1 Samuel 25:11

Christian Standard Bible ®

Am I supposed to take my bread, my water, and my meat that I butchered for my shearers and give them to these men? I don’t know where they are from.”

Parallel Translations

Hebrew Names Version
Shall I then take my bread, and my water, and my meat that I have killed for my shearers, and give it to men who I don't know where they come from?

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?

Lexham English Bible
Should I take my bread and my water and my meat which I have slaughtered for my shearers and give it to men whom I do not know where they are from?

English Standard Version
Shall I take my bread and my water and my meat that I have killed for my shearers and give it to men who come from I do not know where?"

New Century Version
I have bread and water, and I have meat that I killed for my servants who cut the wool. But I won't give it to men I don't know."

New English Translation
Should I take my bread and my water and my meat that I have slaughtered for my shearers and give them to these men? I don't even know where they came from!"

Amplified Bible
"So should I take my bread and my water and my meat that I have slaughtered for my shearers, and give it to men when I do not know where they are from?"

New American Standard Bible
"Shall I then take my bread and my water and my meat that I have slaughtered for my shearers, and give it to men whose origin I do not know?"

Geneva Bible (1587)
Shall I then take my bread, and my water, and my flesh that I haue killed for my sherers, and giue it vnto men, whom I know not whence they be?

Legacy Standard Bible
Shall I then take my bread and my water and my meat that I have slaughtered for my shearers, and give it to men whose origin I do not know?"

Contemporary English Version
What makes you think I would take my bread, my water, and the meat that I've had cooked for my own servants and give it to you? Besides, I'm not sure that David sent you!

Complete Jewish Bible
Am I supposed to take my bread, my water and my meat that I slaughtered for my shearers and give it to men coming from who knows where?"

Darby Translation
And shall I take my bread, and my water, and my flesh which I have killed for my shearers, and give [it] to men whom I know not whence they are?

Easy-to-Read Version
I have bread and water, and I have the meat I killed for my servants who cut the wool from my sheep. But I won't give them to men I don't even know."

George Lamsa Translation
Shall I then take my bread and my water and my meat that I have killed for my shearers, and give it to men whom I know not whence they are?

Good News Translation
I'm not going to take my bread and water, and the animals I have butchered for my sheepshearers, and give them to people who come from I don't know where!"

Literal Translation
And shall I take my bread, and my water, and my meat which I have killed for my shearers, and give to men whom I have not known, from where they are?

Miles Coverdale Bible (1535)
Shulde I take my bred, water and flesh, that I haue slayne for my clyppers, & geue it vnto me whom I knowe not whence they are?

American Standard 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 of whom I know not whence they are?

Bible in Basic English
Am I to take my bread and my wine and the meat I have got ready for my wool-cutters and give it to men coming from I have no idea where?

Bishop's Bible (1568)
Shal I then take my bread, my water, and my fleshe that I haue killed for my shearers, and geue it vnto men whom I wot not whence they be?

JPS Old Testament (1917)
shall I then take my bread, and my water, and my flesh that I have killed for my shearers, and give it unto men of whom I know not whence they are?'

King James Version (1611)
Shall I then take my bread and my water, and my flesh that I haue killed for my shearers, and giue it vnto men, whom I know not whence they bee?

Brenton's Septuagint (LXX)
And shall I take my bread, and my wine, and my beasts that I have slain for my shearers, and shall I give them to men of whom I know not whence they are?

English Revised 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 of whom I know not whence they be?

Berean Standard Bible
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?"

Wycliffe Bible (1395)
Therfor schal Y take my looues and my watris, and the fleischis of beestis, whiche Y haue slayn to my schereris, and schal Y yyue to men, whiche Y knowe not of whennus thei ben?

Young's Literal Translation
and I have taken my bread, and my water, and my flesh, which I slaughtered for my shearers, and have given [it] to men whom I have not known whence they [are]!'

Update Bible Version
Shall I then take my bread, and my water, and my flesh that I have killed for my shearers, and give it to men of whom I don't know from where they are?

Webster's Bible Translation
Shall I then take my bread, and my water, and my flesh that I have killed for my shearers, and give [it] to men, whom I know not whence they [are]?

World English Bible
Shall I then take my bread, and my water, and my meat that I have killed for my shearers, and give it to men who I don't know where they come from?

New King James Version
Shall I then take my bread and my water and my meat that I have killed for my shearers, and give it to men when I do not know where they are from?"

