“David said to Abigail: “Blessed is the Lord, the God of Israel, who sent you to meet me today. Blessed is your good judgment and blessed are you yourself. Today you have prevented me from shedding blood and rescuing myself with my own hand.”
1 Samuel 25:32-33 (NAB)
Although David was anointed by the prophet, Samuel, to become the next king, the current king, Saul, was not willing to give up his throne. Instead, he set out to kill David, forcing him to live as a fugitive along with the men who were loyal to him.
While David’s men were encamped in the wilderness of Carmel, they met some shepherds who were tending their master’s sheep. David and his men were protective and kind toward the shepherds, who worked for a very wealthy land owner.
Nabal, the land owner, who had thousands of livestock in the area, had a reputation for being harsh and bad mannered. He was married to a woman named Abigail, described as intelligent and attractive. The custom of arranging marriages in those days, often resulted in mismatched couples like Nabal and Abigail.
(1 Samuel 25:3)
Since David and his men were kind to Nabal’s shepherds, not knowing his reputation, he sent some men to ask Nabal for food to eat. Nabal’s response was extremely rude and disrespectful to the messengers, chasing them away saying, “Who is David that I should care about him?”
David’s anger was triggered when he heard about Nabal’s response. He was living with multiple stressors at the time, trying to care for and protect the men who were loyal to him, living as fugitives, while dealing with the natural challenges of survival in the wilderness.
Even though he was anointed and called to be the next king of Israel, that dream seemed far off. Between Saul’s many attempts to kill him and Nabal’s unprovoked meanness, David was pushed to a breaking point, and he impulsively reached for his sword as Nabal’s response tipped him over the edge. David and his men headed out to retaliate against Nabal.
Abigail heard about what Nabal did and immediately had her servants prepare a package filled with loaves of bread, raisin cakes, figs, fruits and wine. She headed out to meet David first, to ask forgiveness for Nabal’s offenses, by bringing David a peace offering of food and wine for him and his men.
David’s high calling to be the next king, was overshadowed by his frustrations of living as a fugitive. While waiting for certain doors to open in our lives, or for our dreams to be realized, it’s during the hardest times that we may gain the most valuable wisdom. The best character building lessons come during the tests and trials in the waiting stage of our journey.
When Abigail met David, she dismounted from her donkey and bowed down before him, asking forgiveness for her foolish husband. Abigail had remarkable wisdom and patience, and her peace offering caused David to pause. Then she gently reminded him of his higher calling, and that his kingdom will be a lasting one. Abigail persuaded David to trust in God, and not tarnish his soul or taint his calling, by taking revenge and shedding blood.
She redirected David to his more noble nature, encouraging him to trust in the Lord, instead of acting on impulse. Her gift of calming words brought peace and wisdom, and she prevented David from needlessly shedding blood. He was touched by her insight, and turned from his wrath. As a result, David rescued himself from himself. There will be times when everyone, in some way, needs to rescue themself from themself.
God spoke to David through Abigail, to leave everything in His hands. Soon after, Nabal died of a stroke, Saul eventually died in battle, and David was finally crowned King of Israel. Abigail’s intelligence led her to trust in God, speak with wisdom and be a peacemaker. God blessed her later by making her a queen, when King David returned to Carmel and proposed marriage to her.
We may not be called to be kings or queens, but we are all called to be ambassadors for Christ and peacemakers in this world. Like Abigail, we are His messengers, certified by our baptism, to bring His peace to the world in whatever way we are called to do so.
(2 Corinthians 5:20)
We will probably encounter many Nabals in our lifetime, and some will challenge our patience more than others. Like David, our dreams may be delayed or put on hold, by some unpleasant people or circumstances, but God will fulfill His plans and promises in His perfect timing.
Abigail teaches us to look at the whole picture, reminding us that we all have a higher calling. The Holy Spirit leads us all to our more noble side, calling us to be peacemakers, as Jesus said,
“Blessed are the peacemakers, for they will be called children of God.”
(Matthew 5:8)
Lord, help us to see the bigger picture in every situation, and to focus on our higher, more noble calling, as your Spirit leads us in wisdom, to be His peacemakers in this world. Amen
