The Rise of a Man, a Mountain, a Nation: David, a Man Raised on High; a Novel

By W. Dan Parker

A Bible-based novel, The Rise charts how God raised up a caring shepherd boy David from a dysfunctional Bethlehem family to become a giant killing warrior, leader, psalm writer, and Israel’s greatest king. Readers of fiction, history and biblical novels will love his daring adventures and life-changing encounter with God on a mount called the Rise. Learn from David’s fascination with the Rise why Jerusalem is special, then and now. This good-read faithfully follows the Bible narrative, expanding real-life-stories about poet-musician David’s life in ancient Israel reflected by Parker’s biblical knowledge and imagination. Both exciting and inspirational, David’s heroic triumph over Goliath precedes years of despair and dangerous flight from paranoid King Saul. Experience great miracles of God, revealing history lessons, and faith-stretching trials of this talented and devoted “man after the heart of God.” Grow your faith as David trusts the LORD in dangerous scenes, truly repents his dreadful sins, and inspires by his psalms. Be intrigued by his unique parentage, faithful mother, and relationship with men like Joab and his 600 Mighty Men. Can his disgraceful tryst with Bathsheba be pardoned or anger with God over the ark’s tragedy be pacified? Answers and more are abundant in The Rise.

• Language: English
• Publisher: WestBow Press
• Release date: Sep 30, 2019
• ISBN: 9781973674047

W. Dan Parker

Dr. Dan Parker, pastor and seminary professor over a half-century, offers valuable biblical truths with keen understanding of biblical history. Preaching and seminary teaching aids his understanding of Bible characters, their times, and relating the message to you today. An international church, mission experiences in Russia, Belarus and India give him awareness of other cultures. You’re at home in ancient Israel with David’s many adventures, aided by Dan’s family-man experiences with wife, four children and six grandchildren, all active in Christian service. This history buff relates to believers and non-believers. His three books are called, “page-turners” and “learning experiences.”

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Copyright © 2019 W. Dan Parker.

All rights reserved. No part of this book may be used or reproduced by any means, graphic, electronic, or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, taping or by any information storage retrieval system without the written permission of the author except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical articles and reviews.

WestBow Press

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Because of the dynamic nature of the Internet, any web addresses or links contained in this book may have changed since publication and may no longer be valid. The views expressed in this work are solely those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of the publisher, and the publisher hereby disclaims any responsibility for them.

Any people depicted in stock imagery provided by Getty Images are models, and such images are being used for illustrative purposes only.

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Scripture taken from the NEW AMERICAN STANDARD BIBLE®, Copyright © 1960,1962,1963,1968,1971,1972,1973,1975,1977,1995 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission. www.Lockman.org"

ISBN: 978-1-9736-7403-0 (sc)

ISBN: 978-1-9736-7404-7 (e)

Library of Congress Control Number: 2019913470

WestBow Press rev. date: 09/27/2019

Dedication

To my four children, Tim, Chris, Dana, and Rance, who have always chosen to see the good in me, have made me proud to be called their dad, and have faithfully served the God I love. They have brought continual joy to their mother, Jean and me, and best of all have given to us Jon, Justin, Hadley, Sam, Braesen and Holli, the best grandchildren God could give to anyone. They all are devoted followers of Jesus.

Preface

Pastor and professor has been the work of my life. I began to write several years ago, never with the thought of writing a novel. I have no reason that led me to write this novel except the LORD put it in my mind and on my heart. At the same time, I was drawn to David, one of the classic figures in history even among unbelievers. Many years ago, my wife, Jean, and I read that a showing of a full-size replica of Michelangelo’s sculpture of David would be on display at Rich’s Department Store the following week. I knew nothing of the statue, but my wife liked the idea of a trip downtown to the then famous and her favorite department store. We took an elevator to the roof of the large store and found the site of the display. I can remember my impression of the immense size of the statue, 16 feet, 11.15 inches, as well as the detail and masterful work in making the larger than life David. Ironically the statue is 8 feet taller than Goliath (with his head still intact.)

To say that Michelangelo made David larger than life, only deals with the dimensions of his magnificent work of art. The reality is though, The Bible truly does make David larger than life. At the same time, God’s Word reveals David as a real man, gifted with skillful hands and one of the most powerful men who ever lived; truly a man after the heart of God yet, a man with evident weaknesses; truly a sinner. As the ancestor of Jesus and the father of His eternal throne, David is also a graphic picture of every man, passionate, considerate, who struggled with lust, fear, pride, doubt, and faith. Few men give to us such a complete picture of mankind’s struggle in the flesh. He is man as he should be and should not be, and in so many ways, man as he really is. In the case of this tenth century B.C. hero, we have one who points us to the God of creation and covenant, challenge and salvation, failure and recovery.

A few years ago, we began to hear claims of deniers, scholars who said there was no historic person such as David, or at best he was a primitive character in a small and insignificant tribe in his day. This theory is based upon the fact there is a serious lack of information about David outside of the Bible. Robert Pinsky quotes Englishman Duff Cooper on this saying He must have actually existed, because no people would deliberately invent a national hero so deeply flawed.¹

What we know about King David, we know by way of the Bible in Samuel, Kings, Chronicles, and Psalms. It should be noted that more is said about and by David than any other character. For one who lacks a strong belief in the Bible, this became fodder for the faithless. It is true that it has become an incentive for some to write books and novels about this larger than life man of faith and great King of Israel. It also has been the stimulus for some to write novels and non-fiction accounts about a man who was much smaller and less godly than the biblical portrait. Such a narrow and low portrayal is painful reading for the believer who trusts that the Bible is the inspired Word of God.

