1 Samuel 25:4
New International Version
While David was in the wilderness, he heard that Nabal was shearing sheep.

New Living Translation
When David heard that Nabal was shearing his sheep,

English Standard Version
David heard in the wilderness that Nabal was shearing his sheep.

Berean Standard Bible
While David was in the wilderness, he heard that Nabal was shearing sheep.

King James Bible
And David heard in the wilderness that Nabal did shear his sheep.

New King James Version
When David heard in the wilderness that Nabal was shearing his sheep,

New American Standard Bible
that David heard in the wilderness that Nabal was shearing his sheep.

NASB 1995
that David heard in the wilderness that Nabal was shearing his sheep.

NASB 1977
that David heard in the wilderness that Nabal was shearing his sheep.

Legacy Standard Bible
that David heard in the wilderness that Nabal was shearing his sheep.

Amplified Bible
David heard in the wilderness that Nabal was shearing his sheep.

Christian Standard Bible
While David was in the wilderness, he heard that Nabal was shearing sheep,

Holman Christian Standard Bible
While David was in the wilderness, he heard that Nabal was shearing sheep,

American Standard Version
And David heard in the wilderness that Nabal was shearing his sheep.

Aramaic Bible in Plain English
And David heard in the wilderness that Nabal sheared his sheep

Brenton Septuagint Translation
And David heard in the wilderness, that Nabal the Carmelite was shearing his sheep.

Contemporary English Version
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.

Douay-Rheims Bible
And when David heard in the wilderness that Nabal was shearing his sheep,

English Revised Version
And David heard in the wilderness that Nabal did shear his sheep.

GOD'S WORD® Translation
While David was in the desert, he heard that Nabal was shearing his sheep.

Good News Translation
and David, who was in the wilderness, heard about it,

International Standard Version
While David was in the wilderness, he heard that Nabal was shearing his sheep.

JPS Tanakh 1917
And David heard in the wilderness that Nabal was shearing his sheep.

Literal Standard Version
And David hears in the wilderness that Nabal is shearing his flock,

Majority Standard Bible
While David was in the wilderness, he heard that Nabal was shearing sheep.

New American Bible
While in the wilderness, David heard that Nabal was shearing his flock,

NET Bible
When David heard in the desert that Nabal was shearing his sheep,

New Revised Standard Version
David heard in the wilderness that Nabal was shearing his sheep.

New Heart English Bible
David heard in the wilderness that Nabal was shearing his sheep.

Webster's Bible Translation
And David heard in the wilderness that Nabal was shearing his sheep.

World English Bible
David heard in the wilderness that Nabal was shearing his sheep.

Young's Literal Translation
And David heareth in the wilderness that Nabal is shearing his flock,

Additional Translations ...
Audio Bible



Context
David, Nabal, and Abigail
3His name was Nabal, and his wife’s name was Abigail. She was an intelligent and beautiful woman, but her husband, a Calebite, was harsh and evil in his dealings. 4While David was in the wilderness, he heard that Nabal was shearing sheep. 5So David sent ten young men and instructed them, “Go up to Nabal at Carmel. Greet him in my name…

Cross References
1 Samuel 25:3
His name was Nabal, and his wife's name was Abigail. She was an intelligent and beautiful woman, but her husband, a Calebite, was harsh and evil in his dealings.

1 Samuel 25:5
So David sent ten young men and instructed them, "Go up to Nabal at Carmel. Greet him in my name


Treasury of Scripture

And David heard in the wilderness that Nabal did shear his sheep.

did shear

Genesis 38:13
And it was told Tamar, saying, Behold thy father in law goeth up to Timnath to shear his sheep.

2 Samuel 13:23
And it came to pass after two full years, that Absalom had sheepshearers in Baalhazor, which is beside Ephraim: and Absalom invited all the king's sons.

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Cutting David Desert Heard Heareth Nabal Shear Shearing Sheep Waste Wilderness Wool Word
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Cutting David Desert Heard Heareth Nabal Shear Shearing Sheep Waste Wilderness Wool Word
1 Samuel 25
1. Samuel dies
2. David in Paran sends to Nabal
10. Provoked by Nabal's rudeness, he minds to destroy him
14. Abigail understanding thereof
18. takes a present
23. and by her wisdom
32. pacifies David
36. Nabal hearing thereof, dies
39. David takes Abigail and Ahinoam to be his wives
44. Michal is given to Phalti














(4) And David heard in the wilderness.--The question of the support of the large band of devoted followers who obeyed David must have been usually a very anxious one. No doubt, contributions from the farmers and sheep-masters materially aided the supplies David and his men derived from their raids across the Philistine borders. It is likely enough that some of these contributions were not always willingly made; still, there is no doubt that the presence of the armed band of David during the latter years of Saul afforded considerable protection to the border land. His position resembled that of a modern Arab sheik of a friendly Bedaween tribe, and it is clear that on the whole his career as head of an army of free lances tended to popularise him among the southern tribes of Israel. Nabal's conduct appears to have been more than churlish and foolish, for David, according to the showing of Nabal's own shepherds, had on many occasions been of substantial service to them as they tended their flocks in exposed and dangerous localities. The testimony of these shepherd folk may be accepted generally as the popular estimate of David and his acts during this rough and sorely tried period of his life.

Verses 4, 5. - Though David had gone some distance southward of Carmel, yet it was worth his while to send men to Nabal's sheep shearing, as the maintenance of his numerous force must have been a continual difficulty. The large number, ten, also shows that he expected a liberal gift of food. Probably such missions were not uncommon, and the large sheep masters were glad to supply the wants of one who guarded their flocks and defended them from the incursions of the desert tribes.

Parallel Commentaries ...


Hebrew
While David
דָּוִ֖ד (dā·wiḏ)
Noun - proper - masculine singular
Strong's 1732: David -- perhaps 'beloved one', a son of Jesse

was in the wilderness,
בַּמִּדְבָּ֑ר (bam·miḏ·bār)
Preposition-b, Article | Noun - masculine singular
Strong's 4057: A pasture, a desert, speech

he heard
וַיִּשְׁמַ֥ע (way·yiš·ma‘)
Conjunctive waw | Verb - Qal - Consecutive imperfect - third person masculine singular
Strong's 8085: To hear intelligently

that
כִּֽי־ (kî-)
Conjunction
Strong's 3588: A relative conjunction

Nabal
נָבָ֖ל (nā·ḇāl)
Noun - proper - masculine singular
Strong's 5037: Nabal -- a man of Carmel

was shearing
גֹזֵ֥ז (ḡō·zêz)
Verb - Qal - Participle - masculine singular
Strong's 1494: To cut off, to shear a, flock, shave the hair, to destroy an enemy

sheep.
צֹאנֽוֹ׃ (ṣō·nōw)
Noun - feminine singular construct | third person masculine singular
Strong's 6629: Small cattle, sheep and goats, flock


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OT History: 1 Samuel 25:4 David heard in the wilderness that Nabal (1Sa iSam 1 Sam i sa)
1 Samuel 25:3
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