Age of Kings
Before Saul, the Jews of ancient Israel did not have a king.
But the situation in the country was heating up due to the fact that the Israeli Judges could not withstand pressure from neighboring states. The Philistines were the ones who set their sights on the Israeli lands the most. In addition, the sons of the priest Elijah not only mocked justice and committed lawless acts, but also lost the Ark of the Covenant during the battle. After this, the people of Israel demanded that the prophet Samuel install a ruler over them. The Almighty announced to Samuel that a young man from the tribe of Benjamin should be anointed as king in Israel. Meanwhile, Saul went into the city to look for his father's donkeys. Samuel told the young man that he should become king and anointed him to the kingdom.
The Age of Kings (or the Kingdom of Israel and Judah) lasted from approximately 1029-985 BC, but data regarding the exact years of reign vary somewhat, so they are not given here.
4.5. David's Anointing
«But Samuel grieved over Saul, because the Lord repented that he had made Saul king over Israel.
"(1 Sam. 15:35).
This man had everything at the beginning, but through his unfaithfulness to God, his deviation from the commandments, he loses all the opportunities, everything that the Lord gave him, relying only on his own strength and understanding. As a result of this, the Lord sends Samuel to the house of Jesse and in his house the youngest of his sons, David, anoints him as king. It is said about David: “ He was fair-haired, with beautiful eyes and a pleasant face.
And the Lord said, Arise, anoint him, and Samuel took the horn of oil and anointed him among his brethren, and the spirit of the Lord rested upon David from that day forward ” (1 Samuel 16:12–13). After the anointing, Saul also received the Holy Spirit descending on him and strengthening him in his ministry. Now David is God’s anointed, and about David, unlike Saul, it is said that the Spirit remained on him all the time from that day.
King Saul
Years of life and reign of King Saul
According to the TaNaKh, King Saul was a tall man and “there was no one more handsome than him.” But he also had negative traits that served him poorly: suspicion, fits of rage, melancholy and jealousy.
After Samuel had anointed him as king, Saul gathered the people at Mizpah and there they cast lots that pointed to him, and the people, to whom Saul's anointing was still a secret, proclaimed him their king.
Saul was a worthy ruler and won many victories over his enemies. It was he who created the first regular troops in Israel that successfully fought against the Philistines.
During the first period of his reign, Saul’s faith in the Almighty was strong - he was even ready to sacrifice his own son Jonathan for blasphemy.
But then came the second period, which was overshadowed by the conflict with Samuel. They finally broke off relations after Saul did not carry out Samuel's command and completely destroy the Amalekites. After this, Saul felt that the Most High had abandoned him, and royal honors no longer consoled him. And Samuel believed that he was mistaken and chose the wrong king for the people.
The Almighty, turning away from Saul, sent the prophet Samuel to anoint the young man David as king. After the anointing, the Spirit of the Creator descended on young David.
After this, David ended up at the court of King Saul, where he calmed the headstrong ruler by playing the kinnor and became friends with the king’s son Jonah. And then the future ruler accomplished a real feat, defeating the Felistine giant Goliath in battle, slaying him with a stone from a sling.
But it was after this brilliant victory over Goliath that King Saul began to envy David. The Book of Samuel says: “From that day forward Saul looked suspiciously at David.” Envy and jealousy only grew stronger in the king’s soul; he tried unsuccessfully to kill David twice. And after Saul threw a spear at David, all he could do was run to Ramah to Samuel.
Saul continued to fight the Philistines, but did not feel the support of the Most High. Before the Battle of Gelbua, he did not receive an answer from above about the outcome of the battle, so he went to the sorceress of Endor, which angered the Almighty even more. And the spirit of Samuel, summoned by the sorceress, predicted Saul’s death.
That's exactly what happened. In the battle with the Philistines, three of his sons fell: Aminadab, Jehoshaphan and Melchisua, and Saul himself, surrounded by enemies, with the help of one of his soldiers, threw himself on his sword. Thus ended the reign of Saul, who was succeeded by David.
4.4. Final Rejection of Saul
Saul's final rejection came as a result of his actions during the war against the Amalekites. This war had a very special significance, because at one time, when the Amalekites hindered the Israelites during the Exodus, the Lord commanded Moses to leave behind a command that the Amalekites should be exterminated. And so, it fell to Saul to fulfill this testament, and here Samuel tells him that “ The Lord has sent me to anoint you king over His people..., now obey the voice of the Lord,... go and defeat Amalek... and destroy everything that he has and does not have.” take nothing from them, destroy and consign everything to the curse
"(1 Sam. 15:1-3). Saul goes on a campaign and actually wins, but they did not want to destroy the best of the sheep and oxen and everything good among the Amalekites, but they destroyed everything that was unimportant and bad. We saw this when describing the seizure of the Promised Land in the book of Judges. Saul and his soldiers did two supposedly useful things at once: they fulfilled the commandment of God as best they could and captured a lot of different good booty for themselves.
When Saul returns from the campaign, Samuel comes out to meet him, whom Saul greets first: “ Blessed are you of the Lord, I have fulfilled the word of the Lord.”
"
And Samuel said: “ What is this bleating of the sheep in my ears and the lowing of the oxen that I hear?
“And Saul said: “
We brought them from Amalek, because the people spared the best of the sheep and oxen to sacrifice to the Lord your God, but we destroyed the rest
.”
And Samuel said to Saul: “ Are burnt offerings and sacrifices as pleasing to the Lord as obeying his voice?
Obedience is better than sacrifice and submission is better than the fat of rams, for disobedience is the same sin as sorcery and resistance is the same as idolatry. Because you rejected the word of the Lord, He also rejected you, so that you would not be king over Israel ” (1 Sam. 15:13–15, 22–23). After an obvious crime, Saul is excommunicated from his ministry. And although he is trying to bring some kind of appearance of repentance, it is quite obvious that this is precisely appearance and he is more concerned that this rejection and quarrel with Samuel does not become obvious and visible to the people than that the Lord rejected him. After this, Samuel leaves from there, and it is said that Samuel did not see Saul again until the day of his death.
King David
Ancient Israel experienced its heyday under King David, who wisely ruled the state. David was the youngest son of Jesse of Bethlehem, great-grandson of Boz and Ruth. The book of Samuel says that he was very eloquent and handsome, brave and courageous, and also possessed great strength. In his youth he tended sheep.
