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1 Samuel Chapter 25
The Death of Samuel
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1Samuel 25:1 And Samuel
died; and all the Israelites were gathered together, and
lamented him, and buried him in his house at Ramah. And David
arose, and went down to the wilderness of Paran.
Samuel lived a good long life and now
rests in peace awaiting the resurrection. His soul is with the Lord
after the resurrection of Jesus. Before than righteous souls went to
Abraham's bosom. A place of comfort. Evil ones had their souls
placed in a place of torment.
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1Samuel 25:2 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.
Here was a very rich man but without
compassion and hospitality. When the rich are evil, the innocent
suffer.
Sad that a descendent of Caleb would
turn out this way. Caleb was the one along with Joshua that were the
only ones from the older generation that was allowed to live and
enter the promised land after the 40 extra years God made the
children of Israel wander in the wilderness because of unbelief.
Caleb and Joshua were the only two of the 12 spies that spied out
the land of Canaan that had faith and did not fear the giants that
lived in the land but believed through the power of God that they
could defeat them.
- 1Samuel 25:4 And
David heard in the wilderness that Nabal did shear his sheep.
- 5 And David sent out
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 both to thee, and
peace be to thine house, and peace be unto all that thou hast.
- 7 And now I have
heard that thou hast shearers: now thy shepherds which were with
us, we hurt them not, neither was there ought missing unto them,
all the while they were in Carmel.
- 8 Ask thy young men,
and they will shew thee. Wherefore let the young men find favour
in thine eyes: for we come in a good day: give, I pray thee,
whatsoever cometh to thine hand unto thy servants, and to thy
son David.
David sought some help and relief for
his men who would have been tired and hungry but he soon finds out
that not everyone had respect for him. Nabal may have treated
everyone that way but he was very rude and unkind in this case.
Perhaps when he heard of the fame of David, he took Saul's side and
mistakenly believed David was trying to take over the kingdom by
military efforts. It would seem however that Abigail believed that
David was anointed by Samuel to become the king and was a good man.
- 1Samuel 25:9 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 be 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, whom I know not whence they be?
- 12 So David's young
men turned their way, and went again, and came and told him all
those sayings.
We may think it strange in what happens
next but we must consider that hospitality for travelers was common
in those days. They didn't have restaurants and fast food, although
cities may have had inns. Nabal wasn't a poor man and had many
servants. He didn't live alone. Then too perhaps he had heard that
Saul killed the even the priests who helped David and feared for his
own life if he helped David. My guess is that he wasn't a follower
of God at all and could have just been a cruel selfish person.
David took 400 with him and left 200 by
the equipment to guard against thieves. This was the first act of
David against those that did evil by insulting his men who went in
peace. He didn't do this with Saul or his household, perhaps because
of the anointing of God upon Saul when he was originally appointed
king. Then too, perhaps David loved deeply the household of Saul and
especially his friendship with an oath to Jonathan that he would not
break his vow to spare the family of Saul when he himself became
king.
- 1Samuel 25:14 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 on them.
- 15 But the men were
very good unto us, and we were not hurt, neither missed we any
thing, as long as we were conversant with them, when we were in
the fields:
- 16 They were a wall
unto us both by night and 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 household: for he is
such a son of Belial, that a man cannot speak to him.
Thankfully, there was one among the men
of Nabal and saw the evil in his master but also saw the kindness in
the wife of Nabal who was Abigail. A wise person knew their lives
were in danger and knew who to go to to make an appeal for their
lives.
Back then women usually had no say over
who they marry but in free countries today they do have a choice. Be
careful who you marry. This is for the men too. If possible never
rush into a marriage without knowing the character of the person you
choose. Get to know them and their own families well before getting
into a marriage. Living together before marriage is not good either
because that creates a bond similar to marrage that can harm the
future of either because you might meet the one who is the love of
your life later but that one might not desire to marry someone that
previously lived with someone else in an intimate relationship.
I
say to women, respect yourself, don't sell yourself cheap. Demand
respect and don't be someone's slave if you live in a country that
will protect your right to do so.
