The Neighborhood Podcast
This is a podcast of Guilford Park Presbyterian Church in Greensboro, North Carolina featuring guests from both inside the church and the surrounding community. Hosted by Rev. Dr. Stephen M. Fearing, Head of Staff.
The Neighborhood Podcast
"Abigail" (July 27, 2025 Sermon)
Preaching: Rev. Dr. Stephen M. Fearing
Text: 1 Samuel 25
What happens when two men with fragile egos clash, and a potential bloodbath is only averted by the wisdom of a woman brave enough to step into the chaos? The ancient biblical story of Abigail, David, and Nabal reveals surprising wisdom for our modern age of conflict and division.
The narrative from 1 Samuel 25 reads almost like a reality TV show. David, the up-and-coming future king, feels disrespected when Nabal (whose name literally means "fool") refuses to compensate him for protecting his shepherds. David's response? Mobilize 400 armed men to slaughter every male in Nabal's household. Talk about an overreaction! But before the situation spirals into tragedy, Nabal's wife Abigail intervenes with remarkable courage and diplomacy, convincing David to abandon his vengeful mission.
This sermon unpacks how this story challenges our assumptions about leadership, emotional intelligence, and peacekeeping. While women are often stereotyped as "too emotional" for leadership, here it's the men whose emotions cloud their judgment, while a woman demonstrates strategic thinking and levelheaded wisdom. Abigail risks her safety to prevent unnecessary violence, embodying Jesus's later blessing of peacemakers.
The parallels to our current cultural moment are impossible to ignore. We live in a society where attention has become our most valuable currency, often rewarding outrage and conflict rather than reconciliation. What would change if we redirected our collective attention toward bridge-builders and those seeking common ground? How might we, like Abigail, find the courage to speak peace into volatile situations, even when doing so comes with personal risk?
Whether navigating family disagreements or participating in broader social discourse, this ancient story challenges us to consider our role in either escalating or de-escalating tensions. Will you join in the difficult but blessed work of peacemaking?
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Let us pray for illumination and understanding of the scripture for today. God of wisdom, you promise to give your spirit to those who ask. Overwhelm us with your word that we may know you more fully, love you more passionately and follow you more closely. In Jesus' name, we pray, amen. Amen. You more closely. In Jesus name, we pray, amen. The scripture reading. The first reading today is from the first Samuel, chapter 25, verses 2 through 17.
Speaker 1:There was a man in moan whose property was in Carmel. The man was very rich and had 3,000 sheep and 1,000 goats. He was shearing his sheep in Carmel. Now, the name of the man was Nabal and the name of his wife, abigail. The woman was clever and beautiful, but the man was surely and mean. He was a Cablelite, caleb-lite.
Speaker 1:David heard in the wilderness that Nabal was shearing his sheep. So David sent ten young men and David said to the young men Go up to Carmel and go to Nabal and greet him in my name. Thus you shall salute him. Peace be to you and peace be to your house and peace be to all that you have. I hear that you have sharers Now. Your shepherds have been with us and we did them no harm and they missed nothing all the time they were in Carmel. Ask your young men and they will tell you. Therefore, let my young men find favor in your sight, for we have come on a feast day. Please give whatever you have at hand to your servants and to your son, david.
Speaker 1:When David's young men came, they said all of this to Nabal in the name of David, and then they waited. But Nabal answered David's servants. Who is David? Who is the son of Jesse? There are many servants today who are breaking away from their masters. Shall I take my bread and my water and the meat I have butchered for my shearers and give it to men who come from I do not know where.
Speaker 1:So David's young men turned away and came back and told him all this. David said to his men every man, strap on your sword, and every one of them strapped on his sword. David also strapped on his sword and about 400 men went up after David, while 200 remained with the baggage. One of the young men told Abel's wife quote David sent messengers out of the wilderness to salute our master and he shouted insults at them. Yet the men were very good to us and we suffered no harm and we never missed anything. When we were in the fields, as long as we were with them, they were like a wall to us, both night and day, all the while we were with them, keeping the sheep. Now, therefore, know this and consider what you should do, for evil has been decided against our master and against all his house. He is so ill-natured that no one can speak to him. This is the word of the Lord all right, friends.
