1 Samuel 16:10 (KJV)

Passage

Again, Jesse made seven of his sons to pass before Samuel. And Samuel said unto Jesse, The LORD hath not chosen these.

Nearby Context

1 Samuel 16:8 Then Jesse called Abinadab, and made him pass before Samuel. And he said, Neither hath the LORD chosen this.

1 Samuel 16:9 Then Jesse made Shammah to pass by. And he said, Neither hath the LORD chosen this.

1 Samuel 16:10 Again, Jesse made seven of his sons to pass before Samuel. And Samuel said unto Jesse, The LORD hath not chosen these.

1 Samuel 16:11 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.

1 Samuel 16:12 And he sent, and brought him in. Now he was ruddy, and withal of a beautiful countenance, and goodly to look to. And the LORD said, Arise, anoint him: for this is he.

Study Lenses

The verse centers on "again", "jesse", "seven", "sons", "pass", "before", and "samuel". It is saying that the verse draws attention to "again" and "jesse", so its meaning should be read from those terms before moving to application.

The nearby context moves from verse 9's "Then Jesse made Shammah to pass by..." into verse 11's "And Samuel said unto Jesse Are here...", so "again" and "jesse" belong inside that flow. In 1 Samuel context, the local focus is covenant, worship, and faithfulness.

A plain takeaway is to answer the verse's own emphasis on "again" and "jesse" with trust shaped by these words, not by a vague optimism outside the passage.