18 Then Abigail made haste and took two hundred loaves and two skins of wine and five sheep already prepared and five seahs of parched grain and a hundred clusters of raisins and two hundred cakes of figs, and laid them on donkeys. 19 And she said to her young men, “Go on before me; behold, I come after you.” But she did not tell her husband Nabal. 20 And as she rode on the donkey and came down under cover of the mountain, behold, David and his men came down toward her, and she met them. 21 Now David had said, “Surely in vain have I guarded all that this fellow has in the wilderness, so that nothing was missed of all that belonged to him, and he has returned me evil for good. 22 God do so to the enemies of David and more also, if by morning I leave so much as one male of all who belong to him.”
23 When Abigail saw David, she hurried and got down from the donkey and fell before David on her face and bowed to the ground. 24 She fell at his feet and said, “On me alone, my lord, be the guilt. Please let your servant speak in your ears, and hear the words of your servant. 25 Let not my lord regard this worthless fellow, Nabal, for as his name is, so is he. Nabal is his name, and folly is with him. But I your servant did not see the young men of my lord, whom you sent. 26 Now then, my lord, as the Lord lives, and as your soul lives, because the Lord has restrained you from bloodguilt and from saving with your own hand, now then let your enemies and those who seek to do evil to my lord be as Nabal. 27 And now let this present that your servant has brought to my lord be given to the young men who follow my lord. 28 Please forgive the trespass of your servant. For the Lord will certainly make my lord a sure house, because my lord is fighting the battles of the Lord, and evil shall not be found in you so long as you live. 29 If men rise up to pursue you and to seek your life, the life of my lord shall be bound in the bundle of the living in the care of the Lord your God. And the lives of your enemies he shall sling out as from the hollow of a sling. 30 And when the Lord has done to my lord according to all the good that he has spoken concerning you and has appointed you prince over Israel, 31 my lord shall have no cause of grief or pangs of conscience for having shed blood without cause or for my lord working salvation himself. And when the Lord has dealt well with my lord, then remember your servant.” – 1 Samuel 25:18-31 ESV
In these verses, we are provided with a stark contrast between Nabal and Abigai, and it shows up in their choice of words. When Nabal had first encountered the men sent by David, he responded rashly and rather harshly.
“Who is David? Who is the son of Jesse? There are many servants these days who are breaking away from their masters. Shall I take my bread and my water and my meat that I have killed for my shearers and give it to men who come from I do not know where?” – 1 Samuel 25:10-11 ESV
Nabal treated David’s men with disrespect and dishonor and his words were flippant and filled with disdain. All the time his shepherds had tended his flocks in the wilderness of Paran, David and his men had provided them with free protection. One of Nabal’s own shepherds confirmed this fact when he appealed to Abigail to intervene.
“These men have been very good to us, and we never suffered any harm from them. Nothing was stolen from us the whole time they were with us. In fact, day and night they were like a wall of protection to us and the sheep.” – 1 Samuel 25:15-16 NLT
And yet, Nabal refused to acknowledge any of this and treated David with contempt rather than gratitude. In doing so, he demonstrated the characteristics of a biblical fool.
Wise words bring approval, but fools are destroyed by their own words. – Ecclesiastes 10:12 ESV
Fools’ words get them into constant quarrels;
they are asking for a beating.
The mouths of fools are their ruin;
they trap themselves with their lips. – Proverbs 18:6-7 NLT
Now Nabal “the fool” was about to get a beating from David. In fact, David had vowed to wipe out Nabal and every one of his men.
“A lot of good it did to help this fellow. We protected his flocks in the wilderness, and nothing he owned was lost or stolen. But he has repaid me evil for good. May God strike me and kill me if even one man of his household is still alive tomorrow morning!” – 1 Samuel 25:21-22 NLT
But wiser minds prevailed. Abigail, the wife of Nabal, when apprised of the situation, stepped in and determined to right the wrong her husband had done to David. This was probably not the first time she had been forced to intervene in her husband’s affairs. As his wife, she was well aware of his reputation and had first-hand experience with his serial foolishness. Even when describing her husband to David, she was extremely blunt.
“I know Nabal is a wicked and ill-tempered man; please don’t pay any attention to him. He is a fool, just as his name suggests.” – 1 Samuel 25:25 NLT
But Abigail’s words of reconciliation to David provide the greatest insight into the difference between her and her husband. Unlike Nabal, her words and actions are marked by wisdom and insight. However, her behavior is not the result of superior intelligence. She was obviously a smart woman but, more importantly, she was a godly woman who demonstrated a healthy fear of the Lord. Her wisdom was a byproduct of her relationship with the Almighty.
