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A BRIEF EXAMINATION OF THE VERACITY

OF THE EXISTENCE OF DAVID THE SON OF JESSE BEING

A KING OVER A LARGE KINGDOM KNOWN AS

UNITED ISRAEL.

by

Christopher Bassaragh

February, 2010.

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A Brief Examination of the Veracity of the Existence of David Ben Jesse being a King over

a Large Kingdom known as United Israel.

Who is David Ben Jesse? Is he a king? tyrant? musician? Is he fact or a fictional character

such as Hercules or Beowulf? These questions over the past few decades have began to rise to

the surface since the research of biblical criticism has become a wider accepted field of study.

Tradition holds that David was the beloved king, successor of Saul, who led Israel into its golden

age, a friend of God, and the establishment of the future messianic line. His reign lasted about

forty years and his kingdom would stretch throughout Palestine, from the river Euphrates, along

the Eastern Desert, to the Red Sea. King David would become a great figure to three of the

world’s largest religions: Judaism, Christianity and Islam, and would be written about for his

great faithfulness and desire to uphold the law of the Lord.

But the question one must ask oneself is “are these traditional statements true?” What can be

used to support these claims? Is it the bible alone, or is there any other evidence to agree, and

bear witness to such claims of the bible. This is the issues to be examined throughout this paper.

In this paper we will question the veracity of the claims to David’s existence, kingship and

territorial reign by looking at biblical textual issues, extra-biblical historical information,

archaeological evidence and the actual evidence discovered.

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The assumption: It is assumed based on tradition, oral for the most part1, the there existed a

man by the name of David Ben Jesse whose name is mentioned approximately 1085 times in the

Holy bible (KJV) 1032x in the Old Testament (OT)2 and 53x in the New Testament (NT)3.

David was born in Bethlehem c. 1040 BC4, his father’s name was Jesse Ben Obed, and his

mother’s name was Nitzevet Bar Adael5. The length of his reign was 40 years, ruling over Judah

c.1010 - 1003 BC (2 sam 5:4); and over united Israel c.1003 - 970 BC (1 king 2:11). This is

followed by his death in c. 970 BC in his capital city, Jerusalem. He was the predecessor to Saul

and was successor was his chosen son Solomon. To the Jews and Christians he established the

messianic lineage of salvation to the people of God6, and to Islam, he is a prophet and warrior of

Allah7. When concerning oneself with any information regarding the existence of any particular

person place or thing, the individual, whether a skeptic or a serious bible students, would ask is

can these records be trusted? So the first thing to explore is the library of sources to the accounts

                                                            1 Barnard, David T. With Skilful Hand: The Story Of King David. Quebec: McGill‐Queen's University Press, 2004. 34‐37; “many of the records of David are viewed as Midrash which primarily have a homiletic understanding through past oral traditions. Also, the events of 1 Samuel span approximately 100 years, from c. 1100 B.C. to c. 1000 B.C. The events of 2 Samuel cover another 40 years. The date of writing, then, would be sometime after 975 B.C. Smith, Williams. Smith’s Bible Dictionary. New York: Pyramid Books, 1967. 603. 

2 Word count is taken from a King James Version (KJV) based on the Masoretic Text (MAS). *NOTE: the word count will in the different text types such as the Septuagint and the discovery of newer manuscripts which produce different translations, e.g. though KJV numbers its mention use at 1085x, the New American Standard Bible (NASB) states 931x, and the New International Version (NIV) suggests 893x. The word counts are assisted by Bible Works 4.0.032c, LLC. 1998 

3 Word count is taken from the Textus Receptus (TR), adapted from the Masoretic Text (MAS).*NOTE: See above 4 This is the Rabbinic and scholarly position; <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kingdom_of_David>. 

