In 1 Samuel 9, we are introduced to king Saul before he was king. What is interesting to note is that the first thing mentioned about him is his physical stature.
There was a man of Benjamin whose name was Kish the son of Abiel, the son of Zeror, the son of Bechorath, the son of Aphiah, a Benjamite, a mighty man of [a]power. 2 And he had a choice and handsome son whose name was Saul. There was not a more handsome person than he among the children of Israel. From his shoulders upward he was taller than any of the people.
1 Samuel 9:1-2
The Bible does not note elements of his character, but rather his physical stature. What a thing to focus on!
It makes one think, what would be recorded about you in the Bible? Would we have elements of good character that would be worth recording? Or would only what we looked like to be passed down in the annals of history?
The Bible does not talk about Saul’s nobility, humility, his good spirit, or willingness to learn. It does not talk about his religiosity or focus on the spiritual. All that one could say about him was that he looked like a king. He had the stature to be king.
But is there not more to leadership than what someone looks like? But we as people concentrate on the physical aspects of others to the exclusion of all else.
Perhaps this is why God specifically saw fit to teach Samuel that physical stature was not what was important in a king.
6 So it was, when they came, that he looked at Eliab and said, “Surely the Lord’s anointed is before Him!”7 But the Lord said to Samuel, “Do not look at his appearance or at his physical stature, because I have [c]refused him. For[d] the Lord does not see as man sees; for man looks at the outward appearance, but the Lord looks at the heart.”
1 Samuel 16:6-7
People were in the habit of looking at the physical first. Perhaps even Samuel believed that the next king would look like the first king physically. but this was not the case. When God sought out David, He was looking for a man after His own heart. And he found that in Davis, despite his stature.
Lesson: Pursue character and do not rely too heavily on your looks or strength. Those will decay with age, but good character will last for a lifetime. Do not rely on things that fade away. Character will be the bedrock upon which you build the rest of your life.
