Men Behaving Badly: 1 Samuel 25:2-13
Unless we are intentional, it can be difficult to discern godliness in the moments of life. Passions run high. People back us into corners. We make arguments we don’t fully think through. Life can make it challenging to keep our eyes focused on God.
David, with his men training out in the wilderness, realize a feast day is coming and do not have the supplies necessary to celebrate and give honor to God. There is no indication of how much time passed between this story and the previous one, where Saul abandoned his pursuit of David and allowed David to go into a stronghold. If this story comes quickly afterward, David may not have had time to resupply. If it comes a fair amount of time later, this story could present an episode of David’s leadership where his foresight wasn’t the greatest.
Either way, David’s men encounter Nabal’s shepherds out in the wilderness. Instead of raiding the shepherds for supplies or demanding a fee for helping protect them, David’s men are hospitable and look out for the well-being of the shepherds as a matter of course. They do the neighborly thing and make sure nothing untoward happens to Nabal’s shepherds or his herds.
Because of this, David asks Nabal if he can spare whatever he has on hand for his men so they can celebrate on the feast. David does not ask for a lavish banquet. He does not ask for Nabal to slaughter a significant portion of his wealth. David knows feeding six hundred men would require a significant amount of food and does not wish to burden Nabal. He simply asks for whatever is on hand.
Nabal’s herds measured in the thousands. Herds require shepherds, and shepherds have families. Nabal’s estate would have required a smith and a carpenter and their families. There were fields to tend, water to carry, guards to employ. It is not unreasonable to imagine Nabal’s estate was the equivalent of a small village. They should have hand supplies on hand to deal with David’s moderate request.
In his greed, Nabal refuses hospitality to David. Perhaps he sided with Saul. Perhaps he feared Saul’s wrath. Perhaps he was in love with his own wealth and didn’t want to share. Whatever the reason, he refuses David’s request.
In a moment of rashness, David also responds poorly. He takes Nabal’s response personally. David’s concern is for his men. He wants them to be cared for. However, David’s call for his men to take up swords is an escalation of force. Instead of giving the situation to God and discerning a proper response, David takes matters into his own hands.
It is easy to get caught up in the moment. Nabal didn’t want to share. David wanted to care for his men. Both men believed in their cause, but neither man paused to discern the godly response. Unless we are intentional, it can be difficult to discern godliness in the moments of life.
