This question was asked on another Bible Discussion I'm on and decided to share my thoughts and research here (as I have more room <g>)
============== Question ==============
How would you explain this?
Now the Spirit of the Lord had turned away from Saul, and an evil spirit from the Lord tormented him. Then Saul’s servants said to him, “Look, an evil spirit from God is tormenting you!” 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 and you will feel better.”
1 Samuel 16:14-16 NET
====================================
The way I interpret this passage is Saul had God’s spirit upon him and then he left Saul. This allowed another spirit being - an evil one to affect him. God allowed it like he allowed Satan to mess with Job. IMHO I don’t think it meant God sent the evil spirit or sanctioned it per se.
The phrase “from God” I think is indicating it is a divine being vs. earthly - from God equates to from Heaven or the heavenly realm.
And apparently, they don’t like soothing music <g>. My commentary says “Ancients believed that music warded off evil spirits.
That being said it is possible God did send an evil spirit similar to the account in Ex 12:23
====================================
Here are a few excerpts from some commentaries that may prove helpful:
an evil spirit from Yahweh Saul has made himself God’s enemy and is treated as such from now on (see 18:10; 19:9). The exact nature of this spirit is unknown. The Hebrew word used here, ruach, may describe some form of mental anguish or a general sense of calamity. Nevertheless, a literal spiritual being sent from Yahweh is also possible (compare Exod 12:23).
Yahweh sometimes uses physical force—and, at times, spiritual beings implementing that force—to end the reign of a wicked ruler or cause them to give in to His will (compare Judg 9:23; 2 Kgs 19:32–37). This is for the greater good of His people and is one way that He brings justice.1
1 Barry, J. D., Mangum, D., Brown, D. R., Heiser, M. S., Custis, M., Ritzema, E., … Bomar, D. (2012, 2016). Faithlife Study Bible (1 Sa 16:14). Bellingham, WA: Lexham Press.
16:14 The theological difficulty of the expression evil spirit … from the Lord may be resolved in one of two ways. God may have intended the evil spirit as redemptive—designed to turn Saul to repentance. Or God may have intended the evil spirit as his instrument of judgment against the rebellious king. God is completely righteous, hates evil, and never does anything unjust, yet he makes use of demons (against their evil intention) to accomplish his good purposes (cp. Jb 1:6–12).
16:15–17 Every ancient society believed music had the power to counteract demonic influence (P. Kyle McCarter). The lyre in particular was believed to have divine power (D. T. Tsumura).1
1 Beyer, B. E. (2017). 1 Samuel. In E. A. Blum & T. Wax (Eds.), CSB Study Bible: Notes (p. 435). Nashville, TN: Holman Bible Publishers.
Verse 14. The Spirit of the Lord departed from Saul] He was thrown into such a state of mind by the judgments of God, as to be deprived of any regal qualities which he before possessed. God seems to have taken what gifts he had, and given them to David; and then the evil spirit came upon Saul; for what God fills not, the devil will.
An evil spirit from the Lord] The evil spirit was either immediately sent from the Lord, or permitted to come. Whether this was a diabolic possession, or a mere mental malady, the learned are not agreed; it seems to have partaken of both. That Saul had fallen into a deep melancholy, there is little doubt; that the devil might work more effectually on such a state of mind, there can be but little question. There is an old proverb, Satan delights to fish in troubled waters; and Saul’s situation of mind gave him many advantages.