5 This is not written in the Tanakh, but rather is recorded in the Talmud Babylonian Talmud: Tractate Baba Bathra. Folio 91a. 6 Kessler, Edward, Dictionary of Jewish–Christian Relations. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2005. 120 7 http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Islamic_view_of_David; Qur’an 2:251; 4:163; 34:10 

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of David’s existence. Listed below are the most respect sacred scriptures bearing witness to his

existence8, with the exception of two9:

1. Tanakh (TNK) (Primary source of his existence)

2. Septuagint (LXX) (Greek translation of the primary source of his existence)

3. Talmud (TLD)

4. Brita Haresha (New Testament) (NT)

5. Qur’an (QRN)

6. *Josephus (AD 37 – c. 100), Antiquity of the Jews

7. *Philo (20 BCE – 50 CE), Liber Antiquitatum

Though all these scriptures and books bear record of his existence, many challenges are

presented. Firstly, the issue that most, if not all, these records mentioned above are written many

years after his death and that the tales are passed down through oral tradition to begin with.

Many scholars and critics believe these accounts have been fabricated just like Hollywood does

with its renditions of biographies10. There is no assurance of dating and authorship of a particular

book, this is true with Samuel; for example it was in 500 AD when the book of Samuel (Sam),

which holds one of the most details surrounding David’s life, was agreed to have been written by

Samuel11, but problems rise in that belief itself.12 Another challenge is the reality that. There are

                                                            8 Smith, Williams. Smith’s Bible Dictionary. New York: Pyramid Books, 1967, p. 131‐138; 

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/David 

9 *5 & 6 are historians that have credited for their Jewish history reports of their age. 10 http://www.redeemedscoundrels.com/Writings/archaeology/archaeology.62607.html 11 “No mention of the authors name is made in the Book of Kings, nor, as will be hereafter shown, in the Book of Chronicles, nor in any other sacred writings. In like manner it is not mentioned in the Apocrypha or in Josephus. And it is not until we come to the Babylonian Gemara, which is supposed to have been completed in its present form somewhere around 500AD, that any Jewish statement respecting the authorship can be pointed out, and then it is for the first time asserted that “Samuel wrote his book”.” Smith, Williams. Smith’s Bible Dictionary. New York: Pyramid Books, 1967. 603. 

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no original MSS dating to the time of occurrence, showing a lack of proof that these accounts of

this person really happened the way they are expressed. Some would question this with “what

about the Psalms?” But when questioning the Psalms many of us credit some or all of the 150

psalms to be by David, but some scholars believe he did not write one of them13, that the

subscription l’David (לדוד) points out that the Psalms were written to David; rather than al yidey

David (דיי על דודי )-by David or m’David (מדוד)-from David. So to some, the Psalm do not prove

nothing, not to mention they too are written over a wide period of time.

Thirdly, the manuscripts (mss) have different accounts which is evidently seen when you

compare the Masoretic (MAS) text with the LXX.14 Lastly is the issue of contradictions and

suspicious statements when comparing texts. This is seen when comparing 1 Sam 16:10,11 to 1

Chronicles (Chr) 2:13-15:

1 Sam 16:10-11 Jesse made seven of his sons to pass before Samuel. And Samuel said

unto Jesse, Are these all thy children? And he said, There remaineth yet the youngest

[David].

1 Chr 2:13-15 And Jesse begat his firstborn Eliab, and ... David the seventh.

How many sons did Jesse have, Seven or eight?

                                                                                                                                                                                                12 Ibid; in 1508 Abrabanel, a learned Jew, states the Samuel was written by Jeremiah, and this stance would be adopted by prominent figures such as Hugo Grotius. And the question of who records Samuels death. 13 Baruch Halpern addressing Hebrew grammar, pointing out the prefix of lamed is a dative expression, implying “to” or “for” an object or person, but not “produced by” or “owned until given” “King David”, The Naked Archaeologist, Episode 15, Vision TV, Canada, 12 December 2005     

14 *MAS v. LXX we find different accounts of David’s life. Eg. 1 Samuel 17; David and Goliath. 

