INTRODUCTION

There are times when strife remains an unavoidable option; however, no believer should ever strive with others without a just cause and purpose. Today’s passage gives instructions for dealing with a neighbour as this relationship is more likely than any other to encounter strife. The Lord instructs a man to never devise evil against his neighbour. In like manner, a man should never instigate strife when his neighbour has done him no harm. There are many examples in the Bible of those who chose not to heed this admonition. Nabal, the husband of Abigail, was a wicked man who refused to provide provisions for David’s men (1 Samuel 25:1-38 [1] And Samuel died; and all the Israelites were gathered together, and lamented him, and buried him in his house at Ramah. And David arose, and went down to the wilderness of Paran. [2] And there was a man in Maon, whose possessions were in Carmel; and the man was very great, and he had three thousand sheep, and a thousand goats: and he was shearing his sheep in Carmel. [3] Now the name of the man was Nabal; and the name of his wife Abigail: and she was a woman of good understanding, and of a beautiful countenance: but the man was churlish and evil in his doings; and he was of the house of Caleb. [4] And David heard in the wilderness that Nabal did shear his sheep. [5] And David sent out ten young men, and David said unto the young men, Get you up to Carmel, and go to Nabal, and greet him in my name: [6] And thus shall ye say to him that liveth in prosperity, Peace be both to thee, and peace be to thine house, and peace be unto all that thou hast. [7] And now I have heard that thou hast shearers: now thy shepherds which were with us, we hurt them not, neither was there ought missing unto them, all the while they were in Carmel. [8] Ask thy young men, and they will shew thee. Wherefore let the young men find favour in thine eyes: for we come in a good day: give, I pray thee, whatsoever cometh to thine hand unto thy servants, and to thy son David. [9] And when David's young men came, they spake to Nabal according to all those words in the name of David, and ceased. [10] And Nabal answered David's servants, and said, Who is David? and who is the son of Jesse? there be many servants now a days that break away every man from his master. [11] Shall I then take my bread, and my water, and my flesh that I have killed for my shearers, and give it unto men, whom I know not whence they be? [12] So David's young men turned their way, and went again, and came and told him all those sayings. [13] And David said unto his men, Gird ye on every man his sword. And they girded on every man his sword; and David also girded on his sword: and there went up after David about four hundred men; and two hundred abode by the stuff. [14] But one of the young men told Abigail, Nabal's wife, saying, Behold, David sent messengers out of the wilderness to salute our master; and he railed on them. [15] But the men were very good unto us, and we were not hurt, neither missed we any thing, as long as we were conversant with them, when we were in the fields: [16] They were a wall unto us both by night and day, all the while we were with them keeping the sheep. [17] Now therefore know and consider what thou wilt do; for evil is determined against our master, and against all his household: for he is such a son of Belial, that a man cannot speak to him. [18] Then Abigail made haste, and took two hundred loaves, and two bottles of wine, and five sheep ready dressed, and five measures of parched corn, and an hundred clusters of raisins, and two hundred cakes of figs, and laid them on asses. [19] And she said unto her servants, Go on before me; behold, I come after you. But she told not her husband Nabal. [20] And it was so, as she rode on the ass, that she came down by the covert on the hill, and, behold, David and his men came down against her; and she met them. [21] Now David had said, Surely in vain have I kept all that this fellow hath in the wilderness, so that nothing was missed of all that pertained unto him: and he hath requited me evil for good. [22] So and more also do God unto the enemies of David, if I leave of all that pertain to him by the morning light any that pisseth against the wall. [23] And when Abigail saw David, she hasted, and lighted off the ass, and fell before David on her face, and bowed herself to the ground, [24] And fell at his feet, and said, Upon me, my lord, upon me let this iniquity be: and let thine handmaid, I pray thee, speak in thine audience, and hear the words of thine handmaid. [25] Let not my lord, I pray thee, regard this man of Belial, even Nabal: for as his name is, so is he; Nabal is his name, and folly is with him: but I thine handmaid saw not the young men of my lord, whom thou didst send. [26] Now therefore, my lord, as the LORD liveth, and as thy soul liveth, seeing the LORD hath withholden thee from coming to shed blood, and from avenging thyself with thine own hand, now let thine enemies, and they that seek evil to my lord, be as Nabal. [27] And now this blessing which thine handmaid hath brought unto my lord, let it even be given unto the young men that follow my lord. [28] I pray thee, forgive the trespass of thine handmaid: for the LORD will certainly make my lord a sure house; because my lord fighteth the battles of the LORD, and evil hath not been found in thee all thy days. [29] Yet a man is risen to pursue thee, and to seek thy soul: but the soul of my lord shall be bound in the bundle of life with the LORD thy God; and the souls of thine enemies, them shall he sling out, as out of the middle of a sling. [30] And it shall come to pass, when the LORD shall have done to my lord according to all the good that he hath spoken concerning thee, and shall have appointed thee ruler over Israel; [31] That this shall be no grief unto thee, nor offence of heart unto my lord, either that thou hast shed blood causeless, or that my lord hath avenged himself: but when the LORD shall have dealt well with my lord, then remember thine handmaid. [32] And David said to Abigail, Blessed be the LORD God of Israel, which sent thee this day to meet me: [33] And blessed be thy advice, and blessed be thou, which hast kept me this day from coming to shed blood, and from avenging myself with mine own hand. [34] For in very deed, as the LORD God of Israel liveth, which hath kept me back from hurting thee, except thou hadst hasted and come to meet me, surely there had not been left unto Nabal by the morning light any that pisseth against the wall. [35] So David received of her hand that which she had brought him, and said unto her, Go up in peace to thine house; see, I have hearkened to thy voice, and have accepted thy person. [36] And Abigail came to Nabal; and, behold, he held a feast in his house, like the feast of a king; and Nabal's heart was merry within him, for he was very drunken: wherefore she told him nothing, less or more, until the morning light. [37] But it came to pass in the morning, when the wine was gone out of Nabal, and his wife had told him these things, that his heart died within him, and he became as a stone. [38] And it came to pass about ten days after, that the LORD smote Nabal, that he died.
See All...). David and his men had done no harm to Nabal or his belongings. In fact, David’s men had been a blessing and help to Nabal’s shepherds. Fortunately, the wisdom of Nabal’s wife subdued David’s desire for strife.

