Day 33: 1 Samuel 25:2–35

“My lord should pay no attention to this worthless man Nabal, for he lives up to his name: His name is Nabal, and stupidity is all he knows” (v. 25).

David and his men always made it a practice to protect their fellow Israelites. They had protected the animals and herdsmen of a wealthy landowner named Nabal, a man who was surly and mean in his dealings. So in keeping with the customs of the day, David sent his men at harvesttime to request provisions from Nabal. To David’s surprise the surly rancher insulted David, treated his men discourteously, and sent them away empty-handed (vv. 10–11).

David obviously did not have the same patience with Nabal that he had with Saul. David had many good character traits, but a high tolerance for insult was not among them. He said, “Put on your swords” (v. 13), and four hundred of his men prepared to “visit” Nabal. All he really needed, of course, was a sling and a few smooth stones!

Enter Abigail, the intelligent and beautiful wife of Nabal. If Abigail had been like her husband, the result would have been a tragedy. Fortunately, the servants knew their mistress had more sense than Nabal. A servant warned Abigail about what Nabal had done. He said David’s men had protected them in the fields. He said, “Night and day they were a wall around us” (v. 16). The servant asked Abigail, “See what you can do, because disaster is hanging over our master and his whole household. He is such a wicked man that no one can talk to him” (vv. 16–17).

Abigail prepared gifts for David and his men. Then she hurried to intercept them before they brought retribution to her husband and household. When she reached David, she bowed before him and asked him to forgive her wicked husband. Abigail continued by praising David and making her case for him to spare her household. She asked him to accept her gift of thanks.

I think we see another glimpse of David’s heart in his reply. He quickly agreed to spare Nabal, praising God both for Abigail’s good judgment and for keeping him from bloodshed. While David was certainly capable of great violence, he did not harbor grudges or hang on to resentments.