1Samuel 25
25Samuel died, and all the Israelites came together and mourned for him. Then they buried him at his home in Ramah. After this, David went to the wilderness of Paran.H8050H4191H3478H6908H5594H6912H1004H7414H1732H6965H3381H4057H62902There was a man of the clan of Caleb named Nabal, who was from the town of Maon, and who owned land near the town of Carmel. He was a very rich man, the owner of three thousand sheep and one thousand goats.H376H4584H4639H3760H376H3966H1419H7969H505H6629H505H5795H1494H6629H37603His wife Abigail was beautiful and intelligent, but he was a mean, bad-tempered man. Nabal was shearing his sheep in Carmel,H8034H376H5037H8034H802H26H802H2896H7922H3303H8389H376H7186H7451H4611H36144and David, who was in the wilderness, heard about it,H1732H8085H4057H5037H1494H66295so he sent ten young men with orders to go to Carmel, find Nabal, and give him his greetings.H1732H7971H6235H5288H1732H559H5288H5927H3760H935H5037H7592H7965H80346He instructed them to say to Nabal: "David sends you greetings, my friend, with his best wishes for you, your family, and all that is yours.H559H2416H7965H7965H1004H79657He heard that you were shearing your sheep, and he wants you to know that your shepherds have been with us and we did not harm them. Nothing that belonged to them was stolen all the time they were at Carmel.H8085H1494H7462H3637H3972H6485H3117H37608Just ask them, and they will tell you. We have come on a feast day, and David asks you to receive us kindly. Please give what you can to us your servants and to your dear friend David."H7592H5288H5046H5288H4672H2580H5869H935H2896H3117H5414H4672H3027H5650H1121H17329David's men delivered this message to Nabal in David's name. Then they waited there,H1732H5288H935H1696H5037H1697H8034H1732H511710and Nabal finally answered, "David? Who is he? I've never heard of him! The country is full of runaway slaves nowadays!H5037H6030H1732H5650H559H1732H1121H3448H7231H5650H3117H6555H376H6440H11311I'm not going to take my bread and water, and the animals I have butchered for my sheepshearers, and give them to people who come from I don't know where!"H3947H3899H4325H2878H2873H1494H5414H582H304512David's men went back to him and told him what Nabal had said.H1732H5288H2015H1870H7725H935H5046H169713"Buckle on your swords!" he ordered, and they all did. David also buckled on his sword and left with about four hundred of his men, leaving two hundred behind with the supplies.H1732H559H582H2296H376H2719H2296H376H2719H1732H2296H2719H5927H310H1732H702H3967H376H3967H3427H362714One of Nabal's servants said to Nabal's wife Abigail, "Have you heard? David sent some messengers from the wilderness with greetings for our master, but he insulted them.H259H5288H5046H26H5037H802H559H1732H7971H4397H4057H1288H113H586015Yet they were very good to us; they never bothered us, and all the time we were with them in the fields, nothing that belonged to us was stolen.H582H3966H2896H3637H6485H3972H3117H1980H770416They protected us day and night the whole time we were with them looking after our flocks.H2346H3915H3119H3117H7462H662917Please think this over and decide what to do. This could be disastrous for our master and all his family. He is so mean that he won't listen to anybody!"H3045H7200H6213H7451H3615H113H1004H1121H1100H169618Abigail quickly gathered two hundred loaves of bread, two leather bags full of wine, five roasted sheep, two bushels of roasted grain, a hundred bunches of raisins, and two hundred cakes of dried figs, and loaded them on donkeys.H26H4116H3947H3967H3899H8147H5035H3196H2568H6629H6213H2568H5429H7039H3967H6778H3967H1690H7760H254319Then she said to the servants, "You go on ahead and I will follow you." But she said nothing to her husband.H559H5288H5674H6440H935H310H5046H376H503720She was riding her donkey around a bend on a hillside when suddenly she met David and his men coming toward her.H7392H2543H3381H5643H2022H1732H582H3381H7125H629821David had been thinking, "Why did I ever protect that fellow's property out here in the wilderness? Not a thing that belonged to him was stolen, and this is how he pays me back for the help I gave him!H1732H559H8267H8104H2088H4057H3972H6485H7725H7451H289622May God strike me dead if I don't kill every last one of those men before morning!"H3541H3254H6213H430H341H1732H7604H5704H1242H216H8366H702323When