Good people are hard to find. Every business I walk by seems to have a sign out, offering better wages and stronger employment packages. Issues created by a lack of quality employees pops up regularly. Interestingly, King David and his administration faced a similar issue.

In a long list of officials serving the king and kingdom, and we discover a comment about their desire for capable workers: In the fortieth year of David’s reign search was made and men of great ability among them were found at Jazer in Gilead.

I wonder how they went about their search? What list of criteria were used? Did they survey the surrounding countryside? Interview prospective candidates? Then, what happened in that region to facilitate the growth and development of so many talented people? What was in the water in Jazer of Gilead?

As a result of his search, King David found 2,700 men of great ability, and appointed them to leadership of their region, overseeing everything pertaining to God and for the affairs of the king.

David didn’t know what he had out there far from the capital. But people of great ability exist in places we overlook. A glaring need led to the search in the first place, and the Lord’s goodness provided the leaders necessary to serve the kingdom for years to come.

This brief parenthesis in a book filled with lists reminds me to notice the talented people around me that perhaps I’ve overlooked.

1 Chronicles 26 in reading the Bible cover to cover in 2022

Photo by Shivendu Shukla