Friday, April 3

Scripture: She fell at his feet and said, “Upon me alone, my lord, be the guilt; please let your servant speak in your ears, and hear the words of your servant.” (1 Samuel 25:24).

Observation: David is angry. David and his men had protected the flocks of a rich man named Nabal from thieves, and they did it for free. Rather than ask for payment, David sent messengers to Nabal and asked for food. David and his men were wanted men, on the run from King Saul, and it’s not like they could carry their flocks and farmland with them. Instead, they relied on the generosity of others or hired themselves out as mercenaries to keep from starving. Having successfully protected Nabal’s sheep and goats from thieves, David would like a token of thanks in the form of food for his men. But Nabal said no. Nabal sent David’s messengers away empty-handed after insulting them to their faces, and now David wants revenge. We meet David on the way to murder Nabal and capture Nabal’s flock. However, Nabal’s wife, Abigail, intervenes. She took it upon herself, while keeping it a secret from her husband, to load up donkeys with bread, cakes, wine, fruit, and meat. She commanded her husband’s servants to accompany her on a covert mission to take the provisions to David. Abigail found David, presented the food to him, and said, “Upon me alone, my lord, be the guilt.” Abigail was totally innocent. It was her husband, Nabal, who was guilty, not her, but she offered herself as a substitute in Nabal’s place. With the food and indeed with her very life, she redeemed her husband, literally buying back Nabal’s life from David. David accepted Abigail’s gifts and led his men back to their camp. When Nabal finds out what Abigail did, he dies from shock, leaving Abigail widowed. David takes Abigail as one of his wives.

Application: It’s Good Friday. Abigail’s words, “Upon me alone, my lord, be the guilt” might as well come from Jesus’s lips, for they capture the message of the cross. Abigail was innocent; so was Jesus. Abigail substituted herself and took the place of the guilty party; so did Jesus. Abigail suffered for the sins of a person she loves; so does Jesus do for us. Abigail redeems, or buys back, the life of someone who would die without her efforts; so does Jesus do for us on Good Friday, buying back our life from the tyranny of death. Abigail, like Jesus, is a model of humble service. Abigail, like Jesus, embodies sacrificial love. Jesus was a descendant of David on his adopted father’s side and grew up hearing the stories of the Old Testament, his Bible, knowing he was listening to the stories of his own family. It’s fair to expect that Jesus heard this story of his ancestor, Abigail, and this story informed his imagination of what true love looks like. True love is a living sacrifice where the giver lays down their life in some way for another person. The cross is an act of true love, and Jesus is the living sacrifice. Perhaps Jesus would not have known what true love requires and turned his back on the cross and left us without hope in life and in death, had he never heard the story of one of his greatest stepmothers, Abigail.

Prayer:

Jesus, have mercy on me.

Jesus, take my guilt.

Jesus, disturb me.

Jesus, cleanse me.

Jesus, renovate me.

Jesus, save me.