1 Samuel 25:9-13 – Seek wisdom and cultivate humility

As instructed the ten young men went to Nabal and sought for assistance “in David’s name.” But notice how Nabal showed his disdain for David. Contemptuously, he sneered at David’s name and asked, “Who is David?” “Who is this son of Jesse?” He went on further to insultingly said, “There are many servants today who are each breaking away from his master. Shall I then take my bread and my water and my meat that I have slaughtered for my shearers, and give it to men whose origin I do not know?” These rhetorical questions tell us that he must have heard about David and known much about him. Can you remember who had disparagingly referred to David as the ‘son of Jesse’? It was Saul. And here Nabal had arrogantly behaved like Saul and referred to David with a similar attitude of condescension. And he dispassionately refused to render any assistance to David and his men. David’s men returned to him and reported exactly what Nabal had said.

The contrast between David and Nabal was that the former was unassuming while the latter was presumptuous. One rendered service without thought of payment but one felt that he had the right to expect service without reciprocating. Any fair-minded person would have responded kindly to any service rendered, but not Nabal. He was said to be “harsh and was evil in his dealing.” Perhaps this was an indication of the methods he used to attain his riches.  

Notice how self-centred Nabal was. This was seen in the number of times he used the pronoun “my”. Emphatically, he said, “ Shall I take my bread, and my water and my meat, that I have slaughtered for my shearers and give it to men whose origin I do not know.” Nabal had made it unmistakably clear that he was a self-centred man, and he was not going to give to David and his men any assistance.

It was entirely Nabal’s prerogative to decide whether to assist David and his men or not, but he had no right to be so insulting. Perhaps David would not be so angry but just moved on to seek assistance elsewhere. But Nabal’s words were too cutting and were more than anyone could bear. Nabal obviously was not accustomed to Proverbs 15:1 that says, “A gentle answer turns away wrath, but a harsh word stirs up anger.” His words and actions only affirmed what a fool he was. It was so apt for him to be named Nabal, the fool. On hearing the insult, David ordered his men saying, “Each of you gird on his sword.” We can tell his intention. He wanted to show that fool a thing or two. So 400 of his men girded their swords and followed him, leaving behind 200 to look after their belongings.

Wisdom and humility are two virtues the Bible constantly exhorts us to attain. Proverbs 8:11 said, “For wisdom is better than jewels; And all desirable things cannot compare with her.” And Proverbs 22:4 said, “The reward of humility and the fear of the Lord are riches, honor and life.” We need both wisdom and humility to rightly relate with others. But unfortunately Nabal had neither of them. We must not be like him. We should instead heed the words of God, to seek wisdom and cultivate humility. Let us go for both!