David Marries Michal

¹⁷ Then Saul said to David, “Here is ^(A)my elder daughter Merab. ^(B)I will give her to you for a wife. Only be valiant for me ^(C)and fight the Lord's battles.” For Saul thought, “Let not my hand be against him, ^(D)but let the hand of the Philistines be against him.” ¹⁸ And David said to Saul, ^(E)“Who am I, and who are my relatives, my father's clan in Israel, that I should be son-in-law to the king?” ¹⁹ But at the time when Merab, Saul's daughter, should have been given to David, she was given to ^(F)Adriel the ^(G)Meholathite for a wife.

²⁰ Now ^(H)Saul's daughter Michal ^(I)loved David. And they told Saul, and the thing pleased him. ²¹ Saul thought, “Let me give her to him, that she may ^(J)be a snare for him ^(K)and that the hand of the Philistines may be against him.” Therefore Saul said to David a second time,^{[a] (L)}“You shall now be my son-in-law.” ²² And Saul commanded his servants, “Speak to David in private and say, ‘Behold, the king has delight in you, and all his servants love you. Now then become the king's son-in-law.’” ²³ And Saul's servants spoke those words in the ears of David. And David said, ^(M)“Does it seem to you a little thing to become the king's son-in-law, since I am a poor man and have no reputation?” ²⁴ And the servants of Saul told him, “Thus and so did David speak.” ²⁵ Then Saul said, “Thus shall you say to David, ‘The king desires no ^(N)bride-price except a hundred foreskins of the Philistines, ^(O)that he may be avenged of the king's enemies.’” ^(P)Now Saul thought to make David fall by the hand of the Philistines. ²⁶ And when his servants told David these words, it pleased David well to be the king's son-in-law. ^(Q)Before the time had expired, ²⁷ David arose and went, ^(R)along with his men, and killed two hundred of the Philistines. ^(S)And David brought their foreskins, which were given in full number to the king, that he might become the king's son-in-law. And Saul gave him his daughter Michal for a wife. ²⁸ But when Saul saw and knew that ^(T)the Lord was with David, ^(U)and that Michal, Saul's daughter, loved him, ²⁹ Saul was even more afraid of David. So Saul was David's enemy continually.

^30 (V)Then the commanders of the Philistines came out to battle, and as often as they came out ^(W)David had more success than all the servants of Saul, so that his name was highly esteemed.

³⁹ When David heard that Nabal was dead, he said, ^(A)“Blessed be the Lord who has ^(B)avenged the insult I received at the hand of Nabal, ^(C)and has kept back his servant from wrongdoing. ^(D)The Lord has returned the evil of Nabal on his own head.” Then David sent and ^(E)spoke to Abigail, to take her as his wife. ⁴⁰ When the servants of David came to Abigail at Carmel, they said to her, “David has sent us to you to take you to him as his wife.” ⁴¹ And she rose ^(F)and bowed with her face to the ground and said, “Behold, your handmaid is a servant to wash the feet of the servants of my lord.” ⁴² And Abigail hurried and rose and mounted a donkey, and her five young women attended her. She followed the messengers of David and became his wife.

^2 (A)And sons were born to David at Hebron: his firstborn was Amnon, of ^(B)Ahinoam of Jezreel; ³ and his second, Chileab, of ^(C)Abigail the widow of Nabal of Carmel; and the third, Absalom the son of Maacah ^(D)the daughter of Talmai king of ^(E)Geshur; ⁴ and the fourth, ^(F)Adonijah the son of Haggith; and the fifth, Shephatiah the son of Abital; ⁵ and the sixth, Ithream, of Eglah, David's wife. These were born to David in Hebron.

²⁶ When the wife of Uriah heard that Uriah her husband was dead, she lamented over her husband. ²⁷ And when the mourning was over, David sent and brought her to his house, and ^(A)she became his wife and bore him a son. But the thing that David had done displeased the Lord.