1 Samuel 25:14

14 And one of the young men told to Abigail, the wife of Nabal, and said, Lo! David sent messengers from desert, that they should bless our lord, and he turned them away (Lo! David sent messengers from the wilderness to greet our lord, but he turned them away);

1 Samuel 25:14 Meaning and Commentary

1 Samuel 25:14

But one of the young men told Abigail, Nabal's wife
Not one of David's young men, as what follows shows, but one of Nabal's young men or servants, one of those David directs him to for the truth of what he said, ( 1 Samuel 25:8 ) ; this was one of those that had been employed in feeding sheep in the wilderness, where David was, and knew him, but was now at Carmel, and was present when David's messengers came to Nabal, and was privy to what passed:

saying, David sent messengers out of the wilderness to salute our
master;
in a very kind and handsome manner, to ask of his peace and welfare, and to wish him all happiness and prosperity; or "masters" ^F25 master and mistress, including both Nabal and Abigail:

and he railed on them;
gave them very abusive language, represented David and his men as a parcel of scoundrels, fugitives, and runaway servants, ( 1 Samuel 25:10 1 Samuel 25:11 ) ; or "he flew at them" ^F26; or "upon" them, in great wrath and fury, calling them hard names, bidding them begone about their business; the allusion is to a ravenous bird, which will fly at persons when it apprehends its young in any danger.

---

FOOTNOTES:

F25 (wnynda) "dominus nostros", Malvenda.
F26 (Mhb jeyw) "et involavit in eos", Coccei Lex. col. 607.

1 Samuel 25:14 In-Context

12 Therefore the young men of David went again by their way; and they turned again, and came, and told to him all (the) words which Nabal had said.

13 Then David said to his young men, (Let) Each man be gird with his sword. And all (his) men were girded with their swords, and David also was girded with his sword; and as four hundred men followed David, for two hundred (were) left at the fardels (and about four hundred men followed David, for two hundred were left behind with the bundles, or the supplies).

14 And one of the young men told to Abigail, the wife of Nabal, and said, Lo! David sent messengers from desert, that they should bless our lord, and he turned them away (Lo! David sent messengers from the wilderness to greet our lord, but he turned them away);

15 these men were good enough, and not dis-easeful to us, and nothing of ours perished in all the time in which we were with them in desert, (or in the wilderness);

16 they were to us for a wall, both in night and day, in all the days in which we pastured flocks with them. (they were like a wall for us, both night and day, all the days in which we pastured the flocks with them.)