1 Samuel 16:4 (WEB)

Passage

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 peaceably?”

Nearby Context

1 Samuel 16:2 Samuel said, “How can I go? If Saul hears it, he will kill me.” Yahweh said, “Take a heifer with you, and say, I have come to sacrifice to Yahweh.

1 Samuel 16:3 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.”

1 Samuel 16:4 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 peaceably?”

1 Samuel 16:5 He said, “Peaceably; I have come to sacrifice to Yahweh. Sanctify yourselves, and come with me to the sacrifice.” He sanctified Jesse and his sons, and called them to the sacrifice.

1 Samuel 16:6 When they had come, he looked at Eliab, and said, “Surely Yahweh’s anointed is before him.”

Study Lenses

The verse centers on "samuel", "yahweh", "spoke", "came", "bethlehem", "elders", and "city". It is saying that the verse draws attention to "samuel" and "yahweh", so its meaning should be read from those terms before moving to application.

The nearby context moves from verse 3's "Call Jesse to the sacrifice and I..." into verse 5's "He said Peaceably I have come to...", so "samuel" and "yahweh" 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 "yahweh" with trust shaped by these words, not by a vague optimism outside the passage.