16. They were a wall unto us both by night and day all the time that we were feeding the sheep with them.
17. Now, therefore, know and consider what thou must do, for evil is determined against our master and against all his household, for he is such a son of Belial that no one can speak to him.
18. Then Abigail made haste and took two hundred loaves and two bottles of wine and five sheep ready dressed and five measures of parched flour and one hundred bunches of raisins and two hundred cakes of figs and laid them on asses.
19. And she said unto her servants, Go on before me; behold, I come after you. But she told nothing to her husband Nabal.
20. And it was so as she rode on the ass that she came down a secret part of the mountain, and, behold, David and his men came down against her, and she met them.
21. Now David had said, Surely in vain have I kept all that this fellow has in the wilderness so that nothing was missed of all that pertained unto him, and he has returned unto me evil for good.
22. Let God do so and more also unto the enemies of David if I leave of all that pertain to him by the morning light any that piss against the wall.
23. And when Abigail saw David, she hastened and lighted off the ass and fell before David on her face and bowed herself to the ground
24. and fell at his feet and said, Upon me, my lord, upon me let this iniquity be, and let thy handmaid, I pray thee, speak in thy audience; and hear the words of thy handmaid.
25. Let not my lord, I pray thee, take to heart this man of Belial, even Nabal, for as his name is, so is he; Nabal {Heb. fool} is his name, and folly is with him; but I, thy handmaid, did not see the servants of my lord whom thou didst send.
26. Now, therefore, my lord, as the Lord lives and as thy soul lives, seeing the Lord has withheld thee from coming to shed blood and from avenging thyself with thy own hand, now let thy enemies and those that seek evil to my lord be as Nabal.
27. And now this blessing which thy handmaid has brought unto my lord, let it be given unto the servants that follow my lord.
28. I pray thee, forgive the trespass of thy handmaid, for the Lord will certainly make my lord a sure house because my lord fights the battles of the Lord, and evil has not been found in thee all thy days.