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Abigail

the one who stopped David

Who was Abigail?

From
From Carmel 2 Samuel 3:3; 1 Chronicles 3:1
Abigail, an artistic recreation

What the Bible says

1 Samuel 25:2-3

2Now there was a certain man in the wilderness of Maon, and his possessions were in Carmel, and the man was very great: and he had three thousand sheep, and a thousand goats: and it happened that he was shearing his sheep in Carmel. 3Now the name of the man was Nabal: and the name of his wife was Abigail. And she was a prudent and very comely woman, but her husband was churlish, and very bad and ill natured: and he was of the house of Caleb.

1 Samuel 25:18-33

18Then Abigail made haste and took two hundred loaves, and two vessels of wine, and five sheep ready dressed, and five measures of parched corn, and a hundred clusters of raisins, and two hundred cakes of dry figs, and laid them upon asses: 19And she said to her servants: Go before me: behold I will follow after you: but she told not her husband Nabal. 20And when she had gotten upon an ass, and was coming down to the foot of the mountain, David and his men came down over against her, and she met them. 21And David said: Truly in vain have I kept all that belonged to this man in the wilderness, and nothing was lost of all that pertained unto him: and he hath returned me evil for good. 22May God do so and so, and add more to the foes of David, if I leave of all that belong to him till the morning, any that pisseth against the wall. 23And when Abigail saw David she made haste and lighted off the ass, and fell before David, on her face, and adored upon the ground. 24And she fell at his feet, and said: Upon me let this iniquity be, my lord: let thy handmaid speak, I beseech thee, in thy ears: and hear the words of thy servant. 25Let not my lord the king, I pray, regard this naughty man Nabal: for according to his name, he is a fool, and folly is with him: but I thy handmaid did not see thy servants, my lord, whom thou sentest. 26Now therefore, my lord, the Lord liveth, and thy soul liveth, who hath withholden thee from coming to blood, and hath saved thy hand to thee: and now let thy enemies be as Nabal, and all they that seek evil to my lord. 27Wherefore receive this blessing, which thy handmaid hath brought to thee, my lord: and give it to the young men that follow thee, my lord. 28Forgive the iniquity of thy handmaid: for the Lord will surely make for my lord a faithful house, because thou, my lord, fightest the battles of the Lord: let not evil therefore be found in thee all the days of thy life. 29For if a man at any time shall rise, and persecute thee, and seek thy life, the soul of my lord shall be kept, as in the bundle of the living, with the Lord thy God: but the souls of thy enemies shall be whirled, as with the violence and whirling of a sling. 30And when the Lord shall have done to thee, my lord, all the good that he hath spoken concerning thee, and shall have made thee prince over Israel, 31This shall not be an occasion of grief to thee, and a scruple of heart to my lord, that thou hast shed innocent blood, or hast revenged thyself: and when the Lord shall have done well by my lord, thou shalt remember thy handmaid. 32And David said to Abigail: Blessed be the Lord the God of Israel, who sent thee this day to meet me, and blessed be thy speech: 33And blessed be thou, who hast kept me today, from coming to blood, and revenging me with my own hand.

1 Samuel 25:38-42; 2 Samuel 3:2-3

38And after ten days had passed, the Lord struck Nabal, and he died. 39And when David had heard that Nabal was dead, he said: Blessed be the Lord, who hath judged the cause of my reproach at the hand of Nabal, and hath kept his servant from evil, and the Lord hath returned the wickedness of Nabal upon his head. Then David sent and treated with Abigail, that he might take her to himself for a wife. 40And David’s servants came to Abigail to Carmel, and spoke to her, saying: David hath sent us to thee, to take thee to himself for a wife. 41And she arose and bowed herself down with her face to the earth, and said: Behold, let thy servant be a handmaid, to wash the feet of the servants of my lord. 42And Abigail arose, and made haste, and got upon an ass, and five damsels went with her, her waiting maids, and she followed the messengers of David, and became his wife.

