But one of the young men told Abigail, Nabal’s wife, saying, “Behold, David sent messengers out of the wilderness to Greet our master; and he insulted them. But the men were very good to us, and we were not harmed, and we didn’t miss anything, as long as we went with them, when we were in the fields. They were a wall to us both by night and by day, all the while we were with them keeping the sheep. Now therefore know and consider what you will do; for evil is determined against our master, and against all his house; for he is such a worthless fellow that one can’t speak to him.”
Parallel Translations
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But one of the young men told Abigail, Nabal’s wife, saying, “Behold, David sent messengers out of the wilderness to Greet our master; and he insulted them.
But the men were very good to us, and we were not harmed, and we didn’t miss anything, as long as we went with them, when we were in the fields.
They were a wall to us both by night and by day, all the while we were with them keeping the sheep.
Now therefore know and consider what you will do; for evil is determined against our master, and against all his house; for he is such a worthless fellow that one can’t speak to him.”
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But one of the young men told Abigail, Nabal’s wife, saying, Behold, David sent messengers out of the wilderness to salute our master; and he railed on them.
But the men were very good unto 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:
They were a wall unto us both by night and day, all the while we were with them keeping the sheep.
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 son of Belial, that a man cannot speak to him.
Show all 3 translations
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But one of the young men told Abigail, Nabal's wife, saying: 'Behold, David sent messengers out of the wilderness to salute our master; and he flew upon them.
But the men were very good unto us, and we were not hurt, neither missed we any thing, as long as we went with them, when we were in the fields;
they were a wall unto us both by night and by day, all the while we were with them keeping the sheep.
Now therefore know and consider what thou wilt do; for evil is determined against our master, and against all his house; for he is such a base fellow, that one cannot speak to him.'
Cross-references (23)
- 1 Samuel 25:7 (v15) Now I have heard that you have shearers. Your shepherds have now been with us, and we didn’t harm them. Nothing was missing from them all…
- 1 Samuel 25:21 (v15) Now David had said, “Surely in vain I have kept all that this fellow has in the wilderness, so that nothing was missed of all that…
- Job 1:10 (v16) Haven’t you made a hedge around him, and around his house, and around all that he has, on every side? You have blessed the work of his…
- Exodus 14:22 (v16) The children of Israel went into the middle of the sea on the dry ground, and the waters were a wall to them on their right hand, and on…
- Deuteronomy 13:13 (v17) certain wicked fellows have gone out from among you and have drawn away the inhabitants of their city, saying, “Let’s go and serve other…
Show all 23 cross-references
- 1 Samuel 20:7 (v17) If he says, ‘It is well,’ your servant shall have peace; but if he is angry, then know that evil is determined by him.
- Zechariah 2:5 (v16) For I,’ says Yahweh, ‘will be to her a wall of fire around it, and I will be the glory in the middle of her.
- Judges 19:22 (v17) As they were making their hearts merry, behold, the men of the city, certain wicked fellows, surrounded the house, beating at the door; and…
- 1 Samuel 2:12 (v17) Now the sons of Eli were wicked men. They didn’t know Yahweh.