Being a preacher and seminary professor, I was naturally alarmed by such a description of God’s chosen as a vile, unscrupulous, cruel tyrant. I have never before felt it necessary to write an apologetic discourse in support of the biblical reality of David. In addition to having more written about him in the Bible, he is quoted more in the Bible than any other biblical writer. He is the ancestor of Jesus, who will one day sit upon the throne of David. This king, known as the greatest of all the kings of Israel, is a paramount person in the Judeo-Christian faith. He is a man whose writings betray a deep spiritual nature and strong devotion to the LORD.

There is plenty of reason to respond to the nay-sayers of Davidic lore. This could be a slight stimulant of my motivation, but only in a small way. More of my personal motivation to write, is the valuable lessons and inspiration all can receive from a close look at this man of God. I truly believe that this book is a part of God’s purpose for my life, now in my latter years and over sixty years serving Him. Having said that, I state here some disclaimers before we begin.

I write as one who takes seriously the Scriptures of the Old and New Testaments, believing them to be divinely inspired and the inerrant authority for our lives and faith. My purpose has not been to preach, though I am a preacher. I am also a teacher and I do hope to teach valuable truth in these pages. It has been my desire in this book to present the life of King David to the reader in the format of a novel for readers who may never read the Bible, a Bible commentary, or one of the many excellent historical and interpretative treatments of this strategic person of faith. Some of these I have listed in the back of this book.

A good story will always be one of our best means of communication, education, and inspiration. This good story may even reach those who would pick it up for recreational reading, if not for inspiration. It is hoped that much shall be gained by the effort. Dr. Ed Young tells of a friend who always reads the last three pages of a book to see if it has a good ending. If not, she does not read the book. You need not read the last three pages here. There is a good ending. A man of very humble, noble, but faith-based background and obscure even among his own, rises to the top of his country and day. His rise was admittedly an act of God, but one that should inspire anyone. He did of course have many skills, a man with skillful hands with the lyre, the sling, and creative abilities. He grew up virtually ignored, but became a giant killer, powerful warrior, and inspired poet-musician. No other lowly shepherd from a dysfunctional family has been known to rise to such heights as did David.

The Rise is a fictional account of historical truth. The fictional surroundings are meant to augment and expand the setting and story, but in no way to detract from or discredit the biblical material, upon which it is based and of which there is an abundance. Every effort has been made to fill in the personal and historical facts with incidentals common to life and where possible, to give information to the reader about life in Israel in the tenth century B.C. Within you may experience a sketch of the land, the beauty of the Judean Plateau, the moorlands of Bethlehem, the wilds of mountains, deserts, and caves that helped shape our hero.

The method and plan of this novel is to follow the biblical account of the life of David found in 1 and 2 Samuel and in 1 Chronicles. Passages from the Psalms attributed to David as author are also part of the material. Much use has been made of commentaries and books about the second King of Israel, by both Christian and Jewish authors, in an effort to give as authentic an account of David as possible. Every event in the life of David is not covered, omitting those considered minor, insignificant, duplicated or found in similar stories. Events of his youth, while not part of the biblical narrative, are given in fictional form for the purpose of introduction and background to the life of David as well as life in Israel.

One will discover here the experiences that toughened and helped shape his character. It is hoped that the reader will become familiar with David’s theology of God and discover how He is available for us today in the same way.

The actual biblical material begins with a telling of the story of Samuel in chapter 7, and his later search for Saul in chapter 8. From that point, there is great effort to follow a literal and chronological account from the biblical material in 1 and 2 Samuel and 1 Chronicles. Beginning with chapter 22, the events may fall into a topical rather than a chronological order. Scholars do not agree on an exact sequence of events after the founding of Jerusalem as capital and placing the ark in the holy city. The last chapters will focus on those experiences of David that serve to shape his personal and family life, and his kingdom.

As the reader will discover, the focus of The Rise is a play on the word which relates the over-riding theme of the book which is obviously the rise of David. This is the story of an overlooked youth with the obscure task of keeping his father’s sheep, who became a giant-killing folk hero, a ministering troubadour of the king and an officer in the king’s army. From this, he was denigrated into a wanted fugitive who gathered and led a host of warriors close to a decade before reaching his pinnacle as the anointed king of Judah and then all Israel.

We see during his reign that the people of Israel did rise to the level as one of, if not the greatest, nation in that day. A tribal people became a solid and prosperous nation with a central government and a powerful standing army. Theirs was also a spiritual rise giving us a setting in which we can live with David and see our faith challenged to apply it to our life-struggle. David’s good friend and chief musician summed-up the story best:

He also chose David His servant,

And took him from the sheepfolds;

From following the ewes that had young He brought him,

To shepherd Jacob, His people,

And Israel, His inheritance.

So he shepherded them according to the integrity of his heart,

And guided them by the skillfulness of his hands

(Psalm 78:70-72).

The literal Rise is the place called Mount Moriah in Jerusalem and today called The Temple Mount. The physical geography of Mount Moriah is a rise, as such hills and mountains are sometimes called today, where the elevation is in the form of a gradual slope upward and almost flat at its highest peak. Mount Moriah is actually the most important but the lowest of the three mountains that make up Jerusalem, the others being Zion and Olivet. The name the Rise is presented as a major place in this book, though the name is fictional and used as a literary tool, not intended to advance an actual historical name. We will see the historic rise of a city from a Canaanite fortress called Jebus to the city of David, named Jerusalem, the holy city, and the holy place now known as the Temple Mount. This is significant in the year of this writing, 2018, the seventieth year since the U.N. recognized the founding of the modern state of Israel and also the year the U.S. recognized Jerusalem as the capital.