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We see another variant when we compare 1 Sam 17:12, for example among many, between the

MAS and the LXX, the verse is only present in the MAS, not the LXX. Another variant example

when looking at text difference is 2 Sam 21:19:

MAS – 2 Sam 21:19 And there was again a battle in Gob with the Philistines, where

Elhanan the son of Jaareoregim, a Bethlehemite, slew the brother of Goliath the Gittite,

the staff of whose spear was like a weaver's beam.

LXX - 2 Sam 21:19 And there was a battle in Rom with the Philistines; and Eleanan son

of Ariorgim the Bethleemite slew Goliath the Gittite; and the staff of his spear was as a

weaver’s beam.

Who slew who? Was it the brother of Goliath, or Goliath? These are considered as text type

conflicts. Some question if this is many traditions at work? In the article “King David” the

author writes “The author of 1 Samuel 17: 50, for instance, tells us a youth named David killed

Goliath with his slingshot. A few pages later, 2 Samuel 21:19 credits a man named Elhanan with

the same deed. Were David and Elhanan one and the same, or are there two separate traditions at

work here?”15 This idea of “different traditions at work” proposes obstacles to some scholars and

critics because one never knows if the tradition held any validity or not.

Last of these text problems is the suspicious statements. Such as in 1 Sam 16:21- 2316,

“And David came to Saul, and stood before him: and he loved him greatly; and he became his

armorbearer. And Saul sent to Jesse, saying, Let David, I pray thee, stand before me; for he hath

found favor in my sight. And it came to pass, when the evil spirit from God was upon Saul, that

                                                            15 King David artitcle 16 ASV: Catholic bible 

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David took the harp, and played with his hand: so Saul was refreshed, and was well, and the evil

spirit departed from him.”

David is known of by Saul and Saul knows his father. he is Saul armor bearer, and is playing the

harp for Saul to ease his tormented spirit, but in 1 Sam 17:55-58,

“And when Saul saw David go forth against the Philistine, he said unto Abner, the captain of

the host, Abner, whose son is this youth? And Abner said, As thy soul liveth, O king, I cannot

tell. And the king said, Inquire thou whose son the stripling is. And as David returned from

the slaughter of the Philistine, Abner took him, and brought him before Saul with the head of

the Philistine in his hand. And Saul said to him, Whose son art thou, thou young man? And

David answered, I am the son of thy servant Jesse the Beth-lehemite.”

Saul is no longer aware of who this boy is, and where he came from.

Once again, many see these problems as a diversity of oral traditions at work which leaves

many critics to ponder if any of these things happen at all. Some Bible scholars have theorized

that "David" is a title, and not a name17. Therefore the stories that are recorded really attribute to

many other people given in to one entity, others believe that if this king did exist, we only know

him as the beloved king (David = beloved in Hebrew) and have never known his true name.18

What keeps scholars in some of these circles is the fact that there is next to little extra-

biblical historical information in existence.19 The ancient societies who were also in existence do

not have the name of this great king, who supposedly brought this large nation into a golden age,

in their records, where other powers and leaders are recorded. This lack of additional historical

                                                            

17 Seiglie, Mario. “King David: Man or Myth?” Good News Magazine. July/August 1996. http://www.gnmagazine.org/issues/gn05/kingdavidmanmyth.htm 18 Cline, Eric H.,  A History of Ancient Israel ‐ From the Patriarchs Through the Romans, Lecture 4: King David in history and tradition, Modern Scholar, Prince Frederick : Recorded Books, 2006. 

19 ibid 

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records has cause the biblical account to become the main source of information, and leaves it to

be put under much examination and attack because it does not have a secular witness.

Another supporter of the challenger of David’s existence is the minimal archaeological

evidence. Where is the archaeological evidence of his kingdom and how far it stretched?

