Rev. Don Campbell
1 Samuel 25-27
THOUGHT FOR TODAY, April 17, 2019
“THE WOMAN BEHIND THE MAN”
David and his men had provided protection for Nabal, a wealthy owner three thousand sheep and goats. David sent a message to Nabal requesting a few animals with which they could celebrate an upcoming feast day. When David heard of Nabal’s refusal and railing against him as a rogue servant, he and 400 of his men strapped on their swords and set out to take revenge. Before we continue the story, let’s look closer at Nabal and his wife Abigail: She was discerning and beautiful, but he was harsh and badly behaved (1 Samuel 25:3). While he was unapproachable, she was known by the staff as a woman of understanding and action (1 Samuel 25:17). Sometimes a man, especially a rich man, may sweep a woman off her feet, but reveals his true churlish nature after the wedding. This is probably not what happened. In all probability, the marriage had been arranged by her parents who saw him as a great catch.
The story continues: Some of Nabal’s workers, knowing they could not approach him, approached his wife, Abigail, saying, “Behold, David sent messengers out of the wilderness to greet our master, and he railed at them. Yet the men were very good to us, and we suffered no harm, and we did not miss anything when we were in the fields, as long as we went with them. They were a wall to us both by night and by day, all the while we were with them keeping the sheep. Now therefore know this and consider what you should do, for harm is determined against our master and against all his house, and he is such a worthless man that one cannot speak to him” (1 Samuel 25:14-17).
Abigail swung into action and set off to meet David and his men with donkeys loaded with food and drink for David and his men. She implored him not to carry out his plan, saying that God would keep his promise to David and when he became king he would have no sin to regret in this matter: “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 25:31). David humbly listened to her and praised her: “Blessed be the Lord, the God of Israel, who sent you this day to meet me! Blessed be your discretion, and blessed be you, who have kept me this day from bloodguilt and from working salvation with my own hand!” (1 Samuel 25:32).
And now, the rest of the story. When Abigail returned home, Nabal was drunk, so she waited until morning to tell him what she had done and “His heart became as a stone and 10 days later, God struck him, and he died (1 Samuel 25:36-38). David saw Abigail’s intervention as divine providence and David took Abigail as his wife.
Only eternity will reveal all the women behind the men who were harsh and unapproachable or weak and ineffective and who would have done great damage to all within their sphere of influence had it not been for their wives.
CONNECTIONS
1. There’s a saying, “One who marries a child of the world has the devil for a father-in-law.” What warning does Paul give (2 Corinthians 5:14-15) [This does not refer specifically, much less exclusively to marriage, but marriage is a yoke which the Lord says can be shed only by death or sin.]
2. Abigail’s was probably an arranged marriage. Arranged marriages are still the norm in many cultures. “One study done in 2012 shows the divorce rate of arranged marriages being less than 4 percent — as opposed to around 40 percent of marriages in the U.S. where partners chose who to marry on their own free will.” There are limitations in such studies because there are many variables, such as culture, economics, expectations which may not be factored into the study. However, if true, what does this tell us about falling in love and fairytale weddings?
