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.

Now Samuel died. All Israel gathered together and mourned for him, and they buried him in his house at Ramah. Then David rose 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.

There was a man in Maon, whose possessions were in Carmel. The man was very wealthy. He had three thousand sheep and one thousand goats. He was shearing his sheep in 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.

The man's name was Nabal, and the name of his wife was Abigail. The woman was intelligent and beautiful in appearance. But the man was harsh and evil in his dealings. He was a descendant of the house of Caleb.

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

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,

So David sent ten young men. David said to the young men, “Go up to Carmel, go to Nabal, and greet him in my name.

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

You will say to him, 'Live in prosperity. Peace to you and peace to your house, and peace be to all that you have.

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.

I hear that you have shearers. Your shepherds have been with us, and we did them no harm, and they missed nothing the whole time they were in 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 your young men, and they will tell you. Now let my young men find favor in your eyes, for we have come on a festive day. Please give whatever you have on hand to your servants and to your son 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.

When David's young men arrived, they said all of this to Nabal on David's behalf and then waited.

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?

Nabal answered David's servants, “Who is David, and who is the son of Jesse? There are many servants these days who are breaking away from their masters.

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?”

Should I take my bread and my water and my meat that I have killed for my shearers, and give it to men who come from I do not know where?”

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.

So David's young men turned away and came back, and told him everything that was said.

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.

David said to his men, “Every man strap on his sword.” So every man strapped on his sword. David also strapped on his sword. About four hundred men followed after David, and two hundred stayed 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 Abigail, Nabal's wife; he said, “David sent messengers out of the wilderness to greet our master, and he insulted 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;

Yet the men were very good to us. We were not harmed and did not miss anything as long as we went with them when we were in the fields.

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.

They were a wall to us both day and night, all the while we were with them tending the sheep.

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.”

Therefore know this and consider what you will do, for evil is plotted against our master, and against his whole house. He is such a worthless fellow that one cannot reason with 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.

Then Abigail hurried and took two hundred loaves, two bottles of wine, five sheep already prepared, five measures of parched grain, one hundred clusters of raisins, and two hundred cakes of figs, and laid them on donkeys.

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;

She said to her young men, “Go on before me, and I will come after you.” But she did not tell her husband Nabal.

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.

As she rode on her donkey and came down by the cover of the mountain, 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, “Surely in vain have I guarded all that this man has in the wilderness, so that nothing was missed of all that belonged to him, and he has returned me evil for 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.”

May God do so to me, David, and more also, if by the morning I leave so much as one male of all who belong to him.”

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,

When Abigail saw David, she hurried and got down from her donkey and lay before David facedown 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.

She lay at his feet and said, “On me alone, my master, be the guilt. Please let your servant speak to you, and listen to the words of your servant.

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 master regard this worthless fellow, Nabal, for as his name is, so is he. Nabal is his name, and folly is with him. But I your servant did not see the young men of my master, whom you sent.

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.

Now then, my master, as Yahweh lives, and as you live, since Yahweh has restrained you from bloodshed, and from avenging yourself with your own hand, now let your enemies, and those who seek to do evil to my master, be like Nabal.

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.

Now let this present that your servant has brought to my master be given to the young men who follow my master.

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.

Please forgive the trespass of your servant, for Yahweh will certainly make my master a sure house, because my master is fighting the battles of Yahweh; and evil will not be found in you so long as you live.

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.

Though men rise up to pursue you to take your life, yet the life of my master will be bound in the bundle of the living by Yahweh your God; and he will sling away the lives of your enemies, as from the pocket of a 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,

Yahweh will have done for my master everything he promised you, and has appointed you leader 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.”

This will not be a staggering burden for you—that you have poured out innocent blood, or because my master attempted to rescue himself. For when Yahweh will do good for my master, remember your servant.”

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

David said to Abigail, “May Yahweh, the God of Israel, be blessed, he who sent you to meet me today.

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.

Your wisdom is blessed and you are blessed, because you have kept me today from bloodshed and from avenging 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.”

For in truth, as Yahweh, the God of Israel, lives, he who has kept me from hurting you, unless you had hurried to come meet me, there would certainly have not been left to Nabal so much as one male baby by morning.”

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.”

So David received from her hand what she had brought him; he said to her, “Go up in peace to your house; see, I have listened to your voice and have accepted you.”

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.

Abigail went back to Nabal; behold, he was holding a feast in his house, like the feast of a king; and Nabal's heart was merry within him, for he was very drunk. So she told him nothing at all 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.

It came about in the morning, when the wine had gone out of Nabal, that his wife told him these things; his heart died within him, and he became like a stone.

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

It came about ten days later that Yahweh attacked Nabal so that 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.

When David heard that Nabal was dead, he said, “May Yahweh be blessed, who has taken up the cause of my insult from the hand of Nabal and has kept back his servant from evil. He has turned Nabal's evil action back on his own head.” Then David sent and spoke to Abigail, to take her to himself as 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.”

When David's servants had come to Abigail at Carmel, they spoke to her and said, “David has sent us to you to take you to him as his 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.”

She arose, bowed herself with her face to the ground, and said, “See, your female servant is a servant to wash the feet of the servants of my master.”

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.

Abigail hurried and arose, and rode on a donkey with five servant girls of hers who followed her; and she followed David's messengers and became his wife.

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

Now David had also taken Ahinoam of Jezreel as a wife; both of them became his wives.

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

Also, Saul had given Michal his daughter, David's wife, to Paltiel son of Laish, who was of Gallim.