Well according to Israel Finkelstein, archaeologist, “David’s kingdom was not big.20” Finkelstein

goes on to express, based on the archeological findings, David was a small time tyrant who

rampaged and took what he want. When Simcha Jacobovici, the interviewer states “Archeologist say

there is nothing found at “the City of David””. Finkelstein replies “There is no monumental city,

but there is a village; medium size, not fortified, and no monumental architecture.” Aren Maeir,

writer and biblical archeologist and historian, says you will not find any monument to prove of

his dynastic achievement, as you would with the Egyptians: pyramid & sphinx; Greeks:

Acropolises; Rome: Arch of Constantine. Therefore it is wise to reason King David as a Bedouin

Chief.21 Baruch Halpern, believes David’s true power came into play much later in his reign not

giving him much time to establish any great monumental structure. But the ruling of his son,

Solomon would be able to create the monuments that David was forbidden. David’s task was to

unify the people, and conquer the land. 22 This begins to clarify why David’s great kingdom may

not be seen as established, because it is not in full effect during the prime of his life. And the

famous archaeologist saying “Evidence not found does not prove non-existent” stands out in my

mind when I regard these matters of limited findings in the world of archaeology.

                                                            20 Finkelstein , Israel, archaeologist, Tel Aviv University in an interview with Simcha Jacobovici. “King David”, The Naked Archaeologist, Episode 15, Vision TV, Canada, 12 December 2005     

 21 ibid 22 ibid 

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When one focuses on the things found, we find more evidence to support that David may

not have truly existed, except for in the legends told and later written by an ancient people23. We

are exposed to a reality of the relationship between archaeology and the bible. And if he did

exist, he probably was nothing big, he was likely to be a great leader of a very small

group…according to the findings. But then “the stones began to speak” and artifacts began to

expose themselves. What proof do we have that David did exist for sure and did have a kingdom,

rather than a little village territory?

For the longest time, we were left to trust the narratives left behind and the teachings of

those who have studied more than what have been taught in the churches or by devotionals. But

because of the many challenges with scripture, many scholars were beginning to believe that

these stories of David are true, but highly embellished.24 Now here is where archaeology plays a

wonderful world in present understanding of past things.

In Palestine, Maeir states “We do have Mounds that are believed by archaeologist to be

the ancient city of Gath where this foe of David lived. Slowly being worked on this mound you

will face Hebron valley where David would have met Goliath to fight. 25” This begins to show

the evidence that the regions in which David would have accomplished some of his feats do exist

as well as the enemies that scripture writes about. The findings at Hazor, Megiddo, and Gezer26

began to express more evidence of the possibility of David’s kingdom stretching further than a

                                                            23 Merling, David. “The Relationship Between Archaeology and the Bible” 24 Cline, Eric H.,  A History of Ancient Israel ‐ From the Patriarchs Through the Romans 25 Maeir, Aren, archaeologist, Bar ‐ Ilan University in an interview with Simcha Jacobovici. “King David”, The Naked Archaeologist 26 Lasor, Hubbard, & Bush, Old Testament Survey. Michigan: William B. Eerdsman Publishing Company, 2nd Edition, 1996. 660‐676 

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small strip of land.27 The 3 cities have been excavated and have revealed fortified city gates (6

chambers, 3 gates) that date back to the 10th Century.28 These findings help witness to the

expansion of his territory which wpould have been passed on to Solomon. The Gates are all

identical in foundational structure and support the idea of being made by the same ruler.29

The Tel Dan Stele, which was discovered at Tel Dan, previously named Tell el-Qadi. Tel

Dan was a mound where a city once stood at the northern tip of Israel. Fragment A was

discovered in 1993, and fragments B1 and B2, which fit together, were discovered in 1994.30

                                                            27 Shaft, Warren, The Biblical World: A Dictionary of Biblical Archaeology, 1966, Baker Book House, Grand Rapids, p. 373 28 Tor, Ammon Ben, archaeologist of Hebrew University of Jerusalem, in an interview with Simcha Jacobovici. “King David”, The Naked Archaeologist 29 ibid 

30 Sherrod, Rick, Ph.D. Archaeology and the City of David. Good News Magazine. http://www.gnmagazine.org/issues/gn05/cityofdavid.htm 