From the persecution of King Saul, David was forced to flee first to Samuel, then to Achish, the Philistine king. For some time, David took refuge in the Cave of Adollam, but the end of his ordeal was put by the command of the Almighty, transmitted through the prophet Gad, to go to the land of Judah.
Meanwhile, the Philistines defeated the Israelites at Gilboa. After this, David and his supporters arrived in Hebron, and the local elders proclaimed him king. Thus, Judah separated from Israel - after all, Saul’s son Ishboshei was proclaimed king of the other part. The internecine struggle ended in the victory of David - the elders in Hebron elected him king of all Israel. Interestingly, part of the new king’s army was commanded by the Philistine Ephtheus, who came from the same city as Goliath, defeated by David.
David began his reign as king with a victorious war against the Jebusites, as a result of which his army captured Jerusalem. It was there that the king moved the capital of the state, and it was here that the future king Solomon was born.
During the years of David's reign, Jerusalem was turned into the sacred center of the Jewish state, and under him the services became more exalted and musical. There is nothing surprising in the latter - after all, David was also a poet and musician, and he himself composed psalms.
Even before his reign in Jerusalem, David managed to return the Ark of the Covenant with the stone tablets of the Ten Commandments to the lands of Israel and was now going to build a Temple for it. But this intention was carried out by Solomon, and David only began preparations for construction.
David expanded and strengthened Jerusalem. But, alas, his reign was not cloudless - his son Absalom opposed the king. A new civil war broke out, leading to civil war. And again the victory was for David, who, after the end of the turmoil, continued the war with external enemies. The battles invariably ended in victory for the Israeli army.
And then there was the rebellion of Sheba, after the suppression of which the next eldest son of David, Adonij, spoke about his rights to the royal throne. After this, at the insistence of his wife Bathsheba and the prophet Nathan, David transferred power to Solomon. King David ruled Israel for 40 years.
Introduction.
The monarchical form of government is one of the oldest. It provides for hereditary (less often, elective) autocracy, sanctified by religious sanction. According to a number of researchers, the roots of monarchical ideas go back to the prehistoric past, when supernatural properties were attributed to magician leaders. The influence of magic on the idea of monarchy continued in the states of the Ancient East. Thus, the Egyptians believed that the pharaoh, with his inherent power, maintained the stability of the natural order. They looked at him as a physical descendant of the gods. In Mesopotamia, the beginning of the deification of kings is associated with the name of Naram-sin (Naram-Suen), who lived in 3 thousand BC. The idea of the divinity of the king came to the ancient world from the East and, after Alexander the Great, took hold in the Hellenistic powers. In Rome, the deification of the Caesars began with Augustus. The monarchical principle placed the autocrat above the law, making him the living personification of “divine law.” For almost a thousand years, the Old Testament community did not know a monarchy and was ruled by the heads of the Israelite tribes and clans, and later, starting with Moses, also by charismatic leaders. Their right was based on the special mission and influence of the Spirit of God (Judges 15:14–15). Theocracy was considered the ideal of government in Amphictyony: only the Lord was recognized as the true Ruler of the people. Therefore, Gideon demonstratively renounced royal power (Judges 8:22 - 23), and his son's attempt to become a monarch caused resistance (Judges 9:22 - 23). Society was prepared for the idea of the need to establish a monarchy by the disasters of the Philistine yoke (11th century BC). Nevertheless, the idea of theocracy has not lost its force.[1]The Holy Scripture clearly shows an ambivalent attitude towards monarchical power. On the one hand, it is recognized as a political necessity (in view of the fight against external enemies); but on the other hand, the ideal remains a free union of tribes, built on theocracy, that is, on the subordination of all to the will of God, expressed through the prophets. This second approach defines the negative attitude towards kingship that dominates the Bible.[2]
King Solomon
The First Book of Kings (Melachim Aleph) says that the Most High gave Solomon the royal throne on the condition that he would never shy away from serving him. The new king of Israel was endowed with patience and wisdom, which remained throughout the centuries and was passed on through countless generations.
Unlike David, Solomon was a peaceful ruler and waged virtually no wars. He went down in history as the wisest king of Israel; Solomon continued the construction of the Jerusalem Temple. He also multiplied David's political achievements both internationally and domestically.
It was during the time of Solomon that ancient Israel reached the zenith of its power. The wise king managed to end more than 500 years of hostility between Jews and Arabs - to do this, he married the daughter of an Egyptian pharaoh.
However, Solomon angered the Almighty by erecting, at the request of one of his wives, a pagan altar, where he worshiped her deities. For this, the Almighty promised the people of Israel deprivation, but only after the end of the reign of Solomon. The wise king died in the 40th year of his reign, this happened while he was overseeing the construction of the altar. Those close to him buried Solomon only after the worms began to sharpen his staff.
4.7. Death of Saul
Saul's end was unfortunate. Saul did not meet with Samuel again until the latter’s death. The Lord no longer answered Saul’s questions, so he finally went to one of the sorceresses, against whom he repeatedly issued strict orders in the best years of his reign and whom, in accordance with the law of God, he expelled from the borders of the country. And so, he himself, disguised, appears to the sorceress and asks her, with the help of some magic, to present him with Samuel from the kingdom of the dead. At this moment, Samuel appears to him and says that he is rejected by God and the kingdom will be given to David. “ And the Lord will deliver Israel along with you into the hands of the Philistines: tomorrow you and your sons will be with me, and the Lord will deliver the camp of Israel into the hands of the Philistines.
"(1 Sam. 28:19).
Who appeared before Saul? There are two opinions. Blessed Theodoret and Saint Ambrose of Milan adhered to one thing, that by a special action of God Samuel himself, in the form that he had during his life, appeared before Saul in order to expose him, appeared not thanks to the sorcery of this woman, but in order to pronounce Saul's final judgment. According to another point of view, through the sorcery of this woman, a certain demon appeared in the guise of Samuel, but, nevertheless, the content of what he said fully corresponds to the content of the word of God regarding Saul. The end of Saul was like this: at Mount Gilboa there was a decisive battle between the Philistines and the Israelites, in which the sons of Saul fell, and Saul himself, in order not to be captured, threw himself on the sword and committed suicide. Thus his reign ended completely ingloriously, and the best of his sons who could have been heirs also died, and this event found David in the Philistine borders, in Ziklag, where he was staying at that time.
