In 1 Sam 25.1-44 we will have the death of Samuel and an incident between David, a man named Nabal (Laban backwards) and his wife Abigail. This chapter will be very eschatological and prophetic as we shall see. Samuel died and all Israel gathered and mourned for him, and buried him at his house in Ramah. The same verse says, “And David arose” and this is very significant because God’s plan never dies with just one man, but it continues with others. David went down to the wilderness of Paran (“place of caverns”) and where this is exactly is unknown, but it has been associated with the Mount Sinai area. David would have greater safety there. Before Samuel died, he laid the groundwork for the coming Temple (1 Chr 26.27-28). Samuel will not appear again until 1 Sam 28.
Now we are going to go over the story of Naval, which will be a picture of the redemption and the birth-pains. David will be a picture of the Messiah. The name “Naval” means “a fool” (Matt 5.22) and this would mean a fool who is similar to a “rasha” or a wicked person. There are three types of people in the world. You have the Tzadikim or “righteous” and then you have the Chata’im meaning “sinners” or “average people” and then you have the Rashim, or “wicked.” These people will never be saved and are totally given over to sin. They don’t care about the Lord, sin, righteousness or anything else but themselves. The Chata’im (“sinners”) still have a chance to move into the Tzadakim (“righteous”) category.
Naval was very rich and did business in Carmel and was from Maon (“habitation”). As we mentioned earlier, the name Naval is Lavan backwards, which gives us a clue about who he is (Gen 31.36-42). He has a wife named Abigail (“my father’s joy”) and she will be a type of the believer in this story. She was a woman of good understanding and beautiful, but Naval was harsh and evil in his dealings, and he was a Calebite (Caleb lived in Hebron). The name Caleb means “dog.”
Naval is shearing his sheep and David asks for help and compensation from Naval for protecting the area from the Philistines. Naval owed part of his wealth to David who protected him. David was the perfect example of the saying, “People sleep peaceably in their beds at night because rough men are willing to do violence on their behalf.” David sends ten young men to make this request of Naval. Now, these weren’t just ten young men but “Ne’arim” who were elite troops, hand-picked by David for this mission. They were the “Navy Seals” of David’s army. Ten alludes to the Ten Commandments and the number of divine judgment that is sent to the wicked.
David and his men presented themselves as “servants” of Naval. The word “servant” is “avadim” and these were a class of warrior in David’s army and they were royal bodyguards. They were the same as the “mishma’at” guard (2 Sam 23.24). So we have the Ne’arim as elite warriors and we will also have the “Givorim” or “mighty men” coming up shortly. The Givorim actually did things that were unbelievable (2 Sam 23.8-39). A “Shalish” was a third man in a chariot and we will see the development of a professional army under Joab (“Yehovah is father”) and a militia under Amasa (“burden”) as we move on. So, we have the Avadim, the Ne’arim, and the Givorim, the professional army and the militia developing under David. Keep this in mind as we move forward.
Naval rejects David’s request for help because he thinks that David is leading a rebellion against King Saul (25.10). He didn’t think he was obligated to help David and his men, but he also had what is called an “ein ra” or “evil eye” meaning he was stingy. The opposite of that is having an “ein tov” or “good eye” meaning generous (Matt 6.19-22; Prov 22.9). David was insulted about being refused help and was ready for a fight, but this was not a good idea. He is not as patient with Naval as he is with Saul. Nabal’s wife Abigail hears how David and his men are treated and she knows about all the good David and his men have been doing and she believes he should be rewarded. David was not going to take this insult lightly, and she takes the needed provisions to David and his men.
So, Abigail meets David and she begins to appeal to David. She was humble and doesn’t want him to do something he will regret. She says in 1 Sam 25.25, “Please do not let my lord pay attention to this worthless man Naval, for as his name is (fool), so is he. Naval is his name and folly is with him; but your maidservant did not see the young men (ne’arim) of my lord whom you sent.” She also does a few things that raise an eyebrow here. She did all this without Naval knowing about it and she openly criticizes her husband. She infers that David will eventually kill Naval (v 26) and she asks that he spare her household, and wants David to “consider her” after Naval is dealt with. There is a Hebrew word play in 1 Sam 25.25. Naval means “fool” and the word “folly” is “navalah” meaning “revulsion.”
David blesses Yehovah for sending Abigail to him to stop him from taking vengeance. That belongs to the Lord and if David was not stopped there would have been a great slaughter. Abigail goes home to Naval and he is holding a feast, like the “feast of a king” which is an allusion to Rosh Ha Shanah. Rosh Ha Shanh is also called “Ha Melek” meaning “the king” and it has several themes like the wedding and coronation of the Messiah, resurrection and it is called a Yom Ha Din, meaning “day of Judgement.” In this story, Naval is judged as a “rasha” (wicked).
Naval is happy so she did not tell him about what she did. When morning came, she told him and “his heart died within him so that he became a stone.” He was a rasha (wicked) and he had a “hard heart” and he became paralyzed. About ten days later the Lord struck Naval and he died. So, what is this alluding to? Naval is a type of the “rasha” or wicked person and on Rosh Ha Shanah all men are judged and put into one of the three categories just mentioned, the Tzadikim (righteous), the Chataim (regular sinners) and the Rashim (wicked). Naval suffers what looks like a stroke on the day he held a feast “like a king” which is an allusion to Rosh Ha Shanah (Tishri 1). Ten days later he dies. Ten days after Rosh Ha Shanah is Tishri 10 and the festival of Yom Kippur (Day of Atonement), another Yom Ha Din or “day of judgment.” We are assigned a category on Rosh Ha Shanah, and sealed as a sinner or wicked on Yom Kippur. Those who are the tzadikim (righteous) do not ever lose that gift from the Lord and stay in that category for all time.
An idiom for Yom Kippur is “face to face” because it was the one day of the year when the Kohen Ha Gadol (High Priest) entered the Kodesh Ha Kodeshim (Holy of Holies) and came face to face with Yehovah. Naval died ten days later and came face to face with God. When Yeshua returns on Yom Kippur to Jerusalem (Matt 24.29-31) there will be a judgment (Matt 25.31-46). The survivors of the birth-pains will come face to face with God also.
When David heard that Naval was dead and divine justice had been manifested, David blessed Yehovah for stopping him from slaying Naval and hurting the family. David proposed to Abigail and she arose and she came with five maidens, which is also an allusion to Matt 25.1-13 and the parable of the Ten Virgins. Abigail and her five maidens were prepared to meet David, a type of the Messiah. So, David married Michal, and then he married Ahinoam (“brother of pleasnantness”), and now Abigail.
In Part 21 we will pick up here.
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