1 Samuel 25

1 Then Samuel dyed, and all Israel assembled, and mourned for him, and buried him in his owne house at Ramah. And Dauid arose and went downe to the wildernes of Paran.

And Samuel died, and all Israel assembled, and bewailed him, and they bury him in his house in Armathaim: and David arose, and went down to the wilderness of Maon.

2 Now in Maon was a man, who had his possessio in Carmel, and the man was exceeding mightie and had three thousand sheepe, and a thousand goates: and he was shering his sheepe in Carmel.

And there was a man in Maon, and his flocks were in Carmel, and [he was] a very great man; and he had three thousand sheep, and a thousand she-goats: and he happened to be shearing his flock in Carmel.

3 The name also of the man was Nabal, and the name of his wife Abigail, and she was a woman of singular wisdome, and beautifull, but the man was churlish, and euil conditioned, and was of the familie of Caleb.

And the man's name [was] Nabal, and his wife's name [was] Abigaia: and his wife [was] of good understanding and very beautiful in person: but the man [was] harsh, and evil in his doings, and the man [was] churlish.

4 And Dauid heard in the wildernesse, that Nabal did shere his sheepe.

And David heard in the wilderness, that Nabal the Carmelite was shearing his sheep.

5 Therefore Dauid sent tenne yong men, and Dauid said vnto the yong men, Go vp to Carmel, and go to Nabal, and aske him in my name how he doeth.

And David sent ten young men, and he said to the young men, Go up to Carmel, and go to Nabal, and ask him in my name how he is.

6 And thus shall ye say for salutation, Both thou, and thine house, and all that thou hast, be in peace, wealth and prosperitie.

And thus shall you say, May you and your house seasonably prosper, and all your be in prosperity.

7 Behold, I haue heard, that thou hast sherers: now thy shepherds were with vs, and we did the no hurt, neyther did they misse any thing all the while they were in Carmel.

And now, behold, I have heard that your shepherds who were with is in the wilderness are shearing your sheep, and we hindered them not, neither did we demand any thing from them all the time they were in Carmel.

8 Aske thy seruants and they wil shew thee. Wherefore let these yong men finde fauour in thine eyes: (for we come in a good season) giue, I pray thee, whatsoeuer commeth to thine hand vnto thy seruants, and to thy sonne Dauid.

Ask your servants, and they will tell you. Let then your servants find grace in your eyes, for we are come on a good day; give we pray you, whatever your hand may find, to your son David.

9 And when Dauids yong men came, they tolde Nabal all those wordes in the name of Dauid, and helde their peace.

So the servants come and speak these words to Nabal, according to all these words in the name of David.

10 Then Nabal answered Dauids seruantes, and sayd, Who is Dauid? and who is the sonne of Ishai? there be many seruantes nowe a dayes, that breake away euery man from his master.

And Nabal sprang up, and answered the servants of David, and said, Who [is] David? and who [is] the son of Jessae? Now-a-days there is abundance of servants who depart every one from his master.

11 Shall I then take my bread, and my water, and my flesh that I haue killed for my sherers, and giue it vnto men, whom I know not whence they be?

And shall I take my bread, and my wine, and my beasts that I have slain for my shearers, and shall I give them to men of whom I know not whence they are?

12 So Dauids seruants turned their way, and went againe, and came, and tolde him all those things.

So the servants of David turned back, and returned, and came and reported to David according to these words.

13 And Dauid said vnto his men, Girde euery man his sword about him. And they girded euery man his sworde: Dauid also girded his sworde. And about foure hundreth men went vp after Dauid, and two hundreth abode by the cariage.

And David said to his men, Gird on every man his sword. And they went up after David, about four hundred men: and two hundred abode with the stuff.

14 Nowe one of the seruantes tolde Abigail Nabals wife, saying, Beholde, Dauid sent messengers out of the wildernesse to salute our master, and he rayled on them.

And one of the servants reported to Abigaia the wife of Nabal, saying, Behold, David sent messengers out of the wilderness to salute our lord; but he turned away from them.

15 Notwithstanding the men were very good vnto vs, and we had no displeasure, neither missed we any thing as long as we were conuersant with them, when we were in the fieldes.

And the men were very good to us; they did not hinder us, neither did they demand from us any thing all the days that we were with them.