Division of the kingdom, consequences
After Solomon's death, his son Rehoboam ascended the royal throne. He harshly pursued his policy within the country, which caused discontent among part of the population - the ten tribes of Israel refused to consider him their ruler.
After this, the dissatisfied united around Jeroboam and formed their own state in the northern part of Israel. Shomron became the capital of the new state, and the kings moved away from monotheism and began to worship Phoenician deities.
In general, the kings of Israel ruled two states, and civil strife and coups d'etat often occurred. And after some time, the ten tribes of Israel were taken into slavery. The Southern Kingdom was conquered by Nebuchadnezzar, and the Northern Kingdom was destroyed by the Assyrians.
The kings of Israel did great things. And even though those times are long gone, we still see traces of their rule. Who does not know about the feat of David or the wisdom of Solomon? Their names are forever inscribed in the history of mankind.
[edit] Bible story
[edit] Chapter 19
1 And Saul spoke to Jonathan his son and to all his servants to kill David; but Jonathan, the son of Saul, loved David very much. 2 And Jonathan told David, saying, “My father Saul seeks to kill you; So beware tomorrow; hide and be in a secret place; 3 But I will go out and stand beside my father in the field where you will be, and I will talk about you to my father, and what I see I will tell you. 4 And Jonathan spoke good things about David to Saul his father, and said to him, “Let not the king sin against his servant David, for he has sinned nothing against you, and his deeds are very profitable for you.” 5 He exposed his soul to smite the Philistine, and the Lord brought great salvation to all Israel; you saw [this] and rejoiced; Why do you want to sin [against] innocent blood and kill David without a reason? 6 And Saul heard the voice of Jonathan, and Saul swore, As the Lord liveth, [David] shall not die. 7 And Jonathan called David, and Jonathan told him all these words, and Jonathan brought David to Saul, and he was with him as yesterday and the day before. 8 The war began again, and David went out and fought against the Philistines, and inflicted a great defeat on them, and they fled from him. 9 And an evil spirit from God came upon Saul, and he sat in his house, and his spear was in his hand, and David played with his hand on the strings. 10 And Saul wanted to nail David to the wall with a spear, but David jumped away from Saul, and the spear pierced the wall; David ran away and was saved that night. 11 And Saul sent servants to David's house to keep him and kill him until the morning. And Michal his wife said to David, “If you do not save your soul this night, you will be killed tomorrow.” 12 And Michal let David down from the window, and he went and ran away and was saved. 13 And Michal took the image and laid it on the bed, and at its head she put a goatskin, and covered it with clothing. 14 And Saul sent servants to take David; but [Michal] said, He is sick. 15 And Saul sent servants to examine David, saying, Bring him to me on the bed, to kill him. 16 And the servants came, and behold, there was a statue on the bed, and at the head of it was a goatskin. 17 Then Saul said to Michal, Why did you deceive me like this and let my enemy go so that he could run away? And Michal said to Saul, “He said to me, Let me go, or I will kill you.” 18 And David fled and was saved, and came to Samuel at Ramah and told him everything that Saul had done to him. And he went with Samuel, and they stopped at Nawath. 19 And they told Saul, saying, Behold, David is in Nabath, in Ramah. 20 And Saul sent servants to take David, and [when] they saw a host of prophets prophesying and Samuel ruling over them, the Spirit of God came upon Saul’s servants, and they began to prophesy. 21 They reported this to Saul, and he sent other servants, but these also began to prophesy. Then Saul sent third servants, and these began to prophesy. 22 Saul himself went to Ramah, and came to the great spring that is in Sepha, and asked, saying, “Where are Samuel and David?” And they said: Behold, in Nawath, in Ramah. 23 And he went there to Nawath in Ramah, and the Spirit of God came upon him, and he went and prophesied until he came to Nawath in Ramah. 24 And he also took off his clothes, and prophesied before Samuel, and all that day and all that night he lay naked; Therefore they say: “Is Saul also a prophet?”[1]
[edit] Chapter 20
1 David fled from Nabath in Ramah and came and said to Jonathan: What have I done, what is my iniquity, how have I sinned against your father, that he seeks my life? 2 And [Jonathan] said to him, No, you will not die; Behold, my father does neither great nor small deeds without opening my ears; Why would my father hide this matter from me? it will not happen. 3 David swore and said: Your father knows well that I have found favor in your sight, and therefore he says to himself: “Let Jonathan not know about this, lest he be grieved”; but the Lord lives and your soul lives! There is only one step between me and death. 4 And Jonathan said to David, “Whatever your soul desires, I will do for you.” 5 And David said to Jonathan, Behold, tomorrow is the new moon, and I must sit with the king at table; but let me go, and I will hide in the field until the evening of the third day. 6 If your father asks about me, you say: “David asked me to go to his city of Bethlehem; because there is an annual sacrifice of all his kindred.” 7 If to this he says, “Good,” then peace be with your servant; and if he becomes angry, then know that his evil deed has been resolved. 8 But show kindness to your servant, for you have accepted your servant into the covenant of the Lord with you, and if there is any guilt on me, then kill me; Why do you take me to your father? 9 And Jonathan said, This will never happen to you; for if I know for sure that my father has decided to commit an evil deed against you, then will I not notify you about it? 10 And David said to Jonathan, Who will tell me if your father answers you harshly? 11 And Jonathan said to David, Go, let us go out into the field. And they both went out into the field. 12 And Jonathan said to David, As the Lord God of Israel lives! I will ask my father about this time tomorrow, or the day after tomorrow; and if he is favorable to David, and I do not then send to you and open it before your ears, 13 may the Lord do this and that to Jonathan and do even more. If my father is planning to do you harm, I will reveal this in your ears and let you go, and then go in peace: and may the Lord be with you, as he was with my father! 14 But you, too, if I am still alive, show me the mercy of the Lord. 15 And if I die, do not take your mercy away from my house forever, even when the Lord destroys all David’s enemies from the face of the earth. 16 Thus Jonathan made a covenant with the house of David [and said], “May the Lord punish David’s enemies!” 17 And again Jonathan swore to David his love for him, for he loved him as his own soul. 18 And Jonathan said to him, “Tomorrow is the new moon, and they will ask about you, for your place will not be filled; 19 Therefore on the third day you go down and hasten to the place where you were hiding before, and sit down by the stone of Azel; 20 And I will shoot three arrows in that direction, as if shooting at a target; 21 Then I will send a boy, [saying], “Go, find the arrows”; and if I say to the youth: “Behold, the arrows are behind you, take them,” then come to me, for peace be with you, and as the Lord lives, nothing [will happen to you]; 22 If I say this to the lad: “Behold, there are arrows ahead of you,” then you go away, for the Lord lets you go; 23 And to what we have spoken, I and you, [witness] the Lord between me and you forever.
