1 Samuel 25

1 And Samuel dies, and all Israel is gathered, and mourns for him, and buries him in his house, in Ramah; and David rises and goes down to the wilderness of Paran.

And Samuel died; and all the Israelites assembled themselves together, and lamented for him, and buried him in his house at Ramah. And David arose, and went down to the wilderness of Paran.

2 And [there is] a man in Maon, and his work [is] in Carmel; and the man [is] very great, and he has three thousand sheep and one thousand goats; and he is shearing his flock in Carmel.

And there was a man in Ma'on, whose business was in Carmel; and the man was very great, and he had three thousand sheep, and a thousand goats: and he was, while they were shearing his sheep, at Carmel.

3 And the name of the man [is] Nabal, and the name of his wife [is] Abigail, and the woman [is] of good understanding, and of beautiful form, and the man [is] hard and evil [in his] doings; and he [is] a Calebite.

Now the name of the man was Nabal, and the name of his wife Abigayil: and the woman was of good understanding, and of a beautiful form; but the man was hard-hearted and evil in his deeds; and he was of the house of Caleb.

4 And David hears in the wilderness that Nabal is shearing his flock,

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

5 and David sends ten young men, and David says to the young men, “Go up to Carmel, and you have come to Nabal, and asked of him in my name of welfare,

And David sent out ten young men, and David said unto the young men, Get you up to Carmel, and go to Nabal, and ask him in my name after his well-being.

6 and said thus to the living: And peace to you, and peace to your house, and peace to all that you have!

And ye shall say, May it thus be throughout thy life; and peace be to thee, and peace be to thy house, and unto all that thou hast be peace.

7 And now, I have heard that you have shearers; now, the shepherds whom you have have been with us, we have not put them to shame, nor has anything been looked after by them, all the days of their being in Carmel.

And now have I heard that thou hast sheep-shearers: now thy shepherds have been with us, we have not injured them, neither hath there aught been missing unto them, all the time they were at Carmel.

8 Ask your young men, and they declare [it] to you, and the young men find grace in your eyes, for we have come on a good day; please give that which your hand finds to your servants and to your son, to David.”

Ask thy young men, and they will tell it thee. Therefore let the young men find favor in thy eyes; for on a festive day are we come: give, I pray thee, whatsoever thy hand is capable of unto thy servants, and to thy son, to David.

9 And the young men of David come in, and speak to Nabal according to all these words, in the name of David—and rest.

And David's young men came, and they spoke to Nabal in accordance with all these words in the name of David; and then they ceased.

10 And Nabal answers the servants of David and says, “Who [is] David, and who [is] the son of Jesse? Have servants been multiplied today who are each breaking away from his master?

And Nabal answered the servants of David, and said, Who is David? and who is the son of Jesse? now-a-days there are many servants that break away every one from his master.

11 And have I taken my bread, and my water, and my flesh, which I slaughtered for my shearers, and have given [it] to men whom I have not known where they [are] from?”

Shall I then take my bread, and my water, and my flesh that I have killed for my sheep-shearers, and give it unto men, whom I know not whence they are?

12 And the young men of David turn on their way, and turn back, and come in, and declare to him according to all these words.

And David's young men turned about on their way, and returned, and came and told him in accordance with all these words.

13 And David says to his men, “Each gird on his sword”; and they each gird on his sword, and David also girds on his sword, and about four hundred men go up after David, and two hundred have remained by the vessels.

And David said unto his men, Gird ye on, every man, his sword. And they girded on, every man, his sword; and David also girded on his sword: and there went up after David about four hundred men, and two hundred abode by the baggage.

14 And one young man of the youths has declared [it] to Abigail wife of Nabal, saying, “Behold, David has sent messengers out of the wilderness to bless our lord, and he flies on them;

But one of the young men told Abigayil, Nabal's wife, saying, Behold, David sent messengers out of the wilderness to greet our master; but he hath spoken rudely to them.

15 and the men [are] very good to us, and have not put us to shame, and we have not looked after anything all the days we have gone up and down with them, in our being in the field;

Whereas the men have been very good unto us; and we have not been injured, neither have we missed any thing, all the time that we went about with them, while we were in the field:

16 they have been a wall to us both by night and by day, all the days of our being with them, feeding the flock.

A wall were they around us both by night and by day, all the time we were with them, feeding the flocks.

