13 So Samuel took the horn of oil and anointed(A) him in the presence of his brothers, and from that day on the Spirit of the Lord(B) came powerfully upon David.(C) Samuel then went to Ramah.

David in Saul’s Service

14 Now the Spirit of the Lord had departed(D) from Saul, and an evil[a] spirit(E) from the Lord tormented him.(F)

15 Saul’s attendants said to him, “See, an evil spirit from God is tormenting you. 16 Let our lord command his servants here to search for someone who can play the lyre.(G) He will play when the evil spirit from God comes on you, and you will feel better.”

17 So Saul said to his attendants, “Find someone who plays well and bring him to me.”

18 One of the servants answered, “I have seen a son of Jesse(H) of Bethlehem who knows how to play the lyre. He is a brave man and a warrior.(I) He speaks well and is a fine-looking man. And the Lord is with(J) him.”

19 Then Saul sent messengers to Jesse and said, “Send me your son David, who is with the sheep.(K) 20 So Jesse took a donkey loaded with bread,(L) a skin of wine and a young goat and sent them with his son David to Saul.

21 David came to Saul and entered his service.(M) Saul liked him very much, and David became one of his armor-bearers. 22 Then Saul sent word to Jesse, saying, “Allow David to remain in my service, for I am pleased with him.”

23 Whenever the spirit from God came on Saul, David would take up his lyre and play. Then relief would come to Saul; he would feel better, and the evil spirit(N) would leave him.

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Footnotes

  1. 1 Samuel 16:14 Or and a harmful; similarly in verses 15, 16 and 23

13 So as David stood there among his brothers, Samuel took the flask of olive oil he had brought and anointed David with the oil. And the Spirit of the Lord came powerfully upon David from that day on. Then Samuel returned to Ramah.

David Serves in Saul’s Court

14 Now the Spirit of the Lord had left Saul, and the Lord sent a tormenting spirit[a] that filled him with depression and fear.

15 Some of Saul’s servants said to him, “A tormenting spirit from God is troubling you. 16 Let us find a good musician to play the harp whenever the tormenting spirit troubles you. He will play soothing music, and you will soon be well again.”

17 “All right,” Saul said. “Find me someone who plays well, and bring him here.”

18 One of the servants said to Saul, “One of Jesse’s sons from Bethlehem is a talented harp player. Not only that—he is a brave warrior, a man of war, and has good judgment. He is also a fine-looking young man, and the Lord is with him.”

19 So Saul sent messengers to Jesse to say, “Send me your son David, the shepherd.” 20 Jesse responded by sending David to Saul, along with a young goat, a donkey loaded with bread, and a wineskin full of wine.

21 So David went to Saul and began serving him. Saul loved David very much, and David became his armor bearer.

22 Then Saul sent word to Jesse asking, “Please let David remain in my service, for I am very pleased with him.”

23 And whenever the tormenting spirit from God troubled Saul, David would play the harp. Then Saul would feel better, and the tormenting spirit would go away.

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Footnotes

  1. 16:14 Or an evil spirit; also in 16:15, 16, 23.

13 Samuel took his flask of oil and anointed him, with his brothers standing around watching. The Spirit of God entered David like a rush of wind, God vitally empowering him for the rest of his life.

Samuel left and went home to Ramah.

David—An Excellent Musician

14 At that very moment the Spirit of God left Saul and in its place a black mood sent by God settled on him. He was terrified.

15-16 Saul’s advisors said, “This awful tormenting depression from God is making your life miserable. O Master, let us help. Let us look for someone who can play the harp. When the black mood from God moves in, he’ll play his music and you’ll feel better.”

17 Saul told his servants, “Go ahead. Find me someone who can play well and bring him to me.”

18 One of the young men spoke up, “I know someone. I’ve seen him myself: the son of Jesse of Bethlehem, an excellent musician. He’s also courageous, of age, well-spoken, and good-looking. And God is with him.”

19 So Saul sent messengers to Jesse requesting, “Send your son David to me, the one who tends the sheep.”

20-21 Jesse took a donkey, loaded it with a couple of loaves of bread, a flask of wine, and a young goat, and sent his son David with it to Saul. David came to Saul and stood before him. Saul liked him immediately and made him his right-hand man.

22 Saul sent word back to Jesse: “Thank you. David will stay here. He’s just the one I was looking for. I’m very impressed by him.”

23 After that, whenever the bad depression from God tormented Saul, David got out his harp and played. That would calm Saul down, and he would feel better as the moodiness lifted.

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13 Samuel poured the oil on David's head while his brothers watched. At that moment, the Spirit of the Lord took control of David and stayed with him from then on.

Samuel returned home to Ramah.

David Plays the Harp for Saul

14 The Spirit of the Lord had left Saul, and an evil spirit from the Lord was terrifying him. 15 “It's an evil spirit from God that's frightening you,” Saul's officials told him. 16 “Your Majesty, let us go and look for someone who is good at playing the harp. He can play for you whenever the evil spirit from God bothers you, and you'll feel better.”

17 “All right,” Saul answered. “Find me someone who is good at playing the harp and bring him here.”

18 “A man named Jesse who lives in Bethlehem has a son who can play the harp,” one official said. “He's a brave warrior, he's good-looking, he can speak well, and the Lord is with him.”

19 Saul sent a message to Jesse: “Tell your son David to leave your sheep and come here to me.”

20 Jesse loaded a donkey with bread and a goatskin full of wine,[a] then he told David to take the donkey and a young goat to Saul. 21 David went to Saul and started working for him. Saul liked him so much that he put David in charge of carrying his weapons. 22 Not long after this, Saul sent another message to Jesse: “I really like David. Please let him stay with me.”

23 (A) Whenever the evil spirit from God bothered Saul, David would play his harp. Saul would relax and feel better, and the evil spirit would go away.

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Footnotes

  1. 16.20 wine: Wine was sometimes kept in bottles made of goatskin sewn up with the fur on the outside.