Samuel Dies

25 Samuel died, and people from all over Israel gathered to mourn for him when he was buried at his home^[a] in Ramah. Meanwhile, David moved his camp to Paran Desert.^[b]

Abigail Keeps David from Killing Innocent People

^2-3 Nabal was a very rich man who lived in Maon. He owned 3,000 sheep and 1,000 goats, which he kept at Carmel.^[c] His wife Abigail was sensible and beautiful, but he was from the Caleb clan^[d] and was rough and mean.

⁴ One day, Nabal was in Carmel where his servants were cutting the wool from his sheep. David was in the desert when he heard about it. ^5-6 So he sent ten men to Carmel with this message for Nabal:

I hope that you and your family are healthy and that all is going well for you. ⁷ I've heard that you are cutting the wool from your sheep.

When your shepherds were with us in Carmel, we didn't harm them, and nothing was ever stolen from them. ⁸ Ask your shepherds, and they'll tell you the same thing.

My servants are your servants, and you are like a father to me. This is a day for celebrating,^[e] so please be kind and share some of your food with us.

⁹ David's men went to Nabal and gave him David's message, then they waited for Nabal's answer.

¹⁰ This is what he said:

Who does this David think he is? That son of Jesse is just one more slave on the run from his master, and there are too many of them these days. ¹¹ What makes you think I would take my bread, my water, and the meat that I've had cooked for my own servants^[f] and give it to you? Besides, I'm not sure that David sent you!^[g]

¹² The men returned to their camp and told David everything Nabal had said.

¹³ “Everybody get your swords!” David ordered.

They all strapped on their swords. Two hundred men stayed behind to guard the camp, but the other 400 followed David.

^14-16 Meanwhile, one of Nabal's servants told Abigail:

David's men were often nearby while we were taking care of the sheep in the fields. They were very good to us, they never hurt us, and nothing was ever stolen from us while they were nearby. With them around day or night, we were as safe as we would have been inside a walled city.

David sent some messengers from the desert to wish our master well, but he shouted insults at them. ¹⁷ He's a bully who won't listen to anyone.

Isn't there something you can do? Please think of something! Or else our master and his family and everyone who works for him are all doomed.

¹⁸ Abigail quickly got together 200 loaves of bread, two large clay jars of wine, the meat from five sheep, a large sack of roasted grain, 100 handfuls of raisins, and 200 handfuls of dried figs. She loaded all the food on donkeys ¹⁹ and told her servants, “Take this on ahead, and I'll catch up with you.” She didn't tell her husband Nabal what she was doing.

²⁰ Abigail was riding her donkey on the path that led around the hillside, when suddenly she met David and his men heading straight at her.

²¹ David had just been saying, “I surely wasted my time guarding Nabal's things in the desert and keeping them from being stolen! I was good to him, and now he pays me back with insults. ²² I swear that by morning, there won't be a man or boy left from his family or his servants' families. I pray that God will punish me^[h] if I don't do it!”

²³ Abigail quickly got off her donkey and bowed down in front of David. ²⁴ Then she said:

Sir, please let me explain! ²⁵ Don't pay any attention to that good-for-nothing Nabal. His name means “fool,” and it really fits him!

I didn't see the men you sent, ^26-27 but please take this gift of food that I've brought and share it with your followers. The Lord has kept you from taking revenge and from killing innocent people. But I hope your enemies and anyone else who wants to harm you will end up like Nabal. I swear this by the living Lord and by your life.

²⁸ Please forgive me if I say a little more. The Lord will always protect you and your family, because you fight for him. I pray that you won't ever do anything evil as long as you live. ²⁹ The Lord your God will keep you safe when your enemies try to kill you. But he will snatch away their lives quicker than you can throw a rock from a sling.

³⁰ The Lord has promised to do many good things for you, even to make you the ruler of Israel. The Lord will keep his promises to you, ³¹ and now your conscience will be clear, because you won't be guilty of taking revenge and killing innocent people.

When the Lord does all those good things for you, please remember me.

