Nabal

For our lesson of Abigail, 1 Samuel 25:2-42, here are some important points. The points do not directly answer the questions on pages 91-95 of the text, but may help you in our discussion of the Saturday Bible Study 08/02/2014.

1.Her name means, “My Father is Joy”. 3. (pg. 161)

2. Wife of Nabal and later David. 1. ( Vol. A-D, pg. 7)

3. She was an intelligent and beautiful woman, but her husband, a Calebite, was surly and mean in his dealings. (1 Samuel 25:3)

4. Abigail is described as: generous, quick-witted, and wise, she was one of the Bibles’ great peacemakers. 3. (pg. 161)

5. Abigail’s sorrow: To have a mismatched marriage to her first husband. 3. (pg. 161)

6. One of the servants told Nabal’s wife, Abigail: David sent messengers from the desert to give our master his greetings, but he hurled insults at them. (1 Samuel 25:14)

7. Wasting no time and without a word to her husband, she loaded a caravan of donkeys with gifts for David and his men— freshly baked bread, skins of wine, red meat, and various delicacies—and took them to David’s camp. As soon as she saw him, she fell to the ground at his feet, making one of the longest speeches by a woman recorded in the Bible. 3. (pg. 167)

8. Abigail was a courageous woman, who made the best out of a difficult situation. She knew the cultural principles at work here: Nabal —out of just plain good hospitality and out of gratitude for the protection David’s men had provided —should have given David’s men what they asked for. Yet when David sought vengeance, Abigail interceded, realizing that vengeance wasn’t something that was up to David —or her—to give. 3. (pg. 167)

9. David said to Abigail, “Praise be to the Lord, the God of Israel, who has sent you today to meet me. May you be blessed for your good judgment and keeping me from bloodshed this day and from avenging myself with my own hands. (I Samuel 25:32-33)

10. When Nabal was informed of his wife’s action on the morrow after his nocturnal debauch, he suffered a stroke and died within ten days. Shortly thereafter, David took Abigail for his wife. 1. (Vol. K-Q pg. 491)

1. The Interpreter’s Dictionary of the Bible, Abingdon Press, 1962.

2. The NIV Study Bible, Zondervan, 1995.

3. Women of the Bible, Ann Spangler and Jean E. Syswerda, Zondervan, 2007.