Blogging Bible Study - Digging in the Desert: Elijah's Desert Retreat

Posted by Lisa Laree to Beer Lahai Roi

Ok, this week is kinda dicey.  There are exactly three verses that mention 'desert' in the rest of 1 Kings.

The first, 1 Kings 9:1, is strictly a geographical reference. For context, I'm including verses 17-19:

And Solomon rebuilt Gezer.  He built up Lower Beth Horon, Baalath, and Tadmore in the desert, within his land,  as well as  all his store cities and the towns for his chariots and for his horses -- whatever he desired to build in Jerusalem, in Lebanon and through out all the territory he ruled.

I pondered discussing Solomon's building program and his reign, but, you know, that really has very little to do with 'desert' at all.  So I think I will leave that reference right there, just as it is, indicating that Solomon was a builder, and move on to the next mention of  'desert', which is totally unrelated, in 1 Kings 19.

This follows the dramatic showdown between Elijah and the priests of Baal on Mt. Carmel; Elijah got wind of Jezebel's intention to kill him and

Elijah was afraid and ran for his life.  When he came to Beersheba in Judah, he left his servant there, while he himself went a day's journey into the desert.  He came to a broom tree, sat down under it, and prayed that he might die. "I have had enough, LORD," he said.  "Take my life; I am no better than my ancestors."  Then he lay down under the tree and fell asleep. (1 Kings 19:3 - 5a)

I have always thought it rather ironic that Elijah ran for his life from Jezebel, then asked God to kill him.  I mean, really?  Maybe he thought he would suffer less if God killed him?  I don't know.  But I do see in this a predecessor to the events that happen when Elijah actually does depart the earth...after trying repeatedly to leave his servant at that time behind.  Of course, at this point Elijah's tasks weren't finished and he is twice awakened and fed a baked cake and water by an angel. Then, strengthened by the food and refreshed by the rest, he set off on foot for Mount Horeb.  It took him 40 days to get there.  I have heard it said that he fasted the entire trip...that the strength of those angelic meals miraculously kept him alive until he reached Horeb.  Now, I am not going to say that isn't so...but I will say that I don't read this that way.  If you go back and read through 18: 20 - 48 you'll find that Elijah had already been fasting...and he spent himself both physically and spiritually before he got to the broom tree (the mileage he had to have covered to get from Mt. Carmel to Jezreel to Beersheba, then another day's walk into the desert is pretty staggering).  I don't think those meals and that rest were what got him through the next 40 days; I think they were what gave him enough recovery to even begin the journey, because I believe he was at the absolute end of his resources when he fell asleep.  We don't know how long the angel let him sleep before rousing him...and we don't know how long he slept between meals...but once he'd had that second cake he was able to get up and get moving.

The scene that played out on the mountain 40 days later is also very familiar (aside...do you suppose this cave is the same cleft in the rock that protected Moses when God passed by?);  there is ferocious wind, then an earthquake,  then a fire...then a gentle whisper.  When Elijah heard the whisper, he knew the presence of the LORD was near so he covered his face and stood at the entrance to the cave.  For the second time, God asked him, "What are you doing here, Elijah?" and Elijah repeated his earlier answer (cp 19:9-10 and 13-14),  complaining that the Israelites had abandoned God, killed all the prophets and now he was the only one left, "...and now they are trying to kill me, too."

At first, God did not respond at all to Elijah's complaint.  He just gave him instructions.

The LORD said to him, "Go back the way you came, and go to the Desert of Damascus.  When you get there, anoint Hazael king over Aram.  Also, anoint Jehu son of Nimshi king over Israel, and anoint Elisha son of Shaphat from Abel Meholah to succeed you as prophet."  (1 Kings 19: 15-18)

Then...God dropped the little fact that there were still 7,000 in Israel who had not turned aside to follow Baal.  Elijah was hardly alone.