There are many end-notes, most of which are biblical references to orient the reader to the place where the events are found in the Scriptures. A bibliography of sources, unusual for a novel, is placed in the back of this volume to aid in further biblical study as well as to give proper credit to the excellent materials from which this writer has drawn.

I will always be indebted to my teachers and to the many sources I have read in addition to God’s Holy Word. Three professors from college and seminary who especially shaped my love for the Old Testament, two men then at Baylor University, Dr. James Lester and Dr. Kyle M. Yates and Old Testament Professor at Southeastern Baptist Theological Seminary, Dr. H. Leo Green have greatly impacted my awareness of the great importance of the Old Testament. My Jewish friend Lee Kern was most helpful in sharing cultural and religious customs that enriched my knowledge of David’s life. I owe a debt to all of my students of forty years whose love for the Word of God and our Savior have inspired me to continue searching the Scriptures in my own life and ministry and encouraging my pursuit of writing. My wife, Jean, has always paid the highest price for my ministry endeavors. Her encouragement, support and prayers have been essential to the accomplishment of this and all my work.

Most of all, I am indebted to Jesus, the Son of David, Son of God, my LORD and Savior, Who came down from the heights of heaven’s glory, beginning in the most humble of births to make the greatest rise ever when He was lifted up to draw all men to Himself. This blessed LORD called me to rise from sin and nothingness and trust Him. He then called me to serve Him as a pastor of His people, a preacher of His Word, a professor of His servants, and a penman of His message. He gave to me a purpose exceeding my wildest dreams. Though it was not to great heights and accomplishments, my rise was to many awesome opportunities He has given me in ways that few men have experienced.

My prayer as you read The Rise is that God will raise you up to walk with Him for His glory and the purpose for which He created you. May He cause a rise in your love for His Word and empower you in the rise toward His likeness through His Holy Spirit and use your life for His glory. This writer holds the hope that, in reading this, anyone who has not already discovered David’s descendant, the long awaited Messiah, Jesus, may be led to seek Him and have that soul-saving and life-changing experience through personal faith in Him.

Dan Parker

Snellville, Georgia 2019

Contents

 Dedication

 Preface

1. The Journey

2. The Sacrifices

3. The Cave

4. The Spring

5. The Rise

6. A Lion and a Bear

7. Ichabod, Samuel, and Ebenezer

8. A King’s Daughter

9. The King

10. Anointing

11. The Giant

12. Fury

13. Flight

14. Fugitive

15. Adullam

16. Shadow King

17. The Lord’s Anointed

18. Double Jeopardy

19. Ghost Story

20. End of Flight

21. To Hebron

22. Joab And Abneer

23. Coronation and Capital

24. Celebrating the Lord

25. Unrealized Dream

26. The Storm after the Calm

27. The Whirlwind

28. The Wake

29. Rebellion

30. O My Son Absalom

31. God’s Work for Good

32. The House In Order

 Postscript

 Endnotes

 Bibliography of Sources for Further Reading

1

The Journey

T he brilliant rays of morning sun slowly changed the atmosphere in David’s room from the scary shadow-laden darkness of night into a radiant warm glow. The beams of light streamed across the young boy’s face, disturbing what had been a long almost sleepless night. To the youngster, this day would never come. The boy had gone to bed early to no avail, for excitement had pumped him so full that the handsome lad found sleep as rare as a deep snowfall on a Judean field.

Now awake, David jumped up from his rumpled floor pallet and dashed outside to the out-shed for his early morning ritual, then hurried back into the house and put on the fresh shirt his mother, Nitzevet,² had laid out. The smell of fresh bread baking in the courtyard oven energized the young teen, already full of anticipation of this long awaited day. It finally had come. Special days and the promise of new adventures to a young boy in Israel are seldom, and met with a glad welcome, especially a day like this one. David and Nitzevet, were making the trip to her daughter’s home to spend a few days with David’s half-sister, Zeruiah (Ze-ru-yaw), her husband Abidan (A-bee-dawn), and their sons, Joab, Abishai (Abi-shay-ee), and Asahel. While the three boys were David’s nephews, their ages and relationship made them more like cousins, if not siblings. Joab, called Jo by family and friends, at age sixteen was the oldest of the four boys. David has just turned fifteen. He was over a year old when Abishai, age thirteen, was born. They called him Abi. The youngest of the quartet Asahel, called Asa, tagging along behind his siblings at just under age ten. While the boys only saw each other several times a year, they were very close, especially the older three, enjoying the company of each other, and excited about any time they could spend together.

David, Nitzevet called with a hurried tone, just as soon as you finish eating your bread, be sure to hitch up the ox to the cart and load the lambs. Make sure you tie their halters short enough that they won’t try to jump out. There are a few more things I need to load and I want to leave as soon as possible. The lambs were part of the central purpose of this trip to Ananiah.³ David’s sister lived a little more than two miles from Nob, where the priests were and where they would carry their sacrifice, perfect unblemished lambs, to The LORD.

Our journey will take most of the day. While you finish getting the cart ready. I will go to the well and ask old Benhannan to draw fresh water for us, continued Nitzevet.