24 And David disappeared into the field. And the new moon came, and the king sat down to dine. 25 The king sat down in his place, according to custom, on a seat by the wall, and Jonathan stood up, and Abner sat down next to Saul; David's place remained empty. 26 And Saul said nothing that day, for he thought that it was an accident that [David] was unclean and had not purified himself. 27 The second day of the new moon came, and the place of David remained empty. Then Saul said to his son Jonathan, “Why did not the son of Jesse come to dinner either yesterday or today?” 28 And Jonathan answered Saul: David asked me to go to Bethlehem; 29 he said: “Let me go, for we are having a related sacrifice in our city, and my brother invited me; So, if I have found favor in your eyes, I will go and see my brothers”; That's why he didn't come to the king's dinner. 30 Then Saul was very angry with Jonathan and said to him, “You wicked and disobedient son!” Don’t I know that you made friends with the son of Jesse to your own shame and to your mother’s shame? 31 For as long as the son of Jesse dwells on the earth, neither you nor your kingdom will stand; now go and bring him to me, for he is doomed to death. 32 And Jonathan answered Saul his father and said to him, “Why should we kill him?” what did he do? 33 Then Saul threw his spear at him to smite him. And Jonathan realized that his father had decided to kill David. 34 And Jonathan rose from the table in great anger and did not eat on the second day of the new moon, because he grieved for David and because his father had offended him. 35 The next day, in the morning, Jonathan went out into the field at the time he had appointed for David, and the little boy with him. 36 And he said to the lad: Run, look for the arrows that I shoot. The boy ran, and he shot arrows so that they flew further than [the boy]. 37 And the lad ran to where Jonathan was shooting the arrows, and Jonathan shouted after the lad and said, “Look, the arrow is ahead of you.” 38 And Jonathan shouted again after the lad, “Run quickly, don’t stop.” And Jonathan's boy gathered up his arrows and came to his master. 39 But the boy knew nothing; only Jonathan and David knew what was going on. 40 And Jonathan gave his weapon to the lad who was with him, and said to him, Go, take it into the city. 41 The lad went, and David rose from the south side and fell with his face to the ground and bowed three times; and they kissed each other, and they both wept together, but David wept more. 42 And Jonathan said to David, Go in peace; and what we both swore in the name of the Lord, saying: “Let the Lord be between me and you and between my seed and your seed,” let it be forever. And [David] arose and went, and Jonathan returned to the city[2].
[edit] Chapter 21
1 And David came to Nob to Ahimelech the priest, and Ahimelech was troubled when he met David and said to him: Why are you alone, and there is no one with you? 2 And David said to Ahimelech the priest, “The king has entrusted me with the work and said to me, “Let no one know why I sent you or what I entrusted you with.” That's why I left the people at a certain place; 3 Therefore, give me whatever you have on hand, five loaves of bread, or whatever you can find. 4 And the priest answered David, saying, I have no common bread under my hand, but there is holy bread; if only [your] people would abstain from women! 5 And David answered the priest and said to him, There were no women with us yesterday, nor the third day since I went out, and the vessels of the youths are clean, and if the road is unclean, then [the bread] will remain clean in the vessels. 6 And the priest gave him the sacred bread; for he had no bread except the showbread, which was taken from the presence of the Lord, so that after they had been taken away he could put in warm bread. 7 There was one of Saul's servants there that day before the Lord, whose name was Doeg the Edomite, captain of Saul's shepherds. 8 And David said to Ahimelech, Have you here a spear or a sword under your hand? for I did not take with me either a sword or other weapons, since the king’s order was urgent. 9 And the priest said, Behold the sword of Goliath the Philistine, whom thou didst slay in the valley of the oak, wrapped in a robe, behind the ephod; if you want, take it; There is nothing else here other than this. And David said: There is no one like him, give him to me. 10 And David arose and fled that same day from Saul, and came to Achish king of Gath. 11 And his servants said to Achish, Is not this David the king of that country? Was it not to him that they sang in round dances and said: “Saul killed thousands, and David killed tens of thousands”? 12 David put these words in his heart and was greatly afraid of Achish king of Gath. 13 And he changed his countenance before them, and pretended to be mad in their sight, and drew marks on the doors, and let drool run down his beard. 14 And Achish said to his servants, “You see, he is a crazy man; Why did you bring him to me? 15 Are I not enough crazy people that you brought him to play the fool before me? will he come into my house?[3]
[edit] Chapter 22
1 And David went out from there and fled to the cave of Adullam, and his brothers and all his father’s house heard and came to him there. 2 And all who were oppressed, and all who were in debt, and all who were sorrowful in soul, gathered to him, and he became ruler over them; and there were with him about four hundred men. 3 From there David went to Mizpah of Moab and said to the king of Moab, “Let my father and my mother abide with you until I know what God will do to me.” 4 And he brought them to the king of Moab, and they dwelt with him all the time that David was in that refuge. 5 But the prophet Gad said to David, “Do not remain in this refuge, but go, go to the land of Judah.” And David went and came to the forest of Hereth. 6 And Saul heard that David had appeared, and the men that were with him. Saul was then sitting in Gibeah under an oak tree on the mountain, with a spear in his hand, and all his servants surrounded him. 7 And Saul said to his servants who were around him, “Listen, sons of Benjamin, will the son of Jesse give you all fields and vineyards and make you all commanders of thousands and centurions, 8 that you all conspired against me, and no one revealed it to me when my son entered in friendship with the son of Jesse, and none of you pitied me and did not reveal to me that my son incited my servant against me to build feats for me, as is now evident? 9 And Doeg the Edomite, who stood with Saul's servants, answered and said, “I saw the son of Jesse come to Nob to Ahimelech the son of Ahitub, 10 and he inquired of the Lord about him, and gave him food, and gave him the sword of Goliath the Philistine. 