1 Samuel 16:14

David Appears before Saul

16:14 Now the Spirit of the Lord had turned away from Saul, and an evil spirit ¹  from the Lord tormented him.

1 Samuel 16:16

16:16 Let our lord instruct his servants who are here before you to look for a man who knows how to play the lyre. Then whenever the evil spirit from God comes upon you, he can play the lyre ²  and you will feel better.” ³ 

¹ tn Or “an injurious spirit”; cf. NLT “a tormenting spirit.” The phrase need not refer to an evil, demonic spirit. The Hebrew word translated “evil” may refer to the character of the spirit or to its effect upon Saul. If the latter, another translation option might be “a mischief-making spirit.”

² tn Heb “and he will play with his hand.”

³ tn Heb “and it will be better for you.”