Great Mamma, David responded. That’s the best water in all Judah.

I am taking an extra skin to Zeruiah. She loves our water too.

What made the prospects of these days so thrilling was that Joab, the older teenager, was extremely adventuresome. A day with him was always filled with new experiences and loads of fun, although at times bordering on the edge of trouble. They would roam the hills, wade the creeks, explore caves and see things this young teen had never seen before. His nephew had told him on his last visit to Ananiah that he would take him to the Rise. David was not certain what that would be like since his older nephew had never fully described it. He had told him just enough of the adventure to set his young imagination whirling with anticipation.

Well, momma, the cart is all hitched, the lambs are tied securely, and everything is tied down, David announced to himself. He went back into the house to make sure he had packed everything he would need. He reached over on a nearby table and picked up his shepherd bag, staff, lyre, a blank scroll and stylus. He would sometimes use clay tablets, but Aaron the wealthy man who lived nearby had heard of David’s love of writing verse and had provided him with papyrus from Egypt. He never went anywhere for long without carrying writing materials. David had learned that inspiration for writing songs could come anytime and anywhere. Nearly all he wrote were songs of praise to or about the LORD. Occasionally when he would see a beautiful girl or kill a wild animal threatening his sheep, he would write verse about them.

Turning his head toward the door, he saw that Nitzevet had just arrived and with a frightened look on her face. She put the long stick upon which four large water-skins hung, down on a bench and wiped her brow.

What’s wrong, momma? David asked, fearing that whatever troubled her might mean the end of their trip. What happened?

Oh, son, she replied, again wiping perspiration continuing to bead-up on her light-complexioned forehead, caused by her hurriedly carrying the water from the town well. Taking a seat on a nearby bench, she caught her breath and said, Word is spreading all over Bethlehem. The Philistines are again making raids on nearby villages!

Does that mean we cannot go to Jo and Abi’s? Is our trip canceled?

Nitzevet saw the deep disappointment in David’s face and knowing he was only reflecting her own expression, more calmly reached out for David’s young hand and pulled him close. Son, I don’t know. I need to go to your father and give him the news. He will tell us what to do.

David’s father, Jesse, and his brothers were at the Barley tract west of Bethlehem, preparing for the harvest reaping to begin early the following week. Nitzevet knew that if they did not go to her daughter’s now it would be many weeks before she could take David on his much anticipated trip. It was late spring, and the grain harvest began around the last of Iyyar and the first of Sivan.⁴

They were also overdue to make a pilgrimage to Nob, beyond Ananiah, and present their offerings to the priest, Ahimelech, in worship of The LORD.

Leaving the cart loaded, she said to David, I will climb aboard, and we will go to the barley field and give the news to your father. Jesse will know what is best. He always does. He has a special wisdom that must have come from The LORD.

Jesse was the oldest son of Obed, a farmer and respected elder in the tribe of Judah. His name on anything was an endorsement honored by everyone in Bethlehem, sometimes called by its ancient name of Ephratah. It gained the name Bethlehem (House of Bread) decades earlier when the village became a leading center of produce, especially wheat and barley.

Obed was the firstborn of Boaz and Ruth, the Moabite widow, who came back from Moab with her widowed mother-in-law, Naomi, after the end of the big famine in Israel. Boaz later followed the law of the Kinsman-Redeemer,⁵ and married Ruth.⁶ After the birth of their first son, Obed, they had several sons and a daughter.

Jesse had taken over the management of his father’s farm when Obed became unable to manage the work. He had moved his family to the home place when his mother passed away, in order to take care of Obed and the farm. His farm is next to his father’s, where now his oldest son, Eliab and his wife and children, remained. Jesse’s next oldest sons, Abinadab and Shammah, had married and were living close by in order to assist their father in the farm-work. Being the sons of his first wife, Hannah, now deceased, Jesse was prone to favor these three. Shemei, Nethanel, Raddai, and Ozem were the offspring of Jesse’s second wife, Rachel, who died while giving birth to Ozem.

The stricken father of seven boys was very blessed when he met and married Nitzevet, a distant relative, widow, and mother of two daughters, Zeruiah and Abigail and an adopted son, Shobi. This happened because Nitzevet had been put away by her husband, Nahash, and needed a redeemer, giving Jesse, related to her deceased mother, the opportunity to be her kinsman redeemer. Ozem was almost three years old when they married. She was a beloved favorite of Jesse, though his oldest three sons were not enthusiastic in accepting the younger woman into their family.

Nitzevet gave birth to David during the year she and Jesse married. The birth of the child occurred early, giving rise to much talk in the village of Bethlehem and even more displeasure in the family, especially by the older sons of Jesse. They also resented that their father had married again, thus bringing others into the family to share their inheritance.

This very likely was the reason Jesse’s grandfather, Boaz, was given opportunity to marry the Moabitess, Ruth. The actual redeemer for Ruth had a family who opposed sharing their lot with a Moabite woman. Now Jesse had married the rejected wife of an Ammonite king named Nahash, and his sons were unhappy, though given no choice by their father, who sorely needed a mother to attend his many boys.

David understood his mother’s concerns about their safety on the journey and quickly loaded the water skins on the cart, taking the ox goad in his right hand and the rein in his left, gave Sheba, their big, brown ox, a poke. With that gentle jab in Sheba’s hind-quarter, he hollered the familiar sound which started the old faithful ox moving and the cart rolling.