Douay-Rheims Bible (Challoner revision), public domain.

The path of Abigail

  1. Before Jesus. Abigail was the wife of Nabal, a very rich man from Carmel. The Bible says she was intelligent and beautiful. 1 Samuel 25:2-3
  2. Before Jesus. Nabal was harsh and mean. He refused to give food to David’s men, who had protected his shepherds. 1 Samuel 25:3, 10-11, 15-16
  3. With Jesus. David and four hundred men took up their swords to get revenge. A servant warned Abigail. 1 Samuel 25:13-14, 22
  4. With Jesus. Abigail prepared bread, wine, meat, grain, raisins and figs, and went out to meet David without telling Nabal. 1 Samuel 25:18-20
  5. With Jesus. She got down from her donkey and bowed before David. She asked him not to shed blood or take revenge. 1 Samuel 25:23-26, 31
  6. With Jesus. David blessed the Lord for sending her, and he blessed her good sense. He accepted her gifts and sent her away in peace. 1 Samuel 25:32-35
  7. With Jesus. Abigail went back home. Nabal was holding a feast fit for a king and was very drunk. So Abigail told him nothing until the next morning. 1 Samuel 25:36
  8. Afterward. About ten days later, the Lord struck Nabal, and Nabal died. David asked Abigail to be his wife, and she went with him. 1 Samuel 25:38-42
  9. Afterward. Abigail lived with David among the Philistines, in the city of Gath. With them was Ahinoam, David’s other wife. 1 Samuel 27:3
  10. Afterward. The Amalekites attacked Ziklag and carried off David’s two wives as captives. David went after them and rescued them. 1 Samuel 30:5, 18
  11. Afterward. After Saul’s death, David went up to Hebron with Ahinoam and Abigail. There the men of Judah anointed him king: they consecrated him with oil. 2 Samuel 2:1-4
  12. Afterward. In Hebron, David’s second son was born: Chileab, the son of Abigail. 2 Samuel 3:2-3

Words of Abigail

“Upon me let this iniquity be, my lord: let thy handmaid speak, I beseech thee, in thy ears: and hear the words of thy servant.” 1 Samuel 25:24

When she met David, lying at his feet.

“Forgive the iniquity of thy handmaid: for the Lord will surely make for my lord a faithful house, because thou, my lord, fightest the battles of the Lord: let not evil therefore be found in thee all the days of thy life.” 1 Samuel 25:28

While she was asking David not to take revenge.

“Behold, let thy servant be a handmaid, to wash the feet of the servants of my lord.” 1 Samuel 25:41

When David’s messengers told her that David wanted her for his wife.

What they were like

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What people ask

Why did David want revenge on Nabal?

David’s men had protected Nabal’s shepherds. When they asked him for food, Nabal answered them with contempt. 1 Samuel 25:7-11, 15-16

What does the name Nabal mean?

Abigail said Nabal was just like his name. According to a note in the NAB, Nabal means “fool” in Hebrew. 1 Samuel 25:25; NAB note on 1 Sam 25, 25

How did Nabal die?

When he learned what had happened, he became like a stone. About ten days later, the Lord struck him and he died. 1 Samuel 25:37-38

Did she have children with David?

Yes. Her son Chileab was born in Hebron and was David’s second son. The First Book of Chronicles calls him Daniel. 2 Samuel 3:3; 1 Chronicles 3:1

What did Abigail answer when David sent for her to be his wife?

She bowed to the ground and said she was David’s servant. She said she was ready to wash the feet of her lord’s servants. 1 Samuel 25:41

Did David have other wives?

Yes. David also married Ahinoam of Jezreel. Saul had given his daughter Michal, David’s first wife, to another man. 1 Samuel 25:43-44

Little known She brought two hundred loaves, two skins of wine, five sheep, roasted grain, a hundred cakes of raisins and two hundred cakes of figs. 1 Samuel 25:18 She…

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Who Abigail is connected to

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