Speaker 2:Whenever a squabble is about to break out in the fearing house, trish and I will often say that the drama llama has come to visit our house. In this passage, when we left off where Phyllis finished, the drama llama was visiting the house of Nabal and Abigail. So let's see what happens as we continue picking up right where we left off. Then Abigail hurried and took 200 loaves, two skins of wine, five sheep ready dressed, five measures of parched grain, 100 clusters of raisins, 200 cakes of figs and a partridge in a pear tree. She loaded them onto donkeys and said to her young men, go on ahead of me, I'm coming after you. But she did not tell her husband, nabal, as she rode on the donkey and came down under cover of the mountain, david and his men came down toward her and she met them. Now David had said Surely it was in vain that I protected all that this fellow has in the wilderness so that nothing was missed of all that this fellow has in the wilderness, so that nothing was missed of all that belonged to him. But he has returned me evil for good. God, do so to David, and more also, if by morning I leave so much as one male of all who belong to him.
Speaker 2:When Abigail saw David, she hurried and dismounted from the donkey and fell before David on her face, bowing to the ground. She fell to his feet and said Upon me, lord, my Lord, be the guilt. Please let your servant speak in your ears and hear the words of your servant. My Lord, do not take seriously this ill-natured fellow Nabal, for as his name is, so is he. Nabal is his name, and folly is with him. But I, your servant, did not see the young men of my Lord whom you sent. Now then, my Lord, as the Lord lives and as you yourself live, since the Lord has restrained you from blood guilt and from taking vengeance with your own hands, now let your enemies and those who seek to do evil to my Lord be like Nabal. And now let this present that your servant has brought to my Lord be given to the young men who follow my Lord. Your servant has brought to my Lord Be given to the young men who follow my Lord. Please forgive the trespass of your servants, for the Lord will certainly make my Lord a sure house, because my Lord is fighting the battles of the Lord, and evil shall not be found in you as long as you live. If anyone should rise up to pursue you and to seek your life, the life of my Lord shall be bound in the bundle of the living, under the care of the Lord, your God.
Speaker 2:Verse 2. In concerning you and has appointed you king over Israel, my Lord shall have no cause of grief or pangs of conscience for having shed blood without cause or for having saved himself. And when the Lord has dealt well with my Lord, then remember. Your servant David said to Abigail blessed be the Lord, the God of Israel, who sent you to me today. Blessed be your good sense and blessed be you, who kept me today from blood guilt and from avenging myself by my own hand, for as surely as the Lord of the God of Israel lives, who has restrained me from hurting you. Unless you had hurried and come to meet me truly by morning, there would not have been left to Nabal so much as one person. Then David received from her hand what she had brought him. He said to her go up to your house in peace. See, I have heeded your voice and I have granted your petition. Holy wisdom, holy word. Thanks be to God. Let us pray, o Lord, may the words of my mouth and the meditations of all of our hearts be acceptable and pleasing in your sight, o Lord, our rock and our redeemer. Amen, amen, all right.
Speaker 2:There is a memorable scene in the 2004 satirical film Anchorman the legend of Ron Burgundy that comes to mind when we read this story. It's the scene have any of y'all seen Anchorman? A couple of y'all at least. It's a satirical movie about newscasters with a bunch of men with very fragile egos in 1970s San Diego. And there's a scene where all the different news teams in San Diego gather for an old-fashioned street gang fight, you know, like West Side Story or Gangs of New York. The evening news team begins to taunt the morning news team, pulling out various homemade weapons. Then channel two arrives to join the chaos. Eventually, the NPR news crew takes a break from their annual pledge drive to join the fight, shouting no commercials, no mercy. And then, finally, the Spanish language news crews show up and soon all five gangs prepare for battle. After all, the parties agree to the rules of the field, such as no touching of the hair and face. The battle begins in all of its glorious absurdity Fists, brass knuckles and knives appear, but then more bizarre weapons emerge out of nowhere, such as a flamethrower, a trident, and Steve Carell's character is running around with a grenade in his hand yelling. And after the battle concludes, the next scene immediately cuts to Ron Burgundy and his fellow news team in his office nursing their wounds.
Speaker 2:While Ron sips a Miller High Life and debriefs the day's events, and Will Ferrell's character says one of my favorite lines. He says boy, that escalated quickly. I mean that really got out of hand fast. Well, whenever I read this story from the 25th chapter of 1 Samuel, I can't hear help but hear Ron Burgundy's line in my head Boy that escalated quickly. It's because the story that we read involves two men quarreling over trivial matters and the situation quickly gets out of hand. What started as a relatively minor insult risked turning into a civil war that could have very well claimed hundreds of lives. But luckily that was all prevented thanks to a woman named Abigail. She had a fool of a husband. Literally his name is Nabal, which in Hebrew means fool. So despite his foolish name and his foolish demeanor, nabal was still somehow a very wealthy man. The text begins by stating that he was wealthy and he had thousands and thousands of livestock to show for it. But Nabal's privilege and wealth did not protect him from the wrath of a young man that we all know named David, whose star was rising in the sky.
Speaker 2:You see, at this point in 1, samuel Saul, the first king of Israel. Things started out really well for him, but ended up not so well he's kind of at this point in the narrative gradually descending into madness and downfall. Saul was originally anointed king by the prophet Samuel, despite God's warnings that kings cause more harm than good. But Saul's reign was largely successful until he made a series of critical errors during the battle against the Amalekites series of critical errors during the battle against the Amalekites and these mistakes led to disfavor with Samuel and God. So, consequently, samuel starts looking for somebody else and finds this young shepherd named David, anoints him and prepares him to eventually succeed Saul as king. So whereas David's rise is going up quickly, saul's demise is just as fast, and after David defeated Goliath, he begins to feel invincible and is, admittedly, a little bit self-important. And although he's not yet king, by chapter 25, david has gained a formidable reputation in town.
Speaker 2:He and his men travel the countryside defending Israelites like Nabal from marauders who went around stealing sheep. And due to their service. David believes that he is entitled to receive food and supplies in return for his protection. Nabal, however, disagreed. When David's men ask for food, nabal basically gives them the middle finger and tells them to buzz off. And when the men inform David of Nabal's rejection, david's reaction is, shall we say, disproportionate to the crime. He orders everybody get your swords, we are going to war. Imagine Ron Burgundy saying this, escalated quickly. David then mobilizes 400 armed men and heads towards Nabal's estate to open a can of you know what.
Speaker 2:Fortunately for Nabal, fortunately for Nabal and all of his household, his wife, abigail, intervenes. A servant, who is likely aware of Nabal's propensity for being a jerk, reports the chaos to her before the bloodshed begins and Abigail decides to take things into her own hands, to act as a bit of a mediator. She collects all of these goods and services to appease David and heads out to meet him and his men. And here I want to emphasize that what Abigail is doing is no task for the faint of heart. She must have known that David was hot-headed and hell-bent on vengeance and that he was walking around with a bit of a chip on his shoulder after the whole Goliath win. So I think it took a considerable amount of courage, especially for a woman in those days, to stand up to a man, let alone somebody who was heading towards the throne.
Speaker 2:And Abigail's flattery and diplomacy pay off. She has that really long speech that I'll just kind of summarize into the following paraphrase my husband is an idiot. Please accept these gifts as a token of our gratitude for your protection. But then, if we read the text closely, abigail cleverly pivots to appeal to David's political ambitions. You know she says petty vengeance isn't a good look for a man who's trying to win the love of the people he will one day govern. If you forgive my idiot husband and his mistake, that'll be a story that your PR people can go and run with. It'll be great, just trust me. And then, to David's credit, when he could have dug in his heels and kept on heading towards war, he doesn't do that. He listens to her and he takes her advice. He could have taken the gifts and continued to battle, but instead he listens to reason, he breathes in God's mercies and breathes out God's mercies to others, and he commends Abigail for her good sense. The story ends and everyone lives happily ever after well, except for Nabal, who dies of a heart attack 10 days later, after Nabal's timely demise. So David got what he wanted. He just didn't have to pull the trigger. So after Nabal's timely demise, abigail ends up marrying David and she becomes one of the eight women who we know was married to David at some point Now.
Speaker 2:On a surface level, this story is a somewhat humorous tale about two men who get into a petty public feud and a sensible woman who steps in to de-escalate the situation, or chill the beans, as we say in the fearing household. I think it challenges the common sexist arguments that women aren't qualified to lead because they are quote unquote, what Too emotional right. We've all heard that and I think this story suggests otherwise. If anything, it's the men in the story who allow their emotions to undermine their judgment. So it's this preacher's opinion that there's a little bit of subversive humor at play in the story. That almost reads like a soap opera or a reality TV show. After all, who doesn't enjoy watching a good train wreck? But this story, I think, also prompts a deeper discussion about the collateral damage caused by such petty disputes, when we are constantly at each other's throats and things get out of hand so quickly. I think it's important to remember in this somewhat humorous story that Abigail literally saved human lives. This squabble between Nabal and David could have devolved into a great deal of bloodshed, but Abigail successfully negotiates a peaceful solution.
Speaker 2:Who are the Abigails among us who broker peace in a culture that encourages and rewards petty conflict and rewards petty conflict? You know, we might be tempted to think that money is the most powerful currency in our culture, but it's not. The most powerful currency in our modern society is attention. If you capture attention, then money and power will inevitably follow you, and I surrender the currency of our attention in various ways Every time we follow and subscribe, every cable news show we watch or TikTok video we promote or posts we share on Facebook.
Speaker 2:I'm convinced that one of the reasons our political system is broken is because we treat it more like the soap opera of the naval David debacle rather than approaching our common life together.
Speaker 2:That's really all politics is is how we live together, instead of approaching it with the wisdom and the reason of Abigail, a person who stepped into a void and risked a lot to broker peace, to save hundreds of lives and to seek the common good for everyone.
Speaker 2:What would happen if we chose to give our attention to the peacemakers among us, the bridge builders, the diplomats, the artists and the poets who tease our imaginations towards justice and love, equity and compassion. And so I hope you, like me, have a good chuckle at this story of a savvy woman who prevented a civil war between two men with terribly fragile egos. But I also hope, on a more serious note, that we remember that God calls us to be peacemakers in a world where such work is often openly mocked and discouraged. It's not easy work. As I mentioned, it took no small amount of courage for Abigail to do what she did. It's hard work, but, as the author Glennon Doyle so often says, we can do hard things, and we know we can do hard things because Jesus calls peacemakers like Abigail blessed. So, in a world full of noise and conflict, where attention often shifts towards discord instead of harmony, we are reminded that true strength lies not in escalating disputes, but in the wisdom to pursue understanding and reconciliation.
Speaker 1:It's not easy.
Speaker 2:It's messy work, but it's the work of the gospel. Abigail demonstrated that, even when confronted with foolishness and aggression, that sometimes a calm and compassionate voice can truly make a difference. So, as we go about our week, as we navigate our own lives, let us remember a woman named Abigail, who dared to stand up, to speak up and to advocate for peace. May we choose to elevate the voice of peacemakers and bridge builders and visionaries, assuring that our actions reflect the love and grace that Jesus calls us to embody, because we are neighbors with one another. In the name of God the creator, redeemer and sustainer.
Speaker 2:May all of us, God's children, say amen.