- 1 Samuel 13:10 (v14) It came to pass that as soon as he had finished offering the burnt offering, behold, Samuel came; and Saul went out to meet him, that he…
- 1 Samuel 20:9 (v17) Jonathan said, “Far be it from you; for if I should at all know that evil were determined by my father to come on you, then wouldn’t I tell…
- 1 Samuel 20:32-33 (v17) Jonathan answered Saul his father, and said to him, “Why should he be put to death? What has he done?” Saul cast his spear at him to strike…
- 1 Samuel 25:25 (v17) Please don’t let my lord pay attention to this worthless fellow, Nabal; for as his name is, so is he. Nabal is his name, and folly is with…
- 2 Samuel 23:6-7 (v17) But all the ungodly will be as thorns to be thrust away, because they can’t be taken with the hand, But the man who touches them must be…
- 1 Kings 21:10 (v17) Set two men, wicked fellows, before him, and let them testify against him, saying, ‘You cursed God and the king!’ Then carry him out, and…
- 1 Kings 21:13 (v17) The two men, the wicked fellows, came in and sat before him. The wicked fellows testified against him, even against Naboth, in the presence…
- 2 Kings 5:13-14 (v17) His servants came near, and spoke to him, and said, “My father, if the prophet had asked you do some great thing, wouldn’t you have done…
- 2 Chronicles 13:7 (v17) Worthless men were gathered to him, wicked fellows who strengthened themselves against Rehoboam the son of Solomon, when Rehoboam was young…
- 2 Chronicles 25:16 (v17) As he talked with him, the king said to him, “Have we made you one of the king’s counselors? Stop! Why should you be struck down?” Then the…
- Esther 7:7 (v17) The king arose in his wrath from the banquet of wine and went into the palace garden. Haman stood up to make request for his life to Esther…
- Jeremiah 15:20 (v16) I will make you to this people a fortified bronze wall. They will fight against you, but they will not prevail against you; for I am with…
- Mark 15:29 (v14) Those who passed by blasphemed him, wagging their heads, and saying, “Ha! You who destroy the temple, and build it in three days,
- Philippians 2:15 (v15) that you may become blameless and harmless, children of God without defect in the middle of a crooked and perverse generation, among whom…
Cross-references from openbible.info (CC BY 4.0)
Explain this passage (16 sources)
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Geneva Bible translators 1599 · Public Domain On vv14, 15, 17 Hebrew, drove them away.
Hebrew, drove them away.
Geneva Bible (1599) marginal notes — public domain.
John Trapp 1656 · Public Domain On vv14–17 1Sa 25:14 But one of the young men told…
1Sa 25:14 But one of the young men told Abigail, Nabal’s wife, saying, Behold, David sent messengers out of the wilderness to salute our master; and he railed on them.
Ver. 14. And he railed on them.] Heb., He flew upon them; as a ravenous bird doth upon the prey. Or, He drove them away, sc., by his harsh and currish language wherewith he let fly at them.
John Trapp, A Commentary or Exposition upon All the Books of the Old and New Testament (1647–1656) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
Matthew Poole 1685 · Public Domain On vv14, 16, 17 One of the young men told Abigail; wisely considering…
One of the young men told Abigail; wisely considering the mischievous effects likely to follow so churlish a message.
Matthew Poole's English Annotations on the Holy Bible (1683–1685) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.
John Gill 1763 · Public Domain On vv14–17 But one of the young men told Abigail, Nabal's…
But one of the young men told Abigail, Nabal's wife,.... Not one of David's young men, as what follows shows, but one of Nabal's young men or servants, one of those David directs him to for the truth of what he said, Sa1 25:8; this was one of those that had been employed in feeding sheep in the wilderness, where David was, and knew him, but was now at Carmel, and was present when David's messengers came to Nabal, and was privy to what passed:
saying, David sent messengers out of the wilderness to salute our master; in a very kind and handsome manner, to ask of his peace and welfare, and to wish him all happiness and prosperity; or "masters" (y) master and mistress, including both Nabal and Abigail:
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and he railed on them; gave them very abusive language, represented David and his men as a parcel of scoundrels, fugitives, and runaway servants, Sa1 25:10; or "he flew at them" (z); or "upon" them, in great wrath and fury, calling them hard names, bidding them begone about their business; the allusion is to a ravenous bird, which will fly at persons when it apprehends its young in any danger.
(y) "dominus nostros", Malvenda. (z) "et involavit in eos", Coccei Lex. col. 607.
John Gill's Exposition of the Whole Bible (1746–1763) — public domain (CC PDM 1.0). Text via the HelloAO Bible API.
John Wesley 1765 · Public Domain On v17 Can not speak - But he flies into a…
Can not speak - But he flies into a passion.
John Wesley, Explanatory Notes Upon the Whole Bible (1754–1765) — public domain. Text via the GEBible commentary corpus.
