Sermon comparing the mistakes of Saul and David. Saul and David

Meanwhile, Saul, tormented by remorse for his disobedience to God and fears for his future, became gloomy and suspicious, and often began to suffer from attacks of unbearable melancholy. Those close to him, in order to somehow entertain the despondent king, advised him to resort to the consolation of music, and this led to Saul’s first meeting with his future successor David. Possessing a gentle soul and devoting much of his shepherd life to music, David improved so much in the art of music that he acquired widespread fame, so that the king’s entourage pointed to him as the one most capable of dispelling Saul’s gloomy thoughts and heavy melancholy with his sweet playing. And so, indeed, the young shepherd was invited to the palace and, when necessary, played for the king. But he still had to perform this duty so rarely that he had the opportunity to go to his hometown for a long time and continued to engage in his shepherd business. One incident, however, brought him closer to the king.

The war with the Philistines began again, and during it, one giant emerged from the ranks of the enemies - Goliath, who proposed to solve the matter of war with him in single combat. Despite the magnificent and highly honorable reward offered by Saul, namely, to marry his daughter to the winner, none of the Israelites dared to volunteer for single combat with the terrible giant clad in armor, who therefore mocked the Israeli army every day. At this time, David, on behalf of his father, came to the Israeli camp to visit his brothers who were in the service. And with him, again, the Philistine giant, as usual, stepped out from his ranks and with a thunderous voice began to mock the cowardice and cowardice of the Israelites. When David found out what was the matter, his young soul could not tolerate such reproach against the “army of the living God,” and he began to seethe with uncontrollable courage.

In the desert, he slayed the lions that attacked his flocks; with the help of God, he decided to slay this lion that was reproaching his people. His decision was reported to Saul, but the king, seeing the plain-looking young man in front of him and considering him more capable of playing the harp than engaging in single combat with a terrible giant, rejected his offer, and only David’s enthusiastic confidence and courage forced him to agree to accept the challenge. Saul offered him his armor, but it was too large and heavy for David, and he decided to fight Goliath with his shepherd's weapons. The hostile troops stood between Succoth and Azek, about twenty miles southwest of Jerusalem, on two opposite banks of a valley (wadi), through which a stream flowed in winter, drying up in summer. And so, when the gigantic Philistine, as usual, came out to mock the Israelites, a young man in simple shepherd’s clothing, with a staff and sling in his hands and a knapsack on his shoulders, separated from the ranks of the army on the opposite bank of the wadi. He boldly descended into the valley and, having collected smoothly washed flint stones most convenient for slinging, he stood in a warlike position before the gigantic enemy. Such an opponent could seem to Goliath only as a mockery of him, and he remarked in arrogant indignation that he was not a dog for some boy to come out against him with a stick in his hands and stones. When David boldly answered him that he was not a dog, but worse than her, Goliath burst into abuse and shouted menacingly that the despicable shepherd would come closer to him, and Goