What does 1 Samuel 16:14 mean?
The Spirit of the Lord has rapidly and powerfully come upon a young man named David in Bethlehem after he was anointed by Samuel, the prophet of Israel (1 Samuel 16:12–13). Still, even David might not yet have realized that this anointing represented God's selection of him as Israel's next king (1 Samuel 16:1).During this time, God's Holy Spirit was not given to everyone in the way that the Spirit is given to every believer in Jesus now as a deposit guaranteeing our salvation (Ephesians 1:13–14). Then the Spirit was sent on various people, such as Israel's judges (Judges 6:34–35; 11:29; 14:6) and King Saul, to empower them for a specific work.
After Saul was anointed king over Israel, God's Spirit also came to him (1 Samuel 10:6; 11:6). Now that Saul has been rejected by the Lord as Israel's king for his disobedience (1 Samuel 15:17–29), the Lord causes His Spirit to depart from Saul. This should not be confused with the idea of someone losing his or her salvation. The presence of God's Spirit during this time was about leadership, not eternal security.
Not only does God remove the Holy Spirit from Saul, but He also sends torment. In this context, the word some translations render as "evil" refers to something damaging or destructive. This is not an evil version of God's Holy Spirit. There is no evil in the Lord. Instead, most commentators agree that the Lord allowed a demon to afflict Saul because of his rebellion against God. This was to bring about the change in the kingship of Israel.
Some are troubled that this spirit is "from" God. As stated above, it seems that God allowed a demon to attack Saul. God is sovereign over all creation, and thus He can permit evil spirits to do the evil they desire. When we are disobedient to God, we should not expect His protection. Remember, too, that God is faithful to discipline and correct (Hebrews 12:3–11). Saul could have repented and turned to the Lord, Yet he chose not to receive the torment of the evil spirit as discipline.
God works His purposes together. It is because of the torment of this evil spirit that David initially came into Saul's service (1 Samuel 16:17–21). The young man would have certainly learned much about ruling the nation by observing Saul.