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An inscription found at Tel Dan dated c.850-835 BC may contain the phrase 'House of David'

on the Tel Dan [House of David] דוד תיב Prof. Eric H. Cline mentions "If the reading of .( דודתיב)

stele is correct, ... then we have solid evidence that a 9th-century BC Aramean king considered

the founder of the Judean dynasty to be somebody named דוד [David]."31 There are many

scholars who have used the Tel Dan to certify the veracity of King Davids existence and

Kingship.32 The Mesha Stele from Moab, dating from approximately the same period, may also

contain the name David, although the reading is uncertain.33 Prof. Eric H. Cline continues to

mention that this does not mean it was David’s (name), because it could have been a title

attributed to the owner of the house.

Kenneth Kitchen has proposed that an inscription of c. 945 BC by the Egyptian Pharaoh

Shoshenq I mentions "the highlands of David," but this has not been widely accepted.34

                                                            31 Cline, Eric H.,  A History of Ancient Israel ‐ From the Patriarchs Through the Romans 

32 “An Ancient Inscription Proves King David Was Real” United Church of God. http://www.ucgstp.org/lit/gn/gn039/ancient.html

33 ibid 34 Cline, Eric H.,  A History of Ancient Israel ‐ From the Patriarchs Through the Romans 

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The interpretation of the archeological evidence on the extent and nature of Judah and Jerusalem

in the 10th century BC is fiercely debated. Israel Finkelstein and Ze'ev Herzog, another

archaeologist from Tel Aviv University, do not believe the archeological record supports the

view that Israel at that time was a major state, but rather was a small tribal kingdom, although

both Finkelstein and Silberman do accept that David and Solomon were real kings of Judah

about the 10th century BC35. They claim that surveys of surface finds aimed at tracing settlement

patterns and population changes have shown that between the 16th and 8th centuries BC, a

period which includes the biblical kingdoms of David and Solomon, the entire population of the

hill country of Judah was no more than about 5,000 persons, most of them wandering

pastoralists, with the entire urbanised area consisting of about twenty small villages. Once again

showing there may is an existence, but not the same existence as seen written of in the

Scriptures.

According to Ze'ev Herzog "the united monarchy of David and Solomon, which is

described by the Bible as a regional power, was at most a small tribal kingdom"36. Conversely

William Dever, in his What Did the Biblical Writers Know and When Did They Know It?, holds

that the archaeological and anthropological evidence supports the broad biblical account of a

Judean state in the 10th century BC.37

But what about Jerusalem, the great city of the king? The Bronze and Iron Age remains

of the City of David the original urban core of Jerusalem, identified with the reigns of David and

Solomon were investigated extensively in the 1970s and 1980s under the direction of Yigael

Shiloh of Hebrew University, but failed to discover significant evidence of occupation during the

                                                            35 “King David”, The Naked Archaeologist 36 ibid 37 ibid 

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10th century BC38 In 2005 Eilat Mazar found a Large Stone Structure which she claimed was

David's Palace.39

In a fortified city being excavated at Khirbet Qeiyafa there is a massive fort which has been

suggested as evidence for an Israelite Kingdom at this time. 40 It was in a key location along the

main road from Philistia and the Coastal Plain to the eastern Hill Country. In that fort was found

a fragment of pottery sometimes referred to as the Khirbet Qeiyafa sherd, an ostracon thought to

be 10th century. Gershon Galil has interpreted it as being five lines in Hebrew confirming the

existence of a Kingdom of Israel in the 10th century and supporting an earlier date for the first

biblical writing than some believe.41 Three other epigraphers have produced differing

translations however, and there is also controversy about whether the language is Phoenican or

Old Hebrew. Gershon Galil has stated "It can now be maintained that it was highly reasonable

that during the 10th century BCE, during the reign of King David, there were scribes in Israel

who were able to write literary texts and complex historiographies such as the books of Judges

and Samuel."42 He adds that the complexity of the text discovered in Khirbet Qeiyafa, along with

the impressive fortifications revealed at the site, refute he claims denying the existence of the

Kingdom of Israel at that time.