Elijah's tasks began a shift once he returned from his desert retreat...the end of the rule of the house of Ahab  in Israel, a new dynasty in Aram, and a new protege' who would become THE prophet after he was gone.

I wonder how long his previous servant waited on him in Beersheba?

Seriously, though,  Elijah's sojourn in the desert  was a shifting point, not only in his life, but in the kingdoms around him.  He went into the desert exhausted and discouraged; he came out with a purpose. 

Blogging Bible Study: Digging in the Desert -- Who was Joab?

Posted by Lisa Laree to Beer Lahai Roi

1 Kings has very few references to 'desert', and they are fairly disconnected from one another.  But the first reference is in chapter 2, verse 34 -

So Benaiah son of Jehoiada went up and struck down Joab and killed him, and he was buried on his own land in the desert.

What had brought this mighty warrior to the point where he was simply struck down and killed? 

To understand that, we need to look at his history. 

2 Chronicles 2:16 tells us that David had two sisters --  Zeruiah, who had three sons,  Abishai, Joab and Asahel; and Abigail, who had one son named Amasa.

But the first reference we have to Joab is when David crept into Saul's camp with Abishai, who is identified in 1 Samuel 26:6 as Joab's brother, with the author confident that anyone reading later would know who Joab was.  In the  2 Samuel 23 list of David's 'Mighty Men', both Abishai and Asahel are mentioned, with both of them identified as 'Joab's brother', but Joab himself is not mentioned in any of the lists.  Which I found rather interesting. I had just kind of taken it for granted that Joab was one of the standout supporters of David's refugee years but...not so much.  Unless he was already counted as the leader of them all and therefore not included in the lists.  But other leaders, not included, were named so...I dunno.  Draw your own conclusions.

Joab himself enters the story in 2 Samuel 2:13.  It was a time of civil war in Israel; David had been crowned king of Judah in Hebron, but Saul's military commander, Abner, had had Saul's son Ish-bosheth anointed king over Israel.  On this occasion, Abner and the army of Israel met up with 'Joab son of Zeruiah and David's men' at the pool of Gibeon, Abner proposed a solution to the standoff -- twelve men from each side would battle in hand-to-hand combat and the winner would, well, be the winner,  Joab, who seems to be in the position of authority at that time, agreed.  But the 24 men each slew their opponent on the first stroke...a truly remarkable thing...so there was no resolution there and the battle raged.  David's men defeated them and Abner was pursued by Asahel, the youngest of the sons of Zeruiah.  Abner tried to dissuade Asahel from chasing him, but Asahel, who was a very fast runner, didn't swerve.  Finally, Abner jabbed at him with the butt of his spear.  Now, I do not for one minute think Abner meant to seriously harm Asahel.  If you want to hurt someone, you use the pointy end of the weapon, not the blunt end.  But Asahel apparently had  a ridiculous amount of momentum going and he ended up impaled on the butt end of Abner's spear and died. A death in battle...not a murder.  Over the course of the next couple of years,  Ish-Bosheth  offended Abner so badly that Abner declared his intention to bring all of Israel over to David...and he defected to David.  At David's request, he brought  Saul's daughter Michal back to him.  David welcomed him and then sent him in peace to drum up the support of the rest of the nation.

Joab, however, wasn't having it.  He was sure that Abner was up to no good and would betray them all.  He left David angry, and, without David's knowledge or blessing, summoned Abner to himself.  When Abner arrived, Joab took him aside as if to share some confidence, but instead stabbed him and he died, purportedly to avenge the death of his younger brother.

David was beyond furious.  He actually spoke a curse over Joab and his descendants:

"I and my kingdom are forever innocent  before the LORD concerning the blood of Abner son of Ner.  May his blood fall upon the head of Joab and  upon all his father's house!  May Joab's house never be without someone who has a running sore or leprosy or who leans on a crutch or who falls by the sword or who lacks food."  (2 Sam 3:28-29).  The rest of the chapter is David's lament for Abner, whom he called 'a prince and a great man'.  It's also significant that Joab, right from the beginning of David's kingship,  demonstrated his ability for subterfuge, violence and betrayal.