Joseph Benson 1811 · Public Domain On v14 1Sa 25:14-17. But one of the young men told…
1Sa 25:14-17. But one of the young men told Abigail, &c. — One of those belonging to Nabal. Who can help admiring the wisdom and fidelity of this shepherd, who admonished his mistress of the danger her family was in; as he rationally concluded from the rude abuse that had been put upon David, whose merits he honestly set forth before her. They were a wall unto us — This servant says more than David’s men had said of themselves; that they not only did them no harm, but were a guard to them against robbers and against wild beasts. A man cannot speak to him — But he flies into a passion. Nabal must have been a most brutish, churlish man, to extort such a character of himself from his own servants.
Joseph Benson's Commentary on the Old and New Testaments (1811–1818) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
Albert Barnes 1834 · Public Domain On vv14, 16 Railed on them - The marginal reading, “flew upon…
Railed on them - The marginal reading, “flew upon them,” is nearer to the original.
Albert Barnes' Notes on the Bible (1834–1885) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.
Haydock's Catholic Bible Commentary 1859 · Public Domain On vv14, 17 Rejected them. Hebrew, "flew against them." Chaldean, "saw them…
Rejected them. Hebrew, "flew against them." Chaldean, "saw them with disgust."
George Leo Haydock (1774–1849), Haydock's Catholic Family Bible and Commentary, 1859 edition — public domain. Excludes Psalms (Douay-Rheims chapter numbering differs from Protestant) and Deuterocanonical books (Catholic canon only).
Robert Jamieson, A. R. Fausset & David Brown 1871 · Public Domain On v14 ABIGAIL PACIFIES HIM. (1Sa. 25:14-35)
ABIGAIL PACIFIES HIM. (1Sa. 25:14-35)
Then Abigail made haste--The prudence and address of Nabal's wife were the means of saving him and family from utter destruction. She acknowledged the demand of her formidable neighbors; but justly considering, that to atone for the insolence of her husband, a greater degree of liberality had become necessary, she collected a large amount of food, accompanying it with the most valued products of the country.
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bottles--goatskins, capable of holding a great quantity.
parched corn--It was customary to eat parched corn when it was fully grown, but not ripe.
Jamieson, Fausset & Brown — Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible (1871) — public domain (CC PDM 1.0). Text via the HelloAO Bible API.
Daniel D. Whedon 1874 · Public Domain On vv16–17 16. A wall unto us both by night and…
16. A wall unto us both by night and day — This shows that David used his men not for purposes of plunder, but for the protection of the helpless. The son of Jesse therefore had a just claim on Nabal for the services he had rendered him.
Daniel D. Whedon (gen. ed.), Commentary on the Old and New Testaments (1874–1909) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges 1878 · Public Domain On vv14–17 14–22. Abigail’s wise counsel
14–22. Abigail’s wise counsel
14. to salute] Lit. to bless, as in ch. 1Sa_13:10. Cp. 2Ki_4:29, and the form of salutation in 1Sa_15:13.
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he railed on them] Lit. flew upon them; the same word as in 1Sa_14:32.
The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges (gen. ed. J. J. S. Perowne; Cambridge University Press, 1878–1918) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
Ellicott's Commentary for English Readers 1878 · Public Domain On vv14, 15, 17 (14) But one of the young men told Abigail.—The…
(14) But one of the young men told Abigail.—The servant of Nabal—accustomed, no doubt, to his master’s wild and ungovernable displays of temper had heard the insulting words which Nabal spoke to the armed messenger of the famous outlaw captain; and probably gathering from the angry demeanour of these warlike followers of David how deadly was the insult—aware, too, how great was the power of the man thus insulted—came at once, and recounted to his mistress what had taken place. Abigail had, no doubt, often acted as peace-maker between her intemperate husband and his neighbours, and on hearing the story and how imprudently her husband had behaved, saw that no time must be lost, for with a clever woman’s wit she saw that grave consequences would surely follow the churlish refusal and the rash words, which betrayed at once the jealous adherent of Saul and the bitter enemy of the powerful outlaw.
