Kings I 25

1 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.

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

2 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.

And there was a man in Maon, whose possessions were in Carmel; and the man was very great, and he had three thousand sheep, and a thousand goats: and he was shearing his sheep in Carmel.

3 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.

Now the name of the man was Nabal; and the name of his wife Abigail: and she was a woman of good understanding, and of a beautiful countenance: but the man was churlish and evil in his doings; and he was of the house of Caleb.

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

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

5 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.

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

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

And thus shall ye say to him that liveth in prosperity, Peace be both to thee, and peace be to thy house, and peace be to all that thou hast.

7 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.

And now I have heard that thou hast shearers: now thy shepherds who were with us, we hurt them not, neither was there any thing missing to them, all the while they were in Carmel.

8 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.

Ask thy young men, and they will show thee. Therefore let the young men find favour in thy eyes: for we come in a good day: give, I pray thee, whatever cometh to thy hand to thy servants, and to thy son David.

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

And when David’s young men came, they spoke to Nabal in the name of David, according to all these words, and ceased.

10 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.

And Nabal answered David’s servants, and said, Who is David? and who is the son of Jesse? there are many servants in these days that break away every man from his master.

11 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?

Shall I then take my bread, and my water, and my flesh that I have killed for my shearers, and give it to men, whom I know not from where they are?

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

So David’s young men turned their way, and went again, and came and told him all these sayings.

13 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.

And David said to 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 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.

But one of the young men told Abigail, Nabal’s wife, saying, Behold, David sent messengers from the wilderness to greet our master; and he railed at them.

15 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.

But the men were very good to us, and we were not hurt, neither missed we any thing, as long as we were conversant with them, when we were in the fields:

16 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.

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

17 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.

Now therefore know and consider what thou wilt do; for evil is determined against our master, and against all his household: for he is such a worthless man, that a man cannot speak to him.

18 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.

Then Abigail made haste, and took two hundred loaves, and two bottles of wine, and five sheep ready dressed, and five measures of roasted grain, and an hundred clusters of raisins, and two hundred cakes of figs, and laid them on donkeys.

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

And she said to her servants, Go on before me; behold, I come after you. But she told not her husband Nabal.

20 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.

And it was so, as she rode on the donkey, that she came down by the covert of the hill, and, behold, David and his men came down toward her; and she met them.

21 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.

Now David had said, Surely in vain have I kept all that this fellow hath in the wilderness, so that nothing was missed of all that pertained to him: and he hath repaid me evil for good.

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

So and more also do God to the enemies of David, if I leave of all that pertain to him by the morning light any male person.

23 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

And when Abigail saw David, she hasted, and got off the donkey, and fell before David on her face, and bowed herself to the ground,

24 [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.

And fell at his feet, and said, Upon me, my lord, upon me let this iniquity be: and let thy handmaid, I pray thee, speak in thy hearing, and hear the words of thy handmaid.

25 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.

Let not my lord, I pray thee, regard this worthless man, even Nabal: for as his name is, so is he; Nabal is his name, and folly is with him: but I thy handmaid saw not the young men of my lord, whom thou didst send.

26 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.

Now therefore, my lord, as the LORD liveth, and as thy soul liveth, seeing the LORD hath withheld thee from coming to shed blood, and from avenging thyself with thy own hand, now let thy enemies, and they that seek evil to my lord, be as Nabal.

27 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.

And now this blessing which thy handmaid hath brought to my lord, let it even be given to the young men that follow my lord.

28 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.

I pray thee, forgive the trespass of thy handmaid: for the LORD will certainly make my lord a sure house; because my lord fighteth the battles of the LORD, and evil hath not been found in thee all thy days.

29 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.

Yet a man hath risen to pursue thee, and to seek thy soul: but the soul of my lord shall be bound in the bundle of life with the LORD thy God; and the souls of thy enemies, them shall he sling out, as from the middle of a sling.

30 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;

And it shall come to pass, when the LORD shall have done to my lord according to all the good that he hath spoken concerning thee, and shall have appointed thee ruler over Israel;

31 then this shall not be an abomination and offense 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.

That this shall be no grief to thee, nor offence of heart to my lord, either that thou hast shed blood without cause, or that my lord hath avenged himself: but when the LORD shall have dealt well with my lord, then remember thy handmaid.

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

And David said to Abigail, Blessed be the LORD God of Israel, who sent thee this day to meet me:

33 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.

And blessed be thy advice, and blessed be thou, who hast kept me this day from coming to shed blood, and from avenging myself with my own hand.

34 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.

For in very deed, as the LORD God of Israel liveth, who hath kept me back from hurting thee, except thou hadst hasted and come to meet me, surely there had not been left to Nabal by the morning light any male person.

35 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.

So David received from her hand that which she had brought him, and said to her, Return in peace to thy house; see, I have hearkened to thy voice, and have accepted thy person.

36 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.

And Abigail 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, for he was very drunk: therefore she told him nothing, less or more, until the morning light.

37 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.

But it came to pass in the morning, when the wine had left Nabal, and his wife had told him these things, that his heart died within him, and he became as a stone.

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

And it came to pass about ten days after, that the LORD smote Nabal, that he died.

39 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.

And when David heard that Nabal was dead, he said, Blessed be the LORD, that hath pleaded the cause of my reproach from the hand of Nabal, and hath kept his servant from evil: for the LORD hath returned the wickedness of Nabal upon his own head. And David sent and talked with Abigail, to take her to himself for a wife.

40 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.

And when the servants of David had come to Abigail to Carmel, they spoke to her, saying, David hath sent us to thee, to take thee to him for a wife.

41 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.

And she arose, and bowed herself on her face to the earth, and said, Behold, let thy handmaid be a servant to wash the feet of the servants of my lord.

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

And Abigail hasted, and arose, and rode upon a donkey, with five damsels of hers that went after her; and she went after the messengers of David, and became his wife.

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

David also took Ahinoam of Jezreel; and they were also both of them his wives.

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

But Saul had given Michal his daughter, David’s wife, to Phalti the son of Laish, who was of Gallim.