Jesse

About Jesse

Jesse was a Bethlehemite from the tribe of Judah and the father of King David. He is first mentioned in the book of Ruth as the son of Obed and the grandson of Boaz and Ruth. Jesse had eight sons, the youngest of whom was David, who was anointed by the prophet Samuel to be king over Israel. Jesse is described as an old man during the time of David's youth, and he sent David to take supplies to his older brothers who were fighting in Saul's army against the Philistines. Later, when David was on the run from Saul, he expressed concern for his parents' safety, and he arranged for them to stay with the king of Moab. Jesse is also mentioned in the genealogies of Jesus Christ in the Gospels of Matthew and Luke, emphasizing the Messianic lineage from Jesse through David. The prophet Isaiah foretold that the Messiah would come from the "stump of Jesse," symbolizing the humble origins of the Davidic dynasty.

Description from STEPBible TIPNR (Tyndale House, Cambridge), CC BY 4.0, lightly reformatted. This is background reference material, not Scripture and not a FaithGraph editorial claim.