I Samuel Chapters 25-27

25:7-8 - This sounds like mafia-style protection/extortion going on here, but it is really pretty different. David and his men have been camped out in the mountains, and while they were there, they chose to protect fellow Israelites from raiders. They don't steal anything and they protect the shepherds. What David asks for is very little and would have been easy for Nabal to provide...in fact, it fit within the requirements of middle eastern hospitality to give David what he asked for. We see from the reaction of the shepherds later that they are shocked when Nabal refuses to help out David and his men...it is insulting and embarrassing. David doesn't take the rejection well.

25:13 - We have begun to see a little shift in the personality of David, and its not necessarily a good shift. When he fought Goliath he proudly yelled to Goliath that he doesn't need the sword and spear because God will bring about the victory. In this story, when he is shamed by Nabal, he tells all his men to strap on their swords. Instead of allowing God to bring about justice...David acts rashly with an intent to do violence...this is not something that bodes well for his future as the king of Israel.

25:28 - Abigail rides in on a donkey to save the day. She makes an incredibly intelligent speech. She supports David's right to the throne and future kingship. She sees that he is acting rashly and encourages him to leave the vengeance to the Lord so as not to sin in his anger. Abigail convinces him to keep himself pure as God's anointed king. We need people in our lives who are wise and who have the guts to speak to us when we are in the wrong...in my experience these people are usually called wives.

25:33 - David knows that Abigail has helped him avoid making a huge mistake. Because he is able to step back and listen to the wise advice of another person, he learns another important lesson of faith. He learns that personal restraint (not instantly acting on emotions) allows room for the Lord to work in his life, while taking things into his own hands and acting without thought will bring serious repercussions. Something for all of us to remember.

25:38 - God avenges David and brings justice on Nabal.

26:7 - David and Abishai - the first biblical ninjas. They sneak into a camp full of warriors undetected to get to Saul. Although, we see from verse 12 that they are only able to do this because God has put all the men into a deep sleep. I guess this settles the great ninja/pirate debate. If ninjas are allowed to operate by the intervention of God - they must be the best!

26:9 - Again David allows Saul to live. I think after the Nabal episode David is fully confident that he simply needs to trust God to act. He knows God will handle everything and he acts out of wisdom and mercy.

27:8 - While living in Philistia, David start raiding the enemy tribal groups that surround the people of Judah. Even while in exile, he is protecting God's people. He is doing the duty of a king while running for his life. I love his commitment. As I read through these verses, I asked myself, "Am I faithful enough to continue serving God even when things aren't going my way?" So many times I think Christians just shut down their ministry and their faithfulness to God when events in their life are going crazy. David is the anointed king of Israel who is being hunted down by the corrupt king and living in the land of his enemies...yet he is faithfully serving God.

27:10-11 - David tells Achish that he is attacking territories in Israel so the Philistine king thinks that David is destroying all his ties to Israel...the king thinks David will be under his control for good. What he doesn't know is that David is destroying Israel's enemies and building up his popularity with the people of Judah.