11 And the king sent to call Ahimelech the son of Ahitub the priest, and all his father's house, the priests that were in Nob; and they all came to the king. 12 And Saul said, Listen, son of Ahitub. And he answered: Here I am, my lord. 13 And Saul said to him, Why did you conspire against me, you and the son of Jesse, that you gave him loaves and a sword and asked God about him, so that he would rebel against me and build feats for me, as is now seen? 14 And Ahimelech answered the king and said, Who of all thy servants is as faithful as David? he is the king's son-in-law, and the executor of your commandments, and honored in your house. 15 Have I now begun to inquire of God for him? No, do not blame this, O king, on your servant and all my father’s house, for in all this matter your servant knows neither the small nor the great. 16 And the king said, “You must die, Ahimelech, you and all your father’s house.” 17 And the king said to the guards who stood by him: Go, kill the priests of the Lord, for their hand is with David, and they knew that he had fled, and did not reveal it to me. But the king’s servants did not want to raise their hands to kill the priests of the Lord. 18 And the king said to Doik: Go and kill the priests. And Doeg the Edomite went and attacked the priests, and slew that day eighty-five men who wore the linen ephod; 19 And Nob, the city of the priests, he smote with the sword; and men and women, and young men and children, and oxen, and donkeys, and sheep, he smote with the sword. 20 Only the son of Ahimelech the son of Ahitub, named Abiathar, escaped and fled to David. 21 And Abiathar told David that Saul had killed the priests of the Lord. 22 And David said to Abiathar, “I knew in that day, when Doeg the Edomite was there, that he would certainly tell Saul; I am guilty of all the souls of your father's house; 23 Stay with me, do not be afraid, for whoever seeks my life will also seek your life; You will be under my protection[4].
[edit] Chapter 23
1 And they told David, saying, Behold, the Philistines have attacked Keilah and are plundering the threshing floor. 2 And David inquired of the Lord, saying, Shall I go and smite these Philistines? And the Lord answered David: Go, you will defeat the Philistines and save Keilah. 3 But those who were with David said to him, “Behold, we are afraid here in Judea; how can we go to Keilah against the armies of the Philistines?” 4 Then David asked the Lord again, and the Lord answered him and said, Arise and go to Keilah, for I will deliver the Philistines into your hands. 5 And David went with his men to Keilah, and fought with the Philistines, and carried off their cattle, and inflicted a great defeat on them, and David saved the inhabitants of Keilah. 6 When Abiathar the son of Ahimelech ran to David at Keilah, he brought with him the ephod. 7 And they told Saul that David had come to Keilah, and Saul said, God hath delivered him into my hands, for he shut himself up, entering into the city with gates and bars. 8 And Saul summoned all the people to war, to go to Keilah and besiege David and his men.
9 When David knew that Saul had planned evil against him, he said to Abiathar the priest, Bring the ephod. 10 And David said: Lord God of Israel! Your servant has heard that Saul wants to come to Keilah and destroy the city for my sake. 11 Will the people of Keilah deliver me into his hands? And will Saul come here, as Your servant has heard? Lord God of Israel! open it to your servant. And the Lord said: He will come. 12 And David said, Will the inhabitants of Keilah deliver me and my men into the hand of Saul? And the Lord said: They will betray you. 13 Then David and his men rose up, about six hundred men, and went out of Keilah and went where they could. It was reported to Saul that David had fled from Keilah, and then he canceled the campaign. 14 Now David stayed in the wilderness in inaccessible places, and then on a mountain in the wilderness of Ziph. Saul sought him every day; but God did not deliver [David] into his hands. 15 And David saw that Saul went out to seek his life; David was in the wilderness of Ziph in the forest. 16 And Jonathan the son of Saul arose and came to David into the forest, and strengthened him with his trust in God, 17 and said to him, “Do not be afraid, for the hand of my father Saul will not find you, and you will reign over Israel, and I will be second.” for you; and Saul my father knows it. 18 And they made a covenant with each other before the Lord; and David remained in the forest, and Jonathan went to his house. 19 And the Ziphitites came to Saul at Gibeah, saying, Behold, David is hiding with us in inaccessible places, in the forest, on the hill of Gahilah, which is to the right of Jeshimon; 20 Therefore, according to the desire of your soul, O king, go; and our job will be to deliver him into the hands of the king. 21 And Saul said to them, Blessed are you of the Lord, because you had compassion on me; 22 Go, make sure again, scout [and] look out for his place, where his foot will be, [and] whoever saw him there, for they tell me that he is very cunning; 23 And look out and inquire of all the hiding places in which he hides, and return to me with good news, and I will go with you; and if he is in this land, I will look for him in all the thousands of Judah. 24 And they arose and went to Ziph before Saul. David and his men were in the wilderness of Maon, on the plain, to the right of Jeshimon. 25 So Saul and his men went to look for [him]. But David was informed of this, and he went over to the rock and remained in the wilderness of Maon. And Saul heard, and pursued David into the wilderness of Maon. 26 And Saul walked along one side of the mountain, and David and his men were on the other side of the mountain. And when David was in a hurry to leave Saul, and Saul and his men were going around David and his men to capture them; 27 Then a messenger came to Saul, saying, “Hurry and come, for the Philistines have attacked the land.” 28 And Saul returned from pursuing David and went to meet the Philistines; That’s why they called this place: Sela-Gammahlekof[5].
Kingdom of Israel under Solomon
The strengthening of the political system begun by David was continued by King Solomon, who replaced him. Solomon's kingdom was marked by the flourishing of crafts, international trade and construction. Solomon was the first to officially invite metallurgists from Tyre and woodworkers from Byblos to work in the Kingdom of Israel and Judah. The city of Tire became not only a trade, but also a political partner of Solomon, who maintained friendly relations with the Tyrian king Hiram. However, the other side of the friendship was a big deal: in order to obtain a loan from Hiram in the amount of 120 talents of silver, Solomon gave him 20 cities of Galilee.
