שמואל א, פרק כ״ה, פסוק י״א

A request for provisions is met with a rhetorical question expressing total refusal and deep disrespect. Nabal questions the logic of taking the food he prepared specifically for his own workers and handing it over to strangers. He details the exact supplies he refuses to share, beginning with bread and water. These items can be understood literally, as they were highly precious resources in the desert environment. Alternatively, these terms might represent the entire banquet, with the bread referring to the baked goods and the water serving as a general term for all the drinks provided [רד״ק]. He also refuses to hand over the freshly slaughtered meat [מצודת ציון], along with the other cooked dishes prepared for the meal [רד״ק].

Nabal argues that this abundance was prepared exclusively for the men actively shearing his sheep. He claims it makes no sense to take food meant for his laborers and give it to others, as doing so would leave his own workers hungry [מלבי״ם].

To finalize his rejection, Nabal dismisses the messengers as complete strangers of unknown origin. This deliberate alienation serves two distinct purposes. First, it makes his position absolutely clear: he will not give his property to people he does not know [מצודת דוד, ביאור שטיינזלץ]. Second, by pretending he has no idea who they are, he conveniently ignores the moral debt he owes them. Rather than acknowledging that these men had successfully guarded and protected his flocks in the wilderness, he treats their request as an arrogant, baseless demand from random travelers [מלבי״ם].