A WISE WOMAN STOPS AN ANGRY MAN
Notes
Transcript
INTRODUCTION
In our last lesson from the life of David, we saw that vengeance belonged to God and that we are not to pay back evil for evil
In our last lesson from the life of David, we saw that vengeance belonged to God and that we are not to pay back evil for evil
In a touching story of mercy – David spare Saul’s life
David provided us a real life illustration of the teaching of the New Testament that says, “Vengeance is mine, I will repay says the Lord.”
Listening to these types of stories, one might get the idea that David was some type of “Super Saint” who never makes a mistake
Listening to these types of stories, one might get the idea that David was some type of “Super Saint” who never makes a mistake
As we move into 1 Samuel 25 we will see a carnal side of David – a time when in a hot flash of anger he nearly committed murder
Had it not been for the intervention of a certain godly woman, that is exactly what would have happened.
DISCUSSION
THE INSULT
THE INSULT
1 And Samuel died; and all Israel gathered themselves together, and lamented him, and buried him in his house at Ramah. And David arose, and went down to the wilderness of Paran. 2 And there was a man in Maon, whose possessions were in Carmel; and the man was very great, and he had three thousand sheep, and a thousand goats: and he was shearing his sheep in Carmel. 3 Now the name of the man was Nabal; and the name of his wife Abigail; and the woman was of good understanding, and of a beautiful countenance: but the man was churlish and evil in his doings; and he was of the house of Caleb.
David had been holed up in the stronghold and now moves westward, in high emotion, I am sure, as a result of Samuel’s death. It is important to remember that...
Circumstances we are now encountering can affect how we handle the next situation that arises,
Here is introduced a husband and wife who bring out the very worst and the very best in David
You will not find a more mismatched couple in all of the Bible:
“Abigail” (“one who give joy to her father”) – she was intelligent, beautiful, gracious, loyal, and humble
“Nabal” (“fool”) – “churlish” or harsh, “evil in his doings,” self-centered, unreasonable, and cruel
4 And David heard in the wilderness that Nabal was shearing his sheep.
Sheep shearing time for a herdsman was what payday is to you and me, and in that day it meant a celebration – a PARTY!
David, now in the wilderness, gets word that such a party is about to occur
5 And David sent ten young men, and David said unto the young men, Get you up to Carmel, and go to Nabal, and greet him in my name: 6 and thus shall ye say to him that liveth in prosperity, Peace be unto thee, and peace be to thy house, and peace be unto all that thou hast. 7 And now I have heard that thou hast shearers: thy shepherds have now been with us, and we did them no hurt, neither was there aught missing unto them, all the while they were in Carmel. 8 Ask thy young men, and they will tell thee: wherefore let the young men find favor in thine eyes; for we come in a good day: give, I pray thee, whatsoever cometh to thy hand, unto thy servants, and to thy son David.
David was requesting that Nabal let he and his men join the party
Now this may sound a bit forward to us, but in their culture it was no more out of ordinary than tipping a waitress – a little recognition for services rendered.
Marauding bands of thieves were very common …
David had been in that area protecting Nabal’s flocks
To refuse to invite David to the party would be a insult
9 And when David’s young men came, they spake to Nabal according to all those words in the name of David, and ceased. 10 And Nabal answered David’s servants, and said, Who is David? and who is the son of Jesse? there are many servants now-a-days that break away every man from his master. 11 Shall I then take my bread, and my water, and my flesh that I have killed for my shearers, and give it unto men of whom I know not whence they are?
Count the number of “I’s” and “my’s” in that verse we just read – seven of them. Nabal was a self-centered, stingy tightwad!
By the way, we make a mistake if we think we are absolute masters over all that we have and can, therefore, do with it as we please – actually, all belongs to God
David is not going to be very happy with this
THE REACTION
THE REACTION
12 So David’s young men turned on their way, and went back, and came and told him according to all these words. 13 And David said unto his men, Gird ye on every man his sword. And they girded on every man his sword; and David also girded on his sword: and there went up after David about four hundred men; and two hundred abode by the baggage.
You do not gird on your sword for a gentlemanly chat
Drop now to verses 21-22 and you’ll see the reason for the swords...
