One Brave Woman

Taken from 1 Samuel chapter 25

Now there was a man in Maon whose business was in Carmel, and the man was very rich. The name of the man was Nabal, and the name of his wife Abigail. And she was a woman of good understanding and beautiful appearance; but the man was harsh and evil in his doings. When David heard in the wilderness that Nabal was shearing his sheep, David sent ten young men; and David said to the young men, " Go up to Carmel, go to Nabal, and greet him in my name. "And thus you shall say to him who lives in prosperity: 'Peace be to you, peace to your house, and peace to all that you have! Let my young men find favor in your eyes, for we come on a feast day. Please give whatever comes to your hand to your servants and to your son David. '" So when David's young men came, they spoke to Nabal according to all these words, and waited. Then Nabal answered David's servants, and said, "Who is David, and who is the son of Jesse? There are many servants nowadays who break away each one from his master. "Shall I then take MY bread and MY water and MY meat that I have killed for MY shearers, and give it to men when I do not know where they are from?" (This guy is really full of himself.) So David's young men turned on their heels and went back. Then David said to his men, "Every man gird on his sword." So every man girded on his sword, and David also girded on his sword. And about four hundred men went with David, and two hundred stayed with the supplies. Now one of the young men told Abigail, Nabal's wife, saying. "Look, David sent messengers from the wilderness to greet our master; and he reviled them. "But the men were very good to us, and we were not hurt, nor did we miss anything as long as we accompanied them, when we were in the fields. They were a wall to us both by night and day, all the time we were with them keeping the sheep. "Now therefore know and consider what you will do, for harm is determined against our master and against all his household. For he is such a scoundrel that one cannot speak to him." Then Abigail made haste... But she did not tell her husband Nabal. She went down under cover of the hill. Now David had said, "Surely in vain I have protected all that this fellow has. He has repaid me evil for good. "May God do so, and more also, to the enemies of David, if I leave one male of all who belong to him by morning light." Now when Abigail saw David, she dismounted quickly from the donkey, fell on her face before David, and bowed down to the ground. She fell at his feet and said: "On me, my lord, on me let this iniquity be! And please let your maidservant speak on your ears, and hear the words of your maidservant. "Please, let not my lord regard this scoundrel Nabal. For as his name is, so is he: folly is with him! But I, your maidservant, did not see the young men of my lord whom you sent. "Now therefore, my lord, as the Lord lives and as your soul lives, since the Lord has held you back from coming to bloodshed and from avenging yourself with your own hand, let your enemies and those who seek harm for my lord be as Nabal. "Please forgive the trespass of your maidservant. For the Lord will certainly make for my lord an enduring house, because my lord fights the battles of the Lord, and evil is not found in you throughout your days. ..."that this will be no grief to you, nor offense of heart to my lord, either that you have shed blood without cause, or that my lord has avenged himself. So David received from her hand what she had brought him, and said to her, "Go up in peace to your house. See, I have heeded your voice and respected your person." Now Abigail went to Nabal, and there he was, holding a feast in his house, like the feast of a king. And Nabal was very drunk; therefore she told him nothing until morning light. So it was, in the morning, when the wine had gone from Nabal, and his wife had told him these things, that his heart died within him, and he became like a stone. Then it happened, after about 10 days, that the Lord struck Nabal, and he died. When David heard, he said, "Blessed be the Lord, who has pleaded the cause of my reproach from the hand of Nabal, and has kept His servant form evil! For the Lord has returned the wickedness of Nabal on his own head." And David sent and proposed to Abigail, to take her as his wife. Then she arose, bower her face to the earth, and said, "Here is your maidservant, a servant to wash the feet of the servant's of my lord." So Abigail became his wife. David also took Ahinoam of Jezreel, and so both of them were his wives. But Saul had given Michal his daughter, David's wife, to Palti the son of Laish. (This will matter later)

My thoughts on this. I was intrigued at the way Abigail made up for her husbands folly. That took guts! And not to mention that, but she asked for forgiveness of HER trespass! Then I reflect on my life, and wonder... would I have done that? Do I DO that? And then to have the heart to become a servant of all the other servants. How beautiful! I sure hope you're enjoying the story as much as I have. More to come!