Let’s consider the characteristics of Abigail. There are many other worthy women of the bible. They all reflect many or some of the attributes of God’s Holy Spirit. I think of Mary, Ruth, Esther, Lydia, Sarah, Rachel, Rahab, Rebecca, Hagar and many others. All of these are amazing examples of godly women. These women are all very powerful and beautiful examples of God’s love for us.
THE WIFE OF A ROYAL KING
However, I think Abigail would be the woman in the crowd whom I would follow first. She exhibits one woman who had all of the good attributes of God’s Holy Spirit. I also love the fact that she became the wife of Israel’s most notable King. Esther was also the wife of a King, but her king wasn’t Israel’s most noted King.
Somewhere in my mid-twenties, I felt I heard God whispering to my spirit that I should pattern my life after the steps of Abigail. I’m sure that was because Abigail was well known as a wise women. At the time I was definitely seeking wisdom from God. My given name was Gail, so that didn’t hinder this decision. What really won me over was the fact that Abigail exhibited the characteristics I felt God wanted me to develop within my own life. Since that day, I’ve had many failures, and I’ve had some success. Following after Abigail’s patterns has certainly helped me make wiser decisions as I grew older. I am very thankful for her beautiful example of a godly woman.
So, if you asked me to pick the wisest woman in the bible, I would immediately respond by naming Abigail. Her characteristics are just that admirable and well worth imitating. It seems that her beauty matched her wisdom.
A WOMAN WHO KNEW PROTOCOL
When Abigail heard that her foolish husband, Nabal, had insulted David, she acted quickly. It seemed that she understood protocol much better than Nabal. Abigail loaded down donkeys with supplies for David’s men and went out to meet him. She was humble at this meeting, bowing down to David to show respect. Abigail had been paying attention to the local news. She knew that David was a man of God.
The lovely Abigail cleverly thought of the one thing she knew which might change David’s mind about destroying the household of Nabal. She had probably heard the story of how David could have killed King Saul, but didn’t. Saul, in his usual ways of insanity, had probably told the story himself. The locals would have marveled at this almost unbelievable story. They might have even heard that Saul had asked David not to destroy his descendants when he came into his Kingship.
At any rate, they did know that Saul had sought to kill David, but David had showed him mercy because Saul was God’s anointed. All of Israel must have marveled that David had left vengeance up to God. Now he was about to do just the opposite in his anger toward Nabal.
HOLY REMINDERS
Then came Abigail who reminded David of who he was. Ladies, this is a very good trait. If you find yourself disagreeing with your spouse, don’t argue; instead remind him who he is. Abigail spoke quietly and wisely of what David stood for and what a great God he served. She subtly appealed to him by reminding him that he should never have innocent blood on his hands. Abigail even repeated David’s own thoughts; that revenge belonged to the Lord.
This was the one thing Abigail knew David would listen to. So, listen he did. I suppose Abigail had also been listening, but she was listening to God’s Holy Spirit whispering truth into her ears. It is one thing to hear, but it is another thing to listen. Abigail had developed the art of being a good listener, especially when God was the one doing the talking.
TRUTH WITH WISDOM
She chose to speak this truth with wisdom. Most likely, Abigail had a knack for knowing when to speak and when to remain silent. She humbly and respectfully showed concern for David and his future office over concern for her own household.
This amazing woman soothed David’s anger by sending the supplies which he had requested from Nabal ahead of her well-spoken requests. If there was ever a good example of “a soft answer turneth away wrath” this was it. That day Abigail saved her husband, her household and herself.
A WOMAN AFTER DAVID’S HEART
David admired Abigail’s generosity, kindness, humble spirit, wisdom and loyalty to her foolish husband. He probably didn’t ignore her great beauty either. He was impressed that she was a woman in step with God’s perfect ways. He probably loved that she had the courage to remind him of such things with her very elegant and bravely worded speech. There are so many good characteristics of Abigail that we all could take to heart.
GOOD DISCERNMENT
One characteristic that surely grabbed the attention of David was that Abigail showed him respect. Nabal had not done this. She humbly asked that he remember her when he came into his kingdom. David realized that Abigail recognized him as God’s anointed, even though he wore no crown and had not officially become a king. He knew that Abigail had to have godly discernment to realize this fact.
Abigail had a lot of the same characteristics as Esther. Like Esther, her wisdom and discernment elevated her from the position of a commoner into the office of a Queen. When David realized that Nabal had died, he asked Abigail to be his wife. This put her in line to be the wife of God’s anointed King. She brought Nabal’s riches into the kingdom of David with her. David elevated her status in the local community as well as the nation of Israel.
GIFTS OF THE SPIRIT
So, let’s look closer at these attributes of Abigail’s character. If we examine them one-by-one I think we will see that the attributes she exhibited in her life were the characteristics we find defined as the gifts of God’s Holy Spirit.
Beginning next week, I would like to examine all seven of these spiritual aspects of Abigail’s character, so we can determine how they are to be working in our own lives today. Is the Church not to be the wife of a King? We must learn protocol. It is an important trait for a successful wedding.
With the month of Elul fast approaching, it will be a great time to do a little self-examination. Stay with us as we continue to study more of the characteristics of Abigail next week.