1 Samuel 25

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1 Samuel 25

1 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, 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 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 did shear his sheep.

5 And David sent out ten young men, and David said unto the young men, Get you up to Carmel, and go to Nabal, and greet him in my name:

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

7 And now I have heard that thou hast shearers: now thy shepherds which were with us, we hurt them not, neither was there ought missing unto them, all the while they were in Carmel.

8 Ask thy young men, and they will shew thee. Wherefore let the young men find favour in thine eyes: for we come in a good day: give, I pray thee, whatsoever cometh to thine hand unto thy servants, and to thy son David.

9 And when David's young men came, they spake to Nabal according to all those words in the name of David, and ceased.

10 And Nabal answered David's servants, and said, Who is David? and who is the son of Jesse? there be many servants now a days that break away every man from his master.

11 Shall I then take my bread, and my water, and my flesh that I have killed for my shearers, and give it unto men, whom I know not whence they be?

12 So David's young men turned their way, and went again, and came and told him all those sayings.

13 And David said unto 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 stuff.

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.

15 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:

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

17 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.

18 Then Abigail made haste, and took two hundred loaves, and two bottles of wine, and five sheep ready dressed, and five measures of parched corn, and an hundred clusters of raisins, and two hundred cakes of figs, and laid them on asses.

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

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

21 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 unto him: and he hath requited me evil for good.

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.

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

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

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

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, and from avenging thyself with thine own hand, now let thine enemies, and they that seek evil to my lord, be as Nabal.

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

28 I pray thee, forgive the trespass of thine 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 Yet a man is 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 thine enemies, them shall he sling out, as out of the middle of a sling.

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, and shall have appointed thee ruler over Israel;

31 That this shall be no grief unto thee, nor offence of heart unto my lord, either that thou hast shed blood causeless, or that my lord hath avenged himself: but when the Lord shall have dealt well with my lord, then remember thine handmaid.

32 And David said to Abigail, Blessed be the Lord God of Israel, which sent thee this day to meet me:

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

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 any that pisseth against the wall.

35 So David received of her hand that which she had brought him, and said unto her, Go up in peace to thine house; see, I have hearkened to thy voice, and have accepted thy person.

36 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 drunken: wherefore she told him nothing, less or more, until the morning light.

37 But it came to pass in the morning, when the wine was gone out of 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 about ten days after, that the Lord smote Nabal, that he died.

39 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 communed with Abigail, to take her to him to wife.

40 And when the servants of David were come to Abigail to Carmel, they spake unto her, saying, David sent us unto thee, to take thee to him to wife.

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

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

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

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

Notes

Cross Reference

Commentary

Rashi

Verse 2

<html>There was a man in Ma'on. The name of the city.¹Not to be mistook for מָעוֹן meaning a dwelling, as in Tehillim 26:8, but rather, it is the city mentioned in Yehoshua 15:55, and it was located in Yehudah’s territory, the tribe of which Novol was a member. Whose business. His cattle and possessions. Wealthy. [Literally 'very great'], meaning wealthy. It was the time when he was shearing his sheep in Carmel. One day, when the time of his sheep shearing came around, he was in Carmel. His custom was to make a party and a festive day for the sheep shearers.</html>

Verse 3

<html>A Calebite. Of the house of Caleiv.²Or, his evil nature was similar to that of a dog [= כֶּלֶב]; i.e., he was stingy and refused to share his food with others.—Ralbag</html>

Verse 6

<html>So. So will he be [shearing] in the coming year.³See Rashi in Bereishis 18:10. So shall be in the coming year, living and enduring.) Another version is: So to the living. Say this concerning his meal and his wine that you will see, “So is befitting a live man, i.e., an active and esteemed man,” as in “…was a live man of many heroic deeds,”⁴II Shmuel 23:20. [i.e.] alive and active in all his deeds. May it always be so. Good and enduring. Peace unto you… So shall it be for a long time.⁵And to emphasize its longevity, they mention שַׁלוֹם [=peace] three times in their statement.</html>

Verse 7

<html>We did not shame them. If they needed us for anything, we did not send them back empty-handed.⁶We did not cause them physical harm.—Targum Yonoson. Not a thing of theirs was missing. Of your flocks, for we were watching them.⁷And we protected them from attack by wild animals.—Mahri Kra.</html>

Verse 8

<html>May the youths find. My youths, find favor in your eyes, for the kindness which your servants will tell concerning them. For we have come on a festive day. Relying on the party and festive day which you have, we have now come to ask.⁸Without burdening you additionally because you already have prepared a lavish feast.—Radak. Another explanation is, that this was the eve of Rosh Hashonoh [so they said,] “We are in need of a holiday feast.”⁹Rosh Hashanoh is a holiday in which Scripture [Nechemyah 8:10] stresses to send food to the needy.</html>

Verse 9

<html>And spoke to Novol in accordance with all these words, in Dovid's name, and then they rested. They were tired from traveling, yet they were quick to execute Dovid's command, and did not rest until they spoke to him, and afterward they rested. Targum Yonson renders, however, and they ceased, i.e., they stopped speaking further, until they would hear his reply.</html>

Verse 10

<html>Who is Dovid. Of what importance is he that I should give him mine? Is he not descended from Rus the Moavite?¹⁰And as such, Novol questioned Dovid’s right to the throne. See Talmud Yerushalmi Sanhedrin 2:3.</html>

Verse 13

<html>And Dovid too, girded his sword. From here [we learn] that we commence, in cases involving capital punishment, from the less significant first.¹¹ See Maseches Sanhedrin 36a, that learns from here that the polling the judges’ opinions in cases involving capital punishment, starts with the less important judges; otherwise, they may feel intimidated and swayed by the opinions of the others. With the equipment. To guard their tents and equipment.</html>

