Power, Compassion, and King David

The biblical King David is a slippery character in many ways. Biblical interpreters cannot quite decide what to think of him: Is he a righteous ruler or a master manipulator? Was the story of David written close to the time in which David lived or much later? Is any information about David in the Bible historically accurate or is it fictional? Was he even a real person? David and the book of Samuel have been the subject of numerous books and articles, becoming a veritable subfield within biblical studies.¹

Various debates, sometimes heated, have swirled around the historicity of David,² and the books of Samuel have also been a fruitful text for literary-critical readings.³ The reviewed monographs belong to the latter category and were both published in 2017. Although the two volumes differ in approach and intended audience, both The Beginning of Politics and David's Capacity for Compassion contribute to the academic conversation surrounding David and the book of Samuel in original ways and also diverge from the well-trodden paths of biblical scholarship in certain aspects:

First, both books present specifically literary readings, without historical context or use of Hebrew language. While literary-critical reading of the book of Samuel is not in and of itself unusual, both books engage in literary readings with a slightly different approach than perhaps expected. Green provides a contemporary theoretical framework around specific literary tools and ultimately argues for her interpretation of David's character using a literary device of her own design. Halbertal and Holmes's book has a thematic focus and is therefore a de facto rather than a formal literary reading.

Moreover, scholarship surrounding King David and the book of Samuel, particularly that exhibiting a historical-critical approach, has been beset by various debates for decades. However, both The Beginning of Politics and David's Capacity for Compassion deliberately choose not to enter into discussions surrounding historical questions. Halbertal and Holmes diverge from the viewpoint within biblical scholarship that interprets the book of Samuel as having a partisan agenda.⁴ Green notes that recent studies tend to be critical of David and aims for a more nuanced interpretation, inviting readers to avoid "easy valorization or vilification" (p. 4).

Finally, both books present key insights into David's characterization in 1–2 Samuel. The ambiguity of David's motivations and actions has long been noted, and both The Beginning of Politics and David's Capacity for Compassion discuss the opacity of David's character. Halbertal and Holmes include the ambiguous nature of sovereign actions as one of their main points and attribute the ambiguity surrounding David as applicable to any ruler. Green views David's character as moving from passivity to agency and back again and explains David's ambiguous depiction by pointing to his tendency toward passivity.

The present essay gives an overview of each book followed by an evaluation based on the above points, and finally concludes with remarks toward situating both books within the larger scholarly treatments of King David.

1. Ancient Israelite Realpolitik: The Beginning of Politics

1.1. Overview

In The Beginning of Politics, Moshe Halbertal and Stephen Holmes assert that 1–2 Samuel is not a political book "but rather a book about politics" (p. 2), and they focus on Samuel's insights into political power. Both are professors of law and utilize their legal and political expertise in their reading of 1–2 Samuel. Halbertal and Holmes see the book of Samuel as an entirely original voice, and the "earliest document of its kind ever written" (p. 3). They also set aside considerations of historicity since their focus is on the book's theoretical significance (pp. 180–181 n. 9), but...