Yet, 2 Sam 8:16 indicates that Joab was officially the head of the army. Joab had some good qualities.  He was a great military strategist (see 2 Sam 10:9 - 12; also 2 Sam 20:20 - 22); he summoned David to come and lead the final attack of a long battle so that David would get the credit for the victory.  He worked to facilitate a reconciliation between David and his son Absalom ( 14: 1-21, 32-33).  He tried hard to dissuade David from foolishly counting the fighting men (24:3)...and, after Absalom's death,  reproved David for mourning him so publicly and damaging the morale of his army (19: 5 - 8).  But those 'good' qualities were overshadowed by his violence.   He abetted David in the murder of Bathsheba's husband Uriah, which also caused the death of a number of other Israeli soldiers; he himself was the one who killed Absalom in cold blood as he hung, entrapped and defenseless, from a tree.  After Absalom's uprising, David sent word to Amasa, his sister Abigail's son, who had led Absalom's army, that he wanted him to come and be the head of his army.  Joab got wind of that  and rather gruesomely and very coldly murdered Amasa...his cousin...leaving him 'wallowing in his blood in the road' in full view of the army as they went after Sheba, son of Bicri. (20:9-13)

Throughout the book of 2 Samuel, it could be argued that Joab's actions were those of a man who honestly wanted what was best for the kingdom...and believed that he knew better than the king what that would be.  It's possible that he honestly believed he was removing a threat by killing Abner, and then Amasa, as they had each led the armies opposing the king.  But in 1 Kings, we see something different.  In chapter 1, David is old, likely suffering from hypothyroidism,  nearing the end of his days.    His next son after Absalom, Adonijah, decided he would be king at once.  He sought out and actually won the support of two individuals who had stood by David in Absalom's rebellion: Abiathar the priest, which is its own mystery, and...Joab.  Joab, who had so violently protected  David and the kingdom in years past...now put his support behind Adonijah's coup attempt.  Why would he do that?  David did not have much longer  to reign; if he died, Adonijah was the next in line.  Why didn't Joab simply counsel Adonijah to bide his time?  It appears that Joab must've known of David's plan to make Solomon king.  And, for whatever reason, he didn't like his chances to stay in power under Solomon.  If he cut a deal with Adonijah and saw to it that Adonijah succeeded where Absalom failed, then he could still maintain his position.  Joab didn't seek to be king himself; but as general of all the king's armies he pretty much did as he pleased and there wasn't much David could do about it when he murdered anyone David called upon to take his place. It was a place he meant to keep under the next king.

Of course, they were a bit short and a bit late; Nathan and Bathsheba laid the situation out before David, who moved immediately to abdicate his throne in favor of his son Solomon.  Solomon was anointed by Zadok and proclaimed king in Jerusalem, which completely unraveled Adonijah's  plans.  Before David died, he charged Solomon with a number of tasks...one of which was, 'Deal with [Joab] according to your wisdom, but do not let his gray head go down to the grave in peace.' (see 1 Kings 2:5 - 6).

After David's death, Solomon took no immediate action against Joab, or his half brother Adonijah .  In fact, he had promised Adonijah, 'If he shows himself to be a worthy man, not a hair of his head will fall to the ground; but if evil is found in him he will die." (1 Kings 1:52).