³² David told her:

I praise the Lord God of Israel! He must have sent you to meet me today. ³³ And you should also be praised. Your good sense kept me from taking revenge and killing innocent people. ³⁴ If you hadn't come to meet me so quickly, every man and boy in Nabal's family and in his servants' families would have been killed by morning. I swear by the living Lord God of Israel who protected you that this is the truth.

³⁵ David accepted the food Abigail had brought. “Don't worry,” he said. “You can go home now. I'll do what you asked.”

³⁶ Abigail went back home and found Nabal throwing a party fit for a king. He was very drunk and feeling good, so she didn't tell him anything that night. ³⁷ But when he sobered up the next morning, Abigail told him everything that had happened. Nabal had a heart attack, and he lay in bed as still as a stone. ³⁸ Ten days later, the Lord took his life.

^39-40 David heard that Nabal had died. “I praise the Lord!” David said. “He has judged Nabal guilty for insulting me. The Lord kept me from doing anything wrong, and he made sure that Nabal hurt only himself with his own evil.”

David and Abigail Are Married

Abigail was still at Carmel. So David sent messengers to ask her if she would marry him.

⁴¹ She bowed down and said, “I would willingly be David's slave and wash his servants' feet.”

⁴² Abigail quickly got ready and went back with David's messengers. She rode on her donkey, while five of her servant women walked alongside. She and David were married as soon as she arrived.

⁴³ David had earlier married Ahinoam from the town of Jezreel, so both she and Abigail were now David's wives.^{[i] 44 (A)} Meanwhile, Saul had arranged for Michal^[j] to marry Palti the son of Laish, who came from the town of Gallim.

David Again Lets Saul Live

26 ^(B) Once again,^[k] some people from Ziph went to Gibeah to talk with Saul. “David has a hideout on Mount Hachilah near Jeshimon out in the desert,” they told him.

² Saul took 3,000 of Israel's best soldiers and went to look for David there in Ziph Desert. ³ Saul set up camp on Mount Hachilah, which is across the road from Jeshimon. But David was hiding out in the desert.

When David heard that Saul was following him, ⁴ he sent some spies to find out if it was true. ⁵ Then he sneaked up to Saul's camp. He noticed that Saul and his army commander Abner the son of Ner were sleeping in the middle of the camp, with soldiers sleeping all around them. ⁶ David asked Ahimelech the Hittite and Joab's brother Abishai,^[l] “Which one of you will go with me into Saul's camp?”

“I will!” Abishai answered.

⁷ That same night, David and Abishai crept into the camp. Saul was sleeping, and his spear was stuck in the ground not far from his head. Abner and the soldiers were sound asleep all around him.

⁸ Abishai whispered, “This time God has let you get your hands on your enemy! I'll pin him to the ground with one thrust of his own spear.”

⁹ “Don't kill him!” David whispered back. “The Lord will punish anyone who kills his chosen king. ¹⁰ As surely as the Lord lives, the Lord will kill Saul, or Saul will die a natural death or be killed in battle. ^11 (C) But I pray that the Lord will keep me from harming his chosen king. Let's grab his spear and his water jar and get out of here!”

¹² David took the spear and the water jar, then left the camp. None of Saul's soldiers knew what had happened or even woke up—the Lord had made all of them fall sound asleep. ¹³ David and Abishai crossed the valley and went to the top of the next hill, where they were at a safe distance. ¹⁴ “Abner!” David shouted toward Saul's army. “Can you hear me?”

Abner shouted back. “Who dares disturb the king?”

¹⁵ “Abner, what kind of a man are you?” David replied. “Aren't you supposed to be the best soldier in Israel? Then why didn't you protect your king? Anyone who went into your camp could have killed him tonight.^{[m] 16} You're a complete failure! I swear by the living Lord that you and your men deserve to die for not protecting the Lord's chosen king. Look and see if you can find the king's spear and the water jar that were near his head.”

¹⁷ Saul could tell it was David's voice, and he called out, “David, my son! Is that you?”

“Yes it is, Your Majesty. ¹⁸ Why are you hunting me down? Have I done something wrong, or have I committed a crime? ¹⁹ Please listen to what I have to say. If the Lord has turned you against me, maybe a sacrifice will make him change his mind. But if some people have turned you against me, I hope the Lord will punish them! They have forced me to leave the land that belongs to the Lord and have told me to worship foreign gods.^{[n] 20} Don't let me die in a land far away from the Lord. I'm no more important than a flea! Why should the king of Israel hunt me down as if I were a bird in the mountains?”

