Good morning! Happy Sabbath! Chris and I are spending the weekend celebrating. We are celebrating Andrew's graduation from Loma Linda. What a weekend it is! We have all three of our children around, our two in-law kids, may parents, and Rick and Beth. What fun we are having. I am so missing our class though. Missing our time with you, studying.
Question of the Day: What is a favorite family celebration in your family? Either a onetime event or a reoccurring tradition?
So today we are studying a fascinating story. Enjoy the story and then we will unpack it.
David, Nabal and Abigail
25 Now Samuel died, and all Israel assembled and mourned for him; and they buried him at his home in Ramah. Then David moved down into the Desert of Paran.[a]
2 A certain man in Maon, who had property there at Carmel, was very wealthy. He had a thousand goats and three thousand sheep, which he was shearing in Carmel. 3 His name was Nabal and his wife’s name was Abigail. She was an intelligent and beautiful woman, but her husband was surly and mean in his dealings—he was a Calebite.
4 While David was in the wilderness, he heard that Nabal was shearing sheep. 5 So he sent ten young men and said to them, “Go up to Nabal at Carmel and greet him in my name. 6 Say to him: ‘Long life to you! Good health to you and your household! And good health to all that is yours!
7 “‘Now I hear that it is sheep-shearing time. When your shepherds were with us, we did not mistreat them, and the whole time they were at Carmel nothing of theirs was missing. 8 Ask your own servants and they will tell you. Therefore be favorable toward my men, since we come at a festive time. Please give your servants and your son David whatever you can find for them.’”
9 When David’s men arrived, they gave Nabal this message in David’s name. Then they waited.
10 Nabal answered David’s servants, “Who is this David? Who is this son of Jesse? Many servants are breaking away from their masters these days. 11 Why should I take my bread and water, and the meat I have slaughtered for my shearers, and give it to men coming from who knows where?”
12 David’s men turned around and went back. When they arrived, they reported every word. 13 David said to his men, “Each of you strap on your sword!” So they did, and David strapped his on as well. About four hundred men went up with David, while two hundred stayed with the supplies.
14 One of the servants told Abigail, Nabal’s wife, “David sent messengers from the wilderness to give our master his greetings, but he hurled insults at them. 15 Yet these men were very good to us. They did not mistreat us, and the whole time we were out in the fields near them nothing was missing. 16 Night and day they were a wall around us the whole time we were herding our sheep near them. 17 Now think it over and 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.”
18 Abigail acted quickly. She took two hundred loaves of bread, two skins of wine, five dressed sheep, five seahs[b] of roasted grain, a hundred cakes of raisins and two hundred cakes of pressed figs, and loaded them on donkeys. 19 Then she told her servants, “Go on ahead; I’ll follow you.” But she did not tell her husband Nabal.
20 As she came riding her donkey into a mountain ravine, there were David and his men descending toward her, and she met them. 21 David had just said, “It’s been useless—all my watching over this fellow’s property in the wilderness so that nothing of his was missing. He has paid me back evil for good. 22 May God deal with David,[c] be it ever so severely, if by morning I leave alive one male of all who belong to him!”
23 When Abigail saw David, she quickly got off her donkey and bowed down before David with her face to the ground. 24 She fell at his feet and said: “Pardon your servant, my lord, and let me speak to you; hear what your servant has to say. 25 Please pay no attention, my lord, to that wicked man Nabal. He is just like his name—his name means Fool, and folly goes with him. And as for me, your servant, I did not see the men my lord sent. 26 And now, my lord, as surely as the Lord your God lives and as you live, since the Lord has kept you from bloodshed and from avenging yourself with your own hands, may your enemies and all who are intent on harming my lord be like Nabal. 27 And let this gift, which your servant has brought to my lord, be given to the men who follow you.
28 “Please forgive your servant’s presumption. The Lord your God will certainly make a lasting dynasty for my lord, because you fight the Lord’s battles, and no wrongdoing will be found in you as long as you live. 29 Even though someone is pursuing you to take your life, the life of my lord will be bound securely in the bundle of the living by the Lord your God, but the lives of your enemies he will hurl away as from the pocket of a sling. 30 When the Lord has fulfilled for my lord every good thing he promised concerning him and has appointed him ruler over Israel, 31 my lord will not have on his conscience the staggering burden of needless bloodshed or of having avenged himself. And when the Lord your God has brought my lord success, remember your servant.”