- 1Samuel 25:18 Then
Abigail made haste, and took two hundred loaves, and two bottles
of wine, and five sheep ready dressed, and five measures of
parched corn, and an hundred clusters of raisins, and two
hundred cakes of figs, and laid them on asses.
- 19 And she said unto
her servants, Go on before me; behold, I come after you. But she
told not her husband Nabal.
She knew David and his men were tired
and hungry. She hoped that this would save her people and family.
How brave this lady was. David was so angry that he could have
killed them on sight without giving them a hearing. She didn't tell
her husband because he would have stopped her.
- 1Samuel 25:20 And it
was so, as she rode on the ass, that she came down by the covert
of the hill, and, behold, David and his men came down against
her; and she met them.
- 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 requited me evil for good.
- 22 So and more also
do God unto the enemies of David, if I leave of all that pertain
to him by the morning light any that pisseth against the wall.
Abigail not only saved the lives of her
people but knowing the character of David, if he would have done all
that was in his heart at the time and killed women and children, he
would later have regretted it. Doing things in anger without
consulting God is a human weakness we all need to avoid.
- 1Samuel 25:23 And
when Abigail saw David, she hasted, and lighted off the ass, and
fell before David on her face, and bowed herself to the ground,
- 24 And fell at his
feet, and said, Upon me, my lord, upon me let this iniquity be:
and let thine handmaid, I pray thee, speak in thine audience,
and hear the words of thine handmaid.
- 25 Let not my lord,
I pray thee, regard this man of Belial, even Nabal: for as his
name is, so is he; Nabal is his name, and folly is with him: but
I thine handmaid saw not the young men of my lord, whom thou
didst send.
- 26 Now therefore, my
lord, as the LORD liveth, and as thy soul liveth, seeing the
LORD hath withholden thee from coming to shed blood, and from
avenging thyself with thine own hand, now let thine enemies, and
they that seek evil to my lord, be as Nabal.
- 27 And now this
blessing which thine handmaid hath brought unto my lord, let it
even be given unto the young men that follow my lord.
- 28 I pray thee,
forgive the trespass of thine handmaid: for the LORD will
certainly make my lord a sure house; because my lord fighteth
the battles of the LORD, and evil hath not been found in thee
all thy days.
Abigail was willing to take the blame
for her husband's actions to spare the lives of her servants and
others in her family.
- 29 Yet a man is
risen to pursue thee, and to seek thy soul: but the soul of my
lord shall be bound in the bundle of life with the LORD thy God;
and the souls of thine enemies, them shall he sling out, as out
of the middle of a sling.
- 30 And it shall come
to pass, when the LORD shall have done to my lord according to
all the good that he hath spoken concerning thee, and shall have
appointed thee ruler over Israel;
- 31 That this shall
be no grief unto thee, nor offence of heart unto my lord, either
that thou hast shed blood causeless, or that my lord hath
avenged himself: but when the LORD shall have dealt well with my
lord, then remember thine handmaid.
Abigail somehow knew that David would
be the next king and was also saving him from the grief he would
later have if he would have done the thing in haste and killed
innocent people. A wise woman we have here, very wise. She believed
in God and was not like her husband. She also could see the
character of David and wanted to save him from doing evil.
This is why David was a man after God's
own heart. Not because of his hasty actions that he later had to
regret as we shall see in further studies of David. It was because
when his sin was pointed out to him, he was quick to acknowledge it
and repent of any evil in his heart. A person that is the opposite
and refuses to repent after being reproved by someone God sends to
them, are the ones that usually end up outside of God's salvation
and loses their soul forever.
We all sin at times and we all need the
will to repent when we do. We can be cleansed of sin and live in
holiness if we draw nigh to God. Now we have the shed blood of God's
Son, Jesus to give us power and victory over sin and receive the
gift of the Holy Spirit to abide with us enabling us to live in a
way that pleases Him and give us victory over sin. We still have
the power to choose good from evil, because it is our choice to
yield to God or ignore God, but to hear God and live by His word
will bring everlasting life. He that believes on Him (Jesus) shall
not perish but have everlasting life.
