Jesse (also called Isai) was the son of Obed and grandson of Boaz and Ruth. He was the father of King David and lived in Bethlehem. Jesse plays an important role in God's plan of salvation as an ancestor in the messianic lineage.
17The women of the neighborhood gave him a name, saying, "A son has been born to Naomi." And they named him Obed. He was the father of Jesse, the father of David.
1The LORD said to Samuel, "How long will you mourn for Saul, when I have rejected him as king over Israel? Fill your horn with oil and go. I am sending you to Jesse of Bethlehem, for I have chosen one of his sons to be king."
2But Samuel said, "How can I go? If Saul hears of it, he will kill me." The LORD said, "Take a heifer with you and say, 'I have come to sacrifice to the LORD.'
5"In peace," he answered. "I have come to sacrifice to the LORD. Consecrate yourselves and come with me to the sacrifice." Then he consecrated Jesse and his sons and invited them to the sacrifice.
7But the LORD said to Samuel, "Do not look at his appearance or his height, for I have rejected him. The LORD does not see as man sees: man looks at the outward appearance, but the LORD looks at the heart."
11So he asked Jesse, "Are these all the young men you have?" "There is still the youngest," Jesse answered. "He is out tending the sheep." Samuel said, "Send for him. We will not sit down until he comes here."
12So he sent for him and brought him in. He had a ruddy complexion, fine eyes, and a handsome face. And the LORD said, "Rise and anoint him; this is the one."
13So Samuel took the horn of oil and anointed him in the presence of his brothers, and from that day on the Spirit of the LORD came powerfully upon David. Then Samuel set out and returned to Ramah.
When Saul was troubled by an evil spirit, Jesse sent his son David with gifts to the king, and David became Saul's armor-bearer and played the harp for him.
18One of the young men answered, "I have seen a son of Jesse of Bethlehem who knows how to play. He is a brave man and a warrior, wise in speech and handsome, and the LORD is with him."
23Whenever the spirit from God came upon Saul, David would take his lyre and play, and Saul would find relief and feel better, and the evil spirit would leave him.
13Jesse's three oldest sons had gone with Saul to the war. The names of the three who went to battle were Eliab the firstborn, Abinadab the second, and Shammah the third.
20Early the next morning David left the flock with a keeper, loaded up, and set out as Jesse had told him. He reached the camp just as the army was moving into position, shouting the battle cry.
The prophet Isaiah prophesied about a branch that shall spring up from the stump of Jesse, a messianic prophecy pointing to Jesus Christ who will come from Jesse's lineage.
2The Spirit of the LORD will rest on him—the Spirit of wisdom and understanding, the Spirit of counsel and might, the Spirit of knowledge and the fear of the LORD.