1 Samuel 25
1 Forsothe Samuel was deed; and al Israel was gaderid to gidere, and thei biweiliden hym greetly, and birieden hym in his hows in Ramatha. And Dauid roos, and yede doun in to deseert of Faran.
When Samuel died, all Israel gathered to mourn for him; and they buried him at his home in Ramah. Then David set out and went down to the Wilderness of Paran.
2 Forsothe a `man was in Maon, and his possessioun was in Carmele, and thilke man was ful greet, and thre thousynde scheep and a thousynde geet `weren to hym; and it bifelde that his flocke was clippid in Carmele.
Now there was a man in Maon whose business was in Carmel. He was a very wealthy man with a thousand goats and three thousand sheep, which he was shearing in Carmel.
3 Forsothe the name of that man was Nabal, and the name of his wijf was Abigail; and thilke womman was moost prudent and fair; forsothe hir hosebond was hard and ful wickid and malicious; sotheli he was of the kyn of Caleph.
His name was Nabal, and his wife’s name was Abigail. She was an intelligent and beautiful woman, but her husband, a Calebite, was harsh and evil in his dealings.
4 Therfor whanne Dauid hadde herde in deseert, that Nabal clippide his floc,
While David was in the wilderness, he heard that Nabal was shearing sheep.
5 he sente ten yonge men, and seide to hem, Stie ye in to Carmele, and ye schulen come to Nabal, and ye schulen grete hym of my name pesibli;
So David sent ten young men and instructed them, “Go up to Nabal at Carmel. Greet him in my name
6 and ye schulen seie thus, Pees be to my britheren and to thee, and pees be to thin hows, and pees be to alle thingis, `what euer thingis thou hast.
and say to him, ‘Long life to you, and peace to you and your house and to all that belongs to you.
7 Y herde that thi scheepherdis, that weren with vs in deseert, clippiden thi flockis; we weren neuere diseseful to hem, nether ony tyme ony thing of the floc failide to hem, in al time in which thei weren with vs in Carmele;
Now I hear that it is time for shearing. When your shepherds were with us, we did not harass them, and nothing of theirs was missing the whole time they were in Carmel.
8 axe thi children, and thei schulen schewe to thee. Now therfor thi children fynde grace in thin iyen; for in a good dai we camen to thee; what euer thing thin hond fyndith, yyue to thi seruauntis, and to thi sone Dauid.
Ask your young men, and they will tell you. So let my young men find favor with you, for we have come on the day of a feast. Please give whatever you can afford to your servants and to your son David.’”
9 And whanne the children of Dauid hadden come, thei spaken to Nabal alle these wordis in the name of Dauid, and helden pees.
When David’s young men arrived, they relayed all these words to Nabal on behalf of David. Then they waited.
10 Forsoth Nabal answeride to the children of Dauid, and seide, Who is Dauith? and who is the sone of Isai? To dai seruauntis encreesiden that fleen her lords.
But Nabal asked them, “Who is David? Who is this son of Jesse? Many servants these days are breaking away from their masters.
11 Therfor schal Y take my looues and my watris, and the fleischis of beestis, whiche Y haue slayn to my schereris, and schal Y yyue to men, whiche Y knowe not of whennus thei ben?
Why should I take my bread and water and the meat I have slaughtered for my shearers, and give them to these men whose origin I do not know?”
12 Therfor the children of Dauid yeden ayen bi her weie; and thei turneden ayen, and camen, and telden to hym alle wordis whiche Nabal hadde seid.
So David’s men turned around and went back, and they relayed to him all these words.
13 Thanne Dauid seide to hise children, Ech man be gird with his swerd. And alle men weren gird with her swerdis, and Dauid also was gird with his swerd; and as foure hundrid men sueden Dauid, forsothe two hundrid leften at the fardels.
And David said to his men, “Strap on your swords!” So David and all his men put on their swords, and about four hundred men followed David, while two hundred stayed with the supplies.
14 Forsothe oon of hise children telde to Abigail, wijf of Nabal, and seide, Lo! Dauid sente messangeris fro deseert, that thei schulden blesse oure lord, and he turnede hem awey;
Meanwhile, one of Nabal’s young men informed Nabal’s wife Abigail, “Look, David sent messengers from the wilderness to greet our master, but he scolded them.
15 these men weren good ynow, and not diseseful to vs, and no thing perischide `in ony tyme in al the tyme in which we lyueden with hem in deseert;
Yet these men were very good to us. When we were in the field, we were not harassed, and nothing of ours went missing the whole time we lived among them.
