What is the key to godliness? (1 Sam 25:18-44)

I knew a young man on the ministry team of a church I was involved in who was opinionated and a bit of a know-it-all. I found him irritating and once made some exasperated comment about him to the team leader. While the latter acknowledged that this young man at times seemed resistant to advice, he also revealed that this same person would often go away, think and pray about the issue and come back willing to change his ways. Depending on temperament, we all have different challenges. Some are explosive or stubborn and do not easily change, others are more pliable and find sticking to their principles harder. Whatever our particular make-up, though, the way to godliness is open to all, but how is one to achieve it?

Meeting fury with wisdom

David in our reading is angry and feels the sting of Nabal’s insult (1 Sam 25:21), so that the provocation for revenge is great. His vow shows his resolve as he calls God to witness that he will fulfil what he committed to do (1 Sam 25:22). In Hebrew, his ‘earthy’ reference to males as ‘all those who piss against the wall’ (NASB and many other translations render this more politely as ‘males’) expresses his contempt. It is such determination that Abigail meets head-on (1 Sam 25:20). That she does not tell her husband (1 Sam 25:19) speaks its own tale – he is unlikely to listen (cf. 1 Sam 25:17). She takes the sting out of the insult against David by shouldering the blame for her husband’s foolishness and validates David’s request by offering generous provisions (1 Sam 25:18, 24, 27). Acknowledging injustice and making compensation are important ways to make amends for wrongdoing, but Abigail’s aim is more farsighted than wanting to save her household. She looks to David becoming king and does not want him to have cause to regret his vengeful action (1 Sam 25:28-31).

Recognising God’s intervention

It speaks volumes of David’s character that he not only recognises Abigail’s admirable qualities but also that God has been graciously intervening through her to stop him from bloodshed and revenge (1 Sam 25:32-33). The future king acknowledges his own narrow escape from sin given his iron determination to kill off all the males in Nabal’s household (1 Sam 25:34). God guided David through his conscience in the last chapter not to use power for his own advantage. Now it is through human intervention that the future king is taught again the same lesson. Sometimes the Lord has to put us through similar situations to ingrain in us the truth. Once again, David proves himself very different from Saul who recurrently found (pious) excuses for his sin (e.g. 1 Sam 15:13-23). God’s answer is to vindicate David, so that Nabal dies and David in turn looks after the widowed Abigail by marrying her (1 Sam 25:37-40).[1]

The key to godliness

David’s story demonstrates that the key to godliness is not rooted in our personality but in our willingness to listen and obey the Lord. David had a temper and a capacity for violence evident here, so that he was at a disadvantage when facing temptations to misuse his power. Yet, it is evident that he had a living relationship with the Lord, which in turn shaped his understanding of God’s will. While the Book of Samuel does not explain how this was maintained, the Psalms give us a window into David’s inner life,[2] where his doubts, questions, despair, joys and hope were worked out through prayer and in the context of worship together with God’s people. Thus, it is unsurprising that he recognised God’s hand and will in various situations as recorded in Samuel. Irrespective of personality, all of us face temptations and struggle to live godly lives. What is most important is to nurture that relationship with the Lord that enables us to understand His will and do it. How? By reading God’s word, through prayer and worship, as individuals and in Christian fellowship. The more we saturate our life with His truth and presence, the more we will be shaped into people who reflect God’s character. May David’s story inspire us to draw closer to the Lord.

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[1] In a male-dominated society, women were under the authority of a male, usually their father until they married, then their husband. Widows came (back) under the authority of their father or adult son but if they had neither, they were particularly vulnerable to poverty and exploitation (remember Naomi in the Book of Ruth). Their financial existence was insecure compared to a wife who was mistress of her husband’s household. The note on David’s various wives at this point is tacked onto this incident possibly because the marriage with Abigail is mentioned. We think of marriages as purely about a love relationship, but in the ancient world, such a contract had more to do with providing security for women and growing wealth and influence through the family connections thus established. Kings often married foreign princesses to secure the political support of their wives’ countries. In David’s case, his marriages may indicate his growing influence within Judah (both Abigail and Ahinoam were from Judah; 1 Sam 25:40, 43 cf. Josh 15:55, 56). That Saul married Michal off to someone else (1 Sam 25:44) shows that his antagonism towards David had not changed and perhaps indicates that he wanted family ties (and therefore any future tribal support) cut off from the future king. Polygamy was not God’s original design and whenever a man had more than one wife in the Bible, there was usually conflict, which hints at the problems of such an arrangement. Nevertheless, God did not correct this cultural perspective at this time, so David is not condemned for practices common and acceptable in his day.

[2] The superscription ‘a psalm of David’ is a later tradition that was added to some psalms and they are strictly speaking not part of Scripture. The expression can mean not only that a psalm was written by David himself but that it was written for, to, or on his behalf (the sense of le in Hebrew, translated as ‘of’).  However, there is no doubt that as a gifted artistic man, David wrote many of the psalms so designated and we can gauge something of his intimate relationship with God through these.

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