Bible Strands
1 Samuel 16:11
And Samuel asked him, “Are these all the sons you have?” “There is still the youngest,” Jesse replied, “but he is tending the sheep.” “Send for him,” Samuel replied. “For we will not sit down to eat until he arrives.”
Berean Standard Bible
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Study note
Setting — Samuel questions Jesse after seven sons have been presented, asking if the family is complete. Jesse identifies a remaining youngest son currently tending sheep, prompting Samuel to order his immediate recall before the meal concludes.
The words — The Hebrew עֹד (od) means “still,” emphasizing that the selection process is not yet complete. The phrase הֲתַמּוּ הַנְּעָרִים (ha-tammu ha-na’arim) literally asks “are they finished,” framing the seven presented sons as a closed group awaiting final verification.
The thread — This moment of divine selection from obscurity echoes in Psalms 78:70 and 2 Samuel 7:8, which both note God’s choice of David from the sheepfolds. The contrast between the youngest shepherd and his older brothers resurfaces in 1 Samuel 17:28 during the Goliath confrontation.
Why it lands — The text demands recognition that divine appointment overrides human assessment and social visibility. Readers must acknowledge that God’s criteria require waiting on His timing rather than settling for available options.
Drafted by a language model from the text, its original words and its cross-references, then checked against them. It can still be wrong: open the verse in the app to report it.
The Hebrew words
King James Version
And Samuel said unto Jesse, Are here all thy children? And he said, There remaineth yet the youngest, and, behold, he keepeth the sheep. And Samuel said unto Jesse, Send and fetch him: for we will not sit down till he come hither.
Cross-references
- Psalms 78:70 He chose David His servant and took him from the sheepfolds;
- 2 Samuel 7:8 Now then, you are to tell My servant David that this is what the LORD of Hosts says: I took you from the pasture, from following the flock, to be the ruler over My people Israel.
- 1 Samuel 17:28 Now when David’s oldest brother Eliab heard him speaking to the men, his anger burned against David. “Why have you come down here?” he asked. “And with whom did you leave those few sheep in the wilderness? I know your pride and wickedness of heart—you have come down to see the battle!”
- 2 Samuel 13:3 Now Amnon had a friend named Jonadab, the son of David’s brother Shimeah. Jonadab was a very shrewd man,
- 1 Chronicles 17:7 Now then, you are to tell My servant David that this is what the LORD of Hosts says: I took you from the pasture, from following the flock, to be the ruler over My people Israel.
- 1 Samuel 17:12 Now David was the son of a man named Jesse, an Ephrathite from Bethlehem of Judah who had eight sons. And in the days of Saul, Jesse was old and well along in years.