In the northeast of Palestine was the oasis of Damascus, which by the time of Solomon had become an independent and fairly strong state. Damascus periodically threatened the Kingdom of Israel and Judah. In the confrontation with Damascus, Solomon was helped by Tire, Edom and Egypt. Solomon concluded a peace agreement with Edom with the support of Egypt. However, Egypt acted as an eternal rival to the unifiers of the Jewish tribes. He was not interested in the emergence of a new strong power on his borders; he sought to maintain and strengthen influence in Palestine. But Solomon neutralized the influence of Egypt through a dynastic marriage with an Egyptian princess.
The Phoenician city of Tire became a supplier of building materials for Solomon. And the construction was grandiose: the king turned Jerusalem, as well as the cities of Megiddo and Gezer, which had strategic and economic importance, into impregnable fortresses. In Jerusalem, Solomon opened a new trade route through the Red Sea. On the shores of the Gulf of Aqab stood the city of Etzion-yber; Through its port along the Red Sea, communication was established with the country of Ophir, located, apparently, in Aravin. Luxury goods were delivered from Ophir to Palestine: valuable wood, gold, silver, ivory. The Kingdom of Israel and Judah continued to export grain, oil and wine.
Period six. From the anointing of the king to the division of the Jewish kingdom
The period of the reign of the three great kings of the people of Israel was the time of their greatest flowering, both politically and spiritually. After the disasters and turmoil of the period of the judges, it was a time of prosperity, power and splendor, when the people of Israel achieved the full realization of the great promises of God and, under the cover of firm power, could freely discover all the best qualities of their national genius, show a true example of “government by God” with their state improvement, and by the height of his religious and moral life, in all its splendor, he will justify his great calling - to be a light for the pagans. If the people of Israel did not live up to their purpose even under such favorable circumstances and presented many sad facts of religious and moral decline even in their best representatives, in the person of their kings themselves, then this only shows how primordial evil has taken root in the moral nature of man and is like a millstone on his neck was irresistibly pulling him into the abyss of evil, despite all his efforts in the pursuit of good. Such was the common fate of Old Testament humanity, which languished in slavery to sin, and the only consolation for it was the hope of future deliverance - in the person of that divine Deliverer, to be the keeper of the promises about whom the chosen people were destined. The promise of a Savior during this period found clear confirmation in the glorious promise to David that God would raise up his seed, whose throne would stand forever, and to this seed He would be the Father, and it would be His Son (2 Sam. 7:12-16). David could not attribute this promise to his successor and therefore understood it in the exact sense in which the apostle subsequently interpreted it. Paul, precisely in the sense of the promise of a spiritual successor and “Son of David,” the Son of God, the Savior of the world and the King of the universe, whose throne “will stand forever.” In addition to this promise, confirmed in the covenant with Solomon (1 Kings 9:5), the thought of the future Savior at this time permeates the entire life of the people: its very political power was a prototype of the spiritual power of the Messiah and its very kings, especially David and Solomon, were at their best. periods of their lives were clear prototypes of the Savior - the first prototype of Him as the King of victory, the second - as the King of peace. Then all the psalms of David are filled with expressions of fiery expectation of the Messiah and the clearest prophecies about all the events of His earthly life, from birth to suffering and death, from resurrection to glorification at the right hand of the Father. The prophetic psalms of David provide clear evidence of how alive the great promise of God about the Savior of the world was in the best national consciousness and how the religious and moral spirit of mankind longed for the fulfillment of this promise. The internal revival of religious and moral feeling found its full expression in the development of worship and the rituals and institutions associated with it. In this regard, David rendered immeasurable services to the cause of true religion and the Old Testament Church with his ecclesiastical and religious institutions. Being himself a divinely inspired psalmist and prophet, he used all his efforts to streamline and elevate worship. By bringing the Ark of the Covenant to Jerusalem, he effected a complete transformation in the order of the Levitical service, establishing proper and permanent worship in the tabernacle. For this purpose, three families of brother singers were chosen so that “they would preach on harps, psalms and cymbals.” Under the leadership of these skilled singers (Asaph, Heman and Jeduthun, whose names appear in the inscriptions of many psalms), a large choir of 288 people was formed, which, together with the serving Levites and priests, “praised, thanked and exalted the Lord God of Israel” before the ark of the Lord. All the Levites were separated for the service of 4,000 people, and the remaining Levites, numbering 34,000 people, were distributed to various services at the tabernacle as doorkeepers, bearers of the sacred vessels and other accessories of the tabernacle, assistants and novices to the priests in offering sacrifices and performing other duties of their service. . The descendants of Aaron's two sons, Eleazar and Ithamar, were appointed to perform the highest duties of the priesthood. Although Aaron was, in fact, succeeded by his eldest son Eleazar, the honor of the high priesthood was in some way shared with him by Ithamar, to whose house the high priesthood sometimes completely passed (for example, in the person of Eli the high priest). In the time of David we see representatives of both these lines in the person of the great priests Zadok and Abiathar, one of whom was high priest in the old tabernacle in Gibeon, and the other in the new tabernacle in Jerusalem. But the house of Eleazar was twice as numerous as the house of Ithamar in the number of priestly families, since according to the census carried out by David, there were sixteen families in the first and only eight families in the second. The twenty-four heads of these families were made under David the leaders of twenty-four “orders”, i.e. regular services in the temple, to which members of these priestly families consistently appeared. Both the Levites and the singers were divided into the same “orders,” who performed the service together with the corresponding orders of priests. The “series,” in all likelihood, began on Saturday and continued throughout the week, when it was replaced by the next series. This division was strictly observed until later times, as can be seen from the history of Zechariah, the father of St. John the Baptist, who was rewarded with a vision of an angel, “while he served in the order of his turn before God” (Luke 1:8). The order of service established in the tabernacle was transferred to the Temple of Solomon, where, however, in order to enhance the solemnity of the divine service, cases became more frequent when all twenty-four courses participated in the divine service simultaneously, as was especially the case during the consecration of the temple. With the consecration of the temple, all worship was concentrated in it, and the old tabernacle in Gibeon lost all significance; at the same time, with the ejection of Abiathar from the priesthood (for his participation in the political conspiracy of Adonijah), the high priesthood finally ceased in the branch of Ithamar and concentrated in the branch of Eleazar, in the person of Zadok, anointed to the high priesthood under Solomon. Church rituals during worship at this time received widespread development, but only from the outside, in the sense of pomp and grandeur. Essentially, it remained the same as it was established by Moses at the tabernacle, although at the same time, in accordance with new needs, new rituals appeared. This is especially the rite of anointing for the kingdom. It was private and solemn. The first, as a rule, was performed by the prophet, as an executor of the will of God, and the second was performed at a national meeting by the chief priest or high priest, as a mediator between the will of God and the will of the people. During anointing, oil was used as a visible instrument for communicating the grace of God. The initiate was given a book of the law, with which he had to conform in all his life and management. During this time, an important change took place in public administration, which consisted in the establishment of royal power. Its establishment was caused by the urgent need of people's life, since the absence of firm power during the time of the judges led to complete anarchy and the disasters associated with it. But its establishment at the same time was, in part, an expression of insufficient trust on the part of the people in the direct rule of God Himself and a desire to have a government similar to the surrounding nations. Therefore, to Samuel’s question, the Lord answered him: “They did not reject you, but they rejected Me, so that I should not reign over them” (1 Samuel 8:7). The very establishment of royal power in a theocratic state weakened the most essential principle of his life, since the people could become inclined to place their hopes more on the visible king, forgetting the Supreme and Invisible. Nevertheless, firm power was an urgent need in both the internal and external political life of the people, and therefore it was established with the restrictions that were set in the legislation of Moses, who had already foreseen this inevitable moment in the life of the chosen people. These restrictions consisted, first of all, in the fact that the people should not appoint a foreigner as their king, but certainly a natural Israeli, and, moreover, one “whom the Lord God will choose” (Deut. 17:15). This limitation of election is followed by laws that limit the very power of the king. And it is remarkable that these restrictions are mainly directed against what distinguished Eastern wagers, namely against the accumulation of personal wealth and the development of luxury, which always entail moral corruption and oblivion of laws and people. “Appoint yourself a king,” says the lawgiver, only so that he does not multiply horses for himself and does not return the people to Egypt to multiply horses for himself” (Deut. 17:16). The meaning of this law is that they are prohibited from entering into relations and an alliance with Egypt, which in ancient times was famous for its horse breeding. The desire to have the best horses - one of the main objects of vanity of eastern monarchs - would force them to enter into relations with the pharaohs, and then into a political union with Egypt, while such a union, due to the geographical position of Palestine, could be disastrous for the Jewish people, which, subsequently, and was justified by history. In addition, the multiplication of horses, completely unnecessary in a mountainous country, would not serve to protect the interests of the people (for example, during war), but only to satisfy the vain pride of the king. - “So that he does not multiply wives for himself, lest his heart be corrupted” (v. 17). Harems in the east still constitute one of the most vile court institutions, in which despot monarchs lose their last moral and physical strength, plunging into the grossest debauchery. Therefore, the decree prohibiting having harems is understandable. “And so that he does not multiply silver and gold for himself excessively.” Excessive accumulation of wealth could give rise, as can be seen from the history of Solomon, to extensive trading enterprises that would be incompatible with truly popular interests, would contribute to the development of inequality in wealth and thereby would violate the fundamental law of Moses, which established socio-economic equality, would introduce luxury at court incompatible with the theocratic system of the state would have alienated the tsar from the people. “But when he sits on the throne of his kingdom, he must write out for himself a copy of this law in a book kept by the priests and Levites, and let him have it, and let him read it all the days of his life, so that he may learn to fear the Lord God his own, and tried to fulfill all the words of this law and these regulations.” The king was not a legislator and had to rule the state not according to his personal arbitrariness, but according to the given law, from which he had to have a correct list, so that, constantly having it before him, he would not deviate either to the right or to the left (v. 20), therefore, in general he had to rule according to the law recognized by the people. This decree put a limit to the despotism into which eastern rulers so easily fall. Finally, the legislator gives a general definition of the relationship of the royal power to the people. In the ancient eastern monarchies the relationship between the rulers and the people was usually characterized by arrogant contempt on the part of the ruler and slavish subservience on the part of the people. In the state of the chosen people there should not have been such an attitude; Therefore, the legislator requires of the king “that his heart should not be puffed up before his brothers” (v. 20), or, in applying these words to government, that he should rule over his subjects with meekness and love,” not as slaves, but as brothers. The best kings were faithful to this rule. David, for example, in his address to the people called his subjects brothers: “And King David stood on his feet and said: Listen to me, my brothers and my people!” (1 Chronicles 28:2). Thus, the power of the kings of the Israeli people was limited by strict regulation - in the spirit of the ancient principles of divine rule and popular self-government. This is how she appears in history. To convey to her a greater obligation for the king, such a procedure was even established that upon ascending the throne the king entered into an agreement with the people, in which, in all likelihood, he undertook to fulfill the laws defining the boundaries of his power (1 Sam. 10:25; 2 Sam. 5 :3; 2 Kings 11:17). From history it is clear that the kings did not always strictly fulfill these laws regarding royal power, and in the person of Solomon we see a king who even directly violated some of the basic provisions of the legislation, since he entered into an alliance with Egypt and started a cavalry, indulged in polygamy and immoderate luxury . But in this they were only exponents of the general spirit of disobedience of their people and suffered punishment in the very consequences of their violations of the law, as was especially the case with Solomon. But, in general, tsarist power was very useful for the development of civil virtues and the state life of the people. Thanks to her, the people of Israel achieved extraordinary political power and splendor, so that the entire modern civilized world was under its political influence. In case of more strict obedience of both kings and the people themselves to the holy laws of God, the people of Israel could combine with their political influence religious and moral influence and, thus, in the full sense, could become a great torch for humanity. But crimes against the law quickly undermined his power and his moral strength, and he began to uncontrollably strive for fall. With the restriction of direct government by God, as a result of the establishment of royal power, the will of God found direct exponents in the person of the prophets, whose activities during the time of the kings acquired very important significance in the state. These were living bearers of the will of God, which they courageously expressed to the kings and thereby called them to obedience to the law and to repentance. Some of the prophets, such as Nathan and Gad were close advisers to the king, directing his activities in accordance with the requirements of the will of God and the law. In case of any sin or crime of the king against the law, they were fearless avengers for the trampled law, as well as expressers of the will of God, which they personally expressed to the sinful kings. David owed the highest moments of his contrition and repentance for sins to the courageous and severe reproaches of Nathan. The prophets were also the main “writers”, i.e. historiographers who described the actions of the kings. The prophets, at the same time, were the main disseminators of enlightenment among the Israeli people at this time. By this time, prophetic brotherhoods or schools in which the law and sacred poetry and music were studied especially multiplied. The “hosts of prophets” were in several main cities, from where they moved to other neighboring cities, accompanying their prophecy, i.e. preaching about the law, solemn music on various musical instruments (psaltery, tympanum, flute and harp - 1 Samuel 10:5), and they had such a strong influence that those around them succumbed to their inspiration, as was the case, for example. with Saul, who, after his anointing, entered the host of the prophets, where he received the necessary preparation for the high appointment ahead of him. In the schools of the prophets, the great psalmist David undoubtedly received his education and, especially, his high art in poetry and music, under whom sacred poetry and music became a necessary accessory to worship. And in general, by this time the “hosts of prophets” had become completely schools of comprehensive education and enlightenment. The height and breadth of this education is evidenced by the example of Solomon, who, undoubtedly, in these same schools or from the court teachers-prophets, received his comprehensive education in all departments of scientific and artistic knowledge. Along with the spread of education, writing also spread, which at that time received such widespread development that it became a means of ordinary communication, and we find mention of letters through which correspondence was carried out between distant persons. At the court, for state production, there were special scribes and even a court “writer” or historiographer. The court prophets kept their notes on the activities and lives of the kings, as is known, especially about Samuel, Nathan and Gad. The result of these notes were the sacred books relating to this time; the first and second books of Kings, of which the first contains the history of the Israelite people from the birth of Samuel to the death of Saul, and the second continues this story until the anointing of Solomon as king. The compilation of the book “Ruth” dates back to the same period, the appearance of which could have been caused by the need to historically clarify the genealogy of the greatest king of the chosen people - David. But besides these historical books, the best indicator of the height of enlightenment of this time are the books of the kings themselves - namely David and Solomon. David owns most of those divinely inspired songs or psalms that, together with the psalms of other singers of both his and subsequent times, made up the book of Psalms. In terms of content and presentation, these psalms are a truly great outpouring of the God-dodgy genius-poet, which in marvelous songs embodied the best content of the religious and moral worldview of his time-so high worldview that it will not lose its inspirational interest before the peace of the world, while there is a human heart. Beat the feelings of faith, hope and love. - Four sacred books are attributed to Solomon: a stump with a song, a book of Solomonov’s parables, a book of Ecclesiast or a preacher and a book of wisdom of Solomon. These books undoubtedly make up part of those 3,000 parables and 1,005 songs mentioned in the third book of kingdoms (9:32). According to Jewish legend, from these books the first was written by Solomon in his youth, the second in adulthood and the third in old age. The fourth book is not at all in the Jewish canon of books, and it persists only in the Greek translation of 70 interpreters, from where it is translated into Russian. In the book, songs are songs, i.e. A high, beautiful song, under the guise of a bride and groom depicts the mysterious alliance of Christ with a church, under which symbol he is repeatedly depicted in other books of St. Scriptures of both the Old and the New Testament (see Exodus 44; Ezek. 16; Op. 2:19; Matt. 25). The book of the parables, as can be seen from its very name, contain parables and the wise moralizing instructions of the wise king, dating the deep everyday truths on the basis of his own experience. The collection of parables was partially made by Solomon himself, and partly subsequent collectors of the sayings of the wise king in later times. In the book of Ekklesiast or preacher, we have, as it were, the last testament of the Wise Tsar, who, having experienced all the happiness available to man on earth, finally came to the sad conviction that all the earthly “vanity fusses, and all the vanity and languor of the spirit”, only, in What a person can find satisfaction, this is performed by the rule: “Fear God and the commandments of him, because this is all for man” (Ekkl. 12:13), in the period under consideration, the Israeli people in all respects stood higher than the peoples around him. Politically, he was the most powerful people of West Asia and did not have rivals in arms in the east. Egypt at this time was extremely weakened by internal and external hardships; The XXI dynasty, which reigned in it, was supposed to direct all its efforts to the fencing of their country from the attack on it of the Libyans and other nomads of the African deserts, which, taking advantage of the weakening of Egypt, constantly made robber raids on it. Another strong power of Assiro-Wavilonskaya was also completely absorbed in the internal discord between the two halves that made it up (Assyria and Babylonia, which constantly competed among themselves) and, thus, lost its significance in international politics. Only minor kingdoms remained, which were either subordinate to the kings of Israel and paid tribute to them, or they themselves were looking for alliance and friendship with them (as e.g. Tsar Tir Hiram) and thereby strengthened their power. Together with political power, Israel stood high above the surrounding peoples and spiritually. All these peoples in comparison with him did not possess any outstanding literary works. If the political predominance of Israel were more durable and long, then the surrounding peoples would not have avoided the beneficial influence of it both literary and religious and moral terms, as it turned out on the example of the Queen of Savskaya, which returned to its country with a sense of deep reverence for everything she saw. Unfortunately, the well -known weakness of Solomon prevented this, and even in Jerusalem the free departure of those disgusting pagan cults that made up an irreconcilable opposite with the exalted Jehovah's religion. The history of the fall of Solomon shows that in religiously the neighboring peoples stood at the same low stage as during the entry of the Israeli into the promised land, and the wild immorality of their cults protruded even more before the face of such an exalted expression of the true religion, as the e.g., psalms, psalms David and other modern books, included in the canon of St. Scriptures. In chronological terms, the period of the Kings-monarchs hugs a round figure of 120 years, since each of them reigned for 40 years. An important chronological instruction is the remark of 3 tsar. 6, 1 tbsp., Namely that the construction of the temple began in 480 “according to the event of the sons of Israel from the land of Egypt”, which at the same time coincided with the 4th year of the reign of Solomon. Thus, the establishment of the monarchy was in 396 and the death of Solomon in 516 from the exodus from Egypt. According to the generally accepted chronology, the death of Solomon falls in 980 BC.