The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom,
and the knowledge of the Holy One is insight. – Proverbs 9:10 ESV
The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom;
all those who practice it have a good understanding. – Psalm 111:10 ESV
Abigail was wise because she was godly. She feared the Lord and recognized the hand of God at work in the life of David. Somehow, God had provided her with insight into the circumstances surrounding David’s life. While Nabal had seen David as nothing more than a man on the run, a fugitive from justice; Abigail recognized him as the next king of Israel.
“The Lord will surely reward you with a lasting dynasty, for you are fighting the Lord’s battles.” – 1 Samuel 25:28 NLT
“When the Lord has done all he promised and has made you leader of Israel, don’t let this be a blemish on your record. ” – 1 Samuel 25:30-31 NLT
Abigail was not flattering David or stroking his ego in an attempt to get on his good side; she had divine insight from God. She had been given wisdom from God that enabled her to assess the situation and recognize that David was God’s hand-picked successor to Saul and he would not want to do anything that would blemish his future reputation or dishonor the name of God. Her words and actions reveal the timeless truth of the following Proverb.
From a wise mind comes wise speech;
the words of the wise are persuasive.
Kind words are like honey —
sweet to the soul and healthy for the body. – Proverbs 16:23-24 NLT
Every aspect of Abigail’s handling of this delicate and dangerous situation displays a divinely inspired understanding of human nature and the keys to the successful mitigation of difficult circumstances. Her provision of food for David’s men and her choice of words for David’s ears were both divinely inspired. One of the most insightful things Abigail did that day was to get David to see things from God’s perspective. She knew David would be upset, and rightfully so. She fully understood how her husband’s foolish actions and words caused David to take offense and she knew he would seek to avenge himself against Nabal.
But Abigail wanted David to consider how God would have him respond. Yet, her actions are not completely selfless or altruistic. She wants to protect her family, servants, and social standing. If David follows through on his vow and wipes out every male in her household, Abigail will be left destitute and homeless. So, she went out of her way to persuade David to reconsider his response to Nabal’s slight. This wise and eloquent woman urged David to view his situation from a different perspective so that he might recognize the hand of God working through her to prevent the unnecessary slaughter of innocent people, an action that would place a permanent blight on David’s reputation.
“When the Lord has done all he promised and has made you leader of Israel, don’t let this be a blemish on your record. Then your conscience won’t have to bear the staggering burden of needless bloodshed and vengeance.” – 1 Samuel 25:30-31 NLT
It’s impossible to think about this fact and not fast-forward to a future event in David’s life when he failed to heed the words of Abigail. Years later, after David had become the king of Israel, he had an illicit affair with Bathsheba, the wife of one of his soldiers. When she became pregnant with his child, David arranged for her husband, Uriah, to be exposed to enemy fire on the front lines and killed. Uriah’s death allowed David to legally take Bathsheba as his wife. As a result of his unrighteous and unwise actions, David would discover what it was like for his conscience to bear the staggering burden of needless bloodshed. He would carry the guilt of Uriah’s death and bear the judgment of God for his actions – the death of his infant son born as a result of his adultery with Bathsheba.
David was a man of action who wrestled with impulsiveness. There were times in his life when he allowed his inclination for spontaneity to override his need for self-control and wisdom. His affair with Bathsheba is a perfect example. He saw her and had to have her, and when he allowed his passions to take priority over God’s will, he suffered the consequences. When David sought to escape from Saul and took refuge among the Philistines in Gath, he allowed his impulsive nature to cloud his thinking. Rather than seek the will of God, David took matters into his own hands and found himself in a potentially deadly predicament. This future king of Israel was going to need to learn to seek the will of God before knee-jerk reacting to his circumstances, and his encounter with Abigail would provide some much-needed insight into the way of the wise.
The words of Abigail were wise because they were godly, and they were godly because they came from the mouth of a godly woman. As the chapter unfolds, David will recognize the hand of God in the actions of Abigail. Her words reflect the wisdom of God and will protect the man of God from giving in to his penchant for impulsiveness. God would use this wise woman to accomplish His will in the life of David. The man after God’s own heart would be protected by a woman who displayed God’s own wisdom so that God’s sovereign will might be accomplished.
English Standard Version (ESV) The Holy Bible, English Standard Version. ESV® Permanent Text Edition® (2016). Copyright © 2001 by Crossway Bibles, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers.
New Living Translation (NLT) Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.