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.
David took an harp, and played with his hand, х hakinowr (H3658), the kinnor] - not the large, heavy instrument denoted by the word harp among us, but the lyre, a light, portable instrument, resembling a bow in shape. The performers played on this instrument both in a standing (1 Samuel 16:21) and a sitting posture.
Saul was refreshed, and was well. The ancients believed that music had a mysterious influence in healing mental disorders (see 'Dissertatio Historico-Theologica de Saule per musicam curato,' by Casper Laescherus, Professor of Divinity at Wittemberg, 1868; 'Memoires de l'Academie Francoise,' 1707; Issac Vossius, 'De Poematum cantu et rhythmi viribus;' Kitto's 'Daily Bible Illustrations,' vol. 3:, p. 253, 254).