IYAR 27
Abigail
"And the man's name was Nabal, and his wife's name was
Abigaia: and his wife was of good understanding and very beautiful in person:
but the man was harsh, and evil in his doings, and the man was churlish." (1Sam 25:3 Brenton's English
Septuagint)
We
are first introduced to Abigail in 1Sam 25; the story that is recounted to us
takes place before David became king,
and while evading the violent intentions of King Saul. Abigail’s husband Nabal was very wealthy – we
are told that he was in possession of three thousand sheep, and one thousand
goats, certainly a great number. Our
story opens at the annual sheep-shearing, an event that is necessary not only
for the health and livelihood of the sheep, but also as an important source of
income to the owner.
1Sam
25 does not give us exact details; however, living in a part of the United
States where sheep are still raised, from experience I can tell you that three
thousand sheep are a lot of sheep. While there may not be that many shepherds
needed to handle that large of a number, shearing the sheep is another
story. And bear in mind that during this
time period in ancient Israel, all shearing had to be done by hand, with
special shears made for that purpose.
Having researched hand-shearing, I understand that it can take anywhere
from 20 to 40 minutes to shear one
sheep[1],
and with the prospect of three thousand of the animals, a good team of
sheepshearers is essential.
From
the account in 1Sam 25, we learn that David and his men watched over and
protected not only the shepherds, but also the sheepshearers while they worked
(1Sam 25:6-8; 14-16). Understand that
David was well familiar with all that was necessary in the raising and care of
sheep; he himself had been a shepherd, tending to his father’s flocks. Understand also that in most agricultural
societies, it is the woman of the house who bears the responsibility of feeding
the hired hands, in this case, it was Abigail.
When David sent to Nabal asking for sustenance, it was not unreasonable;
protection against predators of any
kind during this critical time when all focus was on the sheep would be a
blessing.
Nabal
(whose name means ‘fool’ in Hebrew) received David’s request with contempt,
basically calling David an ‘oath-breaker’, one who had broken his oath with his
master, King Saul (1Sam 25:10, 11).
David became extremely angry, and was prepared to reciprocate with
violence (1Sam 25:13; 21-22).
Having
been told of the situation between her husband and David, Abigail reacted in
wisdom and honor. She gathered together
all the sustenance requested by David, and journeyed to meet with him. Abigail admits to David the foolishness of
her husband, presents arguments to halt David’s need for vengeance, and
recognizes David as the future ruler of Israel (1Sam 25:24-31).
What does this mean for us? Abigail is an example of living a life of
integrity and character, even when it means standing in opposition to those of
our family. Integrity requires no compromising on what we know to be
right, to be honest, to be sincere, and according to the dictates of
Torah. While the word ‘integrity’ is
defined as being a noun, I choose to believe it is a verb, for integrity is
something you live and DO, it is a lifestyle that will define you.
The Scriptures tell us that “about
ten days after that, Elohim smote Nabal and he died” (1Sam 25:38). Because of her integrity and wisdom, David
reached out to Abigail, and took her as his wife (1Sam 25:39-42), joining him
in Hebron when he was anointed king over Judah (2Sam 2). We learn of only one child – a son – born to
Abigail, but this son’s name speaks volumes to us. 2Sam 3:3 identifies him as Kil'âb (Strong’s
H3609), which means “like his father”, while 1Chr 3:1 recognizes this son of
Abigail as Dâni'êl (Strong’s
H1840), which interprets as “God is my judge”.
Looking at these two meanings, it is not difficult to envision the
environment in which this son was raised, one of wisdom, honor, and good
understanding.
“He who walks in
integrity walks securely, but he who perverts his ways shall be found out.” (Pro 10:9 HRB)
“The righteous man
walks in his integrity; His children are blessed after him.” (Pro 20:7)
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