A Bible Commentary for English Readers, edited by Charles John Ellicott (1878–1897) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
The Pulpit Commentary 1880 · Public Domain On v14 ABIGAIL PACIFIES DAVID (vers. 14-35).
ABIGAIL PACIFIES DAVID (vers. 14-35).
Vers. 14-17. One of the young men. Hebrew, "a lad of the lads," i.e. one of the servants; (see on the word 1Sa_1:24) when used in this sense it has no reference to age. (see 1Sa_2:17) This man was probably some old and confidential servitor. To salute. Hebrew, "to bless". (1Sa_13:10; 2Ki_4:29) He railed on them. Literally, "flew upon them like a bird of prey." We were not hurt. Literally, "not put to shame" (see on ver. 7). The language of a people always bears witness to their character, and it is a mark of the high spirit of the Israelites that they thought less of the loss than of the disgrace of an injury. As long as we were conversant with them. Hebrew, "as long as we went about with them." In the fields. Really, "in the field," the wilderness, the common pasture land. A wall. Ie. a sure protection both against wild beasts and Amalekite and other plunderers. A son of Belial. A worthless, bad man, (see on 1Sa_1:16) so coarse and violent that it is hopeless to expostulate with him.
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Vers. 14-42. (CARMEL.)
Abigail.
Of her family and early life nothing is recorded. When first mentioned she was the wife of the wealthy and churlish Nabal. It was an ill-assorted union, probably due (like most Oriental marriages) to parental arrangement. She was distinguished by a beautiful countenance and form, and (what is not always associated therewith) by a beautiful mind and character, embodying the ideal of womanhood. (Pro_31:10-31) "Where do we find in all the heathen world a woman comparable with Abigail, the daughter of the wilderness?" She was a woman of
1. Superior intelligence, practical wisdom, prudence, tact, and good management. "Of good understanding" (ver. 3). The part she took in the affairs of her husband is evident from the servants telling her of the threatening danger (ver. 17), and her apology (ver. 25). Her discretion was also shown in her reserve (ver. 19).
2. Prompt decision, energy, and activity. "Abigail made haste," etc. (ver. 18). Not a moment was lost, and she was promptly obeyed.
3. Unaffected humility, meekness, modesty, and self-devotion. "She fell before David on her face," etc. (vers. 23, 41). Her meekness and patience must have been greatly tried by the temper of Nabal, and had doubtless previously averted many a disaster.
4. Noble generosity and sacrifice. "Two hundred loaves," etc. (ver. 18). She felt that no sacrifice was too great to save her husband and his household. "David"s men and David felt that these were not the gifts of a sordid calculation, but the offerings of a generous heart. And it won them, their gratitude, their enthusiasm, their unfeigned homage" (Robertson).
5. Conciliatory, faithful, eloquent speech, and pacifying, beneficent influence (vers. 24-31). Having taken the blame upon herself (as intercessor), and referred to her husband "with that union of playfulness and seriousness which above all things turns away wrath" (Stanley), she directed the thoughts of David to God, by the leadings of whose providence she had been sent to divert him from his purpose, utters the wish flint he to whom vengeance belongs would avenge him, humbly begs the acceptance of her offering for his young men, and beseeches his forgiveness. Then (assuming her prayer to be granted) she assures him of the brilliant future that awaited him, inasmuch as he would fulfil the purposes of Jehovah, and not his own; that, should any one seek to do him harm, Jehovah would preserve him in safety, and punish his adversaries; and that when he should be "ruler over Israel" it would be a source of comfort, and not of trouble, to him that he had not shed blood causelessly, nor taken vengeance into his own hand. Finally she says, "And Jehovah will do good to my lord, and thou wilt remember thine handmaid" (for good) the things which I have spoken" (Dathe). No dissuasions from revenge could be more effective.
When a world of men Could not prevail with all their oratory, Yet hath a woman"s kindness overruled.
