Charles Ellicott Commentary 1 Samuel 25:15

"But the men were very good unto us, and we were not hurt, neither missed we anything, as long as we went with them, when we were in the fields:" — 1 Samuel 25:15 (ASV)

But the men were very good unto us. —The “young man” in question who spoke this to his mistress, Abigail, was evidently one in high authority on Nabal's sheep farms. His testimony in 1 Samuel 25:15–16 regarding David is clear and decisive, and occurring as it does in the heart of an episode most discreditable to David, it bears weighty testimony to the admirable discipline and the kind forethought of the son of Jesse in times when lawlessness and pillage would have been, if not excusable, certainly to be expected.

The great powers of the future king were admirably displayed in this difficult period of his life. Few men could have so molded a wild company of freelancers into a force that, according to the rather unwilling testimony of Nabal's shepherds, was positively a blessing to the country, instead of being, as these bands of freelancers usually have been, a terrible curse.