The theory of Dr. Scheuchzer, in his Physica Sacra, on the malady of Saul, is allowed to be very ingenious. It is in substance as follows: Health consists in a moderate tension of the fibres, which permits all the fluids to have an entire freedom of circulation, and to the spirits, that of diffusing themselves through all the limbs; on the contrary, disease consists in tensions of the fibres morbidly weak or morbidly strong. This latter seems to have been the case of Saul; and as the undulations of the air which convey sound communicate themselves to and through the most solid bodies, it is easy to suppose that by the modulations of music all the fibres of his body, which were under the influence of their morbidly increased tension, might be so relaxed as to be brought back into their natural state, and thus permit the re-establishment of a free and gentle circulation of the fluids, and consequently of the animal spirits, and thus induce calmness and tranquillity of mind. I believe this theory to be correct, and I should find no difficulty to amplify and to illustrate the subject. Even a skilful playing upon the harp was one means to bring a disordered state of the nervous and fibrous system into a capacity of affording such uninterrupted tranquillity to the mind as to render it capable of receiving the prophetic influence; see the case of Elisha, 2 Kings 3:14, 15. It has been said—
“Music hath charms to sooth the savage breast.”
This has been literally proved: a musician was brought to play on his instrument while they were feeding a savage lion in the tower of London; the beast immediately left his food, came towards the grating of his den, and began to move in such a way as to show himself affected by the music. The musician ceased, and the lion returned to his food; he recommenced, and the lion left off his prey, and was so affected as to seem by his motions to dance with delight. This was repeatedly tried, and the effects were still the same.1
1 Clarke, A. (2014). The Holy Bible with a Commentary and Critical Notes (New Edition, Vol. 2, pp. 258–259). Bellingham, WA: Faithlife Corporation.
16:14–20 David’s new status before the Lord stood in sharp contrast to Saul’s. When the Lord rejected Saul as king (15:23, 26; 16:1), “the Spirit of the Lord had departed from” (v. 14) him as well. Saul had lost the empowering reality behind the anointing that had marked his selection for divine service earlier (cf. 10:1, 10). But Saul’s condition now was far worse than being without the Lord’s Spirit, for “an evil spirit from the Lord tormented him.” The Hebrew word translated “evil” (Hb. rāʿâ) has a wide range of meanings from “misery” to “moral perverseness.” Thus, it is possible—and perhaps preferable—to interpret the text not to mean that the Lord sent a morally corrupt demon35 but rather another sort of supernatural being—an angel of judgment (cf. 2 Kgs 19:35)—against Saul that caused him to experience constant misery.
Saul’s tortured state was not an accident of nature, nor was it essentially a medical condition. It was a supernatural assault by a being sent at the Lord’s command, and it was brought on by Saul’s disobedience.
The astounding declaration by the writer in vv. 14–15 reflects a worldview that bears further examination. God, the Creator of the universe, had issued a series of behavioral decrees applicable to all humanity, but especially to Israel, and these were revealed supremely in the Torah. The Torah was a path of life, and obedience to the Torah resulted in life and blessing. To disobey Torah requirements was to leave the path of life and enter into the realm of judgment and death. Through his repeated disobedience to the Torah requirements Saul had entered into a living, personal judgment that God brought against him. This punishment was carried out by a divinely created agent of judgment, “an evil [or “troubling”] spirit from the Lord.”
This is the only time in the Old Testament that an individual is noted as being tormented by a troubling/evil spirit. Evidence that the writer considered Saul’s condition to be unusual is provided by the fact that the verb that describes Saul’s condition (Hb. bāʿat) is used nowhere else in a narrative framework clause in the Torah or Former Prophets; furthermore, the combination of grammatical and lexical features in this clause is rated as the most abnormal in the narrative framework of 1, 2 Samuel.1