"Doubtless she had not studied eloquence in the schools, but the Spirit of God alone made her such an orator. God put wisdom into her heart, and it flowed out in wise discourse" (Roos).
6 . Exalted piety; faith in the righteousness and goodness of God, his overruling providence, and the establishment of his kingdom (see the song of Hannah), devotion, spiritual insight, manifested in this appeal, and in her whole conduct. (Pro_31:26, Pro_31:30) It is not surprising that, after the death of Nabal, "David sent and communed with Abigail, to take her to him to wife" (ver. 39). D.
The Pulpit Commentary (1880–1919), ed. H.D.M. Spence-Jones & Joseph S. Exell — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
The Biblical Illustrator 1887 · Public Domain On v17 For he is such a son of Belial, that…
1Sa_25:17
For he is such a son of Belial, that a man cannot speak to him.
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The bad-tempered man
In this chapter you find a perfect picture of a choleric, bad-tempered man. There is a saying that the worst temper in the house always rules, and often it is so. I have seen father and mother weakly yielding to some boorish, ill-tempered child. You have met the workman who was feared by all his fellows because he was a churl, a sullen, violent-tempered man, a modern Nabal, which means a fool. What a picture of home life is drawn for us here in this chapter. In the foreground is Nabal, the grumpy, sullen, beetle-browed, coarse-tongued, drunken husband--the prototype of hundreds of husbands of today, Who rule in their own little world with all the despotism of a Nero, and who only need a larger platform and greater power to show us how inhuman, how cruel, and how like the devil men can become. That is Nabal in low life, but you find Nabal in high life, in political life, ay! and in church life too. And then there is Abigail, Nabals wife, in the picture, and she is its redeeming feature. She is as tactful as she is beautiful, and she knew her husbands moods well, and she is always particularly gracious when the wind is in the east, and Nabal is most out of temper. Hes gey bad to live with, was the testimony of Carlyles mother, and the reading of some of the letters his wife wrote are nothing less than heart breaking. If he would only be satisfied, she said, but I have learned that when he does not find fault he is pleased, and that has to content me. Such a wife as Abigail is a crown to her husband; a daily blessing from God; but Nabal had the dark spirit within him, and never saw her worth. There are men who will go through a rose garden and never smell its sweet fragrance. Graciousness, and sweetness, and gentleness are wasted on such natures as Nabals, but let those who have to deal with these churls remember that it is always worth while to practise these virtues, if only for their own sake. Abigail did not let Nabal destroy her good temper, although her married life was little better than a martyrdom. The mind, Milton tells us, is its own place, and it can make a heaven of hell, and a hell of heaven, and Abigail, denied the love of her husband, won the love and respect of the servants, and was a shelter in the time of storm to them. Nabal, says Dr. Whyte, died of a strange disease, indebtedness to his wife. He could not brook the thought that he owed his life to the good sense of his wife and to the forbearance of David; it was wormwood and gall, and it poisoned him, and he died of a heart frozen by his own wickedness. Have there not been times when our bad temper has ruled, and we have forgotten to be either just or generous? Nabal died of a frozen heart, but he has had a resurrection in many a life. Boorishness and churlishness were not buried in Nabals grave. Temper, says Bishop Watson, is nine-tenths of religion. Let this mind be in you, which was also in Christ Jesus, pleads the Apostle. It is the Christ mind that is the great thing, not simply doing the right thing, but doing it in the right spirit. Nabal was a rich man, but he never was a gentleman; you could not make a gentleman out of such stuff as constituted Nabals nature. Have you met him--this loud-voiced, blatant, well-dressed, overfed churl. A quaint old Methodist used to say, Never judge a man by the size of his house. A very small rabbit may live in a very big hole. Behaviour, says Emerson, is the finest of the fine arts. Manners are the garments of the spirit, the eternal clothing of the being. Even religion turns sour with some men, and that which should spell light, brightness, and cheerfulness spells instead sourness, unrighteousness, and exclusiveness. You remember how Robert Falconers grandmother hid away his fiddle, fearful lest the lad should be tempted by it into worldly things, never dreaming that God melts the heart of some by touching the bow of a fiddle with His own figures, as He speaks to others by the voice of some great preacher. He has many ways of fulfilling Himself. How this churlishness destroys the best in life, and robs it of sweetness. The prodigal came home, and his reception would have been perfect but for the one thing, and that was his brothers churlishness. Sir, said Dr. Johnson, a man has no more right to say an uncivil thing than to act one; no more right to say a rude thing to another than to knock him down. Epictetus has left us a great lesson in his famous saying, If a man is unhappy, remember that his unhappiness is his own fault; for God hath made all men to be happy. (Samuel Herren.)