17 And now, know and consider what you do; for evil has been determined against our lord, and against all his house, and he [is] too much a son of worthlessness to be spoken to.”

And now know and consider what thou canst do; for evil is determined on against our master, and against all his household; and he is too greatly a worthless man for me to speak to him.

18 And Abigail hurries, and takes two hundred loaves, and two bottles of wine, and five sheep, prepared, and five measures of roasted grain, and one hundred bunches of raisins, and two hundred bunches of figs, and sets [them] on the donkeys.

And Abigayil made haste, and took two hundred loaves, and two bottles of wine, and five sheep ready dressed, and five measures of parched corn, and a hundred clusters of raisins, and two hundred cakes of figs, and laid them on asses.

19 And she says to her young men, “Pass over before me; behold, I am coming after you”; and she has not declared [it] to her husband Nabal;

And she said unto her young men, Pass on before me: behold, I come after you. But to her husband Nabal she told nothing.

20 and it has come to pass, she is riding on the donkey and is coming down in the secret part of the hill-country, and behold, David and his men are coming down to meet her, and she meets them.

And it was so, as she was riding on the ass, and coming down by the covert of the mount, that, behold, David and his men came down toward her; and she met them.

21 And David said, “Surely in vain I have kept all that this [one] has in the wilderness, and nothing has been looked after of all that he has, and he turns back to me evil for good;

Now David had said, Yea, for naught only have I guarded all that belongeth to this fellow in the wilderness, so that not the least was missed of all that pertained unto him; and he hath requited me evil instead of good.

22 thus God does to the enemies of David, and thus He adds, if I leave of all that he has until the morning light—of those sitting on the wall.”

So may God do unto the enemies of David, and do so yet farther, if I leave of all that pertaineth to him by the morning light, as much as a dog.

23 And Abigail sees David, and hurries and comes down from off the donkey, and falls on her face before David, and bows herself to the earth,

And when Abigayil saw David, she hastened, and alighted off the ass, and fell down before David on her face, and bowed herself to the ground.

24 and falls at his feet and says, “On me, my lord, the iniquity; and please let your handmaid speak in your ear, and hear the words of your handmaid.

And she fell at his feet, and said, On me, me, my lord, is the fault: and let thy hand-maid, I pray thee, speak in thy hearing, and listen to the words of thy hand-maid.

25 Please do not let my lord set his heart to this man of worthlessness, on Nabal, for as his name [is] so [is] he; Nabal [is] his name, and folly [is] with him; and I, your handmaid, did not see the young men of my lord whom you sent;

Let not my Lord, I pray thee, turn his heart unto this worthless man, unto Nabal; for as his name is, so is he: Nabal is his name, and meanness is with him; but I thy hand-maid did not see the young men of my Lord, whom thou didst send.

26 and now, my lord, YHWH lives, and your soul lives, in that YHWH has withheld you from coming in with blood, and to save your hand from yourself—now let your enemies be as Nabal, even those seeking evil toward my lord.

And now, my lord, as the Eternal liveth, and as thy soul liveth, it is the Lord who hath withholden thee from coming to blood-guiltiness, and from helping thyself with thy own hand; and now may like Nabal be thy enemies, and those that seek [to do] my Lord evil.

27 And now, this blessing which your maidservant has brought to my lord—it has been given to the young men who are going up and down at the feet of my lord.

And now this present which thy hand-maid hath brought unto my Lord, let it even be given unto the young men that follow in the train my Lord.

28 Please bear with the transgression of your handmaid, for YHWH certainly makes a steadfast house for my lord; for my lord has fought the battles of YHWH, and evil is not found in you [all] your days.

Pardon, I pray thee, the trespass of thy hand-maid; for the Lord will certainly make for my lord an enduring house; because the battles of the Lord doth my lord fight, and evil will not be found in thee all thy days.

29 And man rises to pursue you and to seek your soul, and the soul of my lord has been bound in the bundle of life with your God YHWH; as for the soul of your enemies, He slings them out in the midst of the hollow of the sling.

And though a man is risen up to pursue thee, and to seek thy soul: yet will the soul of my Lord be bound in the bond of life with the Lord thy God; and the soul of thy enemies will he hurl away, as out of the middle of the sling.

