NET Bible

New American Standard Bible 1995

1Samuel died, and all Israel assembled and mourned him. They buried him at his home in Ramah. Then David left and went down to the desert of Paran.

1Then Samuel died; and all Israel gathered together and mourned for him, and buried him at his house in Ramah. And David arose and went down to the wilderness of Paran.

2There was a man in Maon whose business was in Carmel. This man was very wealthy; he owned three thousand sheep and a thousand goats. At that time he was shearing his sheep in Carmel.

2Now there was a man in Maon whose business was in Carmel; and the man was very rich, and he had three thousand sheep and a thousand goats. And it came about while he was shearing his sheep in Carmel

3The man's name was Nabal, and his wife's name was Abigail. She was both wise and beautiful, but the man was harsh and his deeds were evil. He was a Calebite.

3(now the man's name was Nabal, and his wife's name was Abigail. And the woman was intelligent and beautiful in appearance, but the man was harsh and evil in his dealings, and he was a Calebite),

4When David heard in the desert that Nabal was shearing his sheep,

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

5he sent ten servants, saying to them, "Go up to Carmel to see Nabal and give him greetings in my name.

5So David sent ten young men; and David said to the young men, "Go up to Carmel, visit Nabal and greet him in my name;

6Then you will say to my brother, "Peace to you and your house! Peace to all that is yours!

6and thus you shall say, 'Have a long life, peace be to you, and peace be to your house, and peace be to all that you have.

7Now I hear that they are shearing sheep for you. When your shepherds were with us, we neither insulted them nor harmed them the whole time they were in Carmel.

7'Now I have heard that you have shearers; now your shepherds have been with us and we have not insulted them, nor have they missed anything all the days they were in Carmel.

8Ask your own servants; they can tell you! May my servants find favor in your sight, for we have come at the time of a holiday. Please provide us--your servants and your son David--with whatever you can spare."

8Ask your young men and they will tell you. Therefore let my young men find favor in your eyes, for we have come on a festive day. Please give whatever you find at hand to your servants and to your son David.'"

9So David's servants went and spoke all these words to Nabal in David's name. Then they paused.

9When David's young men came, they spoke to Nabal according to all these words in David's name; then they waited.

10But Nabal responded to David's servants, "Who is David, and who is this son of Jesse? This is a time when many servants are breaking away from their masters!

10But Nabal answered David's servants and said, "Who is David? And who is the son of Jesse? There are many servants today who are each breaking away from his master.

11Should I take my bread and my water and my meat that I have slaughtered for my shearers and give them to these men? I don't even know where they came from!"

11"Shall I then take my bread and my water and my meat that I have slaughtered for my shearers, and give it to men whose origin I do not know?"

12So David's servants went on their way. When they had returned, they came and told David all these things.

12So David's young men retraced their way and went back; and they came and told him according to all these words.

13Then David instructed his men, "Each of you strap on your sword!" So each one strapped on his sword, and David also strapped on his sword. About four hundred men followed David up, while two hundred stayed behind with the equipment.

13David said to his men, "Each of you gird on his sword." So each man girded on his sword. And David also girded on his sword, and about four hundred men went up behind David while two hundred stayed with the baggage.

14But one of the servants told Nabal's wife Abigail, "David sent messengers from the desert to greet our lord, but he screamed at them.

14But one of the young men told Abigail, Nabal's wife, saying, "Behold, David sent messengers from the wilderness to greet our master, and he scorned them.

15These men were very good to us. They did not insult us, nor did we sustain any loss during the entire time we were together in the field.

15"Yet the men were very good to us, and we were not insulted, nor did we miss anything as long as we went about with them, while we were in the fields.

16Both night and day they were a protective wall for us the entire time we were with them, while we were tending our flocks.

16"They were a wall to us both by night and by day, all the time we were with them tending the sheep.

17Now be aware of this, and see what you can do. For disaster has been planned for our lord and his entire household. He is such a wicked person that no one tells him anything!"

17"Now therefore, know and consider what you should do, for evil is plotted against our master and against all his household; and he is such a worthless man that no one can speak to him."

18So Abigail quickly took two hundred loaves of bread, two containers of wine, five prepared sheep, five seahs of roasted grain, a hundred bunches of raisins, and two hundred lumps of pressed figs. She loaded them on donkeys

18Then Abigail hurried and took two hundred loaves of bread and two jugs of wine and five sheep already prepared and five measures of roasted grain and a hundred clusters of raisins and two hundred cakes of figs, and loaded them on donkeys.

19and said to her servants, "Go on ahead of me. I will come after you." But she did not tell her husband Nabal.

19She said to her young men, "Go on before me; behold, I am coming after you." But she did not tell her husband Nabal.

20Riding on her donkey, she went down under cover of the mountain. David and his men were coming down to meet her, and she encountered them.

20It came about as she was riding on her donkey and coming down by the hidden part of the mountain, that behold, David and his men were coming down toward her; so she met them.

21Now David had been thinking, "In vain I guarded everything that belonged to this man in the desert. I didn't take anything from him. But he has repaid my good with evil.

21Now David had said, "Surely in vain I have 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.

22God will severely punish David, if I leave alive until morning even one male from all those who belong to him!"

22"May God do so to the enemies of David, and more also, if by morning I leave as much as one male of any who belong to him."

23When Abigail saw David, she got down quickly from the donkey, threw herself down before David, and bowed to the ground.

23When Abigail saw David, she hurried and dismounted from her donkey, and fell on her face before David and bowed herself to the ground.

24Falling at his feet, she said, "My lord, I accept all the guilt! But please let your female servant speak with my lord! Please listen to the words of your servant!