1 Bergen, R. D. (1996). 1, 2 Samuel (Vol. 7, pp. 182–183). Nashville: Broadman & Holman Publishers.
14. The Spirit of the Lord departed from Saul, as he had done from Samson (Judg. 16:20), and with equally tragic consequences, for Saul became troubled by an evil spirit from the Lord. Though ‘evil’ should be read in the sense of ‘injurious’ here (so niv mg.), the statement remains problematic to the modern reader, who finds it incompatible with the goodness of God. The writer of the book of Job made the point, ‘Shall we accept good from God, and not trouble?’ (Job. 2:10, niv), while at the same time indicating in the remainder of his book how costly such acceptance can become. On a national level, invasion and defeat by a ruthless enemy had also to be accepted from the Lord, whose sovereign direction of history involved the discipline of his people: ‘I am the Lord, and there is no other. I form light and create darkness, I bring prosperity and create disaster; I, the Lord, do all these things’ (Isa. 45:6–7, niv). As a philosophical problem, the origin of suffering continues to be baffling, but the people of God are encouraged in Scripture to take adversity of all kinds direct from the Lord’s hand (cf. John 9:3; 11:4; 2 Cor. 12:7–10), and through such acceptance God is glorified.
In the case of King Saul, it is important to note that signs of mental illness began to occur only after the confrontation with Samuel over the question of obedience to the divine command. This suggests that his illness was due to his rebellion against God; certainly he was held responsible for his actions, and regarded himself as responsible (1 Sam. 24:16–21; 26:21).1
1 Baldwin, J. G. (1988). 1 and 2 Samuel: An Introduction and Commentary (Vol. 8, pp. 131–132). Downers Grove, IL: InterVarsity Press.Saul was rejected from being king, and the Spirit of God taken from him, and at the same time an evil spirit from the Lord troubled him, terrified or seized him suddenly. How startling this is! But, observe, it is not an evil spirit of the Lord. Evil spirits are not of God. Their evil is opposed to His will. He is wholly and unchangeably opposed to evil. No man can say when he is tempted of evil—I am tempted of God, for God cannot be tempted of evil, neither tempteth He any man. But when a man chooses and cleaves to sin, clings to his own way, and persists in rebellion against God, he opens his mind to evil spirits and evil influences of all sorts. Even the natural world radiates influences which to a being like man are not all good, are sometimes even directly evil. The cunning, deceit, treachery and cruelty of some animals has a malign influence. The influences of nature, bland and stern, present subtle and powerful temptations. Over against the influences for evil, often inextricably intertwined with them, are the influences for good. Men feel that the drift and tendency of things is toward goodness, that the constitution of things favours righteousness. And over all things and every heart the Spirit of God broods, seeking to bring order out of chaos and life out of death. To moral beings belongs the prerogative of resisting and repelling influences, or welcoming and absorbing them. But how was this evil spirit from the Lord? It was permitted by God as a punishment. But this is not all; the terror, pain and strife raised by the evil spirit were meant by God as a force to constrain Saul to turn and cry to God for help. Saul was delivered up to this evil spirit that he might know that it was an evil and bitter thing to depart from God. Had the rebellious Saul, sick, laden and tortured by evil, cried to God, he would have been heard, and would have become a better man than he ever was, a new man. Though he might not have been a king, he would have been a true child of God, a spiritual king and priest.1
1 Exell, J. S. (n.d.). The Biblical Illustrator: I Samuel (pp. 414–415). New York; Chicago; Toronto; London; Edinburgh: Fleming H. Revell Company.
16:14 Now the Spirit of Adonai had left Sha’ul. According to the Torah, the Ruach (Spirit) was given to individuals to equip them for the ministry to which God called them. The Ruach could depart from the person, as he did from Sha’ul due to disobedience. After David sins with Bat-Sheva (Bathsheba), he specifically asks Adonai not to take his Ruach from him (Ps. 51:13). In Sha’ul’s case, part of God’s discipline involved the use of an evil spirit.1
1 Rubin, B. (Ed.). (2016). The Complete Jewish Study Bible: Notes (p. 355). Peabody, MA: Hendrickson Bibles; Messianic Jewish Publishers & Resources.
