Today we begin 1st Samuel Chapter 25.
For the Complete Jewish Bible, click HERE.
For the King James version, click HERE.
“Sh’mu’el died. All of Isra’el assembled to mourn him and bury him at his home in Ramah.”-1 Samuel 25:1
We’re told that Samuel died…
And that all Israel gathered to mourn him.
This event was significant for two reasons.
First, it serves as a time marker for when David moved from En Gedi to the wilderness of Paran.
Second, it means any hope for peace between David and Saul evaporated into thin air with Samuel’s death.
Never forget how important Samuel’s role was to Israel.
He helped unite the 12 tribes together.
No other leader second to Joshua, was as respected by all 12 tribes as this man who was a combination of judge and prophet.
Even King Saul feared Samuel.
We’re told Samuel was buried in his hometown of Ramah.
You can still visit his tomb today by the way.
It’s a quick drive from Jerusalem.
Now there’s one more detail I’d like to go over with you.
Some Bible translations say that David went to Ma’on instead of Paran.
Paran comes from the Hebrew texts, and Ma’on comes from the Greek.
However, there’s no need to change Paran to Ma’on as some of the ancient editors mistakenly did.
It’s the same place folks.
Paran is southeast of the Dead Sea, on the Arabian Peninsula.
David moved there because his current En Gedi location was too close for comfort to King Saul.
Let me close by telling you what this chapter is all about.
This story is about how a righteous woman named Avigayil saved David from himself.
There’s a huge takeaway here.
I love how the Bible raises and shows the importance of women.
In ancient Middle Eastern society, women were valued barely more than cattle.
However, the Scripture demonstrates over and over again how the God of Israel would not accept such attitudes among His people.
We even have some books of the Bible, like Ruth (a gentile Moabite!) and Esther, named after women.
The Bible has always elevated the importance and status of women.
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