“She got up, bowed with her face to the ground, and said, ‘Your servant is here to serve you, to wash the feet of my lord’s servants.‘”-1 Samuel 25:41
Today I wanna show you an interesting example of how a part of the “Old” Testament is better understood through the lens of the New Testament.
Usually, it’s the reverse.
Normally, the “Old” Testament or the Hebrew Bible gives us a better understanding of the New Testament.
But not this time.
In this example, the opposite is true.
So after Avigayil’s husband Naval passed away, David sent messengers to her to request her hand in marriage.
Avigayil’s response was not only significant but prophetic.
She prostrated herself and responded by saying:
“Your servant is here to serve you,
to wash the feet of my lord’s servants.”
Now, why was her response prophetic?
It’s prophetic when considering David as a type and shadow of Messiah.
Notice that Avigayil didn’t just offer to wash David’s feet but the feet of his followers as well.
On top of that, she has just accepted David’s marriage offer in front of witnesses.
This meant she was now legally David’s fiance.
All that was left was the physical act of intercourse to finalize the marriage contract.
Yet, despite this, isn’t it interesting that Avigayil referred to herself as a servant who wished to wash the feet of David’s servants?
Hmm…where have we come across this before?
Check out these verses from the book of John.
The setting is the Last Supper – right before Yeshua’s trial that would sentence him to be crucified.
On that fateful night, we’re told Yeshua…
“…rose from the table, removed his outer garments, and wrapped a towel around his waist. Then he poured some water into a basin and began to wash the feet of the talmidim and wipe them off with the towel wrapped around him.”-John 13:1-5
Next, this exchange with Peter is recorded:
“He came to Shim‘on Kefa, who said to him, ‘Lord! You are washing my feet?’ Yeshua answered him, ‘You don’t understand yet what I am doing, but in time you will understand.’ ‘No!’ said Kefa, “You will never wash my feet!” Yeshua answered him, ‘If I don’t wash you, you have no share with me.’ ‘Lord,’ Shim‘on Kefa replied, ‘not only my feet, but my hands and head too!’ Yeshua said to him, ‘A man who has had a bath doesn’t need to wash, except his feet — his body is already clean. And you people are clean, but not all of you.’ (He knew who was betraying him; this is why he said, ‘Not all of you are clean.’)”-John 13:6-11
Finally, Yeshua concludes by explaining his actions:
“After he had washed their feet, taken back his clothes, and returned to the table, he said to them, ‘Do you understand what I have done to you? You call me ‘Rabbi’ and ‘Lord,’ and you are right, because I am. Now if I, the Lord and Rabbi, have washed your feet, you also should wash each other’s feet. For I have set you an example, so that you may do as I have done to you.Yes, indeed! I tell you, a slave is not greater than his master, nor is an emissary greater than the one who sent him. If you know these things, you will be blessed if you do them.”-John 13:12-16
When we connect these New Testament verses to Avigayil we can see why the ancient Jewish sages were wise to consider her a prophetess.
And David was a wise man to make such a righteous woman his wife.
Interestingly, we discover that in addition to Avigayil, David took a woman named Ahinoam to be his wife.
Ahinoam or אֲחִינֹעַם means “My brother is pleasantness.”
In normal English, you could translate it as “My brother is pleasant.”
We’re told she was from the city of Jezreel.
For you geography buffs out there, this ain’t talking about the famous Jezreel Valley located in the northern part of Israel.
Rather, this territory is located in Judah near Ma’on, Zia, and Carmel.
Now, what’s also interesting is that Saul also had a wife Ahinoam.
Hmm…was this the same woman?
I’d say no because there isn’t any contextual proof substantiating that other than they have the same name.
One thing we can probably say with confidence is that David married Ahinoam BEFORE Avigayil.
Why can we be confident about this?
First, Ahinoam gave birth to David’s first-born son Amnon.
Second, in other parts of Scripture where both women are mentioned, Ahinoam’s name is always placed before Abigayil’s.
This is an ancient Scriptural formula.
It serves as evidence that Ahinoam was considered higher status than Avigayil and that David probably married her first.
So what takeaway do we have for today?
Today’s takeaway is actually a confession of repentance on my behalf.
Up until now, I have harbored a bit of a condescending attitude towards the New Testament.
I’ve always considered it to be far inferior to the TANAKH or Hebrew Bible (what the Gentiles call the “Old” Testament).
Don’t get me wrong.
There’s no way I consider the NT to be on the same level as OT.
And the early Christian Church didn’t either.
The truth is the New Testament wasn’t put together and added to the Hebrew Bible until the early 3rd century A.D.
This means the ONLY authorized document that was considered the Bible for the early Messianic Community was the “Old Testament.”
There ain’t no reputable Bible scholar on the planet that would dispute that fact…
But when a lot of Christian pastors, preachers, and average Christians hear this, they lose their freakin’ minds.
While it’s true that in the first century, the four gospels and some of Paul’s letters were distributed to the Yeshua-believing congregations consisting of both Jews and Gentiles…
The truth is…
And this is important to understand…
The gospels and letters were NOT viewed as Holy Scripture…
Nor were they intended to be part of some new Christian Bible.
But having said all that, the New Testament does contain the eyewitness testimonies of the Messiah, Yeshua of Nazareth.
And I do believe they were God-inspired (as opposed to God-breathed).
The gospels and Paul’s letters are important and have authority.
The bottom line is this foot-washing incident in Samuel is unexpected and difficult to understand unless it’s linked to the New Testament book of John.
So my confession and your takeaway is that the NT should never be viewed in an inferior or condescending fashion.
Ya feel me?
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