“And David heard in the wilderness that Nabal did shear his sheep. And David sent out ten young men, and David said unto the young men, Get you up to Carmel, and go to Nabal, and greet him in my name: And thus shall ye say to him that liveth in prosperity, Peace be both to thee, and peace be to thine house, and peace be unto all that thou hast. And now I have heard that thou hast shearers: now thy shepherds which were with us, we hurt them not, neither was there ought missing unto them, all the while they were in Carmel. Ask thy young men, and they will show thee. Wherefore let the young men find favour in thine eyes: for we come in a good day: give, I pray thee, whatsoever cometh to thine hand unto thy servants, and to thy son David. And when David's young men came, they spake to Nabal according to all those words in the name of David, and ceased. And Nabal answered David's servants, and said, Who is David? and who is the son of Jesse? there be many servants now a days that break away every man from his master. 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? So David's young men turned their way, and went again, and came and told him all those sayings. And David said unto his men, Gird ye on every man his sword. And they girded on every man his sword; and David also girded on his sword: and there went up after David about four hundred men; and two hundred abode by the stuff” (1 Samuel 25:4-13).
Introduction
David expected the blessing, but instead received a curse, not only that, but Nabal insulted him and his men by claiming not to know him. This is not an uncommon occurrence in our Christian lives. We bless, encourage and assist others only to find that they turn on us and speak evil of us.
The request
David and his men must have been in constant need of provisions, so hearing of the celebration in Nabal’s household, he must have seen this as a opportune moment to request a favour. In fact, David was simply requesting compensation for the unacknowledged help he had given Nabal. His men had held back thieves and marauders, especially the Philistines and Amalekites. They were a protective wall around Nabal’s property day and night. Usually farmers were grateful for the presence of private armies like David’s and were only too pleased “to supply the wants of the one who guarded their flocks and defended them from the incursions of the desert tribes” (R. P. Smith). But Nabal was far from being a generous and grateful man.
We notice that David told the ten men to warmly greet Nabal, so he was not demanding any recompense from him. The men respectfully greeted Nabal, but he did not offer them any welcome or hospitality. They humbly asked for some provisions, probably less than would be thrown away after the celebration, so it was a modest request. They spoke of the protection David’s men had given him, something Nabal’s servants knew of only too well.
Some commentators has suggested that David was running an Italian style protection racket. If David had wanted to twist Nabal’s arm and force him to give, then he would have sent considerably more than ten men. If he wanted to blackmail him, then he had every opportunity to put pressure on Nabal before now. Instead he waited until he knew that Nabal would not be hurt financially, so David’s army were light-years away from being a Jewish mafia.
The response
Being the wicked man he was, Nabal said, “Who does David think he is?” He called David a runaway slave. As far as he was concerned, he was not going to feed King Saul’s rebellious servant who had ideas above his station. Like a spoilt and selfish child he talks about “mine”, “My bread, my water, my flesh and my shearers.” There was a lot of shearing but no sharing going on with Nabal. Not only was he opposing David, but more seriously, he was standing against the will of God. “If there be among you a poor man of one of thy brethren within any of thy gates in thy land which the LORD thy God giveth thee, thou shalt not harden thine heart, nor shut thine hand from thy poor brother: But thou shalt open thine hand wide unto him, and shalt surely lend him sufficient for his need, in that which he wanteth” (Deuteronomy 15:7-8).
Like the Rich Fool in the parable (see Luke 12:16-21), Nabal thought he had it made and all his wealth was due to his own hard work, but he had left God out of the equation. Matthew Henry writes that we make a “mistake if we think we are absolute lords of what we have and may do what we please with it. No, we are but stewards, and must use it as we are directed, remembering it is not our own, but his that entrusted us with it.” “For the vile person will speak villany, and his heart will work iniquity, to practice hypocrisy, and to utter error against the LORD, to make empty the soul of the hungry, and he will cause the drink of the thirsty to fail” (Isaiah 32:6).
The revenge
David had been insulted many times, but it seems that this insult was especially callous, for even Nabal’s own household remarked upon the harshness of his words, “He railed on” David and his men (1 Samuel 25:14). Like David, we are quick on the attack if we feel we have been mocked, reviled or offended. “Dearly beloved, avenge not yourselves, but rather give place unto wrath: for it is written, Vengeance is mine; I will repay, saith the Lord” (Romans 12:19). If David went through with his desire to kill, then he would only make matters worse. God needs to step in to calm the situation. “Men who have in them the spirit of martyrs, and who would brave a dungeon or death itself rather than renounce a testimony or falter in a duty, often suffer defeat under the most ordinary temptations of everyday life – they lose their temper on the most trifling provocations” (Robert Blaikie).
Conclusion
Nabal was the Ebenezer Scrooge of his day. A miser who only thought of himself and his riches, but would lose everything he thought he had. In our condemnation of such mean-spirited people, we need to be careful not to overstep the mark by passing judgement upon them. Let us leave them in the capable hands of God.
© 13/7/2009