Abigail saw David, she quickly dismounted and threw herself on the groundH26H7200H1732H4116H3381H2543H5307H639H1732H6440H7812H77624at David's feet, and said to him, "Please, sir, listen to me! Let me take the blame.H5307H7272H559H113H5771H519H1696H241H8085H1697H58925Please, don't pay any attention to Nabal, that good-for-nothing! He is exactly what his name means - a fool! I wasn't there when your servants arrived, sir.H7760H113H3820H376H1100H5037H8034H5037H8034H5039H519H7200H5288H113H797126It is the LORD who has kept you from taking revenge and killing your enemies. And now I swear to you by the living LORD that your enemies and all who want to harm you will be punished like Nabal.H113H3068H2416H5315H2416H3068H4513H935H1818H3467H3027H341H1245H7451H113H503727Please, sir, accept this present I have brought you, and give it to your men.H1293H8198H935H113H5414H5288H1980H7272H11328Please forgive me, sir, for any wrong I have done. The LORD will make you king, and your descendants also, because you are fighting his battles; and you will not do anything evil as long as you live.H5375H6588H519H3068H6213H6213H113H539H1004H113H3898H4421H3068H7451H4672H311729If anyone should attack you and try to kill you, the LORD your God will keep you safe, as someone guards a precious treasure. As for your enemies, however, he will throw them away, as someone hurls stones with a sling.H120H6965H7291H1245H5315H5315H113H6887H6872H2416H3068H430H5315H341H7049H8432H3709H705030And when the LORD has done all the good things he has promised you and has made you king of Israel,H3068H6213H113H2896H1696H6680H5057H347831then you will not have to feel regret or remorse, sir, for having killed without cause or for having taken your own revenge. And when the LORD has blessed you, sir, please do not forget me."H6330H4383H3820H113H8210H1818H2600H113H3467H3068H3190H113H2142H51932David said to her, "Praise the LORD, the God of Israel, who sent you today to meet me!H1732H559H26H1288H3068H430H3478H7971H3117H712533Thank God for your good sense and for what you have done today in keeping me from the crime of murder and from taking my own revenge.H1288H2940H1288H3607H3117H935H1818H3467H302734The LORD has kept me from harming you. But I swear by the living God of Israel that if you had not hurried to meet me, all of Nabal's men would have been dead by morning!"H199H3068H430H3478H2416H4513H7489H3884H4116H935H7125H3498H5037H1242H216H8366H702335Then David accepted what she had brought him and said to her, "Go back home and don't worry. I will do what you want."H1732H3947H3027H935H559H5927H7965H1004H7200H8085H6963H5375H644036Abigail went back to Nabal, who was at home having a feast fit for a king. He was drunk and in a good mood, so she did not tell him anything until the next morning.H26H935H5037H4960H1004H4960H4428H5037H3820H2896H3966H7910H5046H1697H6996H1419H1242H21637Then, after he had sobered up, she told him everything. He suffered a stroke and was completely paralyzed.H1242H3196H3318H5037H802H5046H1697H3820H4191H7130H6838Some ten days later the LORD struck Nabal and he died.H6235H3117H3068H5062H5037H419139When David heard that Nabal had died, he said, "Praise the LORD! He has taken revenge on Nabal for insulting me and has kept me his servant from doing wrong. The LORD has punished Nabal for his evil." Then David sent a proposal of marriage to Abigail.H1732H8085H5037H4191H559H1288H3068H7378H7379H2781H3027H5037H2820H5650H7451H3068H7725H7451H5037H7218H1732H7971H1696H26H3947H80240His servants went to her at Carmel and said to her, "David sent us to take you to him to be his wife."H5650H1732H935H26H3760H1696H559H1732H7971H3947H80241Abigail bowed down to the ground and said, "I am his servant, ready to wash the feet of his servants."H6965H7812H639H776H559H519H8198H7364H7272H5650H11342She rose quickly and mounted her donkey. Accompanied by her five maids, she went with David's servants and became his wife.H26H4116H6965H7392H2543H2568H5291H1980H7272H3212H310H4397H1732H80243David had married Ahinoam from Jezreel, and now Abigail also became his wife.H1732H3947H293H3157H8147H80244Meanwhile, Saul had given his daughter Michal, who had been David's wife, to Palti son of Laish, who was from the town of Gallim.H7586H5414H4324H1323H1732H802H6406H1121H3919H1554
Columbus, OH