²¹ “David, you had the chance to kill me today. But you didn't. I was very wrong about you. It was a terrible mistake for me to try to kill you. I've acted like a fool, but I'll never try to harm you again. You're like a son to me, so please come back.”

²² “Your Majesty, here's your spear! Let one of your soldiers come and get it. ²³ The Lord put you in my power today, but you are his chosen king and I wouldn't harm you. The Lord rewards people who are faithful and live right. ²⁴ I spared your life today, and I pray that the Lord will spare my life and keep me safe.”

²⁵ “David, my son, I pray that the Lord will bless you and make you successful!”

David in Philistia

Saul went back home. David also left,

Treasures in Heaven

(Matthew 6.19-21)

³² My little group of disciples, don't be afraid! Your Father wants to give you the kingdom. ³³ Sell what you have and give the money to the poor. Make yourselves moneybags that never wear out. Make sure your treasure is safe in heaven, where thieves cannot steal it and moths cannot destroy it. ³⁴ Your heart will always be where your treasure is.

Faithful and Unfaithful Servants

(Matthew 24.45-51)

^35 (A) Be ready and keep your lamps burning ^36 (B) just like those servants who wait up for their master to return from a wedding feast. As soon as he comes and knocks, they open the door for him. ³⁷ Servants are fortunate if their master finds them awake and ready when he comes! I promise you he will get ready and let his servants sit down so he can serve them. ³⁸ Those servants are really fortunate if their master finds them ready, even though he comes late at night or early in the morning. ^39 (C) You would surely not let a thief break into your home, if you knew when the thief was coming. ⁴⁰ So always be ready! You don't know when the Son of Man will come.

⁴¹ Peter asked Jesus, “Did you say this just for us or for everyone?”

⁴² The Lord answered:

Who are faithful and wise servants? Who are the ones the master will put in charge of giving the other servants their food supplies at the proper time? ⁴³ Servants are fortunate if their master comes and finds them doing their job. ⁴⁴ A servant who is always faithful will surely be put in charge of everything the master owns.

⁴⁵ But suppose one of the servants thinks that the master won't return until late. Suppose that servant starts beating all the other servants and eats and drinks and gets drunk. ⁴⁶ If that happens, the master will come on a day and at a time when the servant least expects him. That servant will then be punished and thrown out with the servants who cannot be trusted.

⁴⁷ If servants are not ready or willing to do what their master wants them to do, they will be beaten hard. ⁴⁸ But servants who don't know what their master wants them to do will not be beaten so hard for doing wrong. If God has been generous with you, he will expect you to serve him well. But if he has been more than generous, he will expect you to serve him even better.

Not Peace, but Trouble

(Matthew 10.34-36)

⁴⁹ I came to set fire to the earth, and I wish it were already on fire! ^50 (D) I am going to be put to a hard test. And I will have to suffer a lot of pain until it is over. ⁵¹ Do you think that I came to bring peace to earth? No indeed! I came to make people choose sides. ⁵² A family of five will be divided, with two of them against the other three. ^53 (E) Fathers and sons will turn against one another, and mothers and daughters will do the same. Mothers-in-law and daughters-in-law will also turn against each other.

Knowing What To Do

(Matthew 16.2,3; 5.25,26)

⁵⁴ Jesus said to all the people:

As soon as you see a cloud coming up in the west, you say, “It's going to rain,” and it does. ⁵⁵ When the south wind blows, you say, “It's going to get hot,” and it does. ⁵⁶ Are you trying to fool someone? You can predict the weather by looking at the earth and sky, but you don't really know what's going on right now. ⁵⁷ Why don't you understand the right thing to do? ⁵⁸ When someone accuses you of something, try to settle things before you are taken to court. If you don't, you will be dragged before the judge. Then the judge will hand you over to the jailer, and you will be locked up. ⁵⁹ You won't get out until you have paid the last cent you owe.