Their trip thus began by taking a shortcut to the barley fields. In a few minutes, Nitzevet and David arrived on the southern edge of the large, terraced Barley field, surrounded by the crops of other Bethlehem farmers. Seeing Jesse and Eliab walking through the field inspecting their crop, she motioned to her husband when he saw her. He put down his sickle and began walking hurriedly toward his wife and youngest son. His kind, sunburned-face, topped by a snow white crop of thinning hair, revealed a broad smile, which always appeared when Jesse was in the presence of his aging but still beautiful wife.

What’s wrong, Nitz? You should be on the road by now! As the older man drew closer, taking his concerned wife’s hand, he gave her a quick hug, smoothed her black hair back off her attractive face, and looked into her radiant hazel eyes.

Jesse! Nitzevet said, holding back her tears to keep David from again seeing the frightened look she had before, Word is all over Bethlehem. The Philistines are at it again. A small band of their renegades was seen, in full array, moving towards Bethlehem from Beth-shemesh. I don’t know what to do. David is so excited about this trip. I know if we do not go to Zeruiah’s now, it will be a month or more before we can make the trip. What shall I do?

As the farmer held her close to his strong chest with arms like a blacksmith, David watched his parents embracing in the field, silently hoping his father would give them the go-ahead for their journey. He held the reign attached to Sheba and reached with his other hand, taking several stalks of barley in his hand. Wrapping the rein around his arm, the young man plucked the tassels off the stalks and rubbed them in his hands until he had separated the grain from the husks. With a light puff of air, he blew the chaff away and crammed the kernels of barley into his mouth, savoring the taste. He slipped the stalks into his pouch so he could later hold a stem in his mouth as he guided Sheba along … if they could go along on their journey.

Calm down, Nitz, an assuring deep voice spoke with strong tones. I’ve already heard the news. Several men came by here earlier and said they had watched the Philistine troops from the Shiloh garrison yesterday and had managed to get close enough to hear what was going on. Indeed, they are in full array, but they are just trying the troops to make sure they are fit for battle. I don’t think we need worry. Harvest doesn’t start until next week and they won’t try anything until we have the crops all in and have done the heavy work. They always wait and try to take the barley and wheat after it has been threshed and winnowed. They also know that King Saul’s troops are patrolling and are ready to respond. In fact, Eliab told me that he, Abinadab, and Shammah have received orders from King Saul to be prepared to report as soon as harvest is complete."

Oh, thanks be to The LORD! I was not worried about the trip as much as that our sons would be going to battle. Yes, David would be disappointed, but he would get over that.

Jessie looked down at his youngest son, smiled and with a reassuring man-to-man look, said to the teen, David, take your momma to see your sister and the boys. You will be okay. Just keep your eyes open. Take good care of momma!

With a bright smile and unusual feeling of pride, David raised his shoulders, held his head up, and responded to Jesse, Yes, sir. I will, papa. Do not worry about momma and me. I know that The LORD is watching over us and will take care of us.

That He will, my boy. That He will! assured the kind, sixty-year old gentleman with eyes squinting from the morning sun. Shalom to you both, he said as he patted David on the shoulder and kissed Nitzevet on the cheek. The LORD be with you.

The journey from Bethlehem to the small farm of Zeruiah and her husband, Abidan, near Ananiah, would be nearly four hours at best. Their farm was south of Nob, and just over a mile from Jebus.⁷ On their small farm they produced olives, pomegranates, figs, and grapes, all summer fruit. The five to six mile trip over a winding, uphill road by a loaded, one-ox cart was slow. Nitzevet and David would stop along the way to give water and rest to Sheba and David. Walking alongside an ox cart, giving constant encouragement to the ox was a tiring task, but one that David would never let on was a drudgery. He had watched his older brothers do this and now, being his turn, it gave him a sense of maturity and importance that every boy welcomes. His joy in the journey overrode any weariness that could set in. Besides, there was plenty to see along the way and always something exciting happening.

The last time David made the trip, his older brother, Ozem, went along and was driving the ox. From his vantage point on the cart, David could see a blind beggar up ahead with a crowd around him. The man was singing something he could not understand but the people seemed to be enjoying it. David noticed this more for the music than the sightlessness of the man. He was playing an instrument similar to David’s kinnor, or lyre. David had been playing his lyre since he was seven years old, and now played it very well. Of course, for the last two years he had been keeping his father’s sheep which provided plenty of time to practice. A plus was, there were few people out in the fields to tell him to keep it quiet. The sheep were an appreciative audience. Ozem was taking his duty with them during David’s brief time away.

David had inherited the lyre from his grandfather, Obed, a gentle, rather quiet man who played the instrument with expertise as he sang to family and friends at festive gatherings. The old instrument showed many signs of wear but still had rich tones that enhanced the qualities of the musician. David could remember how he loved to sit at Papa-Obed’s feet, enchanted as he listened to him singing and playing the instrument. Jesse told his son that Obed gave him the lyre because he, more than anyone, always loved to hear him play and sing. Obed was a skilled craftsman as well as a musician and made kinnors. After David began playing, Obed taught David some of his skills in making instruments, which David had begun using in the process of making his own first lyre.

As David and Nitzevet continued their journey, David’s feet began to grow weary from the uneven, rutted, rocky road. The old ox needed water and Nitzevet also needed a break. They stopped at a small village where they customarily made a stop for rest and water. There was a huge locust tree flanked by an olive and a fig tree near the village well. Slightly downhill were several boulders which provided a private rest stop for needy travelers.

