Handouts

"When David's men came to Nabal and asked him for food as compensation for their protection of his flocks, he answered, 'Why should I give my hard-earned money to who-knows-who? Lots of people are pretending to be something they are not just to get handouts - Now go away!'" (my own paraphrase from 1 Sam 25:10-11).

David and his men had been protecting Nabal's shepherds and their flocks. When David sent men to collect some compensation for this protection, Nabal insulted them and sent them away. Now, I am assuming that in David's culture, this type of service must have been common place, because all the parties involved (except for Nabal) saw the dismissal as evil. However, his reasoning seems legitimate to me, and I think it carries over into our culture. How many times have I heard others (or more importantly, how many times have I said myself) that I don't like to give handouts to the poor and the homeless who beg because I don't know if their need is real, or how they plan to spend the money. In essence, the same reasoning offered by Nabal.

Why did God see Nabal's response as evil? Was he lying when he claimed not to know David, or his men? Did his shepherds not report the kindness to their master? Was he displaying his greed with his lack of generosity? Whatever it was, he died as a result of his sin.

What does the story of Nabal mean for me, in our generation, and in our society. Certainly we have all kinds of people asking for donations; everything from homeless individualizes to international organizations. I don't think there is any doubt that some of these are not truly in need, and even among those who are in need, some intend to use the money for unholy purposes. While I do not believe that God would have us hand over our "hard-earned" income to anyone who comes asking, I do think there is a lesson for us in the story of Nabal.

Did Jesus not confirm the Old Testament scriptures when he told the parable of the servants who were sorted. We, as followers of Jehovah, are commanded to give to help the needy. Maybe it is time for me to begin giving, that God may judge the person who benefits from the gift, and not judge me.