16:14 The Spirit of the Lord departed from Saul as soon as the Lord’s Spirit came upon David to anoint him for kingship (see v. 13). This statement is not relevant to the issue of whether people can lose their salvation; it is not describing the Holy Spirit’s role in individual regeneration in a NT sense. Rather, in light of v. 13, it should be seen as being about gaining or losing the Spirit’s empowering for the role of king (see 10:1, 6, 10; 11:6; 16:13; and perhaps Ps. 51:11). From this point to the end of his life, Saul will continually make futile attempts to govern without the empowering of the Holy Spirit. A harmful spirit sent by the Lord tormented Saul as a form of judgment for his sin of turning against the Lord (1 Sam. 15:22–29). Though God himself never does evil, he sometimes sends evil agents to accomplish his purposes (such as the Babylonians coming to punish Israel, cf. Jer. 20:4–6; or sinful people crucifying Christ, cf. notes on Gen. 50:18–21; Mark 14:21; Acts 2:23; 4:27; 4:28; see also 1 Kings 22:20–23).1
1 Crossway Bibles. (2008). The ESV Study Bible (p. 518). Wheaton, IL: Crossway Bibles.
With the departure of the Spirit of God, Saul became tormented by an evil spirit which God permitted to come (v. 14; cf. vv. 15–16; 18:10; 19:9). Whether this spirit had sinful or only harmful characteristics, it is quite certain that it was a demonic, satanic instrument (cf. Job 1:12; 2:6; 1 Kings 22:19–22). In his troubled state Saul could find relief only in music, so he commanded that a musician be found (1 Sam. 16:15–17). In His providence God arranged that David be the one, so the shepherd boy was introduced to the palace of the king (vv. 18–21). The Holy Spirit empowered David to drive away the evil spirit that overwhelmed Saul (v. 23). Harps had already been mentioned in connection with prophesying (10:5). Later Elisha, when seeking a revelation from the Lord, also requested that a harp be played (2 Kings 3:15). Also Asaph, Heman, and Jeduthun prophesied with harps, lyres, and cymbals (1 Chron. 25:1).1
1 Merrill, E. H. (1985). 1 Samuel. In J. F. Walvoord & R. B. Zuck (Eds.), The Bible Knowledge Commentary: An Exposition of the Scriptures (Vol. 1, p. 448). Wheaton, IL: Victor Books.
============== Question ==============
How would you explain this?
Now the Spirit of the Lord had turned away from Saul, and an evil spirit from the Lord tormented him. Then Saul’s servants said to him, “Look, an evil spirit from God is tormenting you!” 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 and you will feel better.”
1 Samuel 16:14-16 NET
====================================
The way I interpret this passage is Saul had God’s spirit upon him and then he left Saul. This allowed another spirit being - an evil one to affect him. God allowed it like he allowed Satan to mess with Job. IMHO I don’t think it meant God sent the evil spirit or sanctioned it per se.
The phrase “from God” I think is indicating it is a divine being vs. earthly - from God equates to from Heaven or the heavenly realm.
And apparently, they don’t like soothing music <g>. My commentary says “Ancients believed that music warded off evil spirits.
That being said it is possible God did send an evil spirit similar to the account in Ex 12:23
====================================
Here are a few excerpts from some commentaries that may prove helpful:
an evil spirit from Yahweh Saul has made himself God’s enemy and is treated as such from now on (see 18:10; 19:9). The exact nature of this spirit is unknown. The Hebrew word used here, ruach, may describe some form of mental anguish or a general sense of calamity. Nevertheless, a literal spiritual being sent from Yahweh is also possible (compare Exod 12:23).
Yahweh sometimes uses physical force—and, at times, spiritual beings implementing that force—to end the reign of a wicked ruler or cause them to give in to His will (compare Judg 9:23; 2 Kgs 19:32–37). This is for the greater good of His people and is one way that He brings justice.1
1 Barry, J. D., Mangum, D., Brown, D. R., Heiser, M. S., Custis, M., Ritzema, E., … Bomar, D. (2012, 2016). Faithlife Study Bible (1 Sa 16:14). Bellingham, WA: Lexham Press.