But, when Solomon was firmly established as king, Adonijah made a request through Bathsheba.  To our modern morality, it sounds perfectly innocent...He wanted to marry one of David's concubines, who had served him at the end of his life without being sexually intimate with him.  A virgin girl.  That doesn't sound so awful, does it?  Ah, but this is now and that was then.  And then...well,  it was a sign of conquering a king, to sleep with his wives/ concubines (Absalom had so violated the 10 concubines David had left behind to tend the palace when he fled the city ...see 2 Sam 16:21 - 22).  There was more to this request than appeared on the surface.  Bathseba either didn't catch on, or she knew what the result would be, so she passed the request on to Solomon.  Solomon at once saw it for what it was...another coup attempt...and his wrath didn't fall only on Adonijah, but on those who conspired with him, Abiathar and Joab.  Benaiah, captain of the bodyguard,  was dispatched to kill Adonijah and Joab but Abiathar, as he was a priest who had carried the Ark, was stripped from his position and banished to his land.  Adonijah was dispatched without  ceremony, but Joab ran to the tabernacle and grabbed the horns of the altar; traditionally a place of sanctuary.  Benaiah ordered him to come out in the king's name, but Joab refused saying, 'No, I will die here.'  (1 Kings 2:30).  Benaiah reported back to Solomon, asking what he should do. Solomon replied, 'Do as he says.  Strike him down and bury him, and so clear me and my father's house of the guilt of the innocent blood he shed...may the guilt of their blood rest on the head of Joab and his descendants forever.' (2:31, 33).

So Benaiah son of Jehoiada went up and struck down Joab and killed him, and he was buried on his own land in the desert.

Brings to mind Matthew's record of Jesus' chastisement of Peter, when he had cut off Malchus' ear, "...all who draw the sword will die by the sword."  (Matt 26:52).  Joab was a violent man, who died a violent death.  Was his insistence on dying by the altar a last ditch effort to try and absolve himself of the blood guilt he had carried for years?  Or, ever the manipulator, maybe it was an attempt to put blood guilt on Benaiah, for killing an unarmed man clinging to God's altar?   Joab's motives in his death were no less puzzling than his motives for actions he took in his life.    Were you to talk to him, I am convinced he would maintain he did what he did for the good of the nation. 

It's easy to shake our heads in judgment of that kind of self deception...but I have to ask myself, what am I deceiving myself about?  What reprehensible actions do I defend from a self-interested position?

Joab certainly doesn't have the corner on the rationalization market...

Blogging Bible Study: Digging in the Desert - Through the Desert to Sanctuary

Posted by Lisa Laree to Beer Lahai Roi

The only references to 'desert' in 2 Samuel are clustered up in chapters 15 - 17, which, to my thinking, is one of the great tragedies of the Old Testament.   There is quite a bit of back story to explain Absalom's animosity towards his dad, which I'm not going into here (recorded in chapters 13- 14, if you're interested in reading it).  Of course, the root of all of this is David's sin regarding Bathesheba and Uriah; we don't really have a time frame for that but it's likely that Absalom was old enough to remember it when it happened.  It's quite possible that David's actions there also influenced Absalom's opinion of his father...Nathan had told David that sword would never leave his house because of his actions.  God forgave the sin...but the consequences remained.

Chapter 15 opens up with Absalom moving about the people,  offering them sympathy and generally being a good-looking friend to all.  He did this for four years, so that all the people loved him.  Then he moved...asking David for permission to go to Hebron and worship.  David, no doubt pleased that his son was seeking God, gave his blessing for him to go. 

But treachery was afoot.  Absalom had conspired to get himself proclaimed king in Hebron. (v.10)

David finally got word of what was going on in verse 13...although how he deduced the matter from the message that 'The hearts of the men of Israel are with Absalom." is beyond me.  But he at once realized the significance of it and told his officials with him in Jerusalem, "Come! We must flee, or none of us will escape from Absalom.  We must leave immediately, or he will move quickly to overtake us  and bring ruin upon us and put the city to the sword." (v. 14)

I honestly think it was the prompting of the Spirit for him to see the situation as it was...but it may also have been an echo of all the years he spent as a fugitive from the court of Saul. They packed up the court, leaving ten concubines behind to keep house, and headed out, in company of Ittai the Gittite and all his men.

