Handbook:David
From Door43
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| Article Sources: | Easton's Bible Dictionary International Standard Bible Encyclopedia (ISBE) |
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He was the youngest of Jesse's 8 sons, and was a shepherd in his youth. (1 Samuel 16:1-13) He sang and played the harp. He also became skilled with the sling. One of the most famous events of his life was when he killed a giant man named Goliath, using just his sling. (1 Samuel 17)
While he was still young, he was anointed to be the future king of Israel, though Saul was king at the time. (1 Samuel 16:1-13)
David served King Saul by playing his harp and singing to calm Saul when he was upset by evil spirits (1 Samuel 16:14-23). But Saul became afraid of David, and tried to kill him many times. (1 Samuel 18:5-11 tells of the first time Saul tried to kill David.) David had to run for his life, and hid from Saul for many years. During that time, other men joined him and became his followers. (1 Samuel 22:1-2)
After Saul was killed in a battle (1 Samuel 31), David was crowned King of Israel (2 Samuel 5:1-5). He made his capitol in Jerusalem (2 Samuel 5:6-10), and was a mighty warrior who defeated all of Israel's enemies (See 2 Samuel 22).
David wrote many songs during times when he was in trouble and when he was happy. Many of these are recorded for us in the book of Psalms. David loved the Lord very much, and God said he was a "man after God's own heart," meaning David's heart of love toward God pleased God very much (1 Samuel 13:14).
