1 Samuel 16:7 (YLT)

Passage

And Jehovah saith unto Samuel, `Look not unto his appearance, and unto the height of his stature, for I have rejected him; for <FI>it is<Fi> not as man seeth--for man looketh at the eyes, and Jehovah looketh at the heart.'

Nearby Context

1 Samuel 16:5 and he saith, `Peace; to sacrifice to Jehovah I have come, sanctify yourselves, and ye have come in with me to the sacrifice;' and he sanctifieth Jesse and his sons, and calleth them to the sacrifice.

1 Samuel 16:6 And it cometh to pass, in their coming in, that he seeth Eliab, and saith, `Surely, before Jehovah <FI>is<Fi> His anointed.'

1 Samuel 16:7 And Jehovah saith unto Samuel, `Look not unto his appearance, and unto the height of his stature, for I have rejected him; for <FI>it is<Fi> not as man seeth--for man looketh at the eyes, and Jehovah looketh at the heart.'

1 Samuel 16:8 And Jesse calleth unto Abinadab, and causeth him to pass by before Samuel; and he saith, `Also on this Jehovah hath not fixed.'

1 Samuel 16:9 And Jesse causeth Shammah to pass by, and he saith, `Also on this Jehovah hath not fixed.'

Study Lenses

The verse centers on "jehovah", "saith", "samuel", "look", "appearance", "height", "stature", and "rejected". It is saying that the verse draws attention to "jehovah" and "saith", so its meaning should be read from those terms before moving to application.

The nearby context moves from verse 6's "And it cometh to pass in their..." into verse 8's "And Jesse calleth unto Abinadab and causeth...", so "jehovah" and "saith" 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 "jehovah" and "saith" with trust shaped by these words, not by a vague optimism outside the passage.