1. Now Samuel died, and all Israel gathered for his funeral. They buried him at his house in Ramah.Then David moved down to the wilderness of Maon.
2. There was a wealthy man from Maon who owned property near the town of Carmel. He had 3,000 sheep and 1,000 goats, and it was sheep-shearing time.
3. This man’s name was Nabal, and his wife, Abigail, was a sensible and beautiful woman. But Nabal, a descendant of Caleb, was crude and mean in all his dealings.
4. When David heard that Nabal was shearing his sheep,
5. he sent ten of his young men to Carmel with this message for Nabal:
6. “Peace and prosperity to you, your family, and everything you own!
7. I am told that it is sheep-shearing time. While your shepherds stayed among us near Carmel, we never harmed them, and nothing was ever stolen from them.
8. Ask your own men, and they will tell you this is true. So would you be kind to us, since we have come at a time of celebration? Please share any provisions you might have on hand with us and with your friend David.”
9. David’s young men gave this message to Nabal in David’s name, and they waited for a reply.
10. “Who is this fellow David?” Nabal sneered to the young men. “Who does this son of Jesse think he is? There are lots of servants these days who run away from their masters.