Day 13: Jesse

The LORD does not look at the things people look at. People look at the outward appearance, but the LORD looks at the heart — 1 Samuel 16:7

In The Prayer of the Frog, Anthony de Mello shares a conversation that may resonate uncomfortably with many South Asian families:

“How are your children?”
“Both of them are very well thanking you.”
“How old are they?”
“The doctor is three and the lawyer is five.” 1

Humorous? Yes! Honest? Perhaps painfully so. Too often, our children’s worth is measured by external markers of “success”: grades, trophies, talents, appearance or prospects for prestigious careers. But are we looking at and investing in the right things?

Jesse, who stands in the honoured line of Jesus’s genealogy, is best known as David’s father. When Samuel arrived in Bethlehem with a divine commission to anoint Israel’s next king, Jesse paraded seven sons before him. But why did he leave out David? Perhaps because David was the youngest and smallest or because tending sheep was considered a lowly occupation (1 Samuel 16:11).

Even the great prophet Samuel was misled by outward appearances. Seeing Eliab, Jesse’s firstborn, he thought, “Surely the LORD’s anointed stands here” (1 Samuel 16:6). Although the text does not explain why he thought so, God’s swift retort reveals that Samuel was seeing superficially, focussing on cosmetics rather than character: “Do not consider his appearance or his height, for I have rejected him. The LORD does not look at the things people look at. People look at the outward appearance, but the LORD looks at the heart” (1 Samuel 16:7).

In Jesse’s world – as in many South Asian cultures today – the firstborn enjoyed privilege and prominence, and boys were valued over girls. Jesse’s overlooking of David illustrates how easily we may dismiss those who don’t meet society’s standards of worth. Do we impose our ways of seeing on God rather than inviting God to shape how we see ourselves, others and our world? If Samuel and Jesse had viewed this situation through God’s eyes, they might have glimpsed in this young shepherd boy what the Lord himself saw: “a man after his own heart” (1 Samuel 13:14). Will we choose to look beyond the labels assigned by society – or even by family – and see each individual as a precious image-bearer of God?

Jesus’s genealogy includes many flawed figures, and Jesse is no exception. Yet God’s faithfulness transcends human shortcomings. From this flawed father came David – the overlooked youngest son – who grew up to be Israel’s beloved shepherd-king. And from Jesse’s line came another child – Jesus – who defied the expectations of His time. Instead of the warrior king Israel expected and eagerly awaited, God sent a suffering servant who was ridiculed, rejected and, ultimately, crucified. But He was God’s servant, perfectly suited to fulfil God’s plan.

Our Advent hope reminds us that “from the stump of Jesse” (Isaiah 11:1) – a flawed father who failed to see his son rightly – came the King of kings, a Saviour who sees us with grace-filled eyes, not judging superficially or by outward and external standards but seeing the heart with true wisdom, justice and righteousness (Isaiah 11:2–4). Even when our families or societies fail to see us for who we are or value us only for what we produce or achieve, our perfect heavenly Father sees and values each one of us as beloved sons and daughters, precious and priceless, each with a unique purpose in His kingdom. And having freed us from the crushing weight of human expectations, our Lord now calls us to see others with the same grace-filled eyes.