16 thei weren to vs for a wal, bothe in niyt and in dai, in alle daies in whiche we lesewiden flockis at hem.
They were a wall around us, both day and night, the whole time we were herding our sheep near them.
17 Wherfor biholde thou, and thenke, what thou schalt do; for malice is fillid ayens thin hosebonde, and ayens `thin hows; and he is the sone of Belial, so that no man may speke to him.
Now consider carefully what you must do, because disaster looms over our master and all his household. For he is such a scoundrel that nobody can speak to him!”
18 Therfor Abigail hastide, and took two hundrid looues, and two vessels of wyn, and fyue whetheris sodun, and seuene buyschelis and an half of flour, and an hundrid bundles of dried grape, and two hundrid gobetis of dried figus; and puttide on assis,
Then Abigail hurried and took two hundred loaves of bread, two skins of wine, five butchered sheep, five seahs of roasted grain, a hundred clusters of raisins, and two hundred cakes of figs. She loaded them on donkeys
19 and seide to hir children, Go ye bifor me; lo! Y schal sue you `aftir the bak. Forsothe sche schewide not to hir hosebonde Nabal.
and said to her young men, “Go ahead of me. I will be right behind you.” But she did not tell her husband Nabal.
20 Therfor whanne sche hadde stied on the asse, and cam doun `at the roote of the hil, and Dauid and hise men camen doun in to the comyng `of hir; whiche also sche mette.
As Abigail came riding her donkey into a mountain ravine, she saw David and his men coming down toward her, and she met them.
21 And Dauid seide, Verili in veyn Y haue kept alle thingis that weren of this Nabal in the deseert, and no thing perischide of alle thingis that perteyneden to hym, and he hath yolde to me yuel for good.
Now David had just finished saying, “In vain I have protected all that belonged to this man in the wilderness. Nothing that belongs to him has gone missing, yet he has paid me back evil for good.
22 The Lord do these thingis, and adde these thingis to the enemyes of Dauid, if Y schal leeue of alle thingis that perteynen to him til the morewe a pisser to the wal.
May God punish David, and ever so severely, if I let one of Nabal’s men survive until morning.”
23 Sotheli whanne Abigail siy Dauid, sche hastide, and yede doun of the asse; and sche fel doun bifor Dauid on hir face, and worschipide on the erthe.
When Abigail saw David, she quickly got off the donkey, fell facedown, and bowed before him.
24 And sche felde doun to hise feet, and seide, My lord the kyng, this wickydnesse be in me; Y biseche, speke thin handmayden in thin eeris, and here thou the wordis of thi seruauntesse;
She fell at his feet and said, “My lord, may the blame be on me alone, but please let your servant speak to you; hear the words of your servant.
25 Y preie, my lord the kyng, sette not his herte on this wickid man Nabal, for bi his name he is a fool, and foli is with hym; but, my lord, Y thin handmayde siy not thi children, whiche thou sentist.
My lord should pay no attention to this scoundrel Nabal, for he lives up to his name: His name means Fool, and folly accompanies him. I, your servant, did not see my lord’s young men whom you sent.
26 Now therfor, my lord, the Lord lyueth, and thi soule lyueth, which Lord forbeed thee, lest thou schuldist come in to blood, and he sauede thi soule to thee; and now thin enemyes, and thei that seken yuel to my lord, be maad as Nabal.
Now, my lord, as surely as the LORD lives and you yourself live, the LORD has held you back from coming to bloodshed and avenging yourself with your own hand. May your enemies and those who seek harm for my lord be like Nabal.
27 Wherfor resseyue thou this blessyng, which thin handmaide brouyte to thee, my lord, and yyue thou to the children that suen thee, my lord.
Now let this gift your servant has brought to my lord be given to the young men who follow you.
28 Do thou awey the wickidnesse of thi seruauntesse; for the Lord makynge schal make a feithful hows to thee, my lord, for thou, my lord, fiytist the batels of the Lord; therfor malice be not foundun in thee in alle dais of thi lijf.
Please forgive your servant’s offense, for the LORD will surely make a lasting dynasty for my lord, because he fights the LORD’s battles. May no evil be found in you as long as you live.
29 For if a man risith ony tyme, and pursueth thee, and sekith thi lijf, the lijf of my lord schal be kept as in a bundel of lyuynge trees, at thi Lord God; forsothe the soule of thin enemyes schal be hurlid round aboute as in feersnesse, and sercle of a slynge.
And should someone pursue you and seek your life, then the life of my lord will be bound securely by the LORD your God in the bundle of the living. But He shall fling away the lives of your enemies like stones from a sling.
