1 Samuel 25:19
in 1 Samuel 25and said to her young men, “Go ahead of me. I will be right behind you.” But she did not tell her husband Nabal.
BSB
The same verse in ASV and KJV ▾
ASV
And she said unto her young men, Go on before me; behold, I come after you. But she told not her husband Nabal.
KJV
And she said unto her servants, Go on before me; behold, I come after you. But she told not her husband Nabal.
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This verse in 1 Samuel 25
Commentary
5 notes on this verseThis site's exposition
took two hundred loaves
on 1 Samuel 25:18-19
Abigail moves at once, loading donkeys with two hundred loaves, two skins of wine, dressed sheep, parched corn, raisins and fig cakes, a store large enough to answer four hundred hungry men without asking Nabal's leave. She sends the gift ahead and tells her husband nothing, acting on her own judgment in a household where the master cannot be reasoned with. Matthew Henry reads the size of the gift as wisdom answering folly, for a gift pacifies anger, and Abigail loses nothing of her house by giving generously what Nabal had refused meanly.
This site's exposition
I will be right behind you
Sending the gift ahead of herself follows the order Jacob used with Esau at Genesis 32. Jamieson, Fausset and Brown call this common practice. Abigail followed her young men on a donkey to see how David and his men took the gift.
The record, by era
The Medieval Church1 voice
And he said to his servants: Go before me, etc. Many from Judea had gone before, coming to the faith individually, and the Synagogue followed after them. For it was first said: But the Lord added to the number those who were being saved daily …
The Puritans and the Awakening1 voice
And she said to her servants, go on before me,....
The Nineteenth Century1 voice
A commentator
Jamieson, Fausset & Brown1802–1910
Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible (1871)
proposed
Abigail not only sent her servants in this way, but resolved to go in person, following her present, as is commonly done, to watch the impression which her munificence would produce.
The words behind it
11 Hebrew wordsEvery Hebrew word of this verse in the order it stands, with what it means and the door to its own study. The last column counts the times a word stands in the whole Bible: the rarer the word, the more the places it appears belong together.
| Hebrew | Sound | Meaning | Word study | In the Bible |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| וַתֹּ֤אמֶר | vatomer | and she said | H559 → | 5305 times |
| לִנְעָרֶ֙יהָ֙ | linareiha | to servants her | H5288 → | 239 times |
| עִבְר֣וּ | ʾivru | pass on | H5674 → | 556 times |
| לְפָנַ֔י | lefanai | <to> before me | H6440 → | 2123 times |
| הִנְנִ֖י | hini | here I | H2005 → | 316 times |
| אַחֲרֵיכֶ֣ם | ʾachareikhem | after you | H310 → | 715 times |
| בָּאָ֑ה | baah | [will be] coming | H935 → | 2568 times |
| וּלְאִישָׁ֥הּ | uleishah | and to husband her | H376 → | 1663 times |
| נָבָ֖ל | naval | Nabal | H5037 → | 22 times |
| לֹ֥א | lo' | not | H3808 → | 5168 times |
| הִגִּֽידָה׃ | higidah | she told | H5046 → | 370 times |
וַתֹּ֤אמֶרand she said
vatomerH559 →5305 times
לִנְעָרֶ֙יהָ֙to servants her
linareihaH5288 →239 times
עִבְר֣וּpass on
ʾivruH5674 →556 times
לְפָנַ֔י<to> before me
lefanaiH6440 →2123 times
הִנְנִ֖יhere I
hiniH2005 →316 times
אַחֲרֵיכֶ֣םafter you
ʾachareikhemH310 →715 times
בָּאָ֑ה[will be] coming
baahH935 →2568 times
וּלְאִישָׁ֥הּand to husband her
uleishahH376 →1663 times
נָבָ֖לNabal
navalH5037 →22 times
לֹ֥אnot
lo'H3808 →5168 times
הִגִּֽידָה׃she told
higidahH5046 →370 times
A shaded row is a word that stands 400 times or fewer in the Bible.
The walk
8 stopsEach card is a verse this one points to, and under it the verses that one points to in turn. Where several paths arrive at the same place, that place is listed first: the text keeps returning to it.
Through
Proverbs 31:27She watches over the affairs of her household and does not eat the bread of idleness.
it leads to
- 1 Timothy 5:10
and well known for good deeds such as bringing up children, entertaining strangers, washing the feet of the saints, imparting relief to the afflicted, and devoting herself to every good work.
- Titus 2:4
In this way they can train the young women to love their husbands and children,
- 2 Thessalonians 3:6
Now we command you, brothers, in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, to keep away from any brother who leads an undisciplined life that is not in keeping with the tradition you received…
- Proverbs 14:1
Every wise woman builds her house, but a foolish one tears it down with her own hands.
- 1 Thessalonians 4:11
and to aspire to live quietly, to attend to your own matters, and to work with your own hands, as we instructed you.
- 1 Timothy 5:10
Through
Genesis 32:20You are also to say, ‘Look, your servant Jacob is right behind us.’” For he thought, “I will appease Esau with the gift that is going before me. After that I can face him,…
it leads to
- Job 42:8–9
So now, take seven bulls and seven rams, go to My servant Job, and sacrifice a burnt offering for yourselves. Then My servant Job will pray for you, for I will accept his prayer…
- Proverbs 21:14
A gift in secret soothes anger, and a covert bribe pacifies great wrath.
- 1 Samuel 6:5
Make images of your tumors and of the rats that are ravaging the land. Give glory to the God of Israel, and perhaps He will lift His hand from you and your gods and…
- Job 42:8–9
Where this verse is studied
On this page
Studies1
About 1 Samuel
Who and where
1 name in this verse with a page on the site.
This page draws on Adam Clarke, Commentary on the Bible; Bede, Commentary on Samuel; Jamieson, Fausset & Brown, Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible; John Gill, Exposition of the Old Testament (1748-1763) and Matthew Henry, Commentary on the Whole Bible.