16 They were as a wall vnto vs both by night and by day, all the while we were with them keeping sheepe.

And when we were in the field, they were as a wall round about us, both by night and by day, all the days that we were with them feeding the flock.

17 Nowe therefore take heede, and see what thou shalt doe: for euill will surely come vpon our master, and vpon all his familie: for he is so wicked that a man can not speake to him.

And now do you consider, and see what you will do; for mischief is determined against our lord and against his house; and he [is] a vile character, and one can’t speak to him.

18 Then Abigail made haste, and tooke two hundreth cakes, and two bottels of wine, and fiue sheepe ready dressed, and fiue measures of parched corne, and an hundreth frailes of raisins, and two hundreth of figs, and laded them on asses.

And Abigaia hasted, and took two hundred loaves, and two vessels of wine, and five sheep ready dressed, and five ephahs of fine flour, and one homer of dried grapes, and two hundred cakes of figs, and put them upon asses.

19 Then she said vnto her seruants, Go ye before me: beholde, I will come after you: yet she tolde not her husband Nabal.

And she said to her servants, Go on before me, and behold I come after you: but she told not her husband.

20 And as shee rode on her asse, shee came downe by a secret place of the mountaine, and beholde, Dauid and his men came downe against her, and she met them.

And it came to pass when she had mounted her ass and was going down by the covert of the mountain, behold, David and his men came down to meet her, and she met them.

21 And Dauid said, In deede I haue kept all in vaine that this fellow had in the wildernesse, so that nothing was missed of all that pertained vnto him: for he hath requited me euill for good.

And David said, Perhaps I have kept all his possessions in the wilderness that he should wrong me, and we did not order the taking anything of all his goods; yet he has rewarded me evil for good.

22 So and more also doe God vnto the enemies of Dauid: for surely I will not leaue of all that he hath, by the dawning of the day, any that pisseth against the wall.

So God do to David and more also, if I leave one male of all that belong to Nabal until the morning.

23 And when Abigail sawe Dauid, she hasted and lighted off her asse, and fell before Dauid on her face, and bowed her selfe to the ground,

And Abigaia saw David, and she hasted and alighted from her ass; and she felt before David on her face, and did obeisance to him, [bowing] to the ground

24 And fel at his feete, and sayd, Oh, my lord, I haue committed the iniquitie, and I pray thee, let thine handmayde speake to thee, and heare thou the wordes of thine handmayde.

[even] to his feet, and said, On me, my lord, be my wrong: let, I pray you, your servant speak in your ears, and hear you the words of your servant.

25 Let not my lorde, I pray thee, regard this wicked man Nabal: for as his name is, so is he: Nabal is his name, and follie is with him: but I thine handmayde sawe not the yong men of my lord whom thou sentest.

Let not my lord, I pray you, take to heart this pestilent man, for according to his name, so is he; Nabal [is] his name, and folly [is] with him: but I your handmaid saw not the servants of my lord whom you did send.

26 Now therefore my lord, as the Lord liueth, and as thy soule liueth (the Lord, I say, that hath withholden thee from comming to shedde blood, and that thine hand should not saue thee) so now thine enemies shall be as Nabal, and they that intend to doe my lord euill.

And now, my lord, [as] the Lord lives, and your soul lives, as the Lord has kept you from coming against innocent blood, and from executing vengeance for yourself, now therefore let your enemies, and those that seek evil against my lord, become as Nabal.

27 And now, this blessing which thine handmaid hath brought vnto my lorde, let it be giuen vnto the yong men, that follow my lord.

And now accept this token of goodwill, which your servant has brought to my lord, and you shall give it to the servants that wait on my lord.

28 I pray thee, forgiue the trespasse of thine handmaide: for the Lord will make my lorde a sure house, because my lord fighteth the battels of the Lord, and none euill hath bene found in thee in all thy life.

Remove, I pray you, the trespass of your servant; for the Lord will surely make for my lord a sure house, for the Lord fights the battles of my lord, and there shall no evil be ever found in you.

29 Yet a man hath risen vp to persecute thee, and to seeke thy soule, but the soule of my lorde shall be bounde in the bundel of life with the Lord thy God: and the soule of thine enemies shall God cast out, as out of the middle of a sling.

And [if] a man shall rise up persecuting you and seeking your life, yet shall the life of my lord be bound up in the bundle of life with the Lord God, and you shall whirl the life of your enemies [as] in the midst of a sling.