Verse 14

<html>One from among the youths. Of hers. But he chased them away. He drove them away with words, an expression of עַיׅט [=bird].¹²Bereishis 15:11. Others translate וַיָעַט as ‘he kicked them out’ from the root בעט, as in Devarim 32:15.</html>

Verse 15

<html>We were not shamed. We were not disgraced.</html>

Verse 17

<html>For the evil has been decided. By Dovid against him. He is too wicked a person to speak to. Our master is such a base person¹³Or, the phrase refers to Dovid, that Dovid is such a base person that he is capable of attacking without warning.—Radak. so that I cannot tell him that which I am telling you, because he will become angry with us.</html>

Verse 18

<html>Prepared. Targum Yonoson renders תַּכְבְּרָא, filled with finely cut meat and eggs; farcides in O.F., as we learned in [Maseches] Pesachim:¹⁴ And he places the feet and its intestines inside [the Paschal lamb]; Rabbi Tarfon calls it תַּכְבְּרָא. That which is inside, is placed outside,¹⁵I.e., תַּכְבְּרָא is a combination of two words תּוֹךְ [=inside] and בְּרָא [=outside]. according to Rabbi Akiva, who says that the intestines are hung outside of it. Thus is stated in the Tosefta, and Rabbi Klonimos of sainted memory, from Rome, thus explained it to us. Raisins. Dried grapes. Cakes of pressed figs. Round cakes of dried figs, trodden and pressed in a vessel.</html>

Verse 20

<html>Were going down toward her. There was a valley between the two mountains. She was going down one mountain, and they were going down the opposite mountain.¹⁶And neither party saw the other.—Radak.</html>

Verse 21

<html>Dovid said. To himself when his youths told him of Novol's insults, 'It was for naught that I guarded, etc.'</html>

Verse 22

<html>Even one dog. Targum Yonoson renders, 'one possessing intelligence,' one who sets the walls of his heart. Another explanation is, 'even a dog whose manner is to urinate against a wall.'¹⁷See Maseches Bava Basro 19b.</html>

Verse 24

<html>My master, with me lies the sin. First she said this so that he would pay attention to her words.¹⁸And thereby protect her household from Dovid and his men. At the end, however, she told him the truth, that “I, your handmaid, did not see my master's youths.”¹⁹Below, verse 25.</html>

Verse 26

<html>[Adonoy] has prevented you. Who sent me toward you to refrain you from committing bloodshed. And from avenging yourself by your own hand. From personally avenging yourself and being punished. May all your enemies be like Novol. She prophesied with the Divine Spirit²⁰Avigayil is mentioned among the seven prophetesses, in Maseches Megillah 14a. that Novol will not live long.</html>

Verse 27

<html>Let it be given to the youths. And it will be given to the youths who are going, etc. נִתְּנָה [=it was given] is past tense, וְנִתְּנָה [=it will be given] is future tense.</html>

Verse 28

<html>For Adonoy will surely make for my master an everlasting house. To be king over Yisroel. Therefore, let no evil be found in you. It is therefore not fitting for you to do anything contrary to the law, to spread evil talk concerning your kingship.</html>

Verse 29

<html>Slingshot. A wide piece of leather, with an indentation in the middle of the sling, into which one places the stone.</html>

Verse 30

<html>And may it be when Adonoy does good… And you will reign.</html>

Verse 31

<html>That this not be…an obstacle. As a stumbling block, as in, 'and the stumbling [לְפִיק] of the knees';²¹Nachum 2:11. for had you done this, you would not be able to open your mouth to reprove anyone in future generations, concerning bloodshed. And that my master has avenged himself. That you avenge yourself.</html>

Verse 33

<html>Who prevented me. You stopped me, as in, 'You shall not stop [תִכְלָא] your mercy,'²²Tehillim 40:12. [and] 'will not stop [יׅכְלֶה] you.'²³Bereishis 23:6. And from avenging myself with my own hand. This is connected with [the phrase], 'from coming into bloodshed.' The 'מ' [=from] of [מִבּוֹא] is connected to 'and avenging,' meaning, 'from coming into bloodshed and from avenging myself with my own hand.'</html>

Verse 37

<html>When Novol had sobered up. When the wine's effect had left Novol. And his heart sank within him. He was extremely upset over the gift presented to Dovid.²⁴I.e., because of the great expense of his wife’s gift.—Radak</html>

Verse 38

<html>After ten days. There were seven days of mourning for Shmuel, so the Holy One, Blessed is He, suspended his sentence so that it should not coincide the mourning for this wicked man with his mourning period. Afterward, he became ill for three days and died, as it is stated, “And Adonoy inflicted Novol,” and a Talmudist had stated that if one was ill three days and died, it is a death of a plague. However, our Rabbis stated that these are the Ten Days of Repentance which the Holy One, Blessed is He, waited for him to repent. But, some say that they correspond to the ten meals²⁵See above verses 5,9, and Maharsha in Rosh Hashanah 18a. which Novol gave Dovid's servants, for Dovid had sent him ten youths, and he fed them.</html>

Verse 39

<html>The battle of my disgrace. My insult which he insulted me today [saying], 'Nowadays there are many servants who break away.'²⁶Above verse 10. And has spared His servant from evil. That I did not kill him.</html>

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Table of Contents

1 Samuel 25

1 Samuel 25

Notes

Cross Reference

Commentary

Rashi

Verse 2

Verse 3

Verse 6

Verse 7

Verse 8

Verse 9

Verse 10

Verse 13

Verse 14

Verse 15

Verse 17

Verse 18

Verse 20

Verse 21

Verse 22

Verse 24

Verse 26

Verse 27

Verse 28

Verse 29

Verse 30

Verse 31

Verse 33

Verse 37

Verse 38

Verse 39