30 Therfor whanne the Lord hath do to thee, my lord, alle these goode thingis, whiche he spak of thee, and hath ordeyned thee duyk on Israel,
When the LORD has done for my lord all the good He promised, and when He has appointed you ruler over Israel,
31 this schal not be in to siyyng and in to doute of herte to thee, my lord, that thou hast sched out giltles blood, ether that thou hast vengid thee. And whanne the Lord hath do wel to thee, my lord, thou schalt haue mynde on thin handmaide, and thou schalt do wel to hir.
then my lord will have no remorse or guilt of conscience over needless bloodshed and revenge. And when the LORD has dealt well with my lord, may you remember your maidservant.”
32 And Dauid seide to Abigail, Blessid be the Lord God of Israel, that sente thee to dai in to my comyng, and blessid be thi speche;
Then David said to Abigail, “Blessed be the LORD, the God of Israel, who sent you to meet me this day!
33 and blessid be thou, that hast forbede me, lest Y yede to blood, and vengide me with myn hond;
Blessed is your discernment, and blessed are you, because today you kept me from bloodshed and from avenging myself by my own hand.
34 ellis the Lord God of Israel lyueth, which forbeed me, `lest Y dide yuel to thee, if thou haddist not soone come in to `metyng to me, a pissere to the wal schulde not haue left to Nabal til to the morewe liyt.
Otherwise, as surely as the LORD, the God of Israel, lives, who has restrained me from harming you, if you had not come quickly to meet me, then surely no male belonging to Nabal would have been left alive by morning light.”
35 Therfor Dauid resseyuede of hir hond alle thingis whiche sche hadde brouyt to hym; and he seide to hir, Go thou in pees in to thin hows; lo! Y herde thi vois, and Y onouride thi face.
Then David accepted from her hand what she had brought him, and he said to her, “Go home in peace. See, I have heeded your voice and granted your request.”
36 Forsothe Abigail cam to Nabal; and, lo! a feeste was to him in his hows, as the feeste of a kyng; and the herte of Nabal was iocounde, for he was `drunkun greetli; and sche schewide not to hym a word litil ether greet til the morewe.
When Abigail returned to Nabal, there he was in the house, holding a feast fit for a king, in high spirits and very drunk. So she told him nothing until morning light.
37 Forsothe in the morewtid, whanne Nabal hadde defied the wiyn, his wijf schewide to hym alle these wordis; and his herte was almest deed with ynne, and he was maad as a stoon.
In the morning when Nabal was sober, his wife told him about these events, and his heart failed within him and he became like a stone.
38 And whanne ten daies hadden passid, the Lord smoot Nabal, and he was deed.
About ten days later, the LORD struck Nabal dead.
39 Which thing whanne Dauid hadde herd, Nabal deed, he seide, Blessid be the Lord God, that vengide the cause of my schenschip of the hond of Nabal, and kepte his seruaunt fro yuel, and the Lord yeldide the malice of Nabal in to the heed of hym. Therfor Dauid sente, and spak to Abigail, that he wolde take hir wijf to hym.
On hearing that Nabal was dead, David said, “Blessed be the LORD, who has upheld my cause against the reproach of Nabal and has restrained His servant from evil. For the LORD has brought the wickedness of Nabal down upon his own head.” Then David sent word to Abigail, asking for her in marriage.
40 And the children of Dauid camen to Abigail in to Carmele, and spaken to hir, and seiden, Dauid sente vs to thee, that he take thee in to wijf to hym.
When his servants came to Abigail at Carmel, they said, “David has sent us to take you as his wife.”
41 And sche roos, and worschipide lowe to erthe, and seide, Lo! thi seruauntesse be in to an handmayde, that sche waische the feet of the seruauntis of my lord.
She arose, then bowed facedown and said, “Here is your maidservant, ready to serve and to wash the feet of my lord’s servants.”
42 And Abigail hastide, and roos, and stiede on an asse; and fyue damesels, sueris of hir feet, yeden with hir, and sche suede the messangeris of Dauid, and was maad wijf to hym.
So Abigail hurried and got on a donkey, and attended by five of her maidens, she followed David’s messengers and became his wife.
43 But also Dauid took Achynoem of Jezrael, and euer eithir was wijf to hym;
David had also married Ahinoam of Jezreel. So she and Abigail were both his wives.
44 forsothe Saul yaf Mycol his douytir, wijf of Dauid, to Phalti, the sone of Lais, that was of Gallym.
But Saul had given his daughter Michal, David’s wife, to Palti son of Laish, who was from Gallim.
