Dr. Couch, what does it mean when Abigail said to David, “The soul of my
lord (David) shall be bound in the bundle of life with the Lord your
God” (1 Sam. 25:29)?
This is considered one of the first clear passages in the Old Testament
that points to life even after death. Abigail was saying that David’s
life was tied up, as in a bundle of wheat, with the Lord. David is
entangled with God!
The rabbinical commentaries say (as found in the Targum) that the
prayer is understood to refer to life after death, and it has long been
used in Jewish memorial prayers and inscriptions on tombstones. Those so
entwined with the Lord in this life will pass on into glory and into
His presence. Ellicott writes: “From 1 Samuel and the Talmud, one cannot
miss the far-reaching comment by John the apostle in Revelation 6:9
where he writes, ‘underneath the altar (in heaven) are the souls of them
that were slain for the word of God, and for the testimony which they
maintained.’ These souls of the righteous are hidden beneath the
glorious throne of God waiting for the resurrection.”
Notice it is not the bodies that are so bundled up with the Lord, it
is the souls! On the 1 Samuel passage, Unger says in his Old Testament
commentary that it is a “truly remarkable verse.” He adds, Abigail
“meant that God would keep David safe. His life, as it were, was bound
up with the very life of God in a precious bundle that no one (not even
insane Saul) could touch.” (p. 400)
Thanks for asking.
Dr. Mal Couch
