Treasure Hunt

1 Samuel 16:1
Now the LORD said to Samuel, “How long will you mourn for Saul, seeing I have rejected him from reigning over Israel? Fill your horn with oil, and go; I am sending you to Jesse the Bethlehemite. For I have provided Myself a king among his sons”

Most likely while God spoke these words to Samuel, David was out in the field somewhere tending to his sheep. Maybe he was fighting off a bear; he might have been sleeping. Who knows? Does it matter? No, God spoke to the prophet and said what was going to happen in the not too distant future, and it happened.

I’m sure you’ve heard the story of David and Goliath. If not, I’ll sum it up for you. The Philistine army was pitted against Israel. Both lines faced each other. Each day the Philistines sent out Goliath, a giant of a man, to taunt the Israelites and blaspheme God. Not one of the mighty men of Israel was willing to go out and fight for his country, for his God. They were all stricken with fear.

This went on for forty days before David came down to the front lines. David was a shepherd; he was a young boy. He had been sent down by his father to bring bread to his brothers who were soldiers in the army. When David heard the things that Goliath was saying, he became outraged. He took his sling and some stones, approached the giant, and fought for his country; he fought to defend the name of God.

With a single stone David was able to bring the mighty Goliath crashing to the ground. And with a swing of the giant’s own sword, David cut off Goliath’s head and secured victory for Israel. At that moment this prophecy was coming to fruition; or was it?

The answer: yes and no. Yes, David was going to be the king of Israel, but a further look at this very scripture reveals an even greater King. The secret is hidden cleverly by God, by the King Himself, in the last line of the verse; “I have provided Myself a king among his sons.” Why did God say it like this? Why didn’t He say, “I have provided a king among his sons.”? For that matter, why didn’t God say, “Jesse’s son David is going to be king.”?

The answer: He was concealing His own Son, Jesus, in the verse. We know from the historic genealogical account listed in Matthew that Jesus Christ was a descendant of Jesse. What God is saying to Samuel is so much more than “David is going to be the king of Israel.” He’s telling Samuel, “I, Myself, will come through the sons of Jesse; I will be the King.”

Jesus Christ is the purpose, the driving force, the reason behind every story and event in the Bible. God wrote history to be His story. Every verse is a treasure hunt. We’re not looking for diamonds or One-eyed Willy’s gold; we’re looking for Jesus Christ, The Treasure of the ages. Have fun, refresh your heart, and open up God’s word to see The Word revealed!