32 David said to Abigail, “Praise be to the Lord, the God of Israel, who has sent you today to meet me. 33 May you be blessed for your good judgment and for keeping me from bloodshed this day and from avenging myself with my own hands. 34 Otherwise, as surely as the Lord, the God of Israel, lives, who has kept me from harming you, if you had not come quickly to meet me, not one male belonging to Nabalwould have been left alive by daybreak.”
35 Then David accepted from her hand what she had brought him and said, “Go home in peace. I have heard your words and granted your request.”
36 When Abigail went to Nabal, he was in the house holding a banquet like that of a king. He was in high spirits and very drunk. So she toldhim nothing at all until daybreak. 37 Then in the morning, when Nabal was sober, his wife told him all these things, and his heart failed him and he became like a stone. 38 About ten days later, the Lord struck Nabal and he died.
39 When David heard that Nabal was dead, he said, “Praise be to the Lord, who has upheld my cause against Nabal for treating me with contempt. He has kept his servant from doing wrong and has brought Nabal’s wrongdoing down on his own head.”
Then David sent word to Abigail, asking her to become his wife. 40 His servants went to Carmel and said to Abigail, “David has sent us to you to take you to become his wife.”
41 She bowed down with her face to the ground and said, “I am your servant and am ready to serve you and wash the feet of my lord’s servants.” 42 Abigail quickly got on a donkey and, attended by her five female servants, went with David’s messengers and became his wife.43 David had also married Ahinoam of Jezreel, and they both were his wives. 44 But Saul had given his daughter Michal, David’s wife, to Paltiel[d] son of Laish, who was from Gallim.
What an interesting story.
Who was Nabal and what was he like?
What was Abigail like?
It is easy for us to look at Abigail and be amazed by her wisdom, courage, etc., but I think it is important for us to remember the time in which she lived.
What kind of life did she have?
We really don't know what life was like for her, but what was it in general like for most women?
What do we know about her life?
What do you think their marriage was like?
I think it is important to remember what it was like for women in that time so that we can better understand the magnitude of her intelligence, her courage, and her wisdom. I do, however, want us to be careful to NOT make this story a study in gender roles. Both men and women can learn from both Nabal and Abigail.
Nabal was a negative, selfish, grumpy man who didn't had to be somewhat intelligent or he wouldn't have had the wealth he had and yet he obviously didn't have wisdom.
What do we know about him?
Setting aside gender roles what can we both, men and women learn from Nabal?
What can we all learn from Abigail?
Who was Abigail helping when she went out to meet David?
There is no question Abigail was saving the life of her husband.
Abigail, was sacrificing her safety to save an ungrateful sinner.
Was Abigail, also helping David?
She went out to meet him at great risk, with all that David needed and more.
There is a lot we can learn from this story. We can learn that we need to be willing to be brave. We can learn that we need to use the wisdom and the intellect that has been given us. We can learn that we need to be willing to have courage and to step forward, and face what we are afraid of.
We can learn that we need to be unselfish and think of others. We can learn... all that and so much more.
However I think it is most important to see how Abigail, just like Jesus gave up personal safety to save a desperate sinner. One of these men had a heart that only saw himself and died. One of these men accepted the gifts and then entered into a loving relationship with her.
I will admit that I am exhausted. I will admit that this week has been a challenge. I haven't met the challenge I gave all of us last week, to spend at least 30 minutes a day with Jesus. Maybe my heart is just yearning for sometime with my Savior,maybe that is why I see this story the way I do, but reading this story I see a person willing to run interference. On one hand to save someone who doesn't deserve it. One the other hand to be the middle guy and it ends in a loving relationship. In both I see what Jesus has done for us!
The question is...
Are we going to be a selfish self centered person who let's Satan rule in our life, or are we going to be in a love relationship because of what Jesus was willing to do for us. Are we going to accept His gift?
Last week when I challenged us to 30 minutes a day, I wanted to end this weeks lesson with this beautiful example of what changes just one week could make if I gave him just 30 minutes faithfully. Instead this week I can honestly tell you, I have not accepted His open arms, His gifts by spending precious time with Him. Maybe that is why this story hit so hard.
Are you going to accept the gifts that are being offered to you with open arms, or are you going to pass and only think of yourself?
Will you accept or reject?
This week I challenge us all to accept the gifts that are being brought to us. Spend time each day, opening your eyes to the blessings he has prepared just for you!
Comments
Post a Comment