David enjoyed lying in the clump of grass under the two large fig trees that provided shade from the mid-day sun. If it had been fig harvest, David would have enjoyed feasting on his favorite fruit. Sheba and the lambs enjoyed the grass and water too. After tying them to the animal trough on the left side of the well, he filled the skin from which they had taken sips of water along the way. Nitzevet did not draw from the well since it was frowned upon for women to draw water from a village well during the day time. He noticed, as he had before, the small clay plaque someone had placed by the well was still in place. It stated in crude scribbled Hebrew:

"OUR FATHER JACOB DUG THIS WELL

TO REFRESH YOU."⁸

Placing the water container back on the cart, the youngster reached up over some of the bags, untied and pulled down his kinnor and began playing. David’s playing gave a soft, melodic atmosphere to the wayside stopping place and also confirmed the thought his mother held that David would be lost without his lyre. His melodies also caught the attention of two teenage girls who slowed their pace as they heard David playing. On seeing the handsome young man, they stopped, looking back and forth at each other, smiles on their faces accompanying their giggles. As the music had caught their attention, sight of the two watching him caught David’s fifteen year-old eyes. Nothing was wasted in their looking and David had long before learned to recognize the physical characteristics that make real beauty.

Back on the rough road, rutted by carts during long wet seasons, the mother and son continued their travel. When Nitzevet looked at a large expansive field to her right, where farmers had already begun cutting wheat, she was reminded of the scene of Jesse and his older sons inspecting their field as they left Bethlehem. Where this family lived, such a sight was as common as white clouds in summer. The mid-fifties woman pondered the days awaiting their return from home when their whole family would be summoned to the field to begin the harvest of their crop.

Like anywhere on earth, the life of a farmer and his family is hard and demanding all year, but expressly so during the protracted weeks of harvest. Once the men begin cutting the wheat, the younger siblings would begin picking up the sheaves, tying them in bundles and piling them neatly to be picked up, placed on carts and carried to the threshing floor. They had been taught not to gather the sheaves in the corner of their field and to leave some of the sheaves along the way for the gleaners, poor people who could not afford land to grow their own crops. Jesse’s own grandmother, Ruth, met his grandfather, Boaz, while she gleaned in his field. The work was truly a family effort. Some women would work in the fields but, as could be expected, some stayed at the house preparing the evening meal and keeping a fresh supply of water nearby for the workers.

Nitzevet’s thoughts were interrupted abruptly by a sudden, hard jarring and a loud bang of the cart.

Whoa! shouted David to Sheba, as the cart suddenly stopped.

What happened? Nitzevet called out, once recovered from her interrupted mental journey back to their Bethlehem farm and the upcoming harvest.

David turned back towards the cart realizing the noise had come from his side, and checked the large wooden wheel, fearing it was broken. It appeared to be all intact. He then crawled under the back of the cart and saw a large rock, almost boulder-size protruding from the rocky road.

We’re stuck! the lad yelled back to his mom. I don’t know if I can get us off this rock.

A middle-age man who was walking along the road near where the cart had been stopped, came over to offer help to the young lad and his mother.

May I assist you, young man? the kind gentleman asked.

Thank you, sir. The left wheel has lodged on a large rock. I cannot get the cart to roll back and I’m trying to get my ox to pull the cart over the rock without having to unload.

Here, let me give you a hand, said the forty-something man. He stooped to examine the situation, then stood and told David, I’ll push forward from the other side of the cart while you get the ox to pull.

Knowing there was no damage to the cart and that it was barely hanging on the rock, he took the goad in his right hand and tightly gripping the reins, gave a more than gentle jab into Sheba’s side. Gi-yup! When the man signaled as he began his strong push, David hollered loudly. With one great heave Sheba pressed forward, leaning into the yoke and pressing with her strong legs and weight, trying to pull the cart forward. With the help of the man in the rear of the cart, the wheels grudgingly began to turn.

There! David yelled with glee as the cart raised up and then slammed down again with a rattling bang. The look on his face was as if he had won a battle with the Philistines, which the teen did not realize would be a feat ahead of him many times in his future. Just a large bump in King Saul’s road, momma. We are moving well now. To his kind helper he raised, Thank you, sir, we would not have made it without your help.

Glad I could help, son. You folks have a safe journey, said the gracious helper. Had you been stuck here long you may have had a lot worse problem with some rascal thieves. Shalom!

David waved back to his timely deliverer and continued his journey northward. He did not want to admit his day-dreaming had caused him to take his eyes off the road.

The two-wheel cart, bearing his Mother, the lambs, and treasures for Zeruiah and his nephews continued rolling slowly toward their destined retreat. David walked along with spirits lifted by his fortune of getting the cart out of the jam as quickly as he did, due to the kindness of the gentleman passer-by. Theirs was a problem common to ancient travelers and the two-wheel-wonders of their day.

David continued following the big brown ox alongside the cart, praising the Lord as he so often did when aware of God’s mercies and blessings. This was his good habit when keeping Jesse’s sheep out in the pastureland, except there his lyre would be flooding its soft-toned melody into the Judean air. David was unusual for his age and kind, seldom did his thoughts drift far from The LORD God of Israel. His mother, much more appreciative of David’s fine qualities than Jesse, often described her spiritually sensitive son as a boy after the heart of God.

