14 But the Spirit of the LORD departed from Saul, and a distressing spirit from the LORD troubled him. 15 And Saul’s servants said to him, “Surely, a distressing spirit from God is troubling you. 16 Let our master now command your servants, who are before you, to seek out a man who is a skillful player on the harp; and it shall be that he will play it with his hand when the distressing spirit from God is upon you, and you shall be well.”

17 So Saul said to his servants, “Provide me now a man who can play well, and bring him to me.” 18 Then one of the servants answered and said, “Look, I have seen a son of Jesse the Bethlehemite, who is skillful in playing, a mighty man of valor, a man of war, prudent in speech, and a handsome person; and the LORD is with him.”

19 Therefore Saul sent messengers to Jesse, and said, “Send me your son David, who is with the sheep.” 20 And Jesse took a donkey loaded with bread, a skin of wine, and a young goat, and sent them by his son David to Saul. 21 So David came to Saul and stood before him. And he loved him greatly, and he became his armorbearer. 22 Then Saul sent to Jesse, saying, “Please let David stand before me, for he has found favor in my sight.”

23 And so it was, whenever the spirit from God was upon Saul, that David would take a harp and play it with his hand. Then Saul would become refreshed and well, and the distressing spirit would depart from him. (1 Sam. 16:14-23)

“The King is Dead! Long live the King!” This little phrase always confused me as a boy, because I couldn’t understand how you could say the same in one breath. It only made sense when I understood they were talking about two kings: the king who has just died, and the king who has now taken his place. That’s how kingship has usually worked: a king reigns until his death, and is then replaced by his heir, or his usurper.

The story of David becoming king is quite unusual. What makes David’s situation unusual is that he was anointed to be king fifteen years before he became king. In those fifteen years, Saul remained the king of Israel in one sense, while not being the king in another. And David was the king in one sense, and not the king in another.

And this situation was one God created and managed for many purposes. After all, God could certainly have taken Saul’s life, and put David on the throne at age 15. Judah had kings who came to the throne younger than that: Josiah was king at age eight. But instead, God it seems wanted a period of time where both men were on the scene at the same time. And it appears the reason for that, like so often happens in Scripture, is for God’s purposes for those who reject Him and for those who accept Him to unfold at the same time.

The Bible reveals an amazing fact about God. God works with a double-edged blade. With one motion, His sword of providence cuts in two ways. It cuts one way for those seeking Him, and cuts another way for those rejecting Him.

We see this many times in Scripture. For example, after Jacob is dead, the brothers of Joseph try to prevent Joseph from taking revenge on them for all the cruelty they showed to him. But Joseph re-assures them by speaking of the double-edged sword of God’s providence:

“But as for you, you meant evil against me; but God meant it for good, in order to bring it about as it is this day, to save many people alive.” (Gen. 50:20)

You meant evil, but God meant good. That is, God allowed the same events, sinful and cruel as they were, to bring good and to bless many.

Jesus even spoke of the two edges of providence when speaking about Judas. He said,

“The Son of Man indeed goes just as it is written of Him, but woe to that man by whom the Son of Man is betrayed! It would have been good for that man if he had not been born.” (Matt. 26:24)

That is, it was written ahead of time, prophesied that Jesus would be betrayed, but at the same time, the man doing it has a choice and is liable for his own actions.

Just a few weeks later, Peter was preaching to a crowd in Jerusalem and explaining what had happened in their city just fifty days previous. He tells them that the crucifixion of Jesus was part of the two-edged sword of providence.

“Him, being delivered by the determined purpose and foreknowledge of God, you have taken by lawless hands, have crucified, and put to death;” (Acts 2:23)

The inhabitants of Jerusalem were guilty of a lawless act. But this was by the determined purpose and foreknowledge of God.

Later in Acts 4, Peter says the same thing in a prayer.

“For truly against Your holy Servant Jesus, whom You anointed, both Herod and Pontius Pilate, with the Gentiles and the people of Israel, were gathered together to do whatever Your hand and Your purpose determined before to be done.” (Acts 4:27-28)

One act, an act God determined and purposed, was also part of the rebellion of Herod, Pilate, the Romans, and the Sanhedrin.

We even saw when we looked at David’s anointing that the same message can be foolishness to some ears and wisdom to others. To those proud in their own eyes, the message of the gospel confirms them in their rejection of it. To those humble, it makes perfect sense and draws them. To those who believe, Christ is precious, but to those who are disobedient, Jesus is the stone of stumbling and a rock of offence (1 Peter 2:7).

Christians themselves become a double-edged sword.

“For we are to God the fragrance of Christ among those who are being saved and among those who are perishing. To the one we are the aroma of death leading to death, and to the other the aroma of life leading to life.” (2 Cor. 2:15-16)

Now why is it helpful and important to know this as we study the life of David?

First, the general principle. God will use the same event in very different ways for His people and for those who reject Him.

“For God gives wisdom and knowledge and joy to a man who is good in His sight; but to the sinner He gives the work of gathering and collecting, that he may give to him who is good before God.” (Eccl. 2:26)

Every day all day, God is using job losses, jobs gained, crime, safety, wealth, poverty, Covid-19, tragedy, triumph, wins and losses in all people, but He means it very differently.

Second, the more specific principle: if we set our hearts to love God by faith, God is working all things together for our good.

We’ll see these two principles at work as God does the most unlikely thing of all: brings the two kings of Israel into the same room at the same time. In Saul, we see what is in store for the man who rejects and forsakes God. In David, we see what happens to the believer. Two kings, one action by God, two results.

I. The King’s Rejection and Selection

13 Then Samuel took the horn of oil and anointed him in the midst of his brothers; and the Spirit of the LORD came upon David from that day forward. So Samuel arose and went to Ramah. 14 But the Spirit of the LORD departed from Saul, and a distressing spirit from the LORD troubled him. (1 Sam. 16:13-14)

The writer of Samuel wants us to know that the Spirit of the Lord came upon one man and left another man in the same action. This Old Testament anointing of the Spirit is not the same as the baptism and indwelling of the Spirit that takes place at and after Pentecost. This is a special enablement that God gave Israel’s leaders and rulers: the judges, the prophets, the High Priest, and the King.

But if God the Spirit was coming upon David as king, then He was necessarily leaving another man who was king. This is what David means in Psalm 51 after his adultery with Bathsheba and his murder of Uriah.

“Do not cast me away from Your presence, And do not take Your Holy Spirit from me.” (Ps. 51:11)

He doesn’t mean, don’t let me lose my salvation. He means, don’t take the anointing of king away from me, as you took it away from Saul. Don’t disqualify me from the office of king.

The Spirit leaving the man who was king, left a kind of vacuum in Saul. In place of the Spirit of the Lord, we read that a distressing spirit from the LORD troubled him.

Now what was this distressing spirit? Commentators are split. Some say this was a mood of deep depression, a deep melancholy of anxiety, restlessness, suspicion and unhappiness. The Hebrew word for spirit is sometimes used to mean a mood. The word translated distressing in the NKJ has a wide range of meaning. It can mean evil, it can mean painful, calamitous, unfortunate.

Others say this was an actual demon, an evil spirit that took possession of Saul. I lean towards this second interpretation, because the context seems to be suggesting a spiritual vacuum – the departure of the Holy Spirit’s special anointing, left the door open for another spirit to come and possess him.

When you look at Saul’s behaviour from this day forward, it includes acts of insanity, fits of mad rage, alternating with fear, sorrow and self-doubt. Saul is more than depressed, he seems to be afflicted.

But how could this spirit have come from the Lord? The answer is that there are many wicked spirits, eager to harm or deceive. When God removes His hedge of protection, when He removes His restraining hand, it is true to say that it came from the Lord. The Lord does not share the wicked intent of that spirit, but the Lord will use that evil spirit as a punishment. You remember how Satan was eager to afflict Job for his own purposes, which God was using for different purposes. The prophet Micaiah tells Ahab that a lying spirit volunteered to lie to Ahab’s prophets. Paul’s thorn in the flesh was also said to be a messenger from Satan. As we said a few weeks ago, Satan is like a bulldog tied to a pole in the garden. God can use that raging bulldog to mow His grass, though that’s not what the bulldog thinks it’s doing.

God removed His restrainer, the Holy Spirit, and it opened the door to an evil spirit. This was both a punishment on Saul for his sin, but also the natural consequence of Saul’s rejection of God’s Word.

God chooses David, and gives Saul up. He selects David and passes over Saul. His special presence comes upon David, and opens up Saul to all kinds of affliction.

God’s selection of one and rejection of another is a solemn thing, whether for salvation or for service. The Bible never takes it lightly, nor fully explains the mystery to us. In choosing one, He passes over another:

“Does not the potter have power over the clay, from the same lump to make one vessel for honor and another for dishonor? What if God, wanting to show His wrath and to make His power known, endured with much longsuffering the vessels of wrath prepared for destruction, and that He might make known the riches of His glory on the vessels of mercy, which He had prepared beforehand for glory,” (Rom. 9:21-23)

If God has chosen you, then you can only thank God. If God has refused you, you can only blame yourself. You can’t qualify yourself for grace. Both Saul and David were chosen by grace.

But you can disqualify yourself from usefulness and service. David kept his heart spiritual, humble, truthful, while Saul allowed his to become proud, self-protective, self-pitying.

What’s the difference? Romans 8:28.

“And we know that all things work together for good to those who love God, to those who are the called according to His purpose.” (Rom. 8:28)

II. The King’s Depression and Promotion

15 And Saul’s servants said to him, “Surely, a distressing spirit from God is troubling you. 16 Let our master now command your servants, who are before you, to seek out a man who is a skillful player on the harp; and it shall be that he will play it with his hand when the distressing spirit from God is upon you, and you shall be well.” 17 So Saul said to his servants, “Provide me now a man who can play well, and bring him to me.”

Saul’s deep anxiety and depression was severe. He knew that there was someone in Israel who was going to replace him, and it was not his son Jonathan. His depression over his own failure, his paranoia and suspicion over who it might be probably made him visibly tormented. When you add the presence of an evil spirit, bringing these thoughts up, urging him between mad rage and suicidal thoughts, he must have visibly declined.

Soon, it’s obvious enough that his court officials know he needs some kind of help. Amazingly, they diagnose the problem exactly: some kind of distressing spirit from God is upon him. Their solution: music. From plenty of ancient records, carvings and inscriptions, we know that ancient people believed music could heal diseases, soothe wild passions, attract or drive away spirits, and even calm riots.

Elisha called for a minstrel to calm his disquieted spirit. Pythagoras quieted the anxiety of his mind with a harp. Philip V of Spain suffered from deep depression and was helped by the famous singer Farinelli.

Saul’s counselors decide that having a skilled court musician could deal with the problem. Saul agrees, and tells them to find someone.

Now, see providence at work.

18 Then one of the servants answered and said, “Look, I have seen a son of Jesse the Bethlehemite, who is skillful in playing, a mighty man of valor, a man of war, prudent in speech, and a handsome person; and the LORD is with him.” 19 Therefore Saul sent messengers to Jesse, and said, “Send me your son David, who is with the sheep.” 20 And Jesse took a donkey loaded with bread, a skin of wine, and a young goat, and sent them by his son David to Saul.

Someone in Saul’s court has heard of David. Of all the people in the land, of all the harp players and minstrels that existed in the tribe of Benjamin, no one’s name comes up except the name of David.

The name of the man who has, unbeknownst to Saul, been anointed as the new and true king.

Someone in Saul’s court had heard about this multi-talented youngster named David. He might have been despised and neglected by his brothers, but he’d apparently developed something of a reputation. He was highly musical, but sometimes the poetic and musical men are known for their soft hands and effeminate voices. But this court official assures Saul that David is an unusual combination: musically gifted, but also a man’s man, someone who has faced danger with bravery.

On top of that, he is a good communicator and could handle himself among the upper classes and nobility of Saul’s palace. And, even better, he won’t have to be hidden behind a curtain because his appearance is so unpleasantly distracting. He is handsome and will be one more nice decoration for the throne room.

Saul likes what he hears and sends messengers to Jesse to bring David for a job interview. Look what God is doing with the two edges of his sword. Saul needs a musician to calm his sinful heart. David, on the other hand, needs to learn the ways of the royal court, gain experience as to how things work in the throne room. David needs to grow up quickly, and learn about court politics and intrigue. He needs to learn about how to exercise authority, and rule justly, and show mercy, and punish enemies. He needs to learn how you gain and lose respect, when to make allies and when to make enemies. He needs to learn about ruling an entire nation. And he will get it, on Saul’s payroll.

Saul on the other hand, with all that God had put in him, was now squandering his gifts. His physical appearance, his bravery in battle, his abilities were now turning into a puddle of depression and self-pity. Saul is paranoid about who this usurper king might be, all the while paying that very man a salary to play background music for his dark brooding.

So see God’s double edge of providence: the very man chosen to comfort Saul is David who will replace him. Saul is getting refreshment from David, but David is getting kingly experience from Saul. God’s two-edged sword of providence is using Saul’s sinful affliction to bring in David. It is both providing a small mercy to Saul, but providing David with a massive step up towards the throne.

You sometimes may not understand God’s delays, or what God has put in your life right now. All those years that David played and sang to those blank-eyed sheep, he might have wondered why God had given him such musical talents. When he composed the first of his psalms, and the only audience were some bleating sheep, he might have been tempted to think that God had wasted those gifts on him, or that there was no point to it.

But God can providentially use your past. The experiences, and talents, and gifts, and abilities, and jobs God sends your way, He can use in the future. The courage David learned facing lions with a sling, he would use with a giant. The songs he composed while singing to sheep got him into the royal palace. And his time in the royal palace prepared him for the time he would sit in the throne.

But if you reject God, then even your gifts and abilities will become your adversaries. Even what you seem to have will be taken away from you, and your strengths will taunt you with regret, and your weaknesses will haunt you with guilt, as you spiral into a maze of your own making.

What’s the difference? Romans 8:28:

“And we know that all things work together for good to those who love God, to those who are the called according to His purpose.”

III. The King’s Distraction and Devotion

21 So David came to Saul and stood before him. And he loved him greatly, and he became his armorbearer. 22 Then Saul sent to Jesse, saying, “Please let David stand before me, for he has found favor in my sight.” 23 And so it was, whenever the spirit from God was upon Saul, that David would take a harp and play it with his hand. Then Saul would become refreshed and well, and the distressing spirit would depart from him.

David comes for the job interview and passes with flying colours. David actually becomes something of a personal assistant to Saul: his armour-bearer. If you’re wondering why Saul doesn’t seem to know who David is after the battle with Goliath, hold that question till we get there, the answer is partly to do with Saul, and partly to do with what Saul is actually asking.

David is in the court, and when the evil spirit begins to terrify Saul, David starts to play, and Saul’s symptoms alleviate. David’s music is functioning like many modern psychiatric drugs. They temporarily remove the symptoms without addressing the root cause. David’s music was a prescription drug for Saul.

“How much better friends had they been to him, if they had advised him, since the evil spirit was from the Lord, to make his peace with God by true repentance, to send for Samuel to pray with him, and intercede with God for him.”

Saul’s counselors were bad counselors. None of them suggested repentance, turning to God, asking for Samuel to come. Instead, they seek temporary comforts to distract and divert and dull the pain.

If he had simply accepted God’s judgement of being replaced as king and humbly repented, God would have forgiven him and restored his spiritual communion.

Amazingly, David’s music is being used to keep Saul just soothed enough to not repent, just distracted enough to not deal with his heart. Is that what David intends? No, David is just doing his job. And undoubtedly as David plays for the king, he begins writing music. He starts composing poems, psalms. He works for Saul in the palace for the next seven years. That’s a good amount of time to compose quite a few psalms. When you are on a hillside looking after sheep, you can’t be quite as deliberate about music. But in the stability of a throne room, with some money and resources, we can imagine David making some progress on his psalms. By the end of his life, he was known as “the sweet psalmist of Israel” (2 Sam. 23:1).

In fact, once David was on the throne, he initiated a “Golden Age” of Music in Israel. He was a poetic and music genius. When he became king he brought music to the highest place of honor in the service of worship. David was also an inventor of musical instruments (1 Chr 23:5; Neh. 12:36). He ends up composing at least 75 of the 150 inspired psalms of Scripture.

Saul needs alleviation, but Israel needs divinely inspired adoration. Saul wants musical relief, but David is composing musical revelation. Saul wants music to empty him of his evil spirit. David composes because he is full of the Holy Spirit. One king used the music to distract him from God, the other king used the music to express his devotion to God. The same blade of providence, cutting two ways, depending on the man and the heart.

When you are not right with God, what is helping another man worship God is just mere amusement to you, or perhaps even distracting, irritating. The same sermon, the same portion of Scripture, the same hymn given to two different people can have two opposite effects. One many hears it and get even more annoyed, more resentful, more contemptuous. Another person hears the same thing, and is deeply smitten, deeply touched, shaped, moved, transformed.

One man cares only about his symptoms: how depressed he feels, how angry he feels, how unhappy she is. Another man hears the same thing and goes searching for the heart issue: what do I worship? What do I love most? Some like Saul, care only that they feel better, and that’s why they want God and his worship. Other people, like David want to know and love God, that’s why they want God and His worship.

The same sun that hardens the clay softens the wax. It depends what it finds.

What’s the difference? Romans 8:28:

“And we know that all things work together for good to those who love God, to those who are the called according to His purpose.”

Charles Spurgeon: I do not like to hear this text quoted, as I often do, only in part — only half of it. “All things work together for good,” say people. “Oh! yes; somehow or other, good will come of it.” It does not say so here. It says, “All things work together for good to them that love God; to them that are the called according to his purpose.” A special purpose and object of God for a special people. And if you do not belong to this people, things are not working together for your good. No; but you may find that they will work together for your banishment from life and from the presence of God. Take your heed to this. The stars in their courses fight against you, if you fight against God; and the very earth groans and complains of bearing up your weight if you are a rebel against the Most High. You must, first of all, be reconciled so as to love God, and the eternal purpose must be wrought in you by your effectual calling from out of the world, or else you must not dare to intrude into the holy sanctuary of my text. “We know that all things work together for good to them that love God.” Of course, they do, for God loves them. “To them that are the called according to his purpose.” …The great eternal purpose encompasses all things that happen, and bends all to the grand object of the good of the called ones.”

God’s double-edged blade of providence rejected and selected a king with one cut. It depressed and promoted a king with one cut. It provided distraction for one king and devotion for another king with one cut. So which side will God’s providence find you on?

Romans 8:28 gives you the answer. If you are called – that’s God’s sovereign calling, and if you love God – that’s your response, you will find yourself on the side where all things work together for your good.