1 Samuel 16:23

16:23 So whenever the spirit from God would come upon Saul, David would take his lyre and play it. This would bring relief to Saul and make him feel better. Then the evil spirit would leave him alone. ¹ 

Hakim-hakim 9:23

9:23 God sent a spirit to stir up hostility ²  between Abimelech and the leaders of Shechem. He made the leaders of Shechem disloyal ³  to Abimelech.

Hakim-hakim 9:1

Abimelech Murders His Brothers

9:1 Now Abimelech son of Jerub-Baal went to Shechem to see his mother’s relatives. ⁴  He said to them and to his mother’s entire extended family, ⁵ 

1 Samuel 18:10

18:10 The next day an evil spirit from God rushed upon Saul and he prophesied within his house. Now David was playing the lyre ⁶  that day. There was a spear in Saul’s hand,

[16:23]  ¹ tn Heb “would turn aside from upon him.”

[9:23]  ² tn Heb “an evil spirit.” A nonphysical, spirit being is in view, like the one who volunteered to deceive Ahab (1 Kgs 22:21). The traditional translation, “evil spirit,” implies the being is inherently wicked, perhaps even demonic, but this is not necessarily the case. The Hebrew adjective רָעַה (ra’ah) can have a nonethical sense, “harmful; dangerous; calamitous.” When modifying רוּחַ (ruakh, “spirit”) it may simply indicate that the being in view causes harm to the object of God’s judgment. G. F. Moore (Judges [ICC], 253) here refers to a “mischief-making spirit.”

[9:23]  ³ tn Heb “The leaders of Shechem were disloyal.” The words “he made” are supplied in the translation for clarification.

[9:1]  ⁴ tn Heb “brothers.”

[9:1]  ⁵ tn Heb “to all the extended family of the house of the father of his mother.”

[18:10]  ⁶ tn The Hebrew text adds here “with his hand.”