DAVID 



1709 



DAVID 



indicate that he was set apart to become king 

 of Israel. Samuel did as he was directed, "and 

 the spirit of the Lord came mightily upon 

 David from that day forward"; but David 

 returned to the care of his flocks, all uncon- 

 scious of his fu- 

 ture responsibili- 

 ties and greatness. 

 David and Go- 

 liath. David was 

 about sixteen 

 when he was 

 anointed by Sam- 

 uel. When he 

 was about twenty 

 a war broke out 

 between the Is- 

 raelites and the 

 Philistines, and 

 David s brothers From the sta tue by Michel- 

 joined the army angelo, in Florence, Italy, 

 of Saul, the king of Israel. One day Jesse told 

 David to take some food and clothing to his 

 brothers. He found the two armies arranged on 

 the opposite sides of a valley, ready for battle. 

 For forty days the armies had held this posi- 

 tion, and each day a giant of the Philistines, 

 Goliath by name, came forth into the valley 

 and taunted the Israelites to send a man to 

 . fight with him, saying that if the Israelites 

 killed him then the Philistines would be the 

 servants of Saul, but if he killed the Israelite 

 then Saul's army would become servants of the 

 Philistines. 



The Israelites were sorely troubled, for no 

 one in all Saul's army dared fight Goliath on 

 those terms. Then David came. He made a 

 few inquiries about this boastful giant who 

 defied the armies of the living God, and vol- 

 unteered to accept his challenge. Having ob- 

 tained Saul's consent, he ran into the valley 

 in his simple shepherd's garb, with only his 

 staff and sling for weapons. Goliath was 

 clothed in heavy armor and carried a sword 

 and a spear. David ran to the- brook and 

 picked up a few smooth stones for his sling. 

 He was then ready for the conflict. In breath- 

 less amazement the two armies looked upon the 

 young shepherd, for, placing a stone in his 

 sling, he hastened to meet his foe. When he 

 reached the proper distance, David stopped 

 and hurled a stone, which struck Goliath in 

 the forehead with such force that even his 

 armor was no protection against it, and he fell 

 to the ground. David then drew the giant's 

 sword and cut off his head and brought it to 



Saul. The Philistines fled in dismay. David 

 had won a great victory for Israel. 



David and Jonathan. Jonathan was Saul's 

 eldest son, and he and David became fast 

 friends. Jonathan loved David as he loved 

 his own soul. David was a sweet singer and 

 a skilful player on the harp. He was a brave 

 soldier as well, and after he killed Goliath he 

 remained with the army. He soon became a 

 commander, and wherever he went he led 

 his forces to victory. He was very popular 

 with the soldiers and with the people, but 

 Saul was of a melapcholy disposition and 

 often gave himself up to fits of sadness. On 

 these occasions he frequently .sent for David 

 to sing and play upon the harp, to drive away 

 his gloomy spirits. Once when David was re- 

 turning from a great victory over the Philis- 

 tines he was given a rousing reception by the 

 people and the women sang 



Saul hath slain his thousands, 

 And David his ten thousands. 



This made Saul so angry that he determined 

 to take David's life. From this time until 

 Saul's death David was obliged to live in 

 another country to escape Saul's anger. Dur- 

 ing all those years Jonathan stood between 

 his father and David, in whose behalf he 

 once risked his life in defending David before 

 the king. Finally, in the Battle of Gilboa, the 

 Israelites were sorely defeated by the Philis- 

 tines. Jonathan was slain, and Saul was so 

 severely wounded that he took his own life. 

 David said of Jonathan 



Thy love for me was wonderful, 

 Passing the love of women. 



David as King. After the death of Saul, 

 David became king of Judah, and had his cap- 

 ital at Hebron. For several years there was 

 war between the forces of David and the 

 forces of Saul, who were now under the lead- 

 ership of Abner. But the forces of David 

 grew stronger while the forces of Saul became 

 weaker, and after seven years of struggle David 

 became king of all Israel. He established his 

 capital at Jerusalem, which became the "City 

 of David." 



As king, David gave his attention first to 

 conquering the hostile nations by which he 

 was surrounded, so Israel could have peace. 

 He was so successful in this that within a few 

 years all these nations were subdued, the 

 boundaries of Israel were extended to their 

 greatest limit, and the nation became supreme 

 in that part of the world. 