DEVOTIONAL THOUGHTS

• (For children): The Lord Jesus Christ is the greatest example of someone hated for no cause (John 15:24-25 [24] If I had not done among them the works which none other man did, they had not had sin: but now have they both seen and hated both me and my Father. [25] But this cometh to pass, that the word might be fulfilled that is written in their law, They hated me without a cause.
  See All...; Psalm 69:4They that hate me without a cause are more than the hairs of mine head: they that would destroy me, being mine enemies wrongfully, are mighty: then I restored that which I took not away.
  See All...; Psalm 109:3They compassed me about also with words of hatred; and fought against me without a cause.
  See All...). He always did good and right among the people (Acts 10:38How God anointed Jesus of Nazareth with the Holy Ghost and with power: who went about doing good, and healing all that were oppressed of the devil; for God was with him.
  See All...; Acts 2:22-23 [22] Ye men of Israel, hear these words; Jesus of Nazareth, a man approved of God among you by miracles and wonders and signs, which God did by him in the midst of you, as ye yourselves also know: [23] Him, being delivered by the determinate counsel and foreknowledge of God, ye have taken, and by wicked hands have crucified and slain:
  See All...).
• (For everyone): Most strife occurs between those who really have no reason to fight. Why do you have strife with your loved ones? Is there generally a just cause for your actions?
• Why did Nabal refuse to help David’s men? What was David planning to do because of Nabal’s foolishness? What stopped David from harming Nabal?

PRAYER NEEDS

• Ask the Lord to keep you from strife that is without cause.
• Ask God to give you wisdom in times when strife is possible.

HYMN

YIELD NOT TO TEMPTATION

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