24She fell at his feet and said, "On me alone, my lord, be the blame. And please let your maidservant speak to you, and listen to the words of your maidservant.

25My lord should not pay attention to this wicked man Nabal. He simply lives up to his name! His name means 'fool,' and he is indeed foolish! But I, your servant, did not see the servants my lord sent.

25"Please do not let my lord pay attention to this worthless man, Nabal, for as his name is, so is he. Nabal is his name and folly is with him; but I your maidservant did not see the young men of my lord whom you sent.

26"Now, my lord, as surely as the LORD lives and as surely as you live, it is the LORD who has kept you from shedding blood and taking matters into your own hands. Now may your enemies and those who seek to harm my lord be like Nabal.

26"Now therefore, my lord, as the LORD lives, and as your soul lives, since the LORD has restrained you from shedding blood, and from avenging yourself by your own hand, now then let your enemies and those who seek evil against my lord, be as Nabal.

27Now let this present that your servant has brought to my lord be given to the servants who follow my lord.

27"Now let this gift which your maidservant has brought to my lord be given to the young men who accompany my lord.

28Please forgive the sin of your servant, for the LORD will certainly establish the house of my lord, because my lord fights the battles of the LORD. May no evil be found in you all your days!

28"Please forgive the transgression of your maidservant; for the LORD will certainly make for my lord an enduring house, because my lord is fighting the battles of the LORD, and evil will not be found in you all your days.

29When someone sets out to chase you and to take your life, the life of my lord will be wrapped securely in the bag of the living by the LORD your God. But he will sling away the lives of your enemies from the sling's pocket!

29"Should anyone rise up to pursue you and to seek your life, then the life of my lord shall be bound in the bundle of the living with the LORD your God; but the lives of your enemies He will sling out as from the hollow of a sling.

30The LORD will do for my lord everything that he promised you, and he will make you a leader over Israel.

30"And when the LORD does for my lord according to all the good that He has spoken concerning you, and appoints you ruler over Israel,

31Your conscience will not be overwhelmed with guilt for having poured out innocent blood and for having taken matters into your own hands. When the LORD has granted my lord success, please remember your servant."

31this will not cause grief or a troubled heart to my lord, both by having shed blood without cause and by my lord having avenged himself. When the LORD deals well with my lord, then remember your maidservant."

32Then David said to Abigail, "Praised be the LORD, the God of Israel, who has sent you this day to meet me!

32Then David said to Abigail, "Blessed be the LORD God of Israel, who sent you this day to meet me,

33Praised be your good judgment! May you yourself be rewarded for having prevented me this day from shedding blood and taking matters into my own hands!

33and blessed be your discernment, and blessed be you, who have kept me this day from bloodshed and from avenging myself by my own hand.

34Otherwise, as surely as the LORD, the God of Israel, lives--he who has prevented me from harming you--if you had not come so quickly to meet me, by morning's light not even one male belonging to Nabal would have remained alive!"

34"Nevertheless, as the LORD God of Israel lives, who has restrained me from harming you, unless you had come quickly to meet me, surely there would not have been left to Nabal until the morning light as much as one male."

35Then David took from her hand what she had brought to him. He said to her, "Go back to your home in peace. Be assured that I have listened to you and responded favorably."

35So David received from her hand what she had brought him and said to her, "Go up to your house in peace. See, I have listened to you and granted your request."

36When Abigail went back to Nabal, he was holding a banquet in his house like that of the king. Nabal was having a good time and was very intoxicated. She told him absolutely nothing until morning's light.

36Then Abigail came to Nabal, and 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 did not tell him anything at all until the morning light.

37In the morning, when Nabal was sober, his wife told him about these matters. He had a stroke and was paralyzed.

37But in the morning, when the wine had gone out of Nabal, his wife told him these things, and his heart died within him so that he became as a stone.

38After about ten days the LORD struck Nabal down and he died.

38About ten days later, the LORD struck Nabal and he died.

39When David heard that Nabal had died, he said, "Praised be the LORD who has vindicated me and avenged the insult that I suffered from Nabal! The LORD has kept his servant from doing evil, and he has repaid Nabal for his evil deeds." Then David sent word to Abigail and asked her to become his wife.

39When David heard that Nabal was dead, he said, "Blessed be the LORD, who has pleaded the cause of my reproach from the hand of Nabal and has kept back His servant from evil. The LORD has also returned the evildoing of Nabal on his own head." Then David sent a proposal to Abigail, to take her as his wife.

40So the servants of David went to Abigail at Carmel and said to her, "David has sent us to you to bring you back to be his wife."

40When the servants of David came to Abigail at Carmel, they spoke to her, saying, "David has sent us to you to take you as his wife."

41She arose, bowed her face toward the ground, and said, "Your female servant, like a lowly servant, will wash the feet of the servants of my lord."

41She arose and bowed with her face to the ground and said, "Behold, your maidservant is a maid to wash the feet of my lord's servants."

42Then Abigail quickly went and mounted her donkey, with five of her female servants accompanying her. She followed David's messengers and became his wife.

42Then Abigail quickly arose, and rode on a donkey, with her five maidens who attended her; and she followed the messengers of David and became his wife.

43David had also married Ahinoam from Jezreel; the two of them became his wives.

43David had also taken Ahinoam of Jezreel, and they both became his wives.

44(Now Saul had given his daughter Michal, David's wife, to Paltiel son of Laish, who was from Gallim.)

44Now Saul had given Michal his daughter, David's wife, to Palti the son of Laish, who was from Gallim.

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