30 And it has been, when YHWH does to my lord according to all the good which He has spoken concerning you, and appointed you for leader over Israel,

And it shall come to pass, when the Lord will do to my lord, in accordance with all the good that he hath spoken concerning thee, and will ordain thee as ruler over Israel,

31 that this is not to you for a stumbling-block, and for an offense of heart to my lord—either to shed blood for nothing, or my lord’s restraining himself; and YHWH has done good to my lord, and you have remembered your handmaid.”

That this shall not be unto thee as a cause of offense and as a reproach of heart unto my lord, both by having shed blood without cause, and by my lord having righted himself; and when the Lord will do good unto my lord, then do thou remember thy hand-maid.

32 And David says to Abigail, “Blessed [is] YHWH, God of Israel, who has sent you to meet me this day,

And David said to Abigayil, Blessed be the Lord, the God of Israel, who sent thee this day to meet me;

33 and blessed [is] your discretion, and blessed [are] you in that you have restrained me this day from coming in with blood, and to restrain my hand to myself.

And blessed be thy intelligence, and blessed be thou, who hast prevented me this day from coming unto blood-guiltiness, and from helping myself with my own hand.

34 And yet, YHWH lives, God of Israel, who has kept me back from doing evil with you, for unless you had hurried, and come to meet me, surely there had not been left to Nabal until the morning light, of those sitting on the wall.”

But truly, as the Lord the God of Israel liveth, who hath withdrawn me from injuring thee, except thou hadst hastened and come to meet me, surely there would not have been left unto Nabal by the morning-light so much as a dog.

35 And David receives from her hand that which she has brought to him, and he has said to her, “Go up in peace to your house; see, I have listened to your voice, and accept your face.”

And David took out of her hand that which she had brought him; and unto her he said, Go up in peace to thy house: see, I have hearkened to thy voice, and have respected thy presence.

36 And Abigail comes to Nabal, and behold, he has a banquet in his house, like a banquet of the king, and the heart of Nabal [is] glad within him, and he [is] drunk to excess, and she has not declared anything to him, little or much, until the morning light.

And Abigayil came to Nabal; and, behold, he held a feast in his house, like the feast of a king; and Nabal's heart was merry within him, and he was exceedingly drunken; wherefore she told him not a word, either little or great, until the morning-light.

37 And it comes to pass in the morning, when the wine is gone out from Nabal, that his wife declares these things to him, and his heart dies within him, and he has been as a stone.

But it happened in the morning, when the wine was gone out of Nabal, that his wife told him these things; and his heart died within him, and he became as a stone.

38 And it comes to pass [in] about ten days, that YHWH strikes Nabal and he dies,

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

39 and David hears that Nabal [is] dead and says, “Blessed [is] YHWH who has pleaded the cause of my reproach from the hand of Nabal, and His servant has kept back from evil, and YHWH has turned back the wickedness of Nabal on his own head”; and David sends and speaks with Abigail, to take her to himself for a wife.

And when David heard that Nabal was dead, he said, Blessed be the Lord, who hath pleaded the cause of my reproach from the hand of Nabal, and hath withheld his servant from evil; and the wickedness of Nabal hath the Lord returned upon his own head. And David sent and applied for Abigayil, to take her to himself for wife.

40 And the servants of David come to Abigail at Carmel, and speak to her, saying, “David has sent us to you to take you to himself for a wife.”

And the servants of David came to Abigayil to Carmel, and they spoke unto her, saying, David hath sent us unto thee, to take thee to himself for wife.

41 And she rises and bows herself—face to the earth—and says, “Behold, your handmaid [is] for a maidservant to wash the feet of the servants of my lord.”

Thereupon she arose, and bowed herself with her face to the earth, and said, Behold, let thy hand-maid be a servant to wash the feet of the servants of my lord.

42 And Abigail hurries and rises, and rides on the donkey; and [there are] five of her young women who are going at her feet; and she goes after the messengers of David, and is to him for a wife.

And Abigayil hastened, and arose, and rode upon an ass, with her five damsels that went in her train; and she went after the messengers of David, and she became his wife.

43 And David has taken Ahinoam from Jezreel, and they are—even both of them—for wives to him;

David also took Achino'am of Yizre'el; and both of them became thus his wives.

44 and Saul gave his daughter Michal, David’s wife, to Phalti son of Laish, who [is] of Gallim.

But Saul had given Michal his daughter, David's wife, to Palti, the son of Layish, who was of Gallim.