David
Shepherd from Bethlehem who became king of Israel after Saul and made Jerusalem his capital. The promise of a lasting throne for his house is the root of the hope for a Messiah, and the New Testament calls Jesus the son of David.
David was the youngest son of Jesse of Bethlehem, anointed by Samuel while Saul was still king (1 Samuel 16:11–13). He won fame by killing Goliath, fled when Saul sought his life, and for a time lived under the protection of the Philistine king of Gath (1 Samuel 17:49–51) (1 Samuel 19:1–2) (1 Samuel 27:1–7). After Saul’s death he was made king of Judah at Hebron and then of all Israel. He began to reign at thirty and reigned forty years, thirty-three of them in Jerusalem, which he captured and to which he brought the ark (2 Samuel 5:3–7) (2 Samuel 6:12–15).
Through Nathan he received the promise that his house and his throne would stand for ever (2 Samuel 7:12–16). The same prophet rebuked him for taking Bathsheba and causing the death of her husband Uriah (2 Samuel 11:2–5, 14–17) (2 Samuel 12:7–10). His last words call him “the sweet psalmist of Israel” (2 Samuel 23:1). He had Solomon anointed as his successor, and was buried in Jerusalem (1 Kings 1:32–35) (1 Kings 2:10–12). In the Gospels “son of David” is a title of the Messiah, and Matthew’s first line gives it to Jesus (Matthew 1:1) (Mark 12:35–37). Outside the Bible the earliest widely accepted mention of his name is the phrase “House of David” on a stele of the ninth century BC (The House of David Inscription from Tel Dan). His dates are reckoned from the Bible’s regnal figures; see David Becomes King.
In the timeline
- about 1025 BC, traditional dateDavid and Goliath
Samuel anoints David, the youngest son of Jesse of Bethlehem. In the valley of Elah the young shepherd kills the Philistine champion Goliath with a sling and a stone, and his fame turns King Saul against him.
- about 1010 BC to 1003 BC, estimated dateDavid Becomes King
After Saul dies in battle on Mount Gilboa, the men of Judah anoint David king at Hebron. Seven and a half years later, when the war with Saul’s house is over, the elders of all Israel anoint him king over the whole nation.
- about 1003 BC, estimated dateDavid Takes Jerusalem and Brings the Ark
David captures the Jebusite stronghold of Zion, makes it his capital and brings the ark of the covenant there with music and dancing. Jerusalem becomes both the royal city and a centre of Israel’s worship.
- about 1000 BC, traditional dateGod’s Covenant with David
David proposes to build a temple for the ark. Through the prophet Nathan he is told instead that God will build him a house, a dynasty whose throne will stand for ever. The promise becomes the root of the hope for a Messiah.
- about 995 BC, traditional dateDavid, Bathsheba and Nathan
Samuel tells how David takes Bathsheba, the wife of one of his warriors, and when she is pregnant has her husband Uriah killed in battle. The prophet Nathan confronts him. The child dies; a second son, Solomon, is born.