Bible Strands
1 Samuel 25:11
Why should I take my bread and water and the meat I have slaughtered for my shearers, and give them to these men whose origin I do not know?”
Berean Standard Bible
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Study note
Setting — Nabal addresses David’s messengers during their request for harvest provisions. He refuses to recognize David’s standing while emphasizing his own unrecorded identity and the laborers he supports.
The words — לָקַחְתִּי (la.kach.Ti) translates literally as “I will take,” and טִבְחָתִי (tiv.cha.Ti) means “my slaughter.” These terms ground Nabal’s refusal in the specific food and drink he prepared for his own workers.
The thread — The conflict between retaining wealth and distributing it surfaces in Judges 8:6 and Deuteronomy 8:17, while Galatians 6:10 commands extending good works to all people. The juxtaposition traces a consistent biblical tension between self-preservation and mandated generosity.
Why it lands — The verse explicitly states that Nabal withholds bread, water, and meat from strangers, making generosity conditional on recognized origin. It requires the reader to evaluate whether personal provision justifies refusing aid to unknown parties.
Drafted by a language model from the text, its original words and its cross-references, then checked against them. It can still be wrong: open the verse in the app to report it.
The Hebrew words
King James Version
Shall I then take my bread, and my water, and my flesh that I have killed for my shearers, and give it unto men, whom I know not whence they be?
Cross-references
- Judges 8:6 But the leaders of Succoth asked, “Are the hands of Zebah and Zalmunna already in your possession, that we should give bread to your army?”
- Galatians 6:10 Therefore, as we have opportunity, let us do good to everyone, and especially to the family of faith.
- Deuteronomy 8:17 You might say in your heart, “The power and strength of my hands have made this wealth for me.”
- 1 Samuel 24:13 As the old proverb says, ‘Wickedness proceeds from the wicked.’ But my hand will never be against you.
- 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 25:14 Meanwhile, one of Nabal’s young men informed Nabal’s wife Abigail, “Look, David sent messengers from the wilderness to greet our master, but he screamed at them.
- Job 31:17 if I have eaten my morsel alone, not sharing it with the fatherless—
- Psalms 73:7 From their prosperity proceeds iniquity; the imaginations of their hearts run wild.
- Ecclesiastes 11:1 Cast your bread upon the waters, for after many days you will find it again.
- John 9:29 We know that God spoke to Moses, but we do not know where this man is from.”