30 And when the Lord shall haue done to my lord al the good that he hath promised thee, and shall haue made thee ruler ouer Israel,

And it shall be when the Lord shall have wrought for my lord all the good things he has spoken concerning you, and shall appoint you to be ruler over Israel;

31 Then shall it be no griefe vnto thee, nor offence of minde vnto my lord, that he hath not shed blood causelesse, nor that my lorde hath not preserued him selfe: and when the Lord shall haue dealt well with my lorde, remember thine handmaide.

then this shall not be an abomination and offence to my lord, to have shed innocent blood without cause, and for my lord to have avenged himself: and so may the Lord do good to my lord, and you shall remember your handmaid to do her good.

32 Then Dauid said to Abigail, Blessed be the Lord God of Israel, which sent thee this day to meete me.

And David said to Abigaia, Blessed [be] the Lord God of Israel, who sent you this very day to meet me:

33 And blessed be thy counsel, and blessed be thou, which hast kept me this day from comming to shed blood, and that mine hand hath not saued me.

and blessed [be] your conduct, and blessed [be] you, who have hindered me this very day from coming to shed blood, and from avenging myself.

34 For in deede, as the Lord God of Israel liueth, who hath kept me backe from hurting thee, except thou haddest hasted and met mee, surely there had not bene left vnto Nabal by the dawning of the day, any that pisseth against the wall.

But surely as the Lord God of Israel lives, who hindered me this day from doing you harm, if you had not hasted and come to meet me, then I said, There shall [surely] not be left to Nabal till the morning one male.

35 Then Dauid receiued of her hande that which she had brought him, and said to her, Goe vp in peace to thine house: beholde, I haue heard thy voyce, and haue graunted thy petition.

And David took of her hand all that she brought to him, and said to her, Go in peace to your house: see, I have listened to your voice, and accepted your petition.

36 So Abigail came to Nabal, and behold, he made a feast in his house, like the feast of a King, and Nabals heart was merie within him, for he was very drunken: wherefore shee tolde him nothing, neither lesse nor more, vntil the morning arose.

And Abigaia came to Nabal: and, behold, he had a banquet in this house, as the banquet of a king, and the heart of Nabal [was] merry within him, and he [was] very drunken: and she told him nothing great or small till the morning light.

37 Then in the morning when the wine was gone out of Nabal, his wife tolde him those wordes, and his heart died within him, and he was like a stone.

And it came to pass in the morning, when Nabal recovered from his wine, his wife told him these words; and his heart died within him, and he became as a stone.

38 And about ten dayes after, the Lord smote Nabal, that he dyed.

And it came to pass after about ten days, that the Lord struck Nabal, and he died.

39 Now when Dauid heard, that Nabal was dead, he said, Blessed be the Lord that hath iudged the cause of my rebuke of ye hand of Nabal, and hath kept his seruant from euil: for the Lord hath recompensed the wickednesse of Nabal vpon his owne head. Also Dauid sent to commune with Abigail to take her to his wife.

And David heard it and said, Blessed [be] the Lord, who has judged the cause of my reproach at the hand of Nabal, and has delivered his servant from the power of evil; and the Lord has returned the mischief of Nabal upon his own head. And David sent and spoke concerning Abigaia, to take her to himself for a wife.

40 And whe the seruants of Dauid were come to Abigail to Carmel, they spake vnto her, saying, Dauid sent vs to thee, to take thee to his wife.

So the servants of David came to Abigaia to Carmel, and spoke to her, saying, David has sent us to you, to take you to himself for a wife.

41 And she arose, and bowed her selfe on her face to the earth, and said, Behold, let thine handmayde be a seruant to wash the feete of the seruants of my lord.

And she arose, and did reverence with her face to the earth, and said, Behold, your servant [is] for an handmaid to wash the feet of your servants.

42 And Abigail hasted, and arose, and rode vpon an asse, and her fiue maides folowed her, and she went after the messengers of Dauid, and was his wife.

And Abigaia arose, and mounted her ass, and five damsels followed her: and she went after the servants of David, and became his wife.

43 Dauid also tooke Ahinoam of Izreel, and they were both his wiues.

And David took Achinaam out of Jezrael, and they were both his wives.

44 Now Saul had giuen Michal his daughter Dauids wife to Phalti the sonne of Laish, which was of Gallim.

And Saul gave Melchol his daughter, David's wife, to Phalti the son of Amis who was of Romma.