Death of Samuel

25 Then ^(A)Samuel died; and the Israelites gathered together and ^(B)lamented for him, and buried him at his home in Ramah. And David arose and went down ^(C)to the Wilderness of ^[a]Paran.

David and the Wife of Nabal

² Now there was a man ^(D)in Maon whose business was in ^(E)Carmel, and the man was very rich. He had three thousand sheep and a thousand goats. And he was shearing his sheep in Carmel. ³ The 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 ^(F)Caleb.

⁴ When David heard in the wilderness that Nabal was ^(G)shearing his sheep, ⁵ David sent ten young men; and David said to the young men, “Go up to Carmel, go to Nabal, and greet him in my name. ⁶ And thus you shall say to him who lives in prosperity: ^(H)‘Peace be to you, peace to your house, and peace to all that you have! ⁷ Now I have heard that you have shearers. Your shepherds were with us, and we did not hurt them, ^(I)nor was there anything missing from them all the while they were in Carmel. ⁸ Ask your young men, and they will tell you. Therefore ^[b]let my young men find favor in your eyes, for we come on ^(J)a feast day. Please give whatever comes to your hand to your servants and to your son David.’ ”

⁹ So when David’s young men came, they spoke to Nabal according to all these words in the name of David, and waited.

¹⁰ Then Nabal answered David’s servants, and said, ^(K)“Who is David, and who is the son of Jesse? There are many servants nowadays who break away each one from his master. ^11 (L)Shall I then take my bread and my water and my ^[c]meat that I have killed for my shearers, and give it to men when I do not know where they are from?”

¹² So David’s young men turned on their heels and went back; and they came and told him all these words. ¹³ Then 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 ^(M)stayed with the supplies.

¹⁴ Now one of the young men told Abigail, Nabal’s wife, saying, “Look, David sent messengers from the wilderness to greet our master; and he ^[d]reviled them. ¹⁵ But the men were very good to us, and ^(N)we were not hurt, nor did we miss anything as long as we accompanied them, when we were in the fields. ¹⁶ They were ^(O)a wall to us both by night and day, all the time we were with them keeping the sheep. ¹⁷ Now therefore, know and consider what you will do, for ^(P)harm is determined against our master and against all his household. For he is such a ^(Q)scoundrel^[e] that one cannot speak to him.”

¹⁸ Then Abigail made haste and ^(R)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. ¹⁹ And she said to her servants, ^(S)“Go on before me; see, I am coming after you.” But she did not tell her husband Nabal.

²⁰ So 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. ²¹ Now 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 ^(T)repaid me evil for good. ^22 (U)May God do so, and more also, to the enemies of David, if I ^(V)leave ^(W)one male of all who belong to him by morning light.”

²³ Now when Abigail saw David, she ^(X)dismounted quickly from the donkey, fell on her face before David, and bowed down to the ground. ²⁴ So she fell at his feet and said: “On me, my lord, on me let this iniquity be! And please let your maidservant ^[f]speak in your ears, and hear the words of your maidservant. ²⁵ Please, let not my lord ^[g]regard this scoundrel Nabal. For as his name is, so is he: ^[h]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 therefore, my lord, ^(Y)as the Lord lives and as your soul lives, since the Lord has ^(Z)held you back from coming to bloodshed and from ^(AA)avenging^[i] yourself with your own hand, now then, ^(AB)let your enemies and those who seek harm for my lord be as Nabal. ²⁷ And now ^(AC)this present which your maidservant has brought to my lord, let it be given to the young men who follow my lord. ²⁸ Please forgive the trespass of your maidservant. For ^(AD)the Lord will certainly make for my lord an enduring house, because my lord ^(AE)fights the battles of the Lord, ^(AF)and evil is not found in you throughout your days. ²⁹ Yet a man has risen to pursue you and seek your life, but the life of my lord shall be ^(AG)bound in the bundle of the living with the Lord your God; and the lives of your enemies He shall ^(AH)sling out, as from the pocket of a sling. ³⁰ And 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 ^(AI)ruler over Israel, ³¹ that 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.”

³² Then David said to Abigail: ^(AJ)“Blessed is the Lord God of Israel, who sent you this day to meet me! ³³ And blessed is your advice and blessed are you, because you have ^(AK)kept me this day from coming to bloodshed and from avenging myself with my own hand. ³⁴ For indeed, as the Lord God of Israel lives, who has ^(AL)kept me back from hurting you, unless you had hurried and come to meet me, surely ^(AM)by morning light no males would have been left to Nabal!” ³⁵ So David received from her hand what she had brought him, and said to her, ^(AN)“Go up in peace to your house. See, I have heeded your voice and ^(AO)respected your person.”

³⁶ Now Abigail went to Nabal, and there he was, ^(AP)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. ³⁷ So 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. ³⁸ Then it happened, after about ten days, that the Lord ^(AQ)struck Nabal, and he died.

³⁹ So when David heard that Nabal was dead, he said, ^(AR)“Blessed be the Lord, who has ^(AS)pleaded the cause of my reproach from the hand of Nabal, and has ^(AT)kept His servant from evil! For the Lord has ^(AU)returned the wickedness of Nabal on his own head.”

And David sent and proposed to Abigail, to take her as his wife. ⁴⁰ When 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.”

⁴¹ Then she arose, bowed her face to the earth, and said, “Here is your maidservant, a servant to ^(AV)wash the feet of the servants of my lord.” ⁴² So Abigail rose in haste and rode on a donkey, ^[j]attended by five of her maidens; and she followed the messengers of David, and became his wife. ⁴³ David also took Ahinoam ^(AW)of Jezreel, ^(AX)and so both of them were his wives.

