“But one of the young men told Abigail, Nabal's wife, saying, Behold, David sent messengers out of the wilderness to salute our master; and he railed on them. But the men were very good unto us, and we were not hurt, neither missed we any thing, as long as we were conversant with them, when we were in the fields: They were a wall unto us both by night and day, all the while we were with them keeping the sheep. Now therefore know and consider what thou wilt do; for evil is determined against our master, and against all his household: for he is such a son of Belial, that a man cannot speak to him. Then Abigail made haste, and took two hundred loaves, and two bottles of wine, and five sheep ready dressed, and five measures of parched corn, and an hundred clusters of raisins, and two hundred cakes of figs, and laid them on asses. And she said unto her servants, Go on before me; behold, I come after you. But she told not her husband Nabal” (1 Samuel 25:14-19).
Introduction
Nabal’s servants had more wisdom than he would ever have. They knew that it was useless to try to persuade him to be generous to David, so one of them, a spokesman, went to his wife instead. She was known to be intelligent and level headed. The intervention of the servant was actually the intervention of God, because it is He that inspired him to act quickly to resolve the situation.
Nabal’s wife
Nabal was indeed the master of his little kingdom and wanted no interference from anyone else. He owned cattle, servants and riches, but he also owned Abigal. The Hebrew word for wife [be’ulah] literally means “owned”. So his servants fully understood what they were saying when they called Nabal “master”, for the word in Hebrew is derived from “ba’al”.
The servants also knew that Abigail could be trusted to act wisely because she was, unlike Nabal, very approachable. The servant who approached Abigail made her see that it was her responsibility to sort out the mess caused by her husband. “Now therefore know and consider what thou wilt do.” This infers that though she was seen by her husband as just an extension of his property, she had authority and respect in the household, and possibly also in the broader community. We find her fulfilling the truth found in Proverbs 21:14, “A gift in secret pacifieth anger.”
Abigail’s problem
The servant explained the background to the situation to Abigail. Nabal might not even have any property if it were not for David and his men. They had protected the farm hands and the shepherds from marauders and never once mistreated them. They described David’s honourable character and behaviour, thus showing that Nabal’s treatment of him was unjust and unwise. They knew that their master must have been aware of the protection David’s army afforded him, but chose to insult him instead of offering a welcoming hand. So it is Nabal’s fault if the whole household was slaughtered by those he offended.
Nabal may have been an Israelite, but as his servant rightly noted, he was truly a “son of Belial.” Notice that the servant had no qualms about stating this fact to his wife, which proves that he knew that Abigail would agree and not reprimand him for being disrespectful. She acted quickly before the matter got any worse, but she did so without Nabal’s knowledge. This means that none of the servants rushed off to tell their master what his wife was up to, and revealing the deep respect they had for her. She could have worried about her own safety if she was found out, but instead acted for the greater good of the entire household. “Because she knew his crooked nature, that he would rather die than agree to her enterprise” (Geneva Study Bible).
David’s feast
Though she would meet David in person, she sent
enough food to feed his men ahead of herself. “What
king, going to make war against another king, sitteth not down first, and
consulteth whether he be able with ten thousand to meet him that cometh against
him with twenty thousand? Or else, while the other is yet a great way off, he
sendeth an ambassage, and desireth conditions of peace” (Luke 14:31-32).
Where Nabal was miserly, Abigail was generous.
David’s request was for a minimal supply, but now he received abundantly.
David would have been happy with the leftovers from the feast, but she sent him
the choicest food from the storehouse. Everything was pre-cooked and ready to
eat, so David could literally sit down to a banquet of his own, and all at
Nabal’s expense. “The instruments
also of the churl are evil: he deviseth wicked devices to destroy the poor with
lying words, even when the needy speaketh right. But the liberal deviseth
liberal things; and by liberal things shall he stand” (Isaiah 32:7-8).
Conclusion
This part of David’s life would have reached a fast conclusion if it were not for sensible Abigail taking quick action to resolve the situation. We know that God’s hand is in all of this. It is He that moved upon Nabal’s servants and wife to do something about his foolishness, rudeness and ingratitude. “It was not a time to trifle or linger when all was in danger” (Matthew Henry).
© 20/7/2009