OUT in the country near the little town of Bethlehem there lived a man by the name of Jesse. That was many, many years before Jesus was born. This man had seven sons, of which the youngest was David. A part of David's work was to take care of the sheep of his father, for there was much pasture in the hill country near the town. He was a brave lad. Once when some wild animals tried to carry off some little sheep from his flock, he went after them with his staff and brought the little lambs back again.
David loved to sing. He had a good voice, and he learned to play on a harp, so that he could sing and play at the same time. The beautiful song, "The Lord is my Shepherd," which is known as the shepherd psalm, was written by David.
When David became a man, he was made king of his people, the children of Israel. He was a good king, who trusted in God and cried to do His will. We ought to follow David in this, so that God may be pleased with us also and give us His blessing.