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 Nabal

Let’s read I Samuel 25: 1-43 to discover the attitude of many among the Clans of Judah. 
”Then Samuel died; and all Israel gathered together and mourned for him, and buried him at his house in Ramah. And David arose and went down to the wilderness of Paran. Now there was a man in Maon whose business was in Carmel; and the man was very rich, and he had three thousand sheep and a thousand goats. And it came about while he was shearing his sheep in Carmel (now the man's name was Nabal, and his wife's name was Abigail. And the woman was intelligent and beautiful in appearance, but the man was harsh and evil in his dealings, and he was a Calebite), that David heard in the wilderness that Nabal was shearing his sheep. So David sent ten young men; and David said to the young men, "Go up to Carmel, visit Nabal and greet him in my name; and thus you shall say, 'Have a long life, peace be to you, and peace be to your house, and peace be to all that you have. 'Now I have heard that you have shearers; now your shepherds have been with us and we have not insulted them, nor have they missed anything all the days they were in Carmel. 'Ask your young men and they will tell you. Therefore let my young men find favor in your eyes, for we have come on a festive day. Please give whatever you find at hand to your servants and to your son David.' "When David's young men came, they spoke to Nabal according to all these words in David's name; then they waited. But Nabal answered David's servants and said, "Who is David? And who is the son of Jesse? There are many servants today who are each breaking away from his master. "Shall I then take my bread and my water and my meat that I have slaughtered for my shearers, and give it to men whose origin I do not know?" So David's young men retraced their way and went back; and they came and told him according to all these words. David said to his men, "Each of you gird on his sword." So each man girded on his sword. And David also girded on his sword, and about four hundred men went up behind David while two hundred stayed with the baggage. But one of the young men told Abigail, Nabal's wife, saying, "Behold, David sent messengers from the wilderness to greet our master, and he scorned them. "Yet the men were very good to us, and we were not insulted, nor did we miss anything as long as we went about with them, while we were in the fields. "They were a wall to us both by night and by day, all the time we were with them tending the sheep. "Now therefore, know and consider what you should do, for evil is plotted against our master and against all his household; and he is such a worthless man that no one can speak to him." Then Abigail hurried and took two hundred loaves of bread and two jugs of wine and five sheep already prepared and five measures of roasted grain and a hundred clusters of raisins and two hundred cakes of figs, and loaded them on donkeys. She said to her young men, "Go on before me; behold, I am coming after you." But she did not tell her husband Nabal. It came about as she was riding on her donkey and coming down by the hidden part of the mountain, that behold, David and his men were coming down toward her; so she met them. Now David had said, "Surely in vain I have guarded all that this man has in the wilderness, so that nothing was missed of all that belonged to him; and he has returned me evil for good. "May God do so to the enemies of David, and more also, if by morning I leave as much as one male of any who belong to him." When Abigail saw David, she hurried and dismounted from her donkey, and fell on her face before David and bowed herself to the ground. She fell at his feet and said, "On me alone, my lord, be the blame. And please let your maidservant speak to you, and listen to the words of your maidservant. "Please do not let my lord pay attention to this worthless man, Nabal, for as his name is, so is he. Nabal is his name and folly is with him; but I your maidservant did not see the young men of my lord whom you sent. "Now therefore, my lord, as the LORD lives, and as your soul lives, since the LORD has restrained you from shedding blood, and from avenging yourself by your own hand, now then let your enemies and those who seek evil against my lord, be as Nabal. "Now let this gift which your maidservant has brought to my lord be given to the young men who accompany my lord. "Please forgive the transgression of your maidservant; for the LORD will certainly make for my lord an enduring house, because my lord is fighting the battles of the LORD, and evil will not be found in you all your days. "Should anyone rise up to pursue you and to seek your life, then the life of my lord shall be bound in the bundle of the living with the LORD your God; but the lives of your enemies He will sling out as from the hollow of a sling. "And when the LORD does for my lord according to all the good that He has spoken concerning you, and appoints you ruler over Israel, this will not cause grief or a troubled heart to my lord, both by having shed blood without cause and by my lord having avenged himself. When the LORD deals well with my lord, then remember your maidservant." Then David said to Abigail, "Blessed be the LORD God of Israel, who sent you this day to meet me, and blessed be your discernment, and blessed be you, who have kept me this day from bloodshed and from avenging myself by my own hand. "Nevertheless, as the LORD God of Israel lives, who has restrained me from harming you, unless you had come quickly to meet me, surely there would not have been left to Nabal until the morning light as much as one male." So David received from her hand what she had brought him and said to her, "Go up to your house in peace. See, I have listened to you and granted your request." Then Abigail came to Nabal, and behold, he was holding a feast in his house, like the feast of a king. And Nabal's heart was merry within him, for he was very drunk; so she did not tell him anything at all until the morning light. But in the morning, when the wine had gone out of Nabal, his wife told him these things, and his heart died within him so that he became as a stone. About ten days later, the LORD struck Nabal and he died. When David heard that Nabal was dead, he said, "Blessed be the LORD, who has pleaded the cause of my reproach from the hand of Nabal and has kept back His servant from evil. The LORD has also returned the evildoing of Nabal on his own head." Then David sent a proposal to Abigail, to take her as his wife. When the servants of David came to Abigail at Carmel, they spoke to her, saying, "David has sent us to you to take you as his wife." She arose and bowed with her face to the ground and said, "Behold, your maidservant is a maid to wash the feet of my lord's servants." Then Abigail quickly arose, and rode on a donkey, with her five maidens who attended her; and she followed the messengers of David and became his wife.” 

