King David: The Warrior-Poet
King David, the second king of the United Kingdom of Israel, was also the first Judean king to reign in Jerusalem. It was David who transformed Jerusalem into the Holy City of Judaism, and whose dynasty was to rule Judea for centuries to come. And it is David who remains the archetypal Biblical king: a fierce warrior, passionate lover, and poet of the celebrated Psalms. Some believe that one day, the Messiah of the Jews will emerge from the bloodline of King David and restore the Holy Temple to Jerusalem.
As a boy, David first rose to fame after he slew the Philistine giant Goliath with one stone from his slingshot—a tale that has by now become legend.
But according to the Scriptural book of Samuel, David was secretly anointed king before he ever proved his worth in public. The story tells how God commanded the prophet Samuel to visit Jesse, in order to anoint one of his sons king. Samuel was impressed with the handsomeness of the eldest of Jesse’s sons, and was shocked when God commanded him to anoint the youngest—a mere shepherd.
David went on to serve King Saul in his wars with the Philistines, whereupon he killed Goliath and quickly became famous. David’s skill with the harp led him to be appointed the king’s musician, to play to Saul when the king became depressed. But when Saul became jealous of David and attempted to kill him, David fled. He preserved his friendship with Saul’s son Jonathan, which the latter maintained against the wishes of his father.
Eventually David married Saul’s daughter Michal, and became king of Judea. After Saul’s heir Ish-Boshet was killed, and the people of Israel united as one kingdom under David’s rule, which lasted for 40 years until about 970 B.C. One of David’s crowning historical achievements was the conquest of Jerusalem and its rebirth as the Judean capital and Holy City. His son, Solomon, would one day build the first Holy Temple on the slopes of the Temple Mount.
But David’s rule, though successful, was often challenged by tragedy. He was most deeply affected by the treachery of his sons, in particular his favorite, the handsome and charismatic Absalom.
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