1 Samuel 25
25
Abigail and Foolish Nabal
1Then Samuel died, and all Israel gathered and lamented him, and buried him at his house in Ramah. David then arose and went down to the wilderness of Paran.
2Now there was a man in Maon, whose business was in Carmel, and the man was so wealthy, he had 3,000 sheep and 1,000 goats. At that time he was shearing his sheep in Carmel.
3The man’s name was Nabal and his wife’s name was Abigail. The woman was intelligent and beautiful, but the man, a Calebite, was harsh and evil in his dealings.
4While David was in the wilderness, he heard that Nabal was shearing his sheep.
5So David dispatched ten young men, and said to the young men, “Go up to Carmel, and when you reach Nabal, greet him in my name.
6Thus you will say: ‘Long life! And shalom to you, shalom to your house and shalom to all that is yours.
7Now I hear that you have shearers. When your shepherds were with us, we did them no harm and nothing of theirs was missing all the time they were in Carmel.
8Ask your young men and they will tell you. Therefore, let the young men find favor in your eyes, for we have come on a festive day. So please, give to your servants and to your son David, whatever you find at hand.’”
9David’s young men went and told Nabal all those words in David’s name, and waited.
10But Nabal answered David’s servants by saying, “Who is David? And who is Jesse’s son? Nowadays there are many slaves each running away from his master.
11So should I take my bread, my water and my meat that I have cooked for my shearers, and give it to men whom I don’t know where they come from?”
12So David’s young men turned around and went back. When they came and reported to him all these words,
13David said to his men, “Everyone buckle on your sword!” So each man buckled on his sword and David also buckled on his sword. About 400 men went up following David, while 200 stayed with the baggage.
14But one of the young men told Nabal’s wife Abigail saying, “Look, David had sent messengers from the wilderness to greet our master, but he spurned them.
15Yet the men were very good to us. We were not harmed, nor were we missing anything as long as we went about with them while we were in the fields.
16They were a wall to us both by night and by day, all the time that we were with them tending the sheep.
17Now therefore, know and consider what you will do, for evil is determined against our master and against all his household. But he is such a worthless fellow that no one can speak to him.”
18Then Abigail hurried and took 200 loaves, two bottles of wine, five dressed sheep, five measures of roasted corn, 100 cakes of raisins, and 200 cakes of figs, and put them on donkeys.
19Then she said to her young men, “Go on ahead of me—see, I am coming after you.” But she did not tell her husband Nabal.
20As she was riding on the donkey and going down by the hidden pass of the mountain, behold, David and his men were coming down towards her, so she met them.
21Now David had been saying, “Surely in vain I’ve guarded all that this fellow has in the wilderness, so that nothing was missing of all that belonged to him—yet he has returned me evil for good.
22May God do so and even more to David’s enemies if by the morning I leave even one male of all who belong to him!”
23When Abigail saw David, she quickly dismounted from her donkey, fell before David on her face and bowed down to the ground.
24As she fell at his feet, she pleaded, “On me, only me, my lord, be the punishment! But please, let your maidservant speak in your ears, and listen to the words of your maidservant.
25Please my lord, pay no attention to this worthless fellow, Nabal, for as his name is, so is he—Nabal is his name and disgraceful folly is with him. But I, your maidservant, did not see the young men of my lord whom you sent.
26“So now my lord, as Adonai lives and as your soul lives, since Adonai has restrained you from shedding blood and from avenging yourself with your own hand, now therefore let your enemies and those who are seeking to harm my lord be as Nabal.
27Now let this blessing, which your maidservant has brought to my lord, be given to the young men who are accompanying my lord.
28Please, forgive the trespass of your maidservant. For Adonai will certainly make an enduring house for my lord, because my lord is fighting the battles of Adonai. So let no wrongdoing be found in you all your days.
29If anyone rises to pursue you and seek your life, then let my lord’s life be bound up in the bundle of the living—with Adonai your God. But let the soul of your enemies be hurled away as from the hollow of a sling.
30“So when Adonai has fulfilled for my lord all the good things that He had spoken concerning you, and has appointed you ruler over Israel,
31then this will not be a stumbling-block for you, or offense of heart to my lord, or needless bloodshed by my lord avenging himself. So when Adonai has dealt graciously with my lord, then remember your handmaid.”
32Then David said to Abigail, “Blessed be Adonai God of Israel, who sent you to meet me this day!
33Blessed be your discernment, and may you be blessed for keeping me this day from shedding blood, from avenging myself with my own hand.
34Yet as Adonai God of Israel lives, who restrained me from harming you, unless you had come quickly to meet me, surely not one male of Nabal’s line would have been left alive by the morning light!”
35So David received from her hand what she had brought him, and said to her, “Go up in shalom to your house. Look, I have listened to your plea and have granted your request.”
36Then Abigail went to Nabal, and there he was holding a banquet in his house like that of a king—Nabal’s heart was merry within him, for he was quite drunk. So she told him nothing at all until daybreak.
37It came to pass in the morning, when the wine had gone out of Nabal, and his wife told him these things, that his heart died within him, and he was paralyzed like a stone.
38About ten days later, Adonai struck Nabal and he died.
39When David heard that Nabal was dead, he said, “Blessed be Adonai who took the case of my insult from the hand of Nabal, yet has restrained His servant from evil! Adonai has returned Nabal’s vileness on his own head.” Then David sent word and proposed to Abigail to take her as his wife.
40When David’s servants came to Abigail at Carmel, they told her, “David has sent us to you, to take you as his wife.”
41So she rose, bowed down with her face to the ground and said, “Behold, your handmaid is a servant to wash the feet of the servants of my lord.”