⁴⁴ But Saul had given ^(AY)Michal his daughter, David’s wife, to ^[k]Palti the son of Laish, who was from ^(AZ)Gallim.

Job’s Repentance and Restoration

42 Then Job answered the Lord and said:

⁷ And so it was, after the Lord had spoken these words to Job, that the Lord said to Eliphaz the Temanite, “My wrath is aroused against you and your two friends, for you have not spoken of Me what is right, as My servant Job has. ⁸ Now therefore, take for yourselves ^(G)seven bulls and seven rams, ^(H)go to My servant Job, and offer up for yourselves a burnt offering; and My servant Job shall ^(I)pray for you. For I will accept ^[b]him, lest I deal with you according to your folly; because you have not spoken of Me what is right, as My servant Job has.”

⁹ So Eliphaz the Temanite and Bildad the Shuhite and Zophar the Naamathite went and did as the Lord commanded them; for the Lord had ^[c]accepted Job. ^10 (J)And the Lord ^[d]restored Job’s losses when he prayed for his friends. Indeed the Lord gave Job ^(K)twice as much as he had before. ¹¹ Then ^(L)all his brothers, all his sisters, and all those who had been his acquaintances before, came to him and ate food with him in his house; and they consoled him and comforted him for all the adversity that the Lord had brought upon him. Each one gave him a piece of silver and each a ring of gold.

¹² Now the Lord blessed ^(M)the latter days of Job more than his beginning; for he had ^(N)fourteen thousand sheep, six thousand camels, one thousand yoke of oxen, and one thousand female donkeys. ^13 (O)He also had seven sons and three daughters. ¹⁴ And he called the name of the first ^[e]Jemimah, the name of the second ^[f]Keziah, and the name of the third ^[g]Keren-Happuch. ¹⁵ In all the land were found no women so beautiful as the daughters of Job; and their father gave them an inheritance among their brothers.

¹⁶ After this Job ^(P)lived one hundred and forty years, and saw his children and grandchildren for four generations. ¹⁷ So Job died, old and ^(Q)full of days.

Heaven Exults over Babylon

19 After these things ^(A)I ^[a]heard a loud voice of a great multitude in heaven, saying, “Alleluia! ^(B)Salvation and glory and honor and power belong to ^[b]the Lord our God! ² For ^(C)true and righteous are His judgments, because He has judged the great harlot who corrupted the earth with her fornication; and He ^(D)has avenged on her the blood of His servants shed by her.” ³ Again they said, “Alleluia! ^(E)Her smoke rises up forever and ever!” ⁴ And ^(F)the twenty-four elders and the four living creatures fell down and worshiped God who sat on the throne, saying, ^(G)“Amen! Alleluia!” ⁵ Then a voice came from the throne, saying, ^(H)“Praise our God, all you His servants and those who fear Him, ^(I)both^[c] small and great!”

^6 (J)And I heard, as it were, the voice of a great multitude, as the sound of many waters and as the sound of mighty thunderings, saying, “Alleluia! For ^(K)the^[d] Lord God Omnipotent reigns! ⁷ Let us be glad and rejoice and give Him glory, for ^(L)the marriage of the Lamb has come, and His wife has made herself ready.” ⁸ And ^(M)to her it was granted to be arrayed in fine linen, clean and bright, ^(N)for the fine linen is the righteous acts of the saints.

⁹ Then he said to me, “Write: ^(O)‘Blessed are those who are called to the marriage supper of the Lamb!’ ” And he said to me, ^(P)“These are the true sayings of God.” ¹⁰ And ^(Q)I fell at his feet to worship him. But he said to me, ^(R)“See that you do not do that! I am your ^(S)fellow servant, and of your brethren ^(T)who have the testimony of Jesus. Worship God! For the ^(U)testimony of Jesus is the spirit of prophecy.”

Christ on a White Horse

^11 (V)Now I saw heaven opened, and behold, ^(W)a white horse. And He who sat on him was called ^(X)Faithful and True, and ^(Y)in righteousness He judges and makes war. ^12 (Z)His eyes were like a flame of fire, and on His head were many crowns. ^(AA)He ^[e]had a name written that no one knew except Himself. ^13 (AB)He was clothed with a robe dipped in blood, and His name is called ^(AC)The Word of God. ^14 (AD)And the armies in heaven, ^(AE)clothed in ^[f]fine linen, white and clean, followed Him on white horses. ¹⁵ Now ^(AF)out of His mouth goes a ^[g]sharp sword, that with it He should strike the nations. And ^(AG)He Himself will rule them with a rod of iron. ^(AH)He Himself treads the winepress of the fierceness and wrath of Almighty God. ¹⁶ And ^(AI)He has on His robe and on His thigh a name written:

^(AJ)KING OF KINGS AND
LORD OF LORDS.

The Beast and His Armies Defeated

¹⁷ Then I saw an angel standing in the sun; and he cried with a loud voice, saying to all the birds that fly in the midst of heaven, ^(AK)“Come and gather together for the ^[h]supper of the great God, ^18 (AL)that you may eat the flesh of kings, the flesh of captains, the flesh of mighty men, the flesh of horses and of those who sit on them, and the flesh of all people, ^[i]free and slave, both small and great.”

^19 (AM)And I saw the beast, the kings of the earth, and their armies, gathered together to make war against Him who sat on the horse and against His army. ^20 (AN)Then the beast was captured, and with him the false prophet who worked signs in his presence, by which he deceived those who received the mark of the beast and ^(AO)those who worshiped his image. ^(AP)These two were cast alive into the lake of fire ^(AQ)burning with brimstone. ²¹ And the rest ^(AR)were killed with the sword which proceeded from the mouth of Him who sat on the horse. ^(AS)And all the birds ^(AT)were filled with their flesh.