The Biblical Illustrator, edited by Joseph S. Exell (c. 1880s–1900s) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
Paul E. Kretzmann 1924 · Public Domain On v14 Abigail’s Tact and Prudence
Abigail’s Tact and Prudence
v. 14. But one of the young men, of the servants of Nabal, told Abigail, Nabal’s wife, saying, Behold, David sent messengers out of the wilderness to salute our master; and he railed on them, drove over them, flew on them in a rage.
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v. 15. But the men, namely, those of David, were very good unto us, and we were not hurt, injured, made subjects of shame and contempt, neither missed we anything as long as we were conversant with them, during all the time of their fellowship with them, when we were in the fields;
v. 16. they were a wall unto us both by night and day, all the while we were with them keeping the sheep, their presence had proved a powerful protection against the wild beasts as well as against the robbers of the desert.
v. 17. Now, therefore, know and consider what thou wilt do, Abigail was to find some way to avert a probable calamity;for evil is determined against our master and against all his household, this they might count on as firmly settled; for he, Nabal, is such a son of Belial, bad, foolish, and profitless, that a man cannot speak to him. That was the estimate in which Nabal was held by his household and by his servants.
v. 18. Then Abigail made haste, and took two hundred loaves, and two bottles of wine, the skins used for this purpose in the Orient, and five sheep ready dressed, and five measures of parched corn, more than forty quarts of roasted gram, and an hundred clusters of raisins, in the form of cakes made of pressed raisins, and two hundred cakes of figs, also in the pressed form, and laid them on asses.
v. 19. And she said unto her servants, Go on before me; behold, I come after you. Like Jacob, Gen 32:13-20, she sent the presents of reconciliation ahead of her. But she told not her husband Nabal, who would probably have interfered very decidedly.
v. 20. And it was so, as she rode on the ass, that she came down by the covert of the hill, probably a depression or pass between two peaks, hidden from sight at any distance, and, behold, David and his men came down against her; and she met them.
v. 21. Now, David had said, Surely in vain have I kept all that this fellow hath in the wilderness, in protecting his wealth in flocks, so that nothing was missed of all that pertained unto him; and he hath requited me evil for good. David had been bitterly disappointed in his expectation of receiving any recognition whatever on the part of Nabal and had now flared up in passionate anger, which was not right.
v. 22. So and more also do God unto the enemies of David if I leave of all that pertain to him by the morning light any that pisseth against the wall, so much as a single person. David wrongly considered the act of Nabal a manifestation of enmity against the cause of Jehovah.
v. 23. And when Abigail saw David, she hasted, and lighted off the ass, and fell before David on her face, in an attitude of supplication and subjection, and bowed herself to the ground,
v. 24. and fell at his feet, humbling herself more and more before him, and said, Upon me, my lord, upon me, let this iniquity be, the blame or guilt for this unfortunate affair; and let thine handmaid, I pray thee, speak in thine audience, and hear the words of thine handmaid. He was to consider her alone as the foolish and guilty person with whom he was to deal.
v. 25. Let not my lord, I pray thee, regard this man of Belial, even Nabal, he should not take his behavior to heart; for as his name is, so is he; Nabal (fool) is his name, and folly is with him; but I, thine handmaid, saw not the young men of my lord whom thou didst send. Having drawn attention to her own person, she proceeds with her arguments.
