1 Samuel 16:16-23

16 Let our lord now command thy slaves, which are before thee, to seek out a man who is a cunning player on a harp, and it shall come to pass, when the evil spirit from God is upon thee, that he shall play with his hand and thou shalt have relief.

17 And Saul said unto his slaves, Provide me now a man that can play well and bring him to me.

18 Then one of the servants answered and said, Behold, I have seen a son of Jesse of Bethlehem, that is cunning in playing and a mighty valiant man and a man of war and prudent in speech and handsome, and the LORD is with him.

19 Therefore Saul sent messengers unto Jesse and said, Send me David, thy son, who is with the sheep.

20 And Jesse took an ass laden with bread and a bottle of wine and a kid and sent them by David, his son, unto Saul.

21 And David came to Saul and stood before him; and he loved him greatly, and he became his armourbearer.

22 And Saul sent to Jesse, saying, Let David, I pray thee, stand before me, for he has found favour in my sight.

23 And it came to pass, when the evil spirit from God was upon Saul, that David took a harp and played with his hand; so Saul was refreshed and was better, and the evil spirit departed from him.

1 Samuel 16:16-23 Meaning and Commentary

INTRODUCTION TO FIRST SAMUEL 16

In this chapter Samuel is ordered to anoint a king among the sons of Jesse of Bethlehem, 1Sa 16:1-5 all whose sons were made to pass before him, excepting David, 1Sa 16:6-10 who being then with his father's sheep, was sent for and was anointed, 1Sa 16:11-13, after which the Spirit of the Lord departed from Saul, and he became melancholy, and it was advised to seek out a musician for him, and David was mentioned to him as a proper person, 1Sa 16:14-18 upon which he was sent for, and acted as a musician to Saul, and also became his armourbearer, which was the first rise of him, 1Sa 16:19-23.