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And Dauid seide to hise men, The Lord be merciful to me, lest Y do this thing to my lord, the crist of the Lord, that Y sende myn hond `in to hym, for he is the crist of the Lord. The Lord lyueth, for no but the Lord smyte hym, ether his dai come, that he die, ether he go doun in to batel and perische, the Lord be merciful to me, that Y sende not myn hond in to the crist of the Lord.

Lo! to dai thin iyen siyen, that the Lord bitook thee in myn hond in the denne, and Y thouyte that Y wolde sle thee, but myn iye sparide thee; for Y seide, Y schal not holde forth myn hond in to my lord, which is the crist, `that is, anoyntid, of the Lord.

But rathere, my fadir, se thou, and knowe the hemme of thi mentil in myn hond, for whanne Y kittide aweie the hemme of thi mentil, Y nolde holde forth myn hond in thee; perseyue thou, and see, for nether yuel nether wickidnesse is in myn hond, nether Y synnede ayens thee; but thou aspiest my lijf, that thou do it awei.

And he seide to Dauid, Thou art more iust than Y; for thou yauest goodis to me; forsothe Y yeldide yuelis to thee.

For who, `whanne he fyndith his enemy, schal delyuere hym in good weie? But the Lord yelde to thee this while, for that, that thou wrouytist to dai in me.

And now, for Y woot, that thou schalt regne moost certeynli, and schalt haue in thin hond the rewme of Israel, swere thou to me in the Lord,

axe thi children, and thei schulen schewe to thee. Now therfor thi children fynde grace in thin iyen; for in a good dai we camen to thee; what euer thing thin hond fyndith, yyue to thi seruauntis, and to thi sone Dauid.

thei weren to vs for a wal, bothe in niyt and in dai, in alle daies in whiche we lesewiden flockis at hem.

Wherfor biholde thou, and thenke, what thou schalt do; for malice is fillid ayens thin hosebonde, and ayens `thin hows; and he is the sone of Belial, so that no man may speke to him.

And Dauid seide, Verili in veyn Y haue kept alle thingis that weren of this Nabal in the deseert, and no thing perischide of alle thingis that perteyneden to hym, and he hath yolde to me yuel for good.

Y preie, my lord the kyng, sette not his herte on this wickid man Nabal, for bi his name he is a fool, and foli is with hym; but, my lord, Y thin handmayde siy not thi children, whiche thou sentist.

Do thou awey the wickidnesse of thi seruauntesse; for the Lord makynge schal make a feithful hows to thee, my lord, for thou, my lord, fiytist the batels of the Lord; therfor malice be not foundun in thee in alle dais of thi lijf.

For if a man risith ony tyme, and pursueth thee, and sekith thi lijf, the lijf of my lord schal be kept as in a bundel of lyuynge trees, at thi Lord God; forsothe the soule of thin enemyes schal be hurlid round aboute as in feersnesse, and sercle of a slynge.

Forsothe Abigail cam to Nabal; and, lo! a feeste was to him in his hows, as the feeste of a kyng; and the herte of Nabal was iocounde, for he was `drunkun greetli; and sche schewide not to hym a word litil ether greet til the morewe.

And Dauid seide to Abysai, Sle thou not hym, for who schal holde forth his hond into the crist of the Lord, and schal be innocent?

And Dauid seide, The Lord lyueth, for no but the Lord smyte hym, ether his dai come that he die, ether he go doun in to batel and perische;

Dauid took the spere, and the cuppe of watir, that was at the heed of Saul, and thei yeden forth, and no man was that siy, and vndirstood, and wakide, but alle men slepten; for the sleep of the Lord `hadde feld on hem.

And Dauith seide to Abner, Whether thou art not a man, and what other man is lijk thee in Israel? whi therfor `kepist thou not thi lord the kyng? `For o man of the cumpanye entride, that he schulde sle thi lord the kyng;

this that thou hast doon, is not good; the Lord lyueth, for ye ben sones of deeth, that kepten not youre lord, the crist of the Lord. Now therfor se thou, where is the spere of the kyng, and where is the cuppe of watir, that weren at his heed.

And Dauid seide, For what cause pursueth my lord his seruaunt? What haue Y do, ether what yuel is in myn hond? Now therfor,