Who Was King David?

A. King David was the second and probably best-known king of ancient Israel. He was a descendant of Ruth and the son of Yishai (Jesse), a gentleman farmer with a large family. He was the youngest child, and worked his father's flocks of sheep with his older brothers. He led a quiet life and was not expected to aspire to greatness, except for the fact that G-d had the prophet Samuel anoint him to be the next ruler after Saul, the first king. Then, one fine day…

B. …as Israel was at war with its enemy, the Philistines, young David was dispatched by his dad to bring a care package to his older brothers on the battlefront. The two armies waited tensely on either side of a river while the historically famed Goliath, a giant of a man who scared the dickens out of his shorter Jewish enemies, bellowed daily for anyone to challenge him one-to-one. David stepped forward and killed Goliath with a slingshot-fired pebble to the forehead and subsequent decapitation.

C. David eventually became Saul’s son-in-law, marrying his daughter Michal, whom he later divorced. He became the best friend of Jonathan, one of Saul’s sons. Upon the wartime death of Saul and Jonathan, David became the King of Israel, aggressively expanding and fortifying the kingdom. David lived to the age of 70; the crown passed to his son Shlomo (Solomon), under whose rule the Golden Age of Israel truly flourished.

What were David’s lifetime highlights?

1. The rיsumי

David was a powerful king who wisely governed the tribes of Israel, forging them into a united nation. G-d blessed him to be a valiant soldier, a great military strategist, an able administrator, a diplomat, a composer and a musician.

2. The warhawk

David extended Israel’s lands in the north, triumphing over Israel’s enemies the Canaanites and the Philistines. Prosperity followed, which is confirmed today by archaeology. David was originally based in Chevron (Hebron) in southern Judah, but when all 12 Tribes of Israel accepted his rulership he needed a central location from which to govern. An ideal place was the mountain-top city of Jerusalem, where he established his capital.

3. The “Sweet Singer of Israel”

The above is one of the formal titles historically appended to David, on account of his 140 poetic works of praise to G-d known as tehilim (Psalms). Actually, there are 150 Psalms, but ten of them were partially written by others, including Moses, Jacob, and the Sons of Korach.