42Then Abigail rose quickly and mounted a donkey, with five of her maidens following her, following David’s messengers, and she became his wife.
43David also took Ahinoam of Jezreel, and the two of them were his wives.
44Meanwhile Saul had given Michal his daughter, David’s wife, to Palti son of Laish, who was of Gallim.
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1 Samuel 25: TLV
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Copyright © 2014 - Messianic Jewish Family Bible Society
1 Samuel 25
25
Nabal Insults David
1Now Samuel died, and all the Israelites met and had a time of sadness for him. Then they buried him at his home in Ramah.
David moved to the Desert of Maon. 2A man in Maon who had land at Carmel was very rich. He had three thousand sheep and a thousand goats. He was cutting the wool off his sheep at Carmel. 3His name was Nabal, and he was a descendant of Caleb. His wife was named Abigail. She was wise and beautiful, but Nabal was cruel and mean.
4While David was in the desert, he heard that Nabal was cutting the wool from his sheep. 5So he sent ten young men and told them, “Go to Nabal at Carmel, and greet him for me. 6Say to Nabal, ‘May you and your family and all who belong to you have good health! 7I have heard that you are cutting the wool from your sheep. When your shepherds were with us, we did not harm them. All the time your shepherds were at Carmel, we stole nothing from them. 8Ask your servants, and they will tell you. We come at a happy time, so be kind to my young men. Please give anything you can find for them and for your son David.’ ”
9When David’s men arrived, they gave the message to Nabal, but Nabal insulted them. 10He answered them, “Who is David? Who is this son of Jesse? Many slaves are running away from their masters today! 11I have bread and water, and I have meat that I killed for my servants who cut the wool. But I won’t give it to men I don’t know.”
12David’s men went back and told him all Nabal had said. 13Then David said to them, “Put on your swords!” So they put on their swords, and David put on his also. About four hundred men went with David, but two hundred men stayed with the supplies.
14One of Nabal’s servants said to Abigail, Nabal’s wife, “David sent messengers from the desert to greet our master, but Nabal insulted them. 15These men were very good to us. They did not harm us. They stole nothing from us during all the time we were out in the field with them. 16Night and day they protected us. They were like a wall around us while we were with them caring for the sheep. 17Now think about it, and decide what you can do. Terrible trouble is coming to our master and all his family. Nabal is such a wicked man that no one can even talk to him.”
18Abigail hurried. She took two hundred loaves of bread, two leather bags full of wine, five cooked sheep, a bushel of cooked grain, a hundred cakes of raisins, and two hundred cakes of pressed figs and put all these on donkeys. 19Then she told her servants, “Go on. I’ll follow you.” But she did not tell her husband.
20Abigail rode her donkey and came down toward the mountain hideout. There she met David and his men coming down toward her.
21David had just said, “It’s been useless! I watched over Nabal’s property in the desert. I made sure none of his sheep was missing. I did good to him, but he has paid me back with evil. 22May God punish my enemies even more. I will not leave one of Nabal’s men alive until morning.”
23When Abigail saw David, she quickly got off her donkey and bowed facedown on the ground before him. 24She fell at David’s feet and said, “My master, let the blame be on me! Please let me talk to you. Listen to what I say. 25My master, don’t pay attention to this worthless man Nabal. He is like his name. His name means ‘fool,’ and he is truly a fool. But I, your servant, didn’t see the men you sent. 26The Lord has kept you from killing and punishing anyone. As surely as the Lord lives and as surely as you live, may your enemies become like Nabal! 27I have brought a gift to you for the men who follow you.28Please forgive my wrong. The Lord will certainly let your family have many kings, because you fight his battles. As long as you live, may you do nothing bad. 29Someone might chase you to kill you, but the Lord your God will keep you alive. He will throw away your enemies’ lives as he would throw a stone from a sling. 30The Lord will keep all his promises of good things for you. He will make you leader over Israel. 31Then you won’t feel guilty or troubled because you killed innocent people and punished them. Please remember me when the Lord brings you success.”
32David answered Abigail, “Praise the Lord, the God of Israel, who sent you to meet me. 33May you be blessed for your wisdom. You have kept me from killing or punishing people today. 34As surely as the Lord, the God of Israel, lives, he has kept me from hurting you. If you hadn’t come quickly to meet me, not one of Nabal’s men would have lived until morning.”
35Then David accepted Abigail’s gifts. He told her, “Go home in peace. I have heard your words, and I will do what you have asked.”
Nabal’s Death
36When Abigail went back to Nabal, he was in the house, eating like a king. He was very drunk and in a good mood. So she told him nothing until the next morning. 37In the morning when he was not drunk, his wife told him everything. His heart stopped, and he became like stone. 38About ten days later the Lord struck Nabal and he died.
39When David heard that Nabal was dead, he said, “Praise the Lord! Nabal insulted me, but the Lord has supported me! He has kept me from doing wrong. The Lord has punished Nabal for his wrong.”
Then David sent a message to Abigail, asking her to be his wife. 40His servants went to Carmel and said to Abigail, “David sent us to take you so you can become his wife.”
41Abigail bowed facedown on the ground and said, “I am your servant. I’m ready to serve you and to wash the feet of my master’s servants.” 42Abigail quickly got on a donkey and went with David’s messengers, with her five maids following her. And she became David’s wife.
43David also had married Ahinoam of Jezreel. So they were both David’s wives. 44Saul’s daughter Michal was also David’s wife, but Saul had given her to Paltiel son of Laish, who was from Gallim.
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The Holy Bible, New Century Version, Copyright © 2005 Thomas Nelson. All rights reserved.