David was not only the topmost man of his century, but also the climax of the best life of the chosen people of God, the consummate flower of the religion of Moses in its best days. He was a man of striking mental and moral opulence; rich in gifts and richer in achievements; a poet and a politician; a chief of brigands and a champion of the armies of God; a vassal of the Philistines and the creator of the Hebrew fatherland; simple as a child in his hunger for love, in beautiful humility, and in frank self-avowal, but prudent, cautious, and self-controlled in the thick onset of danger; tender-hearted, even to folly, as a father, but wise, sagacious, and powerful as a ruler of men, as is proved by his knitting together the scattered tribes of Israel into an invincible unity. What then is the full tale of this man's upbuilding?
I. Remember: (1) Man is a spirit. (2) "That which is born of the flesh is flesh." Spirit builds spirit; soul makes soul. The Hebrew historian accounts for David for all he was and all he did by the simple and comprehensive statement, "The Spirit of the Lord came upon David from that day forward."
Whatever David is that is spiritual and Godlike is due to that benignant advent, and whatever he accomplishes that advances the well-being of Israel results from that invisible presence.
II. Why is it that David, of all the sons of Jesse and of all the children of Israel, is elected by the prophet for this special consecration to kingly place and power? The answer is that God sees in that lad the Tightness of heart which is the only basis for the building up of a true character, the manifest "set" of the inward life in its faith and hope, its yearning and passion, towards God and goodness, which is before all things the qualification for a redeeming and renewing career amongst men. Evermore God's unseen educating ministry goes forward. He is always preparing the world's kings. True rulers are never absent. When the clock of time strikes, and their hour is come, they take their place and do their work, and we are debtors all.
III. Nothing more eradicably rooted itself in David's mind or found more pathetic expression in his songs than the immense educational influence of his family and shepherd life. That influence was the salt of his career. It brought him face to face with reality, and developed an inwardness of being that brought peace and power for evermore.
J. Clifford, Daily Strength for Daily Living,p. 163.
References: 1 Samuel 16:13. Bishop Walsham How, Plain Words to Children,p. 68; J. M. Neale, Sermons in Sackville College,vol. ii., p. 39.