New Living Translation
Should I take my bread and my water and my meat that I've slaughtered for my shearers and give it to a band of outlaws who come from who knows where?"

New Life Bible
Should I take my bread and my water and my meat that I have killed for my wool cutters, and give it to men when I do not know where they came from?"

New Revised Standard
Shall I take my bread and my water and the meat that I have butchered for my shearers, and give it to men who come from I do not know where?"

J.B. Rotherham Emphasized Bible
Shall I, then, take my bread, and my wine, and my slain beasts, that I have slaughtered for my shearers, - and give unto men of whom I know not whence they are?

Douay-Rheims Bible
Shall I then take my bread, and my water, and the flesh of my cattle, which I have killed for my shearers, and give to men whom I know not whence they are?

Revised Standard Version
Shall I take my bread and my water and my meat that I have killed for my shearers, and give it to men who come from I do not know where?"

New American Standard Bible (1995)
"Shall I then take my bread and my water and my meat that I have slaughtered for my shearers, and give it to men whose origin I do not know?"

Contextual Overview

²A man in Maon had a business in Carmel; he was a very rich man with three thousand sheep and one thousand goats and was shearing his sheep in Carmel. ³The man’s name was Nabal, and his wife’s name, Abigail. The woman was intelligent and beautiful, but the man, 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 instructing them, “Go up to Carmel, and when you come to Nabal, greet him in my name. ⁶Then say this: ‘Long life to you, and peace to you, peace to your family, and peace to all that is yours. ⁷I hear that you are shearing. When your shepherds were with us, we did not harass them, and nothing of theirs was missing the whole time they were in Carmel. ⁸Ask your young men, and they will tell you. So let my young men find favor with you, for we have come on a feast day. Please give whatever you have on hand to your servants and to your son David.’” ⁹David’s young men went and said all these things to Nabal on David’s behalf, and they waited. ¹⁰Nabal asked them, “Who is David? Who is Jesse’s son? Many slaves these days are running away from their masters. ¹¹Am I supposed to take my bread, my water, and my meat that I butchered for my shearers and give them to these men? I don’t know where they are from.”

Bible Verse Review
  from Treasury of Scripure Knowledge

Shall I then: 1 Samuel 25:3, 1 Samuel 24:13, Deuteronomy 8:17, Judges 8:6, Job 31:17, Psalms 73:7, Psalms 73:8, 1 Peter 4:9

flesh: Heb. slaughter

give it: Ecclesiastes 11:1, Ecclesiastes 11:2, Galatians 6:10

whom: 1 Samuel 25:14, 1 Samuel 25:15, John 9:29, John 9:30, 2 Corinthians 6:9

Reciprocal: Genesis 43:16 - slay Deuteronomy 23:4 - Because they met Judges 8:24 - because 1 Kings 12:13 - answered 2 Chronicles 10:13 - answered Proverbs 13:16 - a fool Proverbs 15:1 - grievous Proverbs 30:22 - a fool Ecclesiastes 10:13 - beginning Isaiah 32:6 - the vile

Cross-References

Genesis 12:2
I will make you into a great nation,I will bless you,I will make your name great,and you will be a blessing.

Genesis 16:14
That is why the well is called Beer-lahai-roi. It is between Kadesh and Bered.

Genesis 17:19
But God said, “No. Your wife Sarah will bear you a son, and you will name him Isaac. I will confirm my covenant with him as a permanent covenant for his future offspring.

Genesis 22:17
I will indeed bless you and make your offspring as numerous as the stars of the sky and the sand on the seashore. Your offspring will possess the city gates of their enemies.

Genesis 24:62
Now Isaac was returning from Beer-lahai-roi, for he was living in the Negev region.

Genesis 50:24
Joseph said to his brothers, “I am about to die, but God will certainly come to your aid and bring you up from this land to the land he swore to give to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob.”

Gill's Notes on the Bible

Shall I then take my bread, and my water,.... Which include all food and liquors, everything eatable and drinkable; and "water" may be particularly mentioned, because very scarce in the wilderness, and so precious; though the Septuagint version has "wine" instead of "water":

and my flesh which I have killed for my shearers; whether oxen, or sheep, or lambs, as there might be of each sort, for an entertainment made on such an occasion:

and give [it] unto men whom I know not whence they [be]? which is another argument Abarbinel makes use of that he meant not David, but his men only, because he did not know who and from whence they were.

Barnes' Notes on the Bible

The mention of water indicates a country where water was scarce (compare Joshua 15:19). Or “bread and water” may be equivalent to “meat and drink.”