Read Online King David: The Real Life of the Man Who Ruled Israel (Ballantine Reader's Circle) by Jonathan Kirsch - Free Book Online Page A
Authors: Jonathan Kirsch
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loaves made with pure wheat flour and sprinkled with frankincense. On the Sabbath, the fresh-baked loaves of holy bread were put on display in two neat rows on a table in the sanctuary as a symbolic offering to God. The old loaves that had been removed from the sanctuary could be eaten—but only by consecrated priests, according to the strict rules of the Book of Leviticus. (Lev. 24:5–9)
The priest of Nob was not brave enough to reject David's demand for the holy bread straightforwardly on the grounds that he was not a consecrated priest. Instead, he made only a feeble attempt to refuse him by invoking an entirely different rule from the Book of Deuteronomy, one that applied to the ancient military practice of maintaining ritual purity before battle. (Deut. 23:9–11)David and his men, the priest was asserting, could not partake of the holy bread if they had been rendered unclean by sexual contact with women.
“Of a truth, women have been kept from us these three days,” David declared. Then he continued to improvise in an effort to get his hands on the holy bread: “The young men's bodies have remained holy, and how much more will they be holy today.” (1 Sam. 21:6) 2
Thus appeased—or perhaps intimidated—the priest of Nob agreed to bend the rules by handing over the supply of holy bread. 3 But David was not yet satisfied.
“Have you a spear or a sword here at hand?” he demanded. “I have no weapon with me because the king's business was so urgent.” (1 Sam. 21:9) 4
Remarkably, the priest now disclosed that a rare and cherished weapon was stored in the shrine of Yahweh. “The sword of Goliath the Philistine, whom thou slew in the vale of Elah,” Ahimelech told David. “Behold, it is here wrapped in a cloth behind the ephod.” (1 Sam. 21:10)
EXCALIBUR
Here again is a tantalizing glimpse behind the curtain of theological correctness draped over the Bible by its later editors and redactors.
The “ephod” to which the priest of Nob so casually referred was some kind of ritual object on display in the shrine of Yahweh, an object large enough to conceal the gigantic sword of Goliath. Elsewhere in the Bible, the same term, “ephod,” is used to identify a priestly garment, perhaps a brief linen tunic or even a loincloth. Here, however, and in a few other passages of the Bible (e.g., Judg. 8:27), the term may refer to a graven image of Yahweh, fashioned of gold, or perhaps the bejeweled case in which it was stored. Ironically, the deity who so detested idolatry may have been the object of idol-worship at some point in the early history of ancient Israel. 5
The presence of Goliath's sword in the shrine of Yahweh is curious for another reason, too. When last noted in the biblical narrative, the sword had been stashed in David's tent. (1 Sam. 17:24) Now, by remarkable coincidence—or was it the hand of God?—David happened upon the sword that he had taken from Goliath at the fateful battle that had set him on the path toward power.
“If thou wilt take that sword, take it,” the priest said, “for there is no other weapon here.” (1 Sam. 21:10) 6
“There is no sword like it,” David said, knowing better than anyone else how the weapon had been bloodied in battle. “Give it to me.” (1 Sam. 21:10)
Thus armed with an Excalibur of his own, and provisioned with holy bread, David left the priest of Nob in peace. An agent of King Saul, a man named Doeg from the neighboring land of Edom, had observed David's encounter with the priest (1 Sam. 21:7), but Doeg did nothing to stop him. So David slipped back into the wilderness and continued to elude the men whom Saul sent in search of him. Still, he found himself harried out of Israel—or, rather, the fraction of Israel over which Saul actually enjoyed sovereignty. Much of the country was under occupation by the Philistines, and it is a measure of David's pragmatism that he now headed toward Gath, the hometown of Goliath and one of the five cities of
The priest of Nob was not brave enough to reject David's demand for the holy bread straightforwardly on the grounds that he was not a consecrated priest. Instead, he made only a feeble attempt to refuse him by invoking an entirely different rule from the Book of Deuteronomy, one that applied to the ancient military practice of maintaining ritual purity before battle. (Deut. 23:9–11)David and his men, the priest was asserting, could not partake of the holy bread if they had been rendered unclean by sexual contact with women.
“Of a truth, women have been kept from us these three days,” David declared. Then he continued to improvise in an effort to get his hands on the holy bread: “The young men's bodies have remained holy, and how much more will they be holy today.” (1 Sam. 21:6) 2
Thus appeased—or perhaps intimidated—the priest of Nob agreed to bend the rules by handing over the supply of holy bread. 3 But David was not yet satisfied.
“Have you a spear or a sword here at hand?” he demanded. “I have no weapon with me because the king's business was so urgent.” (1 Sam. 21:9) 4
Remarkably, the priest now disclosed that a rare and cherished weapon was stored in the shrine of Yahweh. “The sword of Goliath the Philistine, whom thou slew in the vale of Elah,” Ahimelech told David. “Behold, it is here wrapped in a cloth behind the ephod.” (1 Sam. 21:10)
EXCALIBUR
Here again is a tantalizing glimpse behind the curtain of theological correctness draped over the Bible by its later editors and redactors.
The “ephod” to which the priest of Nob so casually referred was some kind of ritual object on display in the shrine of Yahweh, an object large enough to conceal the gigantic sword of Goliath. Elsewhere in the Bible, the same term, “ephod,” is used to identify a priestly garment, perhaps a brief linen tunic or even a loincloth. Here, however, and in a few other passages of the Bible (e.g., Judg. 8:27), the term may refer to a graven image of Yahweh, fashioned of gold, or perhaps the bejeweled case in which it was stored. Ironically, the deity who so detested idolatry may have been the object of idol-worship at some point in the early history of ancient Israel. 5
The presence of Goliath's sword in the shrine of Yahweh is curious for another reason, too. When last noted in the biblical narrative, the sword had been stashed in David's tent. (1 Sam. 17:24) Now, by remarkable coincidence—or was it the hand of God?—David happened upon the sword that he had taken from Goliath at the fateful battle that had set him on the path toward power.
“If thou wilt take that sword, take it,” the priest said, “for there is no other weapon here.” (1 Sam. 21:10) 6
“There is no sword like it,” David said, knowing better than anyone else how the weapon had been bloodied in battle. “Give it to me.” (1 Sam. 21:10)
Thus armed with an Excalibur of his own, and provisioned with holy bread, David left the priest of Nob in peace. An agent of King Saul, a man named Doeg from the neighboring land of Edom, had observed David's encounter with the priest (1 Sam. 21:7), but Doeg did nothing to stop him. So David slipped back into the wilderness and continued to elude the men whom Saul sent in search of him. Still, he found himself harried out of Israel—or, rather, the fraction of Israel over which Saul actually enjoyed sovereignty. Much of the country was under occupation by the Philistines, and it is a measure of David's pragmatism that he now headed toward Gath, the hometown of Goliath and one of the five cities of
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