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David,d. c.970 B.C., king of ancient Israel (c.1010–970 B.C.), successor of SaulSaul,
first king of the ancient Hebrews. He was a Benjamite and anointed king by Samuel. Saul's territory was probably limited to the hill country of Judah and the region to the north, and his proximity to the Philistines brought him into constant conflict with them.
..... Click the link for more information. . The Book of First Samuel introduces him as the youngest of eight sons who is anointed king by Samuel to replace Saul, who had been deemed a failure. The GoliathGoliath
, in the Bible, a giant of Gath, a Philistine city, who challenged the Israelites. The young David, fortified by faith, accepted the challenge and killed him with a stone from a sling.
..... Click the link for more information. story underscores his divine election and leads to Saul's obsession with killing him. On the death of Saul and JonathanJonathan
[short for Jehonathan, Heb.,=Yahweh has given]. 1 In the Bible, Saul's son and David's friend, killed at the battle of Mt. Gilboa. David showed kindness to his son Mephibosheth. 2 David's nephew.
..... Click the link for more information. in battle, David assumes the throne in Second Samuel. The assassination of a rival king, Ishbosheth, in the north allows David to be crowned king of a united kingdom.
With the capture of Jerusalem, David moves his capital there and plans the construction of a temple. Through prophetic mediation, however, God declares David's successor as the future builder, who will build a "house." God promises to establish the kingdom of his son as an everlasting kingdom. From this promise derives the later hope of a royal Messiah ("anointed one") as an agent of God's establishment of an eschatological kingdom.
Second Samuel charts an era of decline beginning with David's adultery with Bath-shebaBath-sheba
, in the Bible, wife of Uriah the Hittite. David seduced her, effected the death of her husband, and then married her. Her second son by David was Solomon.
..... Click the link for more information. and the murder of her husband. Anarchy prevails among his children, leading to the revolt and usurpation of the throne by his son AbsalomAbsalom
, in the Bible, son of David. He murdered his half-brother Amnon for the rape of their sister Tamar, and fled. No sooner was he reconciled with his father than he incited a rebellion in which he was killed by Joab and his armor-bearers.
..... Click the link for more information. . David's son by Bath-sheba, SolomonSolomon,
d. c.930 B.C., king of the ancient Hebrews (c.970–c.930 B.C.), son and successor of David. His mother was Bath-sheba. His accession has been dated to c.970 B.C. According to the Bible.
..... Click the link for more information. , is nominated king and successor by David, though this was challenged by another son AdonijahAdonijah
, in the Bible, son of David. He sought the throne that David gave to the younger son, Solomon. Perhaps the same as Adonikam, a name in the lists of families.
..... Click the link for more information. . Nevertheless, David remains the model for subsequent monarchs of Israel.
David's musical skill became proverbial, and many psalms were attributed to him. Most of the narrative that recounts David's decline is omitted in the Book of Chronicles. The New Testament confesses Jesus as the "Christ" (Messiah) descended from David, and David is also attested in the Qur'an. Archaelogical excavations have failed, however, to find evidence that would confirm the existence of a powerful and unified Davidic kingdom.
See R. Alter, The David Story (1999); S. L. McKenzie, King David (2000)
David(dävēd`), city (1990 pop. 102,678), capital of Chiriquí prov., SW Panama. It is a regional commercial and processing center and is Panama's fourth largest city. Cattle raising is the principal occupation in the region, but tropical fruits, coffee, cacao, and sugar are also produced. David is surrounded by the picturesque highlands of Chiriquí.
king of the Israeli-Judaic state from the end of the 1 Ith century to around 950 B.C.
David was the arms-bearer and later the son-in-law of King Saul. However, suspected of treason, he fled to the steppes of southern Palestine. Later, he became a vassal of the Philistines. After the death of Saul, David was proclaimed king of Judah. He added to it the territories of the Israelite tribes, captured the Canaanite city of Jerusalem and made it his capital, and won a number of neighboring territories. David created a centralized power—the Israeli-Judaic state. He conducted a census of the population (c. 973 B.C.) and introduced taxes. In addition to a popular militia, he organized detachments of foreign bodyguards (Cretans and Philistines). In Hebrew folklore David is depicted as a daring warrior who killed the giant Goliath. Bible scholars reject the religious tradition that David was the composer of the psalms.
REFERENCESNikol’skii. N. M. Tsar’ David i psalmy. St. Petersburg. 1908.
Frazer. J. G. Fol’klor ν vetkhom zavete. Moscow-Leningrad, 1931. (Translated from English.)
Weill, R. La Cité de David (vols. 1–2]. Paris, 1947.
Desnoyers, L. Histoire du peuple hébreu des Juges à la captivité, vol. 2. Paris. 1930.
a city in western Panama, on the Pan-American highway. Administrative center of the province of Chiriqui. Population, 23,000 (1963). There is a railroad station. David is a commercial-industrial center, producing shoes, furniture. and other household items.