1 Samuel 25:20-34

English Standard Version

²⁰ And as she rode on the donkey and came down under cover of the mountain, behold, David and his men came down toward her, and she met them. ²¹ Now David had said, “Surely in vain have I guarded all that this fellow has in the wilderness, ^(A)so that nothing was missed of all that belonged to him, and he has ^(B)returned me evil for good. ^22 (C)God do so to the enemies of David^[a] and more also, if by morning I leave so much as one male of all who belong to him.”

²³ When Abigail saw David, she hurried ^(D)and got down from the donkey ^(E)and fell before David on her face and bowed to the ground. ²⁴ She fell at his feet and said, ^(F)“On me alone, my lord, be the guilt. Please let your servant speak in your ears, and hear the words of your servant. ²⁵ Let not my lord regard ^(G)this worthless fellow, Nabal, for as his name is, so is he. Nabal^[b] is his name, and folly is with him. But I your servant did not see the young men of my lord, whom you sent. ²⁶ Now then, my lord, ^(H)as the Lord lives, and as your soul lives, because ^(I)the Lord has restrained you from bloodguilt and from ^(J)saving with your own hand, now then ^(K)let your enemies and those who seek to do evil to my lord be as Nabal. ²⁷ And now let this ^(L)present that your servant has brought to my lord be given to the young men who follow my lord. ²⁸ Please forgive the trespass of your servant. For the Lord will certainly make my lord ^(M)a sure house, because my lord ^(N)is fighting the battles of the Lord, and evil shall not be found in you so long as you live. ²⁹ If men rise up to pursue you and to seek your life, the life of my lord shall be bound in the bundle of the living in the care of the Lord your God. And the lives of your enemies ^(O)he shall sling out as from the hollow of a sling. ³⁰ And when the Lord has done to my lord according to all the good that he has spoken concerning you and has appointed you prince^[c] over Israel, ³¹ my lord shall have no cause of grief or pangs of conscience for having shed blood without cause or for my lord ^(P)working salvation himself. And when the Lord has dealt well with my lord, then remember your servant.”

³² And David said to Abigail, ^(Q)“Blessed be the Lord, the God of Israel, who sent you this day to meet me! ³³ Blessed be your discretion, and blessed be you, ^(R)who have kept me this day from bloodguilt ^(S)and from working salvation with my own hand! ³⁴ For as surely ^(T)as the Lord, the God of Israel, lives, ^(U)who has restrained me from hurting you, unless you had hurried and come to meet me, truly by morning there had not been left to Nabal so much as one male.”