1 Samuel 16:23
BSB · Public Domain (CC0)“And whenever the spirit from God came upon Saul, David would pick up his harp and play, and Saul would become well, and the spirit of distress would depart from him.”
A short, plain-language explanation of 1 Samuel 16:23 goes here — the kind of answer a reader (or an AI assistant) can quote in one breath. Original meaning coming soon.
“And whenever the spirit from God came upon Saul, David would pick up his harp and play, and Saul would become well, and the spirit of distress would depart from him.”
Berean Standard Bible · Public Domain (CC0)“And it came to pass, when the evil spirit from God was upon Saul, that David took an harp, and played with his hand: so Saul was refreshed, and was well, and the evil spirit departed from him.”
King James Version · Public Domain“And it came to pass, when the evil spirit from God was upon Saul, that David took the harp, and played with his hand: so Saul was refreshed, and was well, and the evil spirit departed from him.”
American Standard Version · Public Domain“And it hath come to pass, in the spirit of <FI>sadness from<Fi> God being on Saul, that David hath taken the harp, and played with his hand, and Saul hath refreshment and gladness, and the spirit of sadness hath turned aside from off him.”
Young's Literal Translation · Public DomainOther passages that echo 1 Samuel 16:23 — 5 related verses from the Treasury of Scripture Knowledge.
- 1 Samuel 16:14After the Spirit of the LORD had departed from Saul, a spirit of distress from the LORD began to torment him.
- 1 Samuel 18:10The next day a spirit of distress sent from God came upon Saul, and he prophesied inside the house while David played the harp as usual. Now Saul was holding a spear,
- 2 Kings 3:15But now, bring me a harpist.” And while the harpist played, the hand of the LORD came upon Elisha
- Matthew 12:43When an unclean spirit comes out of a man, it passes through arid places seeking rest and does not find it.
- Luke 11:24When an unclean spirit comes out of a man, it passes through arid places seeking rest and does not find it. Then it says, ‘I will return to the house I left.’
Cross-reference data: Treasury of Scripture Knowledge (public domain) via OpenBible.info (CC BY 4.0).