16:14 The theological difficulty of the expression evil spirit … from the Lord may be resolved in one of two ways. God may have intended the evil spirit as redemptive—designed to turn Saul to repentance. Or God may have intended the evil spirit as his instrument of judgment against the rebellious king. God is completely righteous, hates evil, and never does anything unjust, yet he makes use of demons (against their evil intention) to accomplish his good purposes (cp. Jb 1:6–12).
16:15–17 Every ancient society believed music had the power to counteract demonic influence (P. Kyle McCarter). The lyre in particular was believed to have divine power (D. T. Tsumura).1
1 Beyer, B. E. (2017). 1 Samuel. In E. A. Blum & T. Wax (Eds.), CSB Study Bible: Notes (p. 435). Nashville, TN: Holman Bible Publishers.
Verse 14. The Spirit of the Lord departed from Saul] He was thrown into such a state of mind by the judgments of God, as to be deprived of any regal qualities which he before possessed. God seems to have taken what gifts he had, and given them to David; and then the evil spirit came upon Saul; for what God fills not, the devil will.
An evil spirit from the Lord] The evil spirit was either immediately sent from the Lord, or permitted to come. Whether this was a diabolic possession, or a mere mental malady, the learned are not agreed; it seems to have partaken of both. That Saul had fallen into a deep melancholy, there is little doubt; that the devil might work more effectually on such a state of mind, there can be but little question. There is an old proverb, Satan delights to fish in troubled waters; and Saul’s situation of mind gave him many advantages.
The theory of Dr. Scheuchzer, in his Physica Sacra, on the malady of Saul, is allowed to be very ingenious. It is in substance as follows: Health consists in a moderate tension of the fibres, which permits all the fluids to have an entire freedom of circulation, and to the spirits, that of diffusing themselves through all the limbs; on the contrary, disease consists in tensions of the fibres morbidly weak or morbidly strong. This latter seems to have been the case of Saul; and as the undulations of the air which convey sound communicate themselves to and through the most solid bodies, it is easy to suppose that by the modulations of music all the fibres of his body, which were under the influence of their morbidly increased tension, might be so relaxed as to be brought back into their natural state, and thus permit the re-establishment of a free and gentle circulation of the fluids, and consequently of the animal spirits, and thus induce calmness and tranquillity of mind. I believe this theory to be correct, and I should find no difficulty to amplify and to illustrate the subject. Even a skilful playing upon the harp was one means to bring a disordered state of the nervous and fibrous system into a capacity of affording such uninterrupted tranquillity to the mind as to render it capable of receiving the prophetic influence; see the case of Elisha, 2 Kings 3:14, 15. It has been said—
“Music hath charms to sooth the savage breast.”
This has been literally proved: a musician was brought to play on his instrument while they were feeding a savage lion in the tower of London; the beast immediately left his food, came towards the grating of his den, and began to move in such a way as to show himself affected by the music. The musician ceased, and the lion returned to his food; he recommenced, and the lion left off his prey, and was so affected as to seem by his motions to dance with delight. This was repeatedly tried, and the effects were still the same.1
1 Clarke, A. (2014). The Holy Bible with a Commentary and Critical Notes (New Edition, Vol. 2, pp. 258–259). Bellingham, WA: Faithlife Corporation.
16:14–20 David’s new status before the Lord stood in sharp contrast to Saul’s. When the Lord rejected Saul as king (15:23, 26; 16:1), “the Spirit of the Lord had departed from” (v. 14) him as well. Saul had lost the empowering reality behind the anointing that had marked his selection for divine service earlier (cf. 10:1, 10). But Saul’s condition now was far worse than being without the Lord’s Spirit, for “an evil spirit from the Lord tormented him.” The Hebrew word translated “evil” (Hb. rāʿâ) has a wide range of meanings from “misery” to “moral perverseness.” Thus, it is possible—and perhaps preferable—to interpret the text not to mean that the Lord sent a morally corrupt demon35 but rather another sort of supernatural being—an angel of judgment (cf. 2 Kgs 19:35)—against Saul that caused him to experience constant misery.