As the distance to the village of Ananiah now was short, David knew that he should soon begin to see the peaks of Mt. Olivet ahead on his left. His eyes began to peer in that direction, halting his stare back and forth to the rough road and back again to the horizon just over the short stubby trees. He began to think about Jebus and the Rise. Thoughts of the fun and roaming he would have over the next three days raced through his mind. Though he was certainly suited for the solitude that comes with the life of a shepherd, the handsome, light-skinned, auburn-haired teenager loved people and related easily to almost anyone, well, except to some of his brothers. His thoughts turned for a moment to Nob and he wondered if he would see his friend, Abiathar. He loved Ahimelek the priest and his son and always enjoyed the trip to the small tabernacle.

David enjoyed exploring the small caves where he kept sheep, sometimes taking refuge from a storm and even spending a night in them. This sparked thoughts of exploring the massive cave not far from Zeruiah’s house. This would be a truly exciting challenge. He now was finally old enough to make these adventures with Jo and Abi.

Then more exciting thoughts came to David’s mind. Will I finally get to enter Joab’s secret passage to the well-fortified city of Jebus? Would we be able to have a stone-throw contest and practice slings at the Rise? Will the Jebusite farmer be there? Joab said he and his brothers tried to play where the man could not see them, fearing he might object to their being there without Abidan. Their fear of that man is probably just another game they play.

Joab had not told David they would hide from Ornan until they could make their getaway, but he would always seem to find them, and when he did, he would give them a pomegranate or some figs. They could make their way around in Jebus well enough. Even though some Jebusites and Jews were not especially friendly, like any other racial and cultural divide, most of the people there never let differences be boundaries. Seemingly this Jebusite had never stopped Jo, Abi, and Asa, playing at what they and the people around Jebus called the Rise.

David’s wandering thoughts were interrupted suddenly when he heard the voice of his mother. David, Zeruiah’s house is just beyond that hill on the right. We’re almost there.

This was a welcomed word to this weary fifteen-year-old boy, having walked nearly five miles in what seemed to him a whole day. The news quickened his spirits though and energized his tired legs and feet. His eyes turned slightly to his right in search of the signal of smoke coming from his sister’s house. Before he spied the smoke plumes rising into the late afternoon sky, his nose detected the inviting aroma of roasting meat on an outside pit. It had to be coming from the very house where he could already taste the sweet treats and delicious bread cakes she always had on her table as a delicacy after the tasty evening meals she so skillfully prepared.

Wonder if Jo and Abi are outside watching for us? was the thought flowing in David’s mind as Sheba, their old two-wheel cart, and two weary travelers drew near the small village.

The old cart rolled slowly up in front of the home of Zeruiah and Abidan and their boys. When the family heard the humph-bangs of wooden cart-wheels rolling down the narrow pathway in front of their mud-brick farmhouse, two of the boys burst through the door shouting as they rushed toward the cart. They failed to get there, however, before the two family dogs had already welcomed their guests with friendly barking and wagging tails. Asahel, by far the fastest runner of the trio of David’s nephews, arrived first, with an excited shout, Mama-Nitz! Weed! like school friends at a reunion. Abishai joined in making it a three-way celebration of boys together again with bear hugs and slapping hands. By now, Zeruiah and Abidan made their way out to the cart with the two women greeting and making mother-daughter small talk and loving hugs.

Abidan, a gentle and quiet man in his late-forties, began unloading the cart and imploring the happy boys to help take the food and other items into the house. He then began unhitching the ox and signaled Joab to lead Sheba and the lambs with their two donkeys into the large corral adjoining the courtyard. Nearby were several lambs, goats, and another ox feeding at the trough. Running around the yard in their constant pecking pose and mostly unaffected by the gleeful noise were over a dozen fowl, chickens of different varieties and two geese chiming in with loud honks. Sitting on top of the wall nearby, sleepily ignoring the commotion was Noah, the family cat.

Meeting the weary but happy travelers was the aroma of roasted lamb and lentils steaming in the pots on the stove in the corner of the courtyard. Along with the tantalizing aroma, the house was now filled with the giggles of young boys, the chatter of two women, and the barking of two dogs. It was old home week at the house of Abidan.

The house was larger than most in the village, modestly yet beautifully decorated with colorful tapestries on the walls. There was every evidence of a proud and caring mother’s touch in the red and blue trimmings, draperies, and ornate lamps posted around the large main room. On each piece of furniture were carvings, alabaster containers, pottery vessels, each with artistic design typical of a culture rich in both Hebrew and Moabite design.

Stopping his conversation momentarily, David peered over to the small table near the door where he knew his sister always had parched seeds in a bowl. Resuming his conversation with Abi and Jo, he quickly moved toward the table and reached his hand into the bowl, drawing it out filled with the delicious treats, one of his favorites.

Sitting next to the bowl of parched wild-flower seeds was a pitcher of honey cream, truly David’s favorite beverage. Honey cream, a delicacy for this and many families, was a mixture of honey and butter or cream. When mixed with cream it was a very refreshing beverage. When mixed with butter, it made a tasty dessert. Either way, David could wipe out this treat easily. Zeruiah noticed that David had found her refreshments, as she hoped and knew he would, and smiled with delight. Though she had never lived with David, she loved her little brother and looked at him more as a son.

I see you found the honey cream and seeds, Weed, she remarked. How are they?

Delicious, Zeru, thanks for having them. They are my favorite, her hungry brother replied.

You’ll have to fight off Jo and Asa for those. They must be kin to you, Zeruiah responded.

Weed was the name Zeruiah gave her little brother when he was born. The Hebrew pronunciation of David is Dah-weed. Her boys and most of the family have called him Weed all his life.

