1 Samuel 16:2 (KJV)

Passage

And Samuel said, How can I go? if Saul hear it, he will kill me. And the LORD said, Take an heifer with thee, and say, I am come to sacrifice to the LORD.

Nearby Context

1 Samuel 16:1 And the LORD said unto Samuel, How long wilt thou mourn for Saul, seeing I have rejected him from reigning over Israel? fill thine horn with oil, and go, I will send thee to Jesse the Bethlehemite: for I have provided me a king among his sons.

1 Samuel 16:2 And Samuel said, How can I go? if Saul hear it, he will kill me. And the LORD said, Take an heifer with thee, and say, I am come to sacrifice to the LORD.

1 Samuel 16:3 And call Jesse to the sacrifice, and I will shew thee what thou shalt do: and thou shalt anoint unto me him whom I name unto thee.

1 Samuel 16:4 And Samuel did that which the LORD spake, and came to Bethlehem. And the elders of the town trembled at his coming, and said, Comest thou peaceably?

Study Lenses

The verse centers on "samuel", "said", "saul", "hear", "kill", "lord", and "take". It is saying that the verse draws attention to "samuel" and "said", so its meaning should be read from those terms before moving to application.

The nearby context moves from verse 1's "And the LORD said unto Samuel How..." into verse 3's "And call Jesse to the sacrifice and...", so "samuel" and "said" 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 "samuel" and "said" with trust shaped by these words, not by a vague optimism outside the passage.