The whole countryside wept aloud as all the people passed by.  The king also crossed the Kidron Valley, and all the people moved on toward the desert. (15:23).  They paused for sacrifices, then David told Zadok and Abiathar the priests, who had brought the Ark of the Covenant with them, to take the Ark back to the city but to send word via their sons Ahimeaaz and Jonathan if they could discover Absalom's plans. 

"I will wait at the fords in the desert until word comes from you to inform me." David told them in verse 28.   They traveled up the road that climbed the Mount of Olives (aside...do you suppose that is the same road Jesus traveled when he came into Jerusalem on the back of a young donkey?) and he met his friend Hushai at the summit.  David had learned that his counselor Ahithophel had conspired w/ Absalom, so he sent Hushai to Absalom's court to counsel against whatever Ahithophel advised...and also to be his eyes and ears there, communicating with Zadok and Abiathar.

So David's counterespionage plan was set, and Hushai met up with Absalom's entourage just as they entered the city from Hebron.

David met up with Ziba, the servant of Jonathan's crippled son Mephibosheth (see 2 Sam. 9 for his story) on the far side of the Mount of Olives; Ziba had a string of donkeys saddled for use, as well as loads of provisions.

The king asked Ziba, "Why have you brought these?"  Ziba answered, "The donkeys are for the king's household to rode on,  the bread and fruit are for the men to eat, and the wine is to refresh those who become exhausted in the desert."  (16: 2)  Furthermore, Ziba stated that Mephibosheth was hanging back in Jerusalem, hoping to reinstate the household of Saul... himself... as king in the aftermath of a battle in the household of David. Was that true?  Mephibosheth claimed otherwise later (2 Sam 19:26), saying that Ziba betrayed him. Whichever was the case...the food and the donkeys were there for the use of the king and his companions, which no doubt served to encourage them to some degree.

David endured curses and rock throwing from a guy named Shemei  as they finished their journey to the 'fords of the desert'...the Jordan river a bit north of the Dead Sea.   Exhausted, they set up a temporary camp to await word from Jerusalem as to what they should do next.

Meanwhile, back in Absalom's camp, Ahithophel counseled Absalom to set out after David at once, with a relatively small force to catch the fugitives while they were weary and unprepared, to kill only David, and bring all the rest of the people back unharmed.  But Absalom chose to listen to the counsel of Hushai, who suggested they gather all the soldiers they could from around the country, since David was likely hidden somewhere and they would have to fight his battle-experienced guards, who would likely decimate a small tactical force.  Hushai relayed the message to the priests, explaining what had happened and instructing them

"Now send a message immediately and tell David, 'Do not spend the night at the fords in the desert; cross over without fail, or the king and all the people with him will be swallowed up."  (17:16)

The priests sent a servant girl to tell the messengers at En Rogel.  But the young men were spotted and a report went to Absalom, who sent troops after them.  After a dramatic moment reminiscent of the rooftop of Rahab, the troops went off in the wrong direction and the young men got their message through to David.  By daybreak, none of David's people were left on the west side of the Jordan.

Ahithopel returned to his house in his hometown and hung himself since his advice had not been followed.

David's party made it to Mahanaim, where  a trio of wealthy friends (Shobi, Makir, and Barzillai)

brought bedding and bowls and articles of pottery.  They also brought wheat and barley, flour and roasted grain, beans and lentils, honey and curds, sheep and cheese from cows' milk for David and his people to eat. For they said, "The people have become hungry and thirsty in the desert."  (17:28-29)

And that, my friends, is the last mention of the word 'desert' in 2 Samuel.

The desert was David's sanctuary in 1 Samuel; he went through the desert to sanctuary in 2 Samuel.  This time, he went across the Jordan, and he had allies who helped him...which was the difference between being someone the king sought to kill and the king whom someone wanted to kill.

But it takes the next three chapters to bring all the details in this sad story to closure...David's son Absalom was killed; there was a big fuss among the tribes over bringing the king back to Jerusalem; tempers flared and offense was taken, resulting in Sheba, son of Bicri, leading a second rebellion. The seeds of the future division of the country may well have been sown in that episode.  David and Joab were at odds; Joab murdered the man David planned to set in his place over the armies of Israel.

