| New King James Version | NET Bible |
| 1Then Samuel died; and the Israelites gathered together and lamented for him, and buried him at his home in Ramah. And David arose and went down to the Wilderness of Paran. | 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. |
| 2Now there was a man in Maon whose business was in Carmel, and the man was very rich. He had three thousand sheep and a thousand goats. And he was shearing his sheep in Carmel. | 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. |
| 3The name of the man was Nabal, and the name of his wife Abigail. And she was a woman of good understanding and beautiful appearance; but the man was harsh and evil in his doings. He was of the house of Caleb. | 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. |
| 4When David heard in the wilderness that Nabal was shearing his sheep, | 4When David heard in the desert that Nabal was shearing his sheep, |
| 5David sent ten young men; and David said to the young men, “Go up to Carmel, go to Nabal, and greet him in my name. | 5he sent ten servants, saying to them, "Go up to Carmel to see Nabal and give him greetings in my name. |
| 6And thus you shall say to him who lives in prosperity: ‘Peace be to you, peace to your house, and peace to all that you have! | 6Then you will say to my brother, "Peace to you and your house! Peace to all that is yours! |
| 7Now I have heard that you have shearers. Your shepherds were with us, and we did not hurt them, nor was there anything missing from them all the while they were in Carmel. | 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. |
| 8Ask your young men, and they will tell you. Therefore let my young men find favor in your eyes, for we come on a feast day. Please give whatever comes to your hand to your servants and to your son David.’ ” | 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." |
| 9So when David’s young men came, they spoke to Nabal according to all these words in the name of David, and waited. | 9So David's servants went and spoke all these words to Nabal in David's name. Then they paused. |
| 10Then Nabal answered David’s servants, and said, “Who is David, and who is the son of Jesse? There are many servants nowadays who break away each one from his master. | 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! |
| 11Shall I then take my bread and my water and my meat that I have killed for my shearers, and give it to men when I do not know where they are from?” | 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!" |
| 12So David’s young men turned on their heels and went back; and they came and told him all these words. | 12So David's servants went on their way. When they had returned, they came and told David all these things. |
| 13Then David said to his men, “Every man gird on his sword.” So every man girded on his sword, and David also girded on his sword. And about four hundred men went with David, and two hundred stayed with the supplies. | 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. |
| 14Now one of the young men told Abigail, Nabal’s wife, saying, “Look, David sent messengers from the wilderness to greet our master; and he reviled them. | 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. |
| 15But the men were very good to us, and we were not hurt, nor did we miss anything as long as we accompanied them, when we were in the fields. | 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. |
| 16They were a wall to us both by night and day, all the time we were with them keeping the sheep. | 16Both night and day they were a protective wall for us the entire time we were with them, while we were tending our flocks. |
| 17Now therefore, know and consider what you will do, for harm is determined against our master and against all his household. For he is such a scoundrel that one cannot speak to him.” | 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!" |
| 18Then Abigail made haste and took two hundred loaves of bread, two skins of wine, five sheep already dressed, five seahs of roasted grain, one hundred clusters of raisins, and two hundred cakes of figs, and loaded them on donkeys. | 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 |
| 19And she said to her servants, “Go on before me; see, I am coming after you.” But she did not tell her husband Nabal. | 19and said to her servants, "Go on ahead of me. I will come after you." But she did not tell her husband Nabal. |
| 20So it was, as she rode on the donkey, that she went down under cover of the hill; and there were David and his men, coming down toward her, and she met them. | 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. |
| 21Now David had said, “Surely in vain I have protected all that this fellow has in the wilderness, so that nothing was missed of all that belongs to him. And he has repaid me evil for good. | 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. |
| 22May God do so, and more also, to the enemies of David, if I leave one male of all who belong to him by morning light.” | 22God will severely punish David, if I leave alive until morning even one male from all those who belong to him!" |
| 23Now when Abigail saw David, she dismounted quickly from the donkey, fell on her face before David, and bowed down to the ground. | 23When Abigail saw David, she got down quickly from the donkey, threw herself down before David, and bowed to the ground. |
| 24So she fell at his feet and said: “On me, my lord, on me let this iniquity be! And please let your maidservant speak in your ears, and hear the words of your maidservant. | 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! |
| 25Please, let not my lord regard this scoundrel 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. | 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. |
| 26Now therefore, my lord, as the LORD lives and as your soul lives, since the LORD has held you back from coming to bloodshed and from avenging yourself with your own hand, now then, let your enemies and those who seek harm for my lord be as Nabal. | 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. |
| 27And now this present which your maidservant has brought to my lord, let it be given to the young men who follow my lord. | 27Now let this present that your servant has brought to my lord be given to the servants who follow my lord. |
| 28Please forgive the trespass of your maidservant. For the LORD will certainly make for my lord an enduring house, because my lord fights the battles of the LORD, and evil is not found in you throughout your days. | 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! |
| 29Yet a man has risen to pursue you and seek your life, but the life of my lord shall be bound in the bundle of the living with the LORD your God; and the lives of your enemies He shall sling out, as from the pocket of a sling. | 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! |
| 30And it shall come to pass, when the LORD has done for my lord according to all the good that He has spoken concerning you, and has appointed you ruler over Israel, | 30The LORD will do for my lord everything that he promised you, and he will make you a leader over Israel. |
| 31that this will be no grief to you, nor offense of heart to my lord, either that you have shed blood without cause, or that my lord has avenged himself. But when the LORD has dealt well with my lord, then remember your maidservant.” | 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." |
| 32Then David said to Abigail: “Blessed is the LORD God of Israel, who sent you this day to meet me! | 32Then David said to Abigail, "Praised be the LORD, the God of Israel, who has sent you this day to meet me! |
| 33And blessed is your advice and blessed are you, because you have kept me this day from coming to bloodshed and from avenging myself with my own hand. | 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! |
| 34For indeed, as the LORD God of Israel lives, who has kept me back from hurting you, unless you had hurried and come to meet me, surely by morning light no males would have been left to Nabal!” | 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!" |
| 35So David received from her hand what she had brought him, and said to her, “Go up in peace to your house. See, I have heeded your voice and respected your person.” | 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." |
| 36Now Abigail went to Nabal, and there 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; therefore she told him nothing, little or much, until morning light. | 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. |
| 37So it was, in the morning, when the wine had gone from Nabal, and his wife had told him these things, that his heart died within him, and he became like a stone. | 37In the morning, when Nabal was sober, his wife told him about these matters. He had a stroke and was paralyzed. |
| 38Then it happened, after about ten days, that the LORD struck Nabal, and he died. | 38After about ten days the LORD struck Nabal down and he died. |
| 39So when 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 His servant from evil! For the LORD has returned the wickedness of Nabal on his own head.” And David sent and proposed to Abigail, to take her as his wife. | 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. |
| 40When the servants of David had come to Abigail at Carmel, they spoke to her saying, “David sent us to you, to ask you to become 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." |
| 41Then she arose, bowed her face to the earth, and said, “Here is your maidservant, a servant to wash the feet of the servants of my lord.” | 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." |
| 42So Abigail rose in haste and rode on a donkey, attended by five of her maidens; and she followed the messengers of David, and became his wife. | 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. |
| 43David also took Ahinoam of Jezreel, and so both of them were his wives. | 43David had also married Ahinoam from Jezreel; the two of them became his wives. |
| 44But Saul had given Michal his daughter, David’s wife, to Palti the son of Laish, who was from Gallim. | 44(Now Saul had given his daughter Michal, David's wife, to Paltiel son of Laish, who was from Gallim.) |
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