Usually, people are described with attributes which communicate their personality. ‘Beautiful’ and ‘intelligent’ are attributes I believe every woman would love to have as a description of her personality. Nevertheless, there is a growing delusion of beauty and intelligence. These are being used manipulatively, corroborating the statement by Myles Monroe that when the purpose of a thing is not known, abuse is inevitable. It is therefore of essence to get an understanding of the purpose of the beauty and intelligence God bestows on us from the biblical woman Abigail who is described as the “intelligent and beautiful woman”. Remember in this season, we were led to study about the women in the bible and how they were very instrumental in the fulfillment of God’s plan for salvation. They were women God created and their stories are written to inspire us today.
A certain man in Maon, who had property there at Carmel, was very wealthy. He had a thousand goats and three thousand sheep, which he was shearing in Carmel. His name was Nabal and his wife’s name was Abigail. She was an intelligent and beautiful woman (1 Samuel 25: 2-3a).
Describing Abigail as an intelligent and beautiful woman is symbolic of the fact that she portrayed certain attributes which earned her such a description. The lady Abigail was married to a man called Nabal and they were very wealthy. David who was king of Israel and treated the Nabal and Abigail’s servants in a very honorable way. When it was the turn of Nabal to return the favor, Nabal (Abigail’s husband) despised David and his men. David was ready to fight Nabal which could lead to Nabal’s destruction. Abigail’s servant told Abigail of her husband’s insolent behavior towards David and asked Abigail to think over it and see how she could handle the issue. Abigail acted quickly and took some of her possession, went to David, bowed to David, fell at his feet, called herself a servant of David and pleaded with David to listen to her, forgive her husband and spare his life. Abigail also discerned and spoke to David about the lasting dynasty God is making with David because David was working in God’s purposes and she advised David not to soil his conscience and what God is doing in his life with needless bloodshed by murdering Nabal. David responded to Abigail’s plea in the following verses:
David said to Abigail, “Praise be to the Lord, the God of Israel, who has sent you today to meet me. May you be blessed for your good judgment and for keeping me from bloodshed this day and from avenging myself with my own hands. Otherwise, as surely as the Lord, the God of Israel, lives, who has kept me from harming you, if you had not come quickly to meet me, not one male belonging to Nabal would have been left alive by daybreak.” Then David accepted from her hand what she had brought him and said, “Go home in peace. I have heard your words and granted your request.” (1 Samuel 25:32-35).
When Abigail returned home, her husband Nabal was drunk. She did not tell him anything that had happened until morning when he was sober.
The following are some of the attributes we learn about being an intelligent and beautiful woman from the life of Abigail: So, who is a beautiful and intelligent woman?
- She is God-fearing and yielded to acting in the will of God: Abigails speech, supported by her actions is evident that she was a sincerely God-fearing woman. Every response Abigail gave David was inclined towards reflecting godly precepts and establishment of Divine plans.
- She is a woman of virtuous Character: Abigail is described as a woman of beautiful countenance. Abigail was obviously physically beautiful but I believe the beauty described here is beyond physical beauty. She was described as a woman of beautiful countenance. This means Abigail’s physical beauty was linked to her mannerism which was an expression of her virtuous character from within. Virtue is character kindled by the Spirit of God. A person of virtuous character progresses from knowing what is right to doing what is right. A person of virtuous character honors God, keeps growing in virtue by adopting and practicing godly precepts and reflects Godly character to others. The physical countenance of such a person is an expression of imbedded virtue. Abigail’s behavior and interactions was an expression of virtue (love, care, kindness, self-control etc) and this is portrayed in the way she relates for everyone including her husband, her servants and strangers such as David. A woman with a beautiful countenance is one whose outward countenance reflects virtue ignited by the Spirit of God.
- She is a woman of wisdom and gives wise counsel: Wise counsel usually embodies teaching, guiding, correcting, providing encouragement which will enable someone to act in the right way. “Wise” is a derivative of the word wisdom. There are two kinds of wisdom, one which is earthly, sensual and devilish. This kind of wisdom is characterized by attributes such as envy, selfish ambition, boastful and denying the truth etc. The other kind of wisdom is heavenly (Godly) wisdom which is pure, peace-loving, considerate, submissive, full of mercy and good fruit, impartial and sincere. (James 3:13-18). The wisdom portrayed by Abigail is heavenly wisdom which is endowed by the Spirit of God. This kind of wisdom will only inspire actions which reflect Godly precepts. Endowed with heavenly wisdom, Abigail acted wisely and her actions protected her household. She also gave wise counsel to others including David which prevented him from staggering his conscience with bloodshed and also from destroying her husband.
- She is prudent: A prudent woman has good understanding and is shrewd in managing practical daily affairs of life. Managing practical affairs of life may include managing the home, family, time, job, finances etc. As perceived from the life of Abigail, an intelligent woman is a good manager. A good manager probably has a plan, sets goals to achieve the plan, makes wise decisions, hard working, communicates effectively, solves problems when they arise, is accountable, resourceful etc. Abigail effectively managed her household, her resources and even the affairs of her husband. When Abigail was told about what her husband had done to David, she acted quickly to solve the problem between her husband and David. She had her own resources and in times of emergency she could easily draw from the pool of her resources to solve situations. With the resources she had, she supported her husband in managing the affairs of her household. An intelligent woman prudent-a good manager.
- She is discerning and knows when to act: Abigail acted quickly. She took two hundred loaves of bread, two skins of wine, five dressed sheep, five seahs of roasted grain, a hundred cakes of raisins and two hundred cakes of pressed figs, and loaded them on donkeys. Then she told her servants, “Go on ahead; I’ll follow you.” But she did not tell her husband Nabal (1 Samuel 25 :18-19). Abigail also discerned that David was making an error in trying to kill her husband and advised David not to soil his hand with bloodshed which could cause his downfall.
- She is submitted to her husband: Abigail’s actions portrayed a woman who was submissive. Abigail’s’ husband acted wrongly towards David. Abigail did not approve of his actions. Nevertheless, she acted wisely, in humility and submission to correct what her husband did. Abigail returned home to find her drunk. She did not wage war at her husband but waited till morning when he was sober to tell him all that which had happened.
- She is humble and serves: Often times, being called a servant seems demeaning. Through Jesus’s teachings we see that a leader is one who serves others. Abigail served her family – she worked hard to protect her household from destruction, including her servants. Abigail was a very wealthy woman yet she called herself David’s servant and even bowed to David with her face to the floor. Abigail later became a Queen. Her willingness to serve is a virtue which qualified her for leadership. One of the biblical qualification for uplifting to leadership is humble service. “Not so with you. Instead, whoever wants to become great among you must be your servant, and whoever wants to be first must be slave of all. For even the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many (Mark 10:43-45)”. “The Lord lifts up the humble; He casts the wicked down to the ground (Psalm 147:6).”
- She is approachable: Abigail was a very wealthy woman but her servants could approach, discuss with her and she listened to them.
- She protects and builds her home: The wise woman builds her house, but with her own hands the foolish one tears hers down (Proverbs 41:1).
The attributes highlighted above are not exhaustive. There is so much more to learn about being a beautiful and intelligent woman from the life of Abigail. Nonetheless, what is outstanding is that everything God bestows us with has the ultimate purpose of glorifying God. Abigail’s life shows how intentional she was in using the beauty of noble character and intelligence to glorify God. The fundamental purpose of the talents and gifts including beauty and intelligence God gives us is to be utilized for his glory by partaking in the manifestation of God’s plans on earth. It is possible to be intelligent and function in Godly wisdom. Some of the ways to grow in wisdom and virtue is by:
- Accepting Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior of our lives
- Dwelling in God’s presence through consistent study of the word of God and prayers and living a life of thanksgiving, worship and praise
- Daily yielding to the transformative power of the Holy Spirit
- Fellowshipping with other brethren
- Seeking wise counsel
- Keeping good company
- Constantly seeking to do what is right and incase you fall, don’t remain there. Repent and keep running the race of faith
- Being accountable to someone who can help your growth
- Being humble and open to correction
- Feeding your mind with positive content whether through reading books, watching inspirational videos or movies etc
- Learning, building your talents and growing daily.
It is our prayer that through the enablement of the Holy Spirit we would grow in virtue and our physical countenance will be an expression of beauty of virtuous character. May God help us to we would grow in wisdom and utilize our intelligence to partake in the birthing and manifestation of God’s plans on earth.