At the fords of the desert David's life was in danger, waiting for word from Jerusalem. By the Lord's doing, the counsel of the enemy was thwarted and David made it to safety...but the ripple effect kept spreading.

The ripple that began when David saw something he shouldn't have seen, coveted something that wasn't his, took what he wanted despite the transgression of it, and then murdered men to try and hide it.  His sin was forgiven, but the consequences kept multiplying.

A sobering lesson.

Blogging Bible Study: Digging in the Desert - David's Last Words With Saul

Posted by Lisa Laree to Beer Lahai Roi

We have exactly two more verses in the remaining 5 chapters of 1 Samuel that mention the desert...and they are in verses 2 and 3 of chapter 26.  I'll include verses 1 and 4 for context...

The Ziphites went to Saul at Gibeah and said, "Is not David hiding on the hill of Hakilah, which faces Jeshimon?"  So Saul went down to the Desert of Ziph, with his three thousand chosen men, to search for David.  Saul made his camp beside the road on the hill of Hakilah facing Jeshimon, but David stayed in the desert. When he saw that Saul had followed him there, he sent out scouts and learned that Saul had definitely arrived.

The same folks that betrayed David to Saul (1 Sam 23:19) went back to Saul with the news that David was once more hanging around in their area.   Despite acknowledging that David would be king  (1 Sam 24:20), Saul again went in pursuit of David.  When David heard from his scouts that Saul was there, he went  on a little reconnaissance himself with a few of his men and actually spotted where Saul and the commander of his army, Abner, had bivouacked for the night.  He asked which of the men would go down to the camp with him and Abishai volunteered.

Verse 12 tells us that 'the LORD had put them in a deep sleep', so that David and Abishai were able to creep right up to where Saul was sleeping, with his spear stuck in the sand by his head.

Abishai, of course, was ready to skewer Saul to the ground right there.  David, however, was more cautious.  Firstly, it was sure to make a noise that would alert the camp to their presence...and they were greatly outnumbered and unlikely to survive if they were caught...but beyond that, it was David's conviction that he should not harm Saul.  He told Abishai in verse 9, "Who can lay a hand on the LORD's anointed and be guiltless?"

This is one of David's remarkable qualities.  He was absolutely convinced that he should do nothing to advance himself or bring all the prophetic words to pass.  "As surely as the LORD lives," he said, "the LORD himself will strike him; either his time will come and he will die, or he will go to battle and perish."  So they took Saul's spear, and the water jug that was also there, and crept back out of the camp.

Of course, once he was well clear of danger he hollered at Abner and woke him up, chastising him for failing to guard his king.  Saul recognized David's voice, and David responded that, once more, he'd had the chance to kill Saul...as evidenced by the spear and water jug that he now possessed...and he had not.  David maintained that he was guilty of no crime against Saul and Saul actually agreed, "I have sinned, " he said (26:21), and he asked David to come back to court, promising he would not try to harm him again, adding, "Surely I have acted like a fool and have erred greatly."

David said he would return the spear and jug to Saul if he would send a young man over to retrieve it, but he did not go back with Saul. "The LORD delivered you into my hands today, " he said, "but I would not lay a hand on the LORD's anointed."

Saul's final words to David were, "May you be blessed, my son David;  you will do great things and surely triumph." (v. 25)

After that exchange, David decided to leave Israel's territory and go hang out with the Philistines; a pretty dramatic shift. He even had the audacity to go to Gath, Goliath's hometown, and pledge himself to the service of the king's son, Achish, who gave him the village of Ziklag as his base. 

He never encountered Saul again....but 'desert' doesn't come in to the rest of that story.