Saul’s tortured state was not an accident of nature, nor was it essentially a medical condition. It was a supernatural assault by a being sent at the Lord’s command, and it was brought on by Saul’s disobedience.
The astounding declaration by the writer in vv. 14–15 reflects a worldview that bears further examination. God, the Creator of the universe, had issued a series of behavioral decrees applicable to all humanity, but especially to Israel, and these were revealed supremely in the Torah. The Torah was a path of life, and obedience to the Torah resulted in life and blessing. To disobey Torah requirements was to leave the path of life and enter into the realm of judgment and death. Through his repeated disobedience to the Torah requirements Saul had entered into a living, personal judgment that God brought against him. This punishment was carried out by a divinely created agent of judgment, “an evil [or “troubling”] spirit from the Lord.”
This is the only time in the Old Testament that an individual is noted as being tormented by a troubling/evil spirit. Evidence that the writer considered Saul’s condition to be unusual is provided by the fact that the verb that describes Saul’s condition (Hb. bāʿat) is used nowhere else in a narrative framework clause in the Torah or Former Prophets; furthermore, the combination of grammatical and lexical features in this clause is rated as the most abnormal in the narrative framework of 1, 2 Samuel.1
1 Bergen, R. D. (1996). 1, 2 Samuel (Vol. 7, pp. 182–183). Nashville: Broadman & Holman Publishers.
14. The Spirit of the Lord departed from Saul, as he had done from Samson (Judg. 16:20), and with equally tragic consequences, for Saul became troubled by an evil spirit from the Lord. Though ‘evil’ should be read in the sense of ‘injurious’ here (so niv mg.), the statement remains problematic to the modern reader, who finds it incompatible with the goodness of God. The writer of the book of Job made the point, ‘Shall we accept good from God, and not trouble?’ (Job. 2:10, niv), while at the same time indicating in the remainder of his book how costly such acceptance can become. On a national level, invasion and defeat by a ruthless enemy had also to be accepted from the Lord, whose sovereign direction of history involved the discipline of his people: ‘I am the Lord, and there is no other. I form light and create darkness, I bring prosperity and create disaster; I, the Lord, do all these things’ (Isa. 45:6–7, niv). As a philosophical problem, the origin of suffering continues to be baffling, but the people of God are encouraged in Scripture to take adversity of all kinds direct from the Lord’s hand (cf. John 9:3; 11:4; 2 Cor. 12:7–10), and through such acceptance God is glorified.
In the case of King Saul, it is important to note that signs of mental illness began to occur only after the confrontation with Samuel over the question of obedience to the divine command. This suggests that his illness was due to his rebellion against God; certainly he was held responsible for his actions, and regarded himself as responsible (1 Sam. 24:16–21; 26:21).1
1 Baldwin, J. G. (1988). 1 and 2 Samuel: An Introduction and Commentary (Vol. 8, pp. 131–132). Downers Grove, IL: InterVarsity Press.Saul was rejected from being king, and the Spirit of God taken from him, and at the same time an evil spirit from the Lord troubled him, terrified or seized him suddenly. How startling this is! But, observe, it is not an evil spirit of the Lord. Evil spirits are not of God. Their evil is opposed to His will. He is wholly and unchangeably opposed to evil. No man can say when he is tempted of evil—I am tempted of God, for God cannot be tempted of evil, neither tempteth He any man. But when a man chooses and cleaves to sin, clings to his own way, and persists in rebellion against God, he opens his mind to evil spirits and evil influences of all sorts. Even the natural world radiates influences which to a being like man are not all good, are sometimes even directly evil. The cunning, deceit, treachery and cruelty of some animals has a malign influence. The influences of nature, bland and stern, present subtle and powerful temptations. Over against the influences for evil, often inextricably intertwined with them, are the influences for good. Men feel that the drift and tendency of things is toward goodness, that the constitution of things favours righteousness. And over all things and every heart the Spirit of God broods, seeking to bring order out of chaos and life out of death. To moral beings belongs the prerogative of resisting and repelling influences, or welcoming and absorbing them. But how was this evil spirit from the Lord? It was permitted by God as a punishment. But this is not all; the terror, pain and strife raised by the evil spirit were meant by God as a force to constrain Saul to turn and cry to God for help. Saul was delivered up to this evil spirit that he might know that it was an evil and bitter thing to depart from God. Had the rebellious Saul, sick, laden and tortured by evil, cried to God, he would have been heard, and would have become a better man than he ever was, a new man. Though he might not have been a king, he would have been a true child of God, a spiritual king and priest.1
1 Exell, J. S. (n.d.). The Biblical Illustrator: I Samuel (pp. 414–415). New York; Chicago; Toronto; London; Edinburgh: Fleming H. Revell Company.
