Nabal means fool and Abigail means father’s joy. Foolish was anyone skilled in the law, who had the key to knowledge but did not himself enter and prevented from entering those who wanted to. But the synagogue is rightly called the Father’s joy, inasmuch as it is said, Rejoice because your names are written in heaven.^[1] For in such circumstances she was very wise to understand the word of faith and she was respectable to carry out what she understood, although her teachers were harsh because of their unbelief, evil because of their evil manner of living and wicked because of their plotting treachery against the Lord.

Indeed, because David swore that he would kill Nabal and then in more considerate forbearance did not, shall we say that we should imitate him by swearing rashly that we are going to do what we see later ought not to be done? But, just as fear confounded the one [Lot] so that he was willing to prostitute his daughters,^[1] so did anger confound the other [David] so as to swear rashly. In short, if it were permitted us to make inquiry and ask them both why they did these things, the one could reply, Fear and trembling are come upon me: and darkness has covered me,^[2] and the other also could say, My eye is troubled through indignation.^[3] And so we would not be surprised that the one in the darkness of fear and the other in the indignation of his eye did not see what ought to have been seen so as not to do what ought not to have been done.

Indeed, to the righteous David we might with reasonable justice say that he ought not to have become angry, not even with an ingrate who returned evil for good. Even if anger crept upon him, as it does upon a man, at least it ought not to have prevailed so far that he swore to do what he would either do in rage or not do and be forsworn.

But before this David had already held back his armed hand in his indignation. How much greater it is not to revile again, than not to avenge oneself! The warriors, too, [who] prepared to take vengeance against Nabal, Abigail restrained by her prayers. From this we perceive that we ought not only to yield to timely entreaties but also to be pleased with them. So much was David pleased that he blessed her who intervened, because he was restrained from his desire for revenge.

Further, we are taught at considerable length by other texts of Scripture, too, that we neither should nor can fulfill everything that we decide upon whether with tranquil or upset mind. In them we frequently read that holy men or angels or even almighty God himself altered the things that they had promised. For blessed David determined with the promise of an oath and said, May God do this and add more to the enemies of David if, of all that belongs to Nabal, I leave one male until morning. But when his wife, Abigail, interceded and entreated on his behalf, David immediately ceased his threats, softened his words, and preferred to be considered a transgressor of his own intention than to be true to his oath by cruelly carrying it out. And he said, As the Lord lives, unless you had come quickly to meet me, there would not have been left to Nabal one male until the morning light. As we do not at all consider the promptness of his rash vow, which proceeded from an upset and disturbed mind, as something to be imitated, so likewise we judge that the cessation and correction of the thing that was decided on is to be pursued.