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1 Samuel 25 says that Nabal’s heart “became a stone,” describing his reaction to Abigail’s news. The Greek Septuagint changes this by explicitly adding a comparison, translating it as “like a stone,” to avoid an implausible literal reading.
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2500 BCE
1000+ CE
1 Samuel 25:37
Hebrew Bible
36 When Abigail went back to Nabal, he was holding a banquet in his house like that of the king. Nabal was having a good time and was very intoxicated. She told him absolutely nothing until morning’s light. 37 In the morning, when Nabal was sober, his wife told him about these matters. His heart died within him and he became a stone40. 38 After about 10 days the Lord struck Nabal down and he died.
Date: 600–501 BCE (based on scholarly estimates)
LXX 1 Samuel 25:37
Septuagint
36 And Abigail came to Nabal: and, look, he had a banquet in his house, as the banquet of a king, and the heart of Nabal was merry within him, and he was very drunk: and she told him nothing great or small till the morning light. 37 And it happened in the morning, when Nabal recovered from his wine, his wife told him these words; and his heart died within him, and he became as a stone. 38 And it happened after about ten days, that the Lord struck Nabal, and he died.
Date: 100–1 BCE (based on scholarly estimates)
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Notes and References
"... When Abigail told to Nabal her negotiation with David (1 Samuel 25:37), his heart became “a stone” (1 Samuel 25:37 in the Masoretic text). Both the translator of the Septuagint and the Targumist add the comparative particle and offer the reading “like a stone” – a human heart cannot really become a stone. Perhaps the translator of the Septuagint had a source text already including the comparative כ ..."
Martin Meiser, The Septuagint and Its Reception: Collected Essays (Tübingen: Mohr Siebeck, 2022), 71.
* The use of references are not endorsements of their contents. Please read the entirety of the provided reference(s) to understand the author's full intentions regarding the use of these texts.
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What is meant by the statement "like a stone", is synonymous with what we see elsewhere in OT scripture described as having a hard heart, or the hardening of ones heart. The LXX paints a better context for this by describing the preceding condition of his heart in the statement "and the heart of Nab ...
What is meant by the statement "like a stone", is synonymous with what we see elsewhere in OT scripture described as having a hard heart, or the hardening of ones heart. The LXX paints a better context for this by describing the preceding condition of his heart in the statement "and the heart of Nabal was merry within him". What it means to have a hard heart is to have one that is not loving to you and therfore others. It first appeared at the Fall in Genesis, where Cain's countenance fell and he became dis-Abeled. Here are some references:Prov 15.13
A glad heart makes a cheerful countenance,
but by sorrow of heart the spirit is broken.
Prov 15.15
All the days of the poor are hard,
but a cheerful heart has a continual feast.
Sir 33.5
The heart of a fool is like a cart wheel, and his thoughts like a turning axle.
Sir 37.17-18
17 The mind is the root of all conduct; it sprouts four branches, good and evil, life and death;
and it is the tongue that continually rules them.
We can compare Nabal with the rich man in the parable which Jesus told in Luke 12:15-21.
We can compare Nabal with the rich man in the parable which Jesus told in Luke 12:15-21.