This particular passage has some significance for me; I remember, years (and years) ago, being in a congregation that had some, um, difference of opinion concerning the pastor.  There were some folks who were convinced that he, um, should move on to his next calling...while there were others who felt he should stay.  Of course, he was not perfect and had made mistakes, but in my questioning of what the right course of action should be I came across this passage.  Who can lay a hand on the LORD's anointed and be guiltless?  Now, this probably wouldn't apply to all situations in all churches; let's be frank, there are a number of congregations...and those who lead them... who have agendas other than following God's leadership.  But I honestly didn't think this was the case.  We had a pastor...a flawed human, to be sure, but someone who actually, at some level, wanted to do what God wanted done.  In my heart, I realized it was up to God to move him...because the church was God's church.  And if there is a congregation who genuinely wants to follow God, led by a pastor who genuinely wants to follow God, and they somehow get crosswise of each other...well, it wasn't up to me to join the chorus of accusation, and my prayer was that God would move quickly to resolve the controversy and heal the wounds.  The folks who wanted the pastor gone...left...and a year or so later the pastor moved on (Aside...there is a reason Jesus would ask folks if they wanted to be healed).  But the church survived the struggle and is still ministering to their post on the wall to this day.

If God put someone in a position, it really is up to God to put them elsewhere.  Because...who can lay a hand on the LORD's anointed and be guiltless?

Blogging Bible Study:Digging in the Desert - Abigail Saves the Day

Posted by Lisa Laree to Beer Lahai Roi

The next mention of the word 'desert' will be in 1 Samuel 25...one of the  more intriguing stories in the Old Testament.  David married, I believe, 8 women...but we only know the stories of three of them...Michal, Abigail and Bathsheba.  Michal was a political marriage, as likely were the other marriages for which we don't know the backstories, as alliances were frequently sealed by one king marrying a daughter of the other. Bathsheba was married due to hotheaded lust, but David married Abigail because he found her to be a remarkably wise woman...she earned his respect. 

Which  makes me wonder if, perhaps, he consulted her on diplomatic matters at times.  We'll never know, because she doesn't enter into his story after this point other than in lists of his wives and children, but I don't think he married such a woman just for her to be a trophy in his harem.  She was cool headed and resourceful under pressure; qualities David needed in his 'cabinet' , so to speak.

But I am getting ahead of the story...

Now Samuel died, and all Israel assembled and mourned for him; and they buried him at his home in Ramah.  Then David moved down into the desert of Maon.  (1 Sam 25:1)

I had never noticed before that verse 2 indicates that this story takes place in the region of Carmel...which is on the map plaque at the overlook where I took the header picture...not far at all from where we were that day.  Verses 2 and three also describe Nabal and his wife, Abigail.  Nabal is pictured as very, very wealthy...and also surly and mean in his dealings...a regular ol' Ebenezer Scrooge-type guy.  Abigail is described as a 'beautiful and intelligent woman.'  Oh...and it was sheep shearing time, which was generally a time of celebration and feasting.

While David was in the desert, he heard that Nabal was shearing sheep.  (v. 4)

This would be, like, a Hobbiton resident hearing that Bilbo Baggins was throwing a birthday party of particular magnificence.   Only, of course, it wasn't Bilbo, it was Ebenezer...but David didn't know that.  So of course, he took advantage of the custom of the day and sent some of his boys to collect the expected charitable contributions to the folks who had hung out in the area and protected his servants and his flocks for him.

Nabal reacted in typical Scrooge fashion, replying that he didn't think David was of any significance and he refused to share his provisions with someone who just showed up on his doorstep asking for a handout (my paraphrase; his words are in verse 11).  David was furious...not just at Nabal's refusal to contribute to their provision, but also at his arrogant insult. He and 400 of his men suited up to go and show Nabal  that David, son of Jesse, captain of his own fighting force, was not someone to dismiss so lightly.

It was about to be a very bad day for Nabal and his household.

Fortunately, there were servants who took some action when they heard the exchange between Nabal and David's messengers.

