American Standard Version
1 Samuel 25:3
3Now the name of the man was Nabal; and the name of his wife Abigail; and the woman was of good understanding, and of a beautiful countenance: but the man was churlish and evil in his doings; and he was of the house of Caleb.
1 Samuel 25:3 in other versions
- King James Version (KJV)Now the name of the man was Nabal; and the name of his wife Abigail: and she was a woman of good understanding, and of a beautiful countenance: but the man was churlish and evil in his doings; and he was of the house of Caleb.
- New International Version (NIV)His name was Nabal and his wife’s name was Abigail. She was an intelligent and beautiful woman, but her husband was surly and mean in his dealings—he was a Calebite.
- English Standard Version (ESV)Now the name of the man was Nabal, and the name of his wife Abigail. The woman was discerning and beautiful, but the man was harsh and badly behaved; he was a Calebite.
- New King James Version (NKJV)The name of the man was Nabal, and the name of his wife Abigail. And she was a woman of good understanding and beautiful appearance; but the man was harsh and evil in his doings. He was of the house of Caleb.
Context of 1 Samuel 25:3
1And Samuel died; and all Israel gathered themselves together, and lamented him, and buried him in his house at Ramah. And David arose, and went down to the wilderness of Paran. 2And there was a man in Maon, whose possessions were in Carmel; and the man was very great, and he had three thousand sheep, and a thousand goats: and he was shearing his sheep in Carmel. Now the name of the man was Nabal; and the name of his wife Abigail; and the woman was of good understanding, and of a beautiful countenance: but the man was churlish and evil in his doings; and he was of the house of Caleb. 4And David heard in the wilderness that Nabal was shearing his sheep. 5And David sent ten young men, and David said unto the young men, Get you up to Carmel, and go to Nabal, and greet him in my name:
Read all of 1 Samuel 251 Samuel 25:3 word by word
וְשֵׁ֤ם הָאִישׁ֙ נָבָ֔ל וְשֵׁ֥ם אִשְׁתּ֖וֹ אֲבִגָ֑יִל וְהָאִשָּׁ֤ה טֽוֹבַת־שֶׂ֙כֶל֙ וִ֣יפַת תֹּ֔אַר וְהָאִ֥ישׁ קָשֶׁ֛ה וְרַ֥ע מַעֲלָלִ֖ים וְה֥וּא כָלִבִּֽי׃Read the interlinear
- nameשֵׁםshêm · nameH8034
- manאִישׁ'îysh · manH376
- Nabalנָבָלnâbâl · NabalH5037
- wifeאִשָּׁה'ishshâh nâshîym · woman: wifeH802
- Abigailאֲבִיגַ֫יִל, אֲבִיגַ֫ל'ăbîygayil 'ăbîygal · AbigailH26
- womanאִשָּׁה'ishshâh nâshîym · womanH802
- goodטוֹבţôb · pleasantH2896
- beautifulיָפֶהyâpheh · beautifulH3303
- evilרַעra‛ râ‛âh · bad: evilH7451
Cross-references for 1 Samuel 25:3
- Proverbs 14:1Every wise woman buildeth her house; But the foolish plucketh it down with her own hands.
- Proverbs 31:26She openeth her mouth with wisdom; And the law of kindness is on her tongue.
- 1 Samuel 25:10And Nabal answered David’s servants, and said, Who is David? and who is the son of Jesse? there are many servants now-a-days that break away every man from his master.
- Psalms 10:3For the wicked boasteth of his heart’s desire, And the covetous renounceth, yea, contemneth Jehovah.
- Isaiah 32:5The fool shall be no more called noble, nor the churl said to be bountiful.
Commentaries on 1 Samuel 25:3
- Adam Clarke Bible Commentary · v. 3The name of the man was Nabal - The word נבל nabal signifies to be foolish, base, or villanous; and hence the Latin word nebulo, knave, is supposed to be derived. The name of his wife Abigail - The joy or exultation of my father. A woman of sense and beauty, married to the boor mentioned above, probably because he was rich. Many women have been thus sacrificed. Of the house of Caleb - כלבי והוא vehu Chalibbi, "he was a Calebite." But as the word caleb…Read the comment
- Matthew Henry Concise Commentary · v. 2-11Verses 2-11 We should not have heard of Nabal, if nothing had passed between him and David. Observe his name, Nabal, "A fool;" so it signifies. Riches make men look great in the eye of the world; but to one that takes right views, Nabal looked very mean. He had no honour or honesty; he was churlish, cross, and ill-humoured; evil in his doings, hard and oppressive; a man that cared not what fraud and violence he used in getting and saving. What little…Read the comment
- Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 3Nabal: See 1 Samuel 25:25 to understand the irony of his name. Unlike her husband, Abigail was a sensible and wise person, as the story shows.Read the comment
- Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 33. he was of the house of Caleb--of course, of the same tribe with David himself; but many versions consider Caleb ("dog") not as a proper, but a common noun, and render it, "he was snappish as a dog."Read the comment
Topics related to 1 Samuel 25:3
In the dictionaries
Commentaries on 1 Samuel 25
- Adam Clarke Bible Commentary
- Barnes’ Notes on the Bible
- Matthew Henry Concise Commentary
- Tyndale Open Study Notes
- Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary
- Rashi on Tanakh
- Keil & Delitzsch Commentary
- John Wesley’s Notes
- Darby Translation Notes
- Geneva Bible Translation Notes
- Kingcomments
- Matthew Henry’s Complete Commentary
- Matthew Henry’s Modern English Commentary
- Seventh-day Adventist Bible Commentary
- EGW Writings
American Standard Version — 1901 — Public Domain
Commentaries