                                                            38 ibid 

39 Sherrod, Rick, Ph.D. Archaeology and the City of David. Good News Magazine. http://www.gnmagazine.org/issues/gn05/cityofdavid.htm 

40 Seiglie, Mario. “The Bible and Archaeology King David's Reign: A Nation United” Good News Magazine. January/February 1998. http://www.gnmagazine.org/issues/gn14/archaeologydavid.htm 41 http://www.biblecriticism.com/northern_book_of_judges.html 

42 http://www.biblecriticism.com/northern_book_of_judges.html 

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Other than these artifacts there is nothing really to support the veracity of the existence of

King David and his empire, but in what has been found, in an archaeologist’s view, makes a

good enough stamen to say, he was real, remember, “Evidence not found does not prove non-

existent”. There is not a question in the majority’s eye of his existence, but is the account of his

existence accurate, is the bible’s account credible?

These matters lead us into a state of many questions, and this is where the truth of the

matter comes in. We accept all of what we know, but cannot prove by faith. This is it in its

simplicity. Of all the stories heard of any particular bible character, when the actual, tangible

evidence is requested, all we have to offer is a book and a few artifacts that we hope are what we

think they are. Even the science of archaeology is considered an art and a science. Therefore

when it comes to our beloved David, a man after God’s own heart, we accept it by faith, and hold

on to the veracity that of whatever is written of him, will point us to the one and only perfect

messiah, even if it was done through an embellished life of David.

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Citations:

“An Ancient Inscription Proves King David Was Real” United Church of God. http://www.ucgstp.org/lit/gn/gn039/ancient.html

“Archaeology”, Redeemed Scoundrels. http://www.redeemedscoundrels.com/Writings/archaeology/archaeology.62607.html

Bible Works 4.0.032c, LLC. 1998

Cline, Eric H., A History of Ancient Israel - From the Patriarchs Through the Romans, Lecture 4: King David in history and tradition, Modern Scholar, Prince Frederick : Recorded Books, 2006. Holy Bible: Dove of Peace, Catholic Edition. North Carolina: Good Will Publishers, 1991.

Holy Qur’an. Ontario, Canada: Al-Attique Publishing Inc. 2002.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/David

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Islamic_view_of_David; Qur’an 2:251; 4:163; 34:10

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kingdom_of_David

http://www.bible-history.com/map-davids-kingdom/map-davids-kingdom_king_david.html

http://www.biblecriticism.com/northern_book_of_judges.html

Kessler, Edward, Dictionary of Jewish–Christian Relations. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2005. 120 KJV Compact Reference Bible. Michigan: Zondervan, 2000 “King David”, The Naked Archaeologist, Episode 15, VisionTV, Canada, 12 December 2005

Lasor, Hubbard, & Bush, Old Testament Survey. Michigan: William B. Eerdsman Publishing Company, 2nd Edition, 1996. 183-196, 660-676

Merling, David. “The Relationship Between Archaeology and the Bible” http://www.atsjats.org/publication_file.php?pub_id=177&journal=1&type=pdf. Journal of the Adventist Theological Society, 9/1-2 (1998): 230Ð242.

Seiglie, Mario. “The Bible and Archaeology King David's Reign: A Nation United” Good News Magazine. January/February 1998. http://www.gnmagazine.org/issues/gn14/archaeologydavid.htm

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Shaft, Warren, The Biblical World: A Dictionary of Biblical Archaeology, Grand Rapids: Baker Book House,. 1966. 373

Sherrod, Rick, Ph.D. Archaeology and the City of David. Good News Magazine. http://www.gnmagazine.org/issues/gn05/cityofdavid.htm

Skolnik, Fred. Encyclopaedia Judaica, v. 05 Second Edition, Jerusalem: Keter Publishing House Ltd., 2007. 444-458

Smith, Williams. Smith’s Bible Dictionary. New York: Pyramid Books, 1967, p. 131-138