Tracy Schellhorn

Day after day, it was the same.  She would offer him a smile, a gentle touch on his hand, and offer to massage his tired shoulders.  She would bring him a meal fit for a king, and ask about his day.

In return, he would growl and complain about the food, the home, the servants, and even her choice of garments.  Never did he return the love and joy that she served up to him daily.  Day after day, his rejection chipped away at her gentle heart.

Still, she did all she could to be a good wife.  She oversaw the running of the household like a governess, endeared the servants to her through her kindness, and picked up the slack for anything that might upset her husband, since he was so easily upset, and she was constantly concerned for his health.

The emptiness and loneliness clawed at her like a wild animal, but still she thanked G-d for her marriage to Nabal.  It could be worse.  She could be hungry, working in the fields, or worse yet, be a widow and without hope. 

So, day after day, she did her best to hold it all together, bring peace and comfort to her husband and household, and honor the Lord, while inwardly she fought back tears for what might have been if only Nabal would open his heart.

Then, one day, everything changed.  This day was not like all the rest.  It was worse!  David, the one anointed to be king after Saul, was camped nearby with his men.  It had been a comfort to Abigail up until now, knowing that these valiant soldiers were nearby.  No marauding bands of raiders would come near their shepherds and flocks with David and his men so close.

This particular day, some messengers arrived from David, requesting some provisions to help them through the leanness of the season.  They had felt surely Nabal would be generous after their help in guarding his flocks.  To her horror, her husband insulted David and sent the men away without so much as a crumb!

This time, his stingy heart had gone too far.  This would surely be the death of them all!

Acting quickly, she summoned all the staff and began to prepare a feast for the camp of David.   Although her husband had committed evil against God’s anointed, she would do what she could to intercede for him and the rest of the people in their household.  Perhaps, she could intervene, and through her intervention, plead for mercy for them all.

The thought of how angry Nabal would be at her actions assaulted her repeatedly as she hurriedly made preparations.  What he didn’t understand was that she would never dishonor her husband, but instead she would defend his honor and that of David’s through swift, divinely orchestrated action.

As she and her servants were on their way to take their offerings to David’s camp, he and his men were already on their way to her house to take vengeance upon Nabal for the dishonor he showed them.  They intended to wipe out all the males among Nabal’s household in return for the insult he brought upon them.

Abigail met David and his men along the way.  She quickly dismounted the donkey she was riding and bowed to the ground.  Speaking to David, she said, “On me alone, my Lord, be the blame.  And please let your maidservant speak to you, and listen to my words.  Please don’t pay attention to what my husband said, for it was foolishness.  I did not see your emissaries, or I would have honored them with the best of our harvest.”

“Please accept these gifts I have brought, and please forgive my transgression.  The Lord will certainly make you an enduring house, for you are fighting the battles of the Lord, and evil will not be found in you all your days. The Lord is protecting you from all who will oppose you, and He will appoint you ruler over all Israel.  When He does, may your conscience and mine be clean, knowing that you forgave my transgression and did not shed any blood this day.”

David was amazed at this woman’s intervention and her diplomatic handling of the situation.  She never betrayed her husband, but instead took the blame upon herself.  She offered to David and his men far more than they originally requested, and she honored him by acknowledging that the Lord was with him and that one day he would be king.  Moreover, she kept him from committing evil himself and shedding blood in an act of revenge.  David admired this woman and her wisdom, and he turned away from the destruction he had intended to bring.

He received her gifts and sent her back to her house in peace.  Her intercession, her intervention, had spared the entire household of Nabal, despite his own foolishness.

She now trudged back to her home, in dread of returning to what surely awaited her, praying as she went that the Lord would grant her peace as she told her husband what she had done.  In her praying, she also asked G-d to help her make it through the life she shared with this foolish man, Nabal, and that He would grant her the grace to continue to honor someone who seemed so unworthy of honor.

Completely unaware of the destruction they so narrowly averted, Nabal was having a feast when Abigail returned home and found him drunk.  She waited until the next morning to share with him the events of the day before, and when she did, Nabal suffered some kind of stroke, and ten days later he was dead.  Abigail’s intercession had averted the destruction of their household and home, but Nabal’s foolishness had cost him his own life.