v. 26. Now, therefore, my lord, as the Lord liveth, and as thy soul liveth, seeing the Lord hath withholden thee from coming to shed blood, literally, "into blood-guiltiness," and from avenging thyself with thine own hand, by saving or procuring help for himself, thus making himself guilty of a serious crime, now let thine enemies, and they that seek evil to my lord, be as Nabal, sons of folly, the correlate of godlessness, which invariably brings the punishment of God upon the sinner. To these two points Abigail now adds the third argument, in offering her gift.
v. 27. And now this blessing, the present which she had sent before her, which thine handmaid hath brought unto my lord, let it even be given unto the young men that follow my lord, these words showing that she was a skilful diplomat. It is only now that she asks for pardon and forbearance.
v. 28. I pray thee, forgive the trespass of thine handmaid, the guilt which she had taken upon herself by her own confession; for the Lord will certainly make my lord a sure house, as a reward of his magnanimity in this case, because my lord fighteth the battles of the Lord, and evil hath not been found in thee all thy days, that is, bad luck, misfortune.
v. 29. Yet a man is risen to pursue thee and to seek thy soul, or, "Should a man arise and pursue," for she delicately omits a direct reference to Saul; but the soul of my lord shall be bound in the bundle of life with the Lord, thy God, said of the sure protection which the children of God enjoy in the merciful fellowship of the Lord here on earth; and the souls of thine enemies, them shall He sling out, as out of the middle of a sling, the pan of the sling where the missile is placed before it is shot. It is a strong expression for the total rejection which should strike the enemies of David by the divine punishment.
v. 30. 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, for she knew that God had chosen and called David to be king of Israel, and shall have appointed thee ruler over Israel,
v. 31. that this shall be no grief unto thee nor offense of heart unto my lord, a stumbling-block or vexation, either that thou hast shed blood causeless, or that my lord hath avenged himself, bloodshed and self-help being the double sin that he would have been guilty of; but when the Lord shall have dealt well with my lord, then remember thine handmaid, not to forget her entirely in his own prosperity.
v. 32. And David said to Abigail, Blessed be the Lord God of Israel, which sent thee this day to meet me, for David ever acknowledged himself to be under divine guidance;
v. 33. and blessed be thy advice, her tactful wisdom, and blessed be thou, which hast kept me this day from coming to shed blood, and from avenging myself with mine own hand, thus accepting the correction in the two points which she made.
v. 34. For in very deed, as the Lord God of Israel liveth, which hath kept me back from hurting thee, except thou hadst hasted and come to meet me, surely there had not been left unto Nabal by the morning light, by tomorrow morning, any that pisseth against the wall.
v. 35. So David received of her hand that which she had brought him, the presents in food, and said unto her, Go up in peace to thine house, without anxiety; see, I have hearkened to thy voice, and have accepted thy person, her petition had been favorably regarded by him. Like David, all believers will find many an occasion for thanking the Lord for mercifully keeping them from some severe transgression, often in the very nick of time.
Paul E. Kretzmann, Popular Commentary of the Bible (1921–1924) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
unfoldingWord translationNotes 2017 · CC BY-SA 4.0 On vv14, 16 But one of the young men told Abigail, Nabal's…
But one of the young men told Abigail, Nabal's wife
You may need to make explicit what the young man did before he spoke with Abigail. AT: "One of Nabal's servants found out what David and his men were planning to do, so he went to Nabal's wife Abigail" (See: Assumed Knowledge and Implicit Information)
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We were not harmed
This can be translated in active form. AT: "Nobody harmed us" or "We were safe" (See: Active or Passive)
did not miss anything as long as we went with them
"we did not lose anything when we were with them." David's men kept wild animals and other people from stealing Nabal's flocks.
translationWords
David
messenger
desert
lord
unfoldingWord translationNotes — © Distant Shores Media and the Door43 World Missions Community, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0. Source: git.door43.org/Door43/en_tn.