21 Now David had said, Surely in vain have I kept all that this fellow hath in the wilderness, so that nothing was missed of all that pertained unto him: and he hath returned me evil for good. 22 God do so unto the enemies of David, and more also, if I leave of all that pertain to him by the morning light so much as one man-child.
David is going to kill them all
Has David snapped? Has David lost it!
Isn’t this the same David who in the last chapter showed mercy to the very one who had been trying to take his life?
Isn’t this the same David who in the last chapter showed mercy to the very one who had been trying to take his life?
There is a great lesson here for us: Yesterday’s victories do not assure us of success against today’s problems
Paul puts it this way…
12 Wherefore let him that thinketh he standeth take heed lest he fall.
Remember, God provides a way of escape
Remember, God provides a way of escape
13 There hath no temptation taken you but such as man can bear: but God is faithful, who will not suffer you to be tempted above that ye are able; but will with the temptation make also the way of escape, that ye may be able to endure it.
David’s escape would be Abigail
THE WAY OF ESCAPE
THE WAY OF ESCAPE
14 But one of the young men told Abigail, Nabal’s wife, saying, Behold, David sent messengers out of the wilderness to salute our master; and he railed at them. 15 But the men were very good unto us, and we were not hurt, neither missed we anything, as long as we went with them, when we were in the fields: 16 they were a wall unto us both by night and by day, all the while we were with them keeping the sheep. 17 Now therefore know and consider what thou wilt do; for evil is determined against our master, and against all his house: for he is such a worthless fellow, that one cannot speak to him.
I can imagine Abigail thinking, “I’m not surprised”
Abigail could have just looked the other way – I’m sure that living with Nabal was no bowl of cherries – but Abigail was not that kind of woman
18 Then Abigail made haste, and took two hundred loaves, and two bottles of wine, and five sheep ready dressed, and five measures of parched grain, and a hundred clusters of raisins, and two hundred cakes of figs, and laid them on asses. 19 And she said unto her young men, Go on before me; behold, I come after you. But she told not her husband Nabal.
… That’s what you call fast food!
23 And when Abigail saw David, she hasted, and alighted from her ass, and fell before David on her face, and bowed herself to the ground. 24 And she fell at his feet, and said, Upon me, my lord, upon me be the iniquity; and let thy handmaid, I pray thee, speak in thine ears, and hear thou the words of thy handmaid. 25 Let not my lord, I pray thee, regard this worthless fellow, even Nabal; for as his name is, so is he; Nabal is his name, and folly is with him: but I thy handmaid saw not the young men of my lord, whom thou didst send.
Suddenly Abigail comes into the path of 401 angry men, and David was ready to kill
She pleads for the life of her foolish husband – she even takes the blame for her foolish husband!
Notice that Abigail does not have on rose colored glasses when she looks at her husband. She knows full well what he is and isn’t. You see…
The answer in living with a difficult mate doesn’t lie in denial or fantasy about the truth
It lies squarely in commitment to God and His law regarding marriage.
Notice Abigail’s wise counsel
Notice Abigail’s wise counsel
26 Now therefore, my lord, as Jehovah liveth, and as thy soul liveth, seeing Jehovah hath withholden thee from bloodguiltiness, and from avenging thyself with thine own hand, now therefore let thine enemies, and them that seek evil to my lord, be as Nabal. 27 And now this present which thy servant hath brought unto my lord, let it be given unto the young men that follow my lord. 28 Forgive, I pray thee, the trespass of thy handmaid: for Jehovah will certainly make my lord a sure house, because my lord fighteth the battles of Jehovah; and evil shall not be found in thee all thy days. 29 And though men be risen up to pursue thee, and to seek thy soul, yet the soul of my lord shall be bound in the bundle of life with Jehovah thy God; and the souls of thine enemies, them shall he sling out, as from the hollow of a sling. 30 And it shall come to pass, when Jehovah shall have done to my lord according to all the good that he hath spoken concerning thee, and shall have appointed thee prince over Israel, 31 that this shall be no grief unto thee, nor offence of heart unto my lord, either that thou hast shed blood without cause, or that my lord hath avenged himself. And when Jehovah shall have dealt well with my lord, then remember thy handmaid.
