David (1085 BC-1015 BC) was King of the Israelites from 1048 BC to 1015 BC, succeeding Ish-bosheth and preceding Solomon. David was most famous for slaying the giant Goliath at the Battle of the Valley of Elah in 1063 BC, for moving the Ark of the Covenant to Jerusalem in 1045 BC, and for sending Uriah the Hittite to his death in 1035 BC in order to take his widow Bathsheba as his own wife.
Biography
David being anointed
David was born in Bethlehem, the son of the shepherd Jesse and his wife Nitzevet, and the brother of Eliab, Abinadab, Shammah, Nethanel, Raddai, Ozem, Zeruiah, and Abigail. In 1063 BC, the prophet Samuel came to Bethlehem to find a new king to anoint after Saul's disobeying of a divine command to massacre the Amalekites stripped him of the mandate of God. Samuel anointed the young David as King of Israel, as he saw in David a pure heart, in spite of initially being impressed with Eliab's kingly exterior.
David in 1063 BC
David was first brought to the attention of King Saul after a depressed Saul learned that David played the harp, and had David play for him to soothe his nerves. David became a royal armor-bearer and lyre player for King Saul, and, in 1063 BC, David volunteered to confront the Philistine champion Goliath at the Battle of the Valley of Elah after no other Israelite warriors - including his brothers - would agree to do so. David, believing that God was on his side, used a slingshot to kill the much taller, fearsome warrior Goliath, routing the Philistines and enabling the Israelites to pursue and massacre the invaders. David was given command of the Israelite army, slaying tens of thousands of Philistines, much more than Saul had done. David's rising popularity caused Saul to fear for the security of his throne, and Saul began to plot David's death. However, David and Saul's son Jonathan formed a special bond, with the Book of Samuel saying that David felt that Jonathan's love was "more wonderful than the love of women," and Jonathan loved David as his own soul. Jonathan helped David escape death several times, and he even gave his armor to David in a symbolic abdication of his inheritance of the throne in the anointed David's favor. Saul later attempted to have David sent to his death to fetch 100 Philistine foreskins in exchange for the hand of his daughter Michal in marriage, but David returned with 200 foreskins, and found a new ally in Michal, who also helped David escape her father's assassination attempts. David himself had many opportunities to kill Saul, including an occasion where he could have ambushed Saul as the latter defecated in a cave, but David instead cut off a piece of Saul's tunic and later displayed it to him, showing him that he had no intention of killing him, and causing Saul to accept David as his heir.
However, David continued to live in exile among the Philistines of Gath, defending their lands from the Amalekites as the Philistines slew Saul, Jonathan, and Saul's other sons at the Battle of Mount Gilboa in 1055 BC. David was anointed king over Judah, but Saul's son Ish-bosheth also claimed the throne, leading to a civil war that ended in Ish-bosheth's murder in 1048 BC; David punished the usurper's murderers with assassination to dissociate himself from the king's death.
David eating with Uriah the Hittite and Joab
As King, David battled the Philistines, Moabites, Edomites, Amalekites, Ammonites, and Arameans, capturing Jerusalem from the Jebusites in 1048 BC and forcing the Syrian king Hadadezer to become his tributary in 1036 BC. In 1045 BC, David moved the Ark of the Covenant into the Holiest of Holies in Jerusalem, but the prophet Nathan warned him against building a temple, instead prophesying that it would be David's son who would do so. In 1035 BC, David's general Joab besieged the Ammonite capital of Rabbah while David remained in Jerusalem. While there, David took notice of his lieutenant Uriah the Hittite's wife Bathsheba as she bathed on a rooftop, and he summoned her, seduced her, and impregnated her. He called Uriah back from the siege to spend time with his wife, hoping to cover up the fact that he had fathered Bathsheba's child. However, Uriah insisted on remaining with his soldiers in Jerusalem, as he did not wish to be with his wife while none of his men could be with theirs. Desperate, David sent Uriah back to the front lines at Rabbah, and Uriah was killed in the heat of battle.
David and Bathsheba's wedding
David proceeded to marry the widowed Bathsheba, causing God to punish Israel with drought. David realized that he had sinned, and, while the prophet Nathan said that David's sin was forgiven, his illegitimate child would die instead. In 1034 BC, Bathsheba gave birth to another son, Solomon. In 1032 BC, David's son Amnon raped his sister Tamar, causing his brother Absalom to avenge Tamar's pride by slaying Amnon before fleeing to Syria. Absalom, fueled by a lust for power, rebelled against his father in 1025 BC, and he won over the hearts of many Israelites and seized control of the kingdom in 1023 BC. However, David met his son's army in battle and slew 20,000 of his men at the Wood of Ephraim, while David's general Joab killed Absalom with darts. David lamented the death of his favorite son, but Joab persuaded David to recover from his grief and return to leading his people.
In 1017 BC, God afflicted Israel with plague in response to David's wishes to take a census, resulting in the deaths of 70,000 people in a single day. In 1015 BC, as David fell ill, his son Adonijah claimed the throne for himself and rebelled against his father, resulting in David anointing his other son Solomon as king and suppressing Adonijah's revolt; Solomon pardoned his brother. David died that same year, having counseled Solomon to walk in the ways of God and take revenge on his enemies.
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