- 1Samuel 25:33 And
blessed be thy advice, and blessed be thou, which hast kept me
this day from coming to shed blood, and from avenging myself
with mine own hand.
- 34 For in very deed,
as the LORD God of Israel liveth, which hath kept me back from
hurting thee, except thou hadst hasted and come to meet me,
surely there had not been left unto Nabal by the morning light
any that pisseth against the wall.
- 35 So David received
of her hand that which she had brought him, and said unto her,
Go up in peace to thine house; see, I have hearkened to thy
voice, and have accepted thy person.
David's heart was changed and this lady
saved the lives of many who were innocent in what happened to
David's men. This was good. God is good to have saved lives by the
what Abigail did. It just took one vessel, one person to go out and
intercede on behalf of innocent people. Lives were saved.
- 1Samuel 25:36 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 But it came to
pass in the morning, when the wine was gone out of Nabal, and
his wife had told him these things, that his heart died within
him, and he became as a stone.
- 38 And it came to
pass about ten days after, that the LORD smote Nabal, that he
died.
- 39 And when David
heard that Nabal was dead, he said, Blessed be the LORD, that
hath pleaded the cause of my reproach from the hand of Nabal,
and hath kept his servant from evil: for the LORD hath returned
the wickedness of Nabal upon his own head. And David sent and
communed with Abigail, to take her to him to wife.
Who knows what Nabal would have done to
Abigail if he would not have gotten weak and died. She showed
bravery when she decided to tell him and not keep it a secret.
Perhaps she hoped he would repent. Notice that the Lord allowed
Nabal to live 10 days so he did have a chance to repent. Perhaps his
heart turning to stone meant that he feared David's vengeance and it
made him so afraid he couldn't move or something.
- 1Samuel 25:40 And
when the servants of David were come to Abigail to Carmel, they
spake unto her, saying, David sent us unto thee, to take thee to
him to wife.
- 41 And she arose,
and bowed herself on her face to the earth, and said, Behold,
let thine handmaid be 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 went after her; and she went after the messengers of
David, and became his wife.
- 43 David also took
Ahinoam of Jezreel; and they were also both of them his wives.
- 44 But Saul had
given Michal his daughter, David's wife, to Phalti the son of
Laish, which was of Gallim.
This was a custom in that day to take
the wife of enemies. However the law of Moses warned against the
taking of multiple wives. In the days of Solomon it became his
downfall and caused Solomon to backslide and build houses of worship
for the false gods some of his wives worshipped.
- Deuteronomy 17:15
Thou shalt in any wise set him king over thee, whom the LORD thy
God shall choose: one from among thy brethren shalt thou set
king over thee: thou mayest not set a stranger over thee, which
is not thy brother.
- 16 But he shall
not multiply horses to himself, nor cause the people to return
to Egypt, to the end that he should multiply horses: forasmuch
as the LORD hath said unto you, Ye shall henceforth return no
more that way.
- 17 Neither shall
he multiply wives to himself, that his heart turn not away:
neither shall he greatly multiply to himself silver and gold.
Living in luxury, trusting in riches and
multiplying wives can bring destruction. David had problems later
because of his lust for women also. In his case he repented and in
Solomon's case he didn't repent as far as scripture tells us.
- Exodus 34:15
Lest thou make a covenant with the inhabitants of the land, and
they go a whoring after their gods, and do sacrifice unto their
gods, and one call thee, and thou eat of his sacrifice;
- 16 And thou take
of their daughters unto thy sons, and their daughters go a
whoring after their gods, and make thy sons go a whoring after
their gods.
- 17 Thou shalt
make thee no molten gods.
Idolatry is the biggest insult against our
God, our Creator and our savior that we can possibly do. If only we
would listen to God, our lives would be lived fruitful bring other
souls to God in the process. DC
1 Samuel Chapter 26
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