Notice that Abigail brings up the possibility that the Lord was restraining David from doing wrong through her intercession
God may send people to us providentially…
He may be providing you a way of escape – when someone is trying to stop you, don’t get mad – listen
She gives good counsel. If we disobey God and take vengeance into our own hands it will come back to haunt us.
12 As an ear-ring of gold, and an ornament of fine gold, So is a wise reprover upon an obedient ear.
Does David listen to Abigail’s wise reproof?
AN LISTENING EAR
AN LISTENING EAR
32 And David said to Abigail, Blessed be Jehovah, the God of Israel, who sent thee this day to meet me: 33 and blessed be thy discretion, and blessed be thou, that hast kept me this day from bloodguiltiness, and from avenging myself with mine own hand. 34 For in very deed, as Jehovah, the God of Israel, liveth, who hath withholden me from hurting thee, except thou hadst hasted and come to meet me, surely there had not been left unto Nabal by the morning light so much as one man-child. 35 So David received of her hand that which she had brought him: and he said unto her, Go up in peace to thy house; see, I have hearkened to thy voice, and have accepted thy person.
One of the things that made David a man after God’s own heart was that he constantly watched for God’s dealing in his life – he maintained spiritual sensitivity
One of the things that made David a man after God’s own heart was that he constantly watched for God’s dealing in his life – he maintained spiritual sensitivity
David looked for God’s lessons in his circumstances
There are lessons to be learned in every situation
The wise Abigail had stopped David in his tracks – but the story doesn’t end here …
The wise Abigail had stopped David in his tracks – but the story doesn’t end here …
VENGEANCE BELONGS TO GOD
VENGEANCE BELONGS TO GOD
36 And Abigail came to Nabal; and, behold, he held a feast in his house, like the feast of a king; and Nabal’s heart was merry within him, for he was very drunken: wherefore she told him nothing, less or more, until the morning light. 37 And it came to pass in the morning, when the wine was gone out of Nabal, that his wife told him these things, and his heart died within him, and he became as a stone. 38 And it came to pass about ten days after, that Jehovah smote Nabal, so that he died.
Nabal really lives up to his name
God smote Nabal
Guys, God will judge us for mistreating our wives
He will take vengeance on you that your wife has not
39 And when David heard that Nabal was dead, he said, Blessed be Jehovah, that hath pleaded the cause of my reproach from the hand of Nabal, and hath kept back his servant from evil: and the evil-doing of Nabal hath Jehovah returned upon his own head. And David sent and spake concerning Abigail, to take her to him to wife.
Remember... “Vengeance belongeth unto me; I will recompense, saith the Lord” (Rom. 12:19)
Here is a case in point.
God takes vengeance upon Nabal for the wrong against David and the wrongs against Abigail in one fell swoop
CONCLUSION
A HAPPY ENDING
A HAPPY ENDING
39 And when David heard that Nabal was dead, he said, Blessed be Jehovah, that hath pleaded the cause of my reproach from the hand of Nabal, and hath kept back his servant from evil: and the evil-doing of Nabal hath Jehovah returned upon his own head. And David sent and spake concerning Abigail, to take her to him to wife.
No, ladies this doesn’t mean that if your husband is mean to you that God will get rid of him and you’ll have a King David galloping over the hill top.
It does mean, though, that God can turn a situation around in a matter of a few days when it is time. Trust Him!
40 And when the servants of David were come to Abigail to Carmel, they spake unto her, saying, David hath sent us unto thee, to take thee to him to wife. 41 And she arose, and bowed herself with her face to the earth, and said, Behold, thy handmaid is a servant to wash the feet of the servants of my lord. 42 And Abigail hasted, and arose, and rode upon an ass, with five damsels of hers that followed her; and she went after the messengers of David, and became his wife.
… a romantic ending!
THE LESSON TO BE LEARNED
THE LESSON TO BE LEARNED
Vengeful anger can turn right around and sink you
We cannot rely on our past laurels – each day there will be new battles to be won