16:14 Now the Spirit of Adonai had left Sha’ul. According to the Torah, the Ruach (Spirit) was given to individuals to equip them for the ministry to which God called them. The Ruach could depart from the person, as he did from Sha’ul due to disobedience. After David sins with Bat-Sheva (Bathsheba), he specifically asks Adonai not to take his Ruach from him (Ps. 51:13). In Sha’ul’s case, part of God’s discipline involved the use of an evil spirit.1
1 Rubin, B. (Ed.). (2016). The Complete Jewish Study Bible: Notes (p. 355). Peabody, MA: Hendrickson Bibles; Messianic Jewish Publishers & Resources.
16:14 The Spirit of the Lord departed from Saul as soon as the Lord’s Spirit came upon David to anoint him for kingship (see v. 13). This statement is not relevant to the issue of whether people can lose their salvation; it is not describing the Holy Spirit’s role in individual regeneration in a NT sense. Rather, in light of v. 13, it should be seen as being about gaining or losing the Spirit’s empowering for the role of king (see 10:1, 6, 10; 11:6; 16:13; and perhaps Ps. 51:11). From this point to the end of his life, Saul will continually make futile attempts to govern without the empowering of the Holy Spirit. A harmful spirit sent by the Lord tormented Saul as a form of judgment for his sin of turning against the Lord (1 Sam. 15:22–29). Though God himself never does evil, he sometimes sends evil agents to accomplish his purposes (such as the Babylonians coming to punish Israel, cf. Jer. 20:4–6; or sinful people crucifying Christ, cf. notes on Gen. 50:18–21; Mark 14:21; Acts 2:23; 4:27; 4:28; see also 1 Kings 22:20–23).1
1 Crossway Bibles. (2008). The ESV Study Bible (p. 518). Wheaton, IL: Crossway Bibles.
With the departure of the Spirit of God, Saul became tormented by an evil spirit which God permitted to come (v. 14; cf. vv. 15–16; 18:10; 19:9). Whether this spirit had sinful or only harmful characteristics, it is quite certain that it was a demonic, satanic instrument (cf. Job 1:12; 2:6; 1 Kings 22:19–22). In his troubled state Saul could find relief only in music, so he commanded that a musician be found (1 Sam. 16:15–17). In His providence God arranged that David be the one, so the shepherd boy was introduced to the palace of the king (vv. 18–21). The Holy Spirit empowered David to drive away the evil spirit that overwhelmed Saul (v. 23). Harps had already been mentioned in connection with prophesying (10:5). Later Elisha, when seeking a revelation from the Lord, also requested that a harp be played (2 Kings 3:15). Also Asaph, Heman, and Jeduthun prophesied with harps, lyres, and cymbals (1 Chron. 25:1).1
1 Merrill, E. H. (1985). 1 Samuel. In J. F. Walvoord & R. B. Zuck (Eds.), The Bible Knowledge Commentary: An Exposition of the Scriptures (Vol. 1, p. 448). Wheaton, IL: Victor Books.