Hey, Weed! yelled Abishai. Our nanny goat finally had her baby. He was born last week. Wanna go see him?

Sure, David gladly responded. Let’s go!

The two boys made their way through the back door of the farm house and toward the out-building next to the coral. Grandmother Nitzevet, (Mama Nitz) began taking the gifts from her large woven sack, one for each child and both parents. She first handed to Asa his gift, a beautiful olive wood carving of a horse that Jesse had made. While the absent elder member of the family was not present, his carving skills stood alone among most, clearly marking his presence.

Wow, Mama-Nitz, I really like this! the young boy said, grinning widely as he held the horse up for all to see. Thank you, Mama-Nitz, I’m gonna show Papa.

The excited boy ran outside to show his prize to his father, who was finishing up stalling Sheba in the corral and making sure there was plenty of hay in the trough.

Look, Papa, Asa’s voice at excitement level, what Grandpa Jesse made for me!

Abidan took the carving Jesse had made for his youngest step-grandson in his hands, holding before his keen dark eyes while admiring the skilled craftsmanship of his father-in-law.

Beautiful, Asa! What do you think you will name him? Abidan asked as he placed the carving back into the small hands of his joyful child.

Asahel thought for a moment. Remembering the story his mother had told him just the night before, he said, I’m gonna name him Boaz, after David’s great-grandfather and our hero!

That’s a perfect name for such a beautiful horse, Asa, his father replied.

Abidan had been serving in King Saul’s army for nearly two decades. He had enlisted a short-time after Saul was crowned King of Israel. One of the demands of the people in asking Samuel for a king was that they wanted and needed a standing army like other nations. Soon after enlisting, Abidan began rising through the ranks, and at the present time held the rank of captain. Because he would be away from home during times of training and war with the Philistines and other countries, his three sons were given great responsibilities around their home and small farm. His sons were also influenced by their father’s occupation and often talked about enlisting in the army when they attained the proper age.

After a delicious evening meal of roasted lamb with all the trimmings, prepared by Zeruiah, the family enjoyed catch-up conversation, filling in on the last two months since they had been together. Zeruiah asked her young brother to play a tune for them on his kinnor, which delighted David and drew pride from Nitzevet. After a short while, knowing that Nitzevet and David were extra tired from their journey, Abidan suggested they all turn in for the evening and prepare for the busy day ahead. They would be taking their regular trip to the tabernacle in Nob, where the family would make their sacrifices to the LORD, THE NAME.⁹

Joab sounded quickly, Papa, let us sleep on the roof! It is warm now. We will be quiet.

All right, Jo, Abidan granted, just make sure that you are and that you sleep. You really need to get to sleep. It is already way past dark. Mama-Nitz, you sleep in your customary place, the small room. Zeru has prepared your bed. She and I will take our room as usual. Abidan continued, thinking of his young brother-in-law more like a brother, David, your mother keeps telling us what a strong believer in the LORD you continue growing to be. Would you honor us by asking God’s blessings on all of us for a good night sleep, and remember your father, Jesse and brothers and sister, Abigail, as we pray?

David briefly voiced his prayer as he often did, on his knees with hands lifted up to God:

"O blessed LORD, God of all creation,

We lift our prayer to You this night,

Grateful for a safe journey to this home of our beloved family.

We pray for a safe journey to Nob, tomorrow to worship You.

We ask that You receive our sacrifices to You.

Watch over us and protect us

Even as You protect my father and brothers at home

And our beloved Abigail and her family.

Grant, O Father of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob,

That we might truly rest in You. Amen."

Normally, the boys would have whispered and giggled well into the dark night, but on this night, exhaustion made their heavy eyes succumb to a quiet night, aided by a slight eastern breeze from the highlands. All, that is, except David, the last one awake, as sleep came slowly and his young mind continued to envision his excited anticipation of the next three days, attending the Tabernacle, seeing Abiathar and his father, Ahimelech, the priest, exploring the cave, and the last day, going to the Rise. He was excited about all these trips, especially the cave and the Rise, since he had not been able to go to either place before. His thoughts were so fixed upon these exciting days, he was unaware when Zeruiah slipped quietly up the courtyard stairs to check on the boys before she made her way to her room. As always, she left some of the lamps burning downstairs, since the people of her land always left a lamp burning and never a complete darkness to await the break of dawn.

2

The Sacrifices

T he morning began with the family cock crowing dawn’s alarm. Zeruiah, as usual, had already risen and started a fire in the small hearth or iron cook stove out in the court, and was preparing bread for baking. Abidan had gone outside to begin feeding the livestock and preparing the animals for the journey to Nob and the Tent of Meeting. Shiloh was no longer the religious center since the Ark had been taken by the Philistines nearly a century before and the town and remains of the tabernacle had been burned. The family tried to make the short journey to Nob at least twice each year and offer their sacrifices according to the Law of Moses and Levitical tradition.

Usually Jesse and some of the other sons would attend, but due to harvest preparations, they would miss this visit. David, Nitzevet, and Zeruiah’s family would be traveling in the larger four-wheel wagon this time, since the cart was not suitable or large enough for three adults, four young boys, several lambs and large sacks of grain. Abidan yoked both his ox and Sheba to the cart for the heavy load of family and animals for the sacrifice, one for each of the adults. The boys were not included in the sacrifice, although Joab and David would be eligible at their ages.

The main interest for Joab, David, Abishai and Asahel on this trip to Nob, was to see their friend, Abiathar (Ab-yaw-thar), son of the