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.  Yet these men were very good to us.  They did not mistreat us, and the whole time we were out in the fields near them nothing was missing.  Night and day they were a wall around us all the time we were herding our sheep near them."  (vs. 14-16)

The servant who brought the message then urged Abigail to do something to avert the certain disaster that was about to befall them, because Nabal "is such a wicked man that no one can talk to him." ...ie, no one could talk sense into him.

Abigail did a remarkable thing.  Here was her chance to be rid of a husband who had to be extremely difficult to live with...but she thought of all the servants whose lives were also in danger and she didn't hesitate to intervene.  She packed up a wagon load of food...bread, wine, butchered sheep, roasted grain, raisins and dates...onto a donkey caravan and set out with the servants to take it to David's camp.

But she didn't tell Nabal what she had done, and no one else in the household mentioned it to him, either.

Verse 20 says that she met David and his troops in a mountain ravine (see the above picture, lol), just as David was telling his men

"It's been useless -- all my watching over this fellow's property in the desert so that nothing of his was missing.  He has paid me back evil for good.  May God deal with David, be it ever so severely, if by morning I leave alive one male of all who belong to him!"  ( vs. 21b - 22)

Abigail had arrived just in the TA-DA nick of time.  She got off her donkey and bowed before David and took all the blame for the lack of proper response.

She did, however, throw a little shade on Nabal  -- basically saying, 'Don't pay any attention to that jerk; his name means 'Fool' and he lives it out daily.  If the men had come to me instead, things would have been different.'

Then, she pleaded for mercy for the lives of her household, prophesying David's ultimate victory over his enemies, and concluded by saying. '...my master will not have on his conscience the staggering burden of needless bloodshed of having avenged himself.' (v. 31).

David blessed her for her good judgement, received the provisions she'd brought, and sent her home in peace.

That could easily have been the end of the story, but, well, Nabal was still in the dark and Abigail knew he would eventually find out what happened...and she knew it would be better if it came from her.  He was drunk from feasting when she got home, so she told him nothing until morning, when he was sober.    My NIV84 says, 'his heart failed him and he became like stone.' (v. 37).  I think he had an apoplectic stroke.  He died 10 days later. (v. 38).

David saw the vengeance of the Lord in the death of Nabal...that God had taken care of that which Abigail had prevented him from doing and so avenged the wrong to David without any bloodguilt on David or his household.   And then he sent messengers at once to the widow Abigail, asking her to be his wife.

We don't know what kind of a situation Abigail left behind her.  We don't know if Abigail was Nabal's first wife or fifth wife or whatever.  Possibly she had step sons who would inherit the property of Nabal...who were cut of the same cloth as their dad...and David was giving her an escape. Or perhaps she just did not want to hang around as the mother-in-law of the new mistress of the estate.  Or maybe...it was just that this request came from the local warlord, and it was impossible to turn it down.  In any case...she took her five personal maids,  presumably packed up her personal things, and returned to David's camp with the messengers and became his third...but more like second...wife.

Her life radically changed in about two weeks.  She had been in a wealthy household...and was now in a fugitive camp.  But she had been bound in marriage to a difficult, angry, stingy, downright mean man, and was now married to a warrior with a passionate heart for God.  I wonder how long it took her to feel at home?

Abigail has been held up as an example of a loyal wife, covering over her husband's mistakes with graciousness.  But I see a little acid in her; she called out Nabal for his foolishness and didn't hide from David that Nabal was the cause of all the ruckus, even though she took the blame for the messengers returning to David's camp empty-handed.  I am not sure her motive in bringing the provisions was to protect her husband so much as it was to prevent a bloodbath among people who were as much affected by Nabal's surly temper as she was.  And...maybe...to get on the good side of the man who was destined to be king.  Who's to say at this point?  She gets very little press in the rest of David's story, and the son she bears appears in the lists of David's children and nowhere else. Did he die as a child?    She gave David very good advice, there in that mountain ravine...to avoid the staggering burden of needless bloodshed.  He would have done well to remember that at a later date.