What was she to do now?  Although her life with Nabal was difficult and full of rejection, at least she did not bear the scorn of being a widow.  That which she greatly feared had come upon her, despite her best efforts to be a godly wife.  What was to become of her life now?   

While she was still mourning and considering her future, messengers arrived from David.  He had heard of Nabal’s death, and the most astounding thing was now taking place.  She couldn’t believe her ears.  David had sent his messengers to ask her to be his wife!

Stunned and humbled by the proposal, Abigail bowed to the ground.  Gathering her thoughts quickly, she surmised what was taking place.  The Lord had heard her cries and was delivering her.  Not only had he delivered her from the slow death at Nabal’s side, but He was also delivering her from the scourge and uncertainty of being a widow.  To her surprise, the Lord was delivering her INTO the arms of a king.

She quickly rose from the ground, gathered the five maidens who attended her, along with a few personal belongings, and left on a donkey with the messengers to join David at his camp.

After years of rejection and heartache, amidst mounting disappointments, everything changed SUDDENLY!

Had Abigail allowed herself to remain stuck in the past, however, she would have missed a divine window of opportunity and instead inherited that which she most wanted to avoid.  She was a woman of discernment, though, and she discerned that this was a most precious moment that would certainly not again be repeated. 

She moved quickly and decisively, intentionally leaving most of her old life behind, proceeding through the open door before her with only that which was uniquely hers.  Everything that was a product of her life with Nabal remained behind, and only what was hers by the grace of God would go forward with her into this strange and exciting turn of events.  She didn’t carry yesterday’s baggage into her tomorrow. 

Her own unique character had been revealed to David, and now the future king wanted her to be his wife.  She brought out of the marriage all that she had brought into the marriage, along with the wisdom she acquired along the way.  Now, it would be the king’s opportunity to fill her life with things Nabal never could.

Her redeemer would provide for her.  There was no need to fear what tomorrow would bring, for surely the Lord in His goodness had provided this way of escape.  Would He possibly withhold any good thing from her after this?

As she proceeded to her destination, Abigail pondered the events of the past weeks.  What was it about her that made David want to make her his wife?  What if she had failed to respond on that fateful day when Nabal insulted David and his men?  What would have become of her then?  What might have been had Nabal been willing to humble himself and follow the ways of the Lord? 

She breathed heavy as she thought of these things, realizing that the many tests in her life had each been opportunities.  Each was a divinely orchestrated opportunity to hone and perfect her for this very day. 

She determined that nothing she had suffered would be in vain.  Everything she had learned she would use to serve her king well.  “Me . . . the wife of a king!  Think of it!”

Had Abigail been thinking as clearly as normal, she might have considered the irony.  It is no wonder that she was able to think of David as king while Saul still wore the crown.  All along, she had treated her husband like he was a king, while he was but a foolish man.

Hard times and difficulties are not just to test us; sometimes they are to REVEAL us.

Under pressure, Abigail was revealed.  She was revealed as a joy to her Father.  Abigail’s name means father’s joy, and that joy was revealed in her, through her, and to her -- finally.

How do we respond under pressure? 

Godly character will produce the desired results.  If we persevere day-by-day, through the ordinary, the mundane, and the painful, yet keep our perspective on the Lord, then we might wake up one day married to the King!

He who has ears to hear, let him hear the mysteries hidden in this parable.

Selah.

 

Points to Ponder:

 

1.      Who is Nabal?

2.     What destruction is headed toward his tent?

3.     How can Abigail intercede?

4.    What surprises and rewards might the Lord have in store for such a person?

5.     Whose responsibility is it to take vengeance? 

6.     How are we to respond when we find ourselves in service to, or under the leadership of, a foolish man?

7.     What happens to the foolish?

8.     What happens to the wise?

9.     When redemption draws near, how will we respond?

10.   What difficulties in our lives might be considered opportunities?

11.   How might we best respond to these opportunities?

12.   What is being revealed in us in these divinely orchestrated opportunities?