Sometimes the Gentiles who are among the Tribe of Judah act like Nabal, a descendant of Caleb instead of their true forefather, Caleb.  In I Samuel 25, we read an account that brings shame on those who are grafted into the people of Israel.  Here, one who should have honored the King of Israel and all of his people, instead, had no regard for his request.  Too often, we have no regard for the needs of the people of Israel today.  Too often, we have no regard for the needs of the children of The King of kings.  Too often, when the King calls, we turn away.  Such was the sin of Nabal.  But, today, many are accepting the role of Abigail, Nabal’s wife.  She fell on her face before the king and repented for the sins that she had not herself committed.  She placed herself in the place of the offender and asked the king to forgive her.  Because of her humility and her act of penitence; because she did not only seek the L-rd’s favor, but she came baring that which He had asked for, and even more, for all of this, the king showed mercy.  Soon, Nabal paid the price of his disobedience.  He died.  Abigail became the bride of David, the king.  Her act of intercession is an example of the position we must take if we are to become the Bride of the King.

Nabal, the “son of Caleb” brought disgrace to those who have followed.  But G-d has a plan that is greater than the designs of men.  G-d’s plan is for the redemption of the world and it involves the Clan of Judah to effect the salvation of Israel.  Back in the passage from Romans, that describes the grafting in, we read: “I say then, ‘did they stumble that they might fall? G-d forbid: but by their fall salvation is come unto the Gentiles, to provoke them (Israel) to jealousy.  Now if their fall, is the riches of the world, and their loss the riches of the Gentiles; how much more their fullness?’  But I speak to you that are Gentiles. Inasmuch then as I am an apostle of Gentiles, I glorify my ministry; if by any means I may provoke to jealousy them that are my flesh, and may save some of them. For if the casting away of them is the reconciling of the world, what shall the receiving of them be, but life from the dead?”  (Romans 11:11-15)

So, the very issue of the salvation of the Gentiles is tied up in the redemption of Israel.  How is this possible?  Isaiah 49: 3 G-d declares, “Israel, you are my servant.”  Verse 6 concludes: “it is too small a thing that you should be My servant to redeem only the household of Jacob and the household of Israel, I will make you to be a light to the Gentiles.”  This, my dear friends was the calling and the very purpose of Israel.  G-d promised Abraham that he would be a great nation.  When Moses led Israel out of bondage in Egypt, they returned to the Presence of G-d at Mt. Sinai.  There, G-d delivered to Israel the Torah, G-d’s instruction for mankind.  His government, if you will.  His instructions to Moses and to all Israel were clear.  Israel was to live according to the word of G-d’s instruction.  Doing so would bring profound blessings upon us and all of the nations of the world would be drawn to Israel to seek the source of such well-being and wealth.  Then, Israel would turn these Gentiles to G-d and the entire world would be in relationship with G-d Most High.

For 5760 years, Israel has not been obedient; we have been stiff-necked, hardheaded and rebellious.  But G-d did not develop a “Plan B.”  He did not reject His people whom He foreknew and chose for Himself.  He did no such thing!  Rather, He allowed His only Son to come to earth as a member of the people, Israel.  This Israelite lived a perfect, Torah-observant life.  This Israelite drew all the Nations to Himself and He, single-handedly, turned the Gentiles to G-d!  Now, those whom were to be first shall be last.  Now, those of you who are “the Gentiles in the flesh, who are called Uncircumcision by that which is called Circumcision, in the flesh, made by hands; that ye were at that time separate from Messiah, alienated from the commonwealth of Israel, and strangers from the covenants of the promise, having no hope and without G-d in the world. (Ephesians 2:11-12)  You are called to provoke Israel to jealousy.  And this is just the beginning.  As your position within the Clans of Judah becomes real to you, you must accept another role.  One that is your highest call.

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