Somebody Get My Sword!
Have you ever seen a married couple and asked yourself, “How in the world did they end up together?” Sometimes couples can seem so polar-opposite that it leaves us scratching our head to how they could live under the same roof! Such is the case of Abigail and Nabal, a couple we read about in 1 Samuel 25.
This is one of my all time favorite passages in the Old Testament. It happened thousands of years ago, but there are so many timeless principles found here. The first several verses of this chapter describe Nabal as being very rich, but unfortunately, also harsh and evil. That is not a great combination. His very name means “fool”. In contrast, Abigail is described as intelligent and beautiful – two qualities she will definitely need to fix the mess her husband gets them into! In this culture, the marriage was more than likely pre-arranged.
David and his men are in Nabal’s neck of the woods (Maon) where Nabal’s sheep herd was being sheared. Nabal’s sheep had been protected by David’s men while they were in the region hiding out from Saul. So David thought it was appropriate to send some of his men to Nabal requesting food and water. Nabal had the audacity to come back with a very sarcastic “no” and even questioned who David was, as if he had never heard of him. It is highly unlikely that Nabal had never heard of David. David was anointed by Samuel as King and surely Nabal had heard that David had killed a giant with sling and a stone! Nabal chose a very disrespectful response to the King.
For whatever reason, this response sent David into a rage. He rallied his men and told them to “gird on his sword” and off they went to settle the score with Nabal. Have you ever had a day where you just wanted to say, “Someone give me a sword – I have had enough?” Maybe that is how David was feeling after being on the run from King Saul. Enter Abigail into the scene. Abigail received word that David was on his way to take revenge and she immediately started thinking of how she could remedy the situation. She gathered up all kinds of food and wine, loaded it up on a donkey, and off she went to meet David. Talk about being proactive! She didn’t wait to see what would happen, but rather, she took action to thwart the attack that was surely coming.
The first thing Abigail did when she saw David and his men was to dismount the donkey and fall face down before him, the proper response to the anointed King. She begged forgiveness for her husband’s action. In verse 29, she tells David that “the lives of your enemies He will sling out as from the hollow of a sling”. Abigail’s intelligence is showing here. She intentionally used wording that would evoke a memory in David – the memory of Goliath being brought down with a sling. She then very gently pleads with David not to take vengeance on her family. She reminded him that he will be ruler over Israel and he wouldn’t want this incident to be something he would continually regret. David did have a tendency to let his emotions lead him, sometimes into places he would live to regret. She begged him not to let this be one of those moments.
Here is where we see a huge contrast between Nabal and Abigail. Nabal and David were being reactive to the situation, not taking the time to think their responses all way through to the end. Abigail on the other hand took a moment to pause and respond to the situation and chose a proactive response. People ruffle our feathers almost on a daily basis in little, and sometimes big ways. What response do we choose? Do we choose to be like a shaken can of soda and just blow all over people? That is like saying to someone, “I have had a bad day so that makes it ok for me to go off on you!”
Just as Abigail reminded David of who he was in God’s eyes, we need to remember that we belong to Christ. Our responses to the people around us signal what is truly in us. So the next time you get riled up at the grocery store, on the highway, or at work – remember the only Christ many people will ever see is the Christ in you. Are you representing your Savior with dignity in your responses?
Abigail’s proactivity saved her whole family. In 1 Samuel 25:32-22 it says “Then David said to Abigail, ‘Blessed be the LORD God of Israel, who sent you this day to meet me, and blessed be your discernment, and blessed be you, who have kept me this day from bloodshed and from avenging myself by my own hand.’” There is no telling how your responses can impact other people. You have divine appointments with people each and every day – choose to respond with discernment, respect, and the love of Christ.
