1 Samuel 25:11 - Printer Friendly

ESV: Shall I take my bread and my water and my meat that I have killed for my shearers and give it to men who come from I do not know where?"

NIV: Why should I take my bread and water, and the meat I have slaughtered for my shearers, and give it to men coming from who knows where?"

NASB: Shall I then take my bread and my water and my meat that I have slaughtered for my shearers, and give it to men whose origin I do not know?'

CSB: Am I supposed to take my bread, my water, and my meat that I butchered for my shearers and give them to these men? I don’t know where they are from."

NLT: Should I take my bread and my water and my meat that I’ve slaughtered for my shearers and give it to a band of outlaws who come from who knows where?'

KJV: 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?

NKJV: Shall I then take my bread and my water and my meat that I have killed for my shearers, and give it to men when I do not know where they are from?”

First Samuel 25:9–13 proves that Nabal deserves his name, which means "fool." David's men have been protecting Nabal's shepherds, who haven't lost a single lamb. But when David requests a bit of gratitude (1 Samuel 25:2–8), Nabal sneers and calls David a runaway slave. David is furious. He takes 400 armed men to kill Nabal and all his male servants. Fortunately, Nabal's wise wife, Abigail, will intercept David with both food and wise counsel (1 Samuel 25:14–35).

David learns to give grace to people other than King Saul. Samuel dies, and Saul temporarily leaves David alone. David and his men protect the shepherds of the foolish Nabal. When Nabal refuses to reward David, David vows revenge on him and all his male servants. Nabal's wife, Abigail, rushes to David with food and a warning that David shouldn't carry the shame of killing Nabal and the servants when he becomes king. David listens, Nabal dies, and David marries Abigail. Soon the truce will end, and David will meet Saul one last time (1 Samuel 26).

David spared Saul's life, and the grateful king gives David some peace (1 Samuel 24). God has protected David numerous times from having to fight Saul. When a wealthy fool insults David, only the fool's wife, Abigail, keeps David from destroying the entire estate. Once again, God has kept David from needless bloodshed. Saul will later break the truce, but David still refuses to kill his enemy (1 Samuel 26). When David is ready to battle Saul, God prevents it (1 Samuel 29).

First Samuel introduces the key figures who led Israel after the era of the judges. The books of 1 and 2 Samuel were originally part of a single text, split in certain translations shortly before the birth of Christ. Some of the Bible’s most famous characters are depicted in this book. These including the prophet Samuel, Israel’s first king, Saul, her greatest king, David, and other famous names such as Goliath and Jonathan. By the end of this book, Saul has fallen; the book of 2 Samuel begins with David’s ascension to the throne.

Accessed 9/18/2025 9:18:30 AM