier. I when I grow up I I was like, "Oh, he's just a young shepherd boy and he was able to beat a giant. How amazing.

[00:14:51]You're supposed to get that sort of conjured up." But we'll see as we move forward in these chapters. It may be completely different. You know, the what what the story is actually telling us.

[00:15:03]And probably the point of the story is going to be completely different than this uh innocent young boy who couldn't have done it without Yahweh is able to defeat the giant. This is a man of war.

[00:15:15]He probably really knows how to use the slingshot. But anyway, we're not there yet, so I I don't want to get too bogged down with it, but that's just a very surprising description of this guy who's just shown up in the story. Therefore, Saul sent messengers to Jesse and said, "Send me David, your son, who is with the sheep." Jesse took a donkey loaded with bread, a container of wine, and a young goat, and sent them by David, his son, to Saul. David came to Saul and stood before him. He loved him greatly, and he became his armor bearer. Saul sent to Jesse, saying, "Please let David stand before me, for he has found favor in my sight." Then the spirit from God was on Saul. David took the harp and played with his hand. So Saul was refreshed and was well, and the spirit departed from him. So when the the Bible describes things like I don't know how the time works if if if Saul was like afflicted by an evil spirit like just felt tired or depressed or something.

[00:16:24]Don't you think he'd be like get the harpist in here right away. Oh man, this guy's great. Start playing the harp. But it seems like it's like oh this guy's really great looking and stuff. I like him. I like the goat and stuff. Um, can you be my armor bearer? Please let David stand before me for he's found favor.

[00:16:45]Great. Now play the harp. It's just, you know what I mean? Like it's just the order seems wrong. They should describe the harp thing and then the other stuff happens after it. But and that, you know, he was refreshed and then he told Jesse that the the son was going to stay. This seems to be these people not understanding once we get we're getting into the this part of the story where there's more story to it. And so it feels a little bit more advanced than Genesis and Exodus was super boring and stuff like that and some of it was just like genealogy is a not story. So it was just like this stuff sucks and the way it's written is all over the place and messy.

[00:17:27]This is even though this paragraph was a little rough, some pretty coherent stories and you know they're somewhat straightforward and so it seems like this is a little bit more adult or modern, dare I say. It isn't obviously it's still ancient text. And what you see is these people probably just not understanding how music works and that we respond to it emotionally and they attribute the feelings that you can have for music with something spiritual because that's the world.

[00:18:04]That's like the superstitious nonsense mindset that they have. So they they they just imagine, oh my goodness, what's happening when you listen to a beautiful piece of harp music?

[00:18:18]It calms your spirit. It calms you down, you know, makes you feel nice. And that's evil spirits leaving you. This idea probably came directly from the way people thought of music in that time, which is kind of interesting if that's true. It could just be another like a creative way that they're using the way people feel about music and they didn't actually believe that that was the case.

[00:18:41]It's hard to know. It is interesting indeed that they are kind of thinking of things in that light for sure cuz it's it's really just not that music is magical but not in this sort of way.

[00:18:56]It's it feels like a spiritual experience, but it's it just plays off of uh your emotions cuz music does that in a really fantastic kind of magical way. I'm sure people do understand the signs of that. But anyway, what did I love about this chapter? I love that we're finally getting into David. I find I I love that like David is finally joining the story in a meaningful way.

[00:19:21]Um because it's about time. Saul was fine, but he's kind of I'm indifferent towards him.

[00:19:29]So, that was good. I loved that Samuel forgot that he's friends with the creator of the universe who's all powerful. I I love that the Bible doesn't know how powerful God is. I love that it's just simply not aware for certain stories.

[00:19:47]Yahweh's like, "Oh, yeah, good point."

[00:19:49]Um, I won't just say, "Oh, I'll kill anyone that questions you." I I'll I'll I'll just have you lie.

[00:19:57]How about this? I'll just have you lie.

[00:19:59]Why Why don't we do it that way? Because uh what else am I supposed to do? I'm just God.

[00:20:06]And then I What did I loathe about the chapter? I know I just said that thing about music, but I I think I loathe attaching this kind of spiritual stuff to music. I think that when you get into these types of books and things that people actually still believe, they take it very seriously, right? They they take anointing with oil seriously. They think it does something.

[00:20:31]They're like that that there's power there to that. They think there's power in words and curses. I know they do.

[00:20:38]I've heard Christians talk about it.

[00:20:40]That's weird. And so when it says that there can be evil spirits that leave you because of harp music, that's where we get the scary some other evil spirits can come on you because of rock and roll, the demonic backbeat and all those types of things, right? They they'll they'll kind of take that seriously. I wonder if we'll see. And then the evil beats were being played and that made everyone have sex with demons, you know, but they because they show the other thing, I can see where a Christian could extrapolate that if they want to create some paranoia, you know, during the satanic panic era and everyone loses their mind over music when it really is just feeling something. And I've described this before. You know, the first time I heard the drums on the Phantom of the Opera soundtrack, the original London cast, where the drums kick in during the my whole body was filled with excitement, but also anxiety because I was like, "Oh, I'm feeling something.

[00:22:00]There's an adrenaline there. This is exciting. But I was like, is this satanic? Is this evil? Is this wrong?

[00:22:09]And that sucks. You know, you can just like enjoy music and be excited by it without having this strange like, ugh, is this wrong? Are there spirits here?

[00:22:23]Is there something like that?

[00:22:25]So for that reason, I genuinely hate this because it's going to confuse people who are already gullible enough to believe this trash and then it will, you know, be passed down to children. And I was one of those children who just had a confused experience just listening to drums in the Phantom of the Opera soundtrack, which is crazy.

[00:22:51]It's crazy that that would be a confused experience. Don't you think that shouldn't have been the case? I should have just enjoyed the energy of that moment and been like, "Oh, that's cool."

[00:23:04]and maybe been inspired by it or something like that. Guys, if you enjoyed this chapter, leave a comment telling me how much you enjoyed it. Like the video and also subscribe if you haven't.

[00:23:16]And yes, we will see you in the next one. Bye.