I read the story of Abigail a while ago but her amazing-ness (excuse the english lol), never quite sunk in until I read it again. She shows that a gentle word really does turn away wrath (Proverbs 15:1) and that wisdom is more precious than rubies and simply incomparable (Proverbs 8:11).
Where you’ll find her
1 Samuel 25
Who she was
Abigail was the wife of a horrible man named Nabal, who lived up to the meaning of his name which is ‘fool’. The bible described Abigail as intelligent and beautiful.
What she did
Nabal, Abigail’s husband, was quite rude to King David even after he treated Nabal and his shepherds well in the past. How do you repay those that have helped you before? This rudeness obviously did not impress the King and he swore to deal ruthlessy with Nabal and his men. Do you know that your actions impact those around you for better or worse? Abigail caught wind of what her nuisance of a husband had done and that the King was on his way to teach Nabal a lesson. The bible says that Abigail ‘acted quickly’. She wasted no time in doing what needed to be done. She didn’t go and insult, anger or belittle her husband, she simply gathered together some food and went to meet David on his way to Nabal. Even though she knew her husband was at fault and perhaps deserved what was coming to him, she still humbled herself and begged on his behalf. When someone does not deserve mercy, how do you treat them? She then prayed for David in a continued attempt to appease him and applied wisdom and foresight by asking David to remember her WHEN and not IF the Lord brought Him success. This shows that she was a woman of great faith. Her humility, faith and prayer paid off and David granted her request. When Abigail finally went home, she discerned that her husband was not in the right state to hear what had happened, so she once again applied wisdom and waited until the following day. Upon hearing the news, Nabal’s heart failed and the Lord struck him and he died. David heard the news and remembered that Abigail was a woman of great character (and it didn’t hurt that she was beautiful either) and decided to make his move and the rest as they say, is history. What good works have you done, to be remembered in your favour in the future? Its never too late.
Why she was amazing
Abigail showed the power of a praying woman. Abigail was WISE!! Seek God’s wisdom, you can never go wrong with it as your guide. She was able to read situations and act quickly. Abigail had a good heart and didn’t let harm come to her husband even though he deserved it. Abigail was a woman of prayer and used it to bring peace into a situation that could have escalated and led David to doing wrong and God’s ability to avenge us would not have been seen by him. For every action there is a reaction, forget your feelings and do what is right always. Abigail was married to a nuisance, she must have thought that there was no hope for her anymore. Don’t forget that God makes a way where there seems to be no way, a situation that seems bleak can quickly be turned around by good character, patience and faith in God. Abigail was humble, humilty is a beautiful thing and was definitely important in King David granting her request. Finally, Abigail had great faith in the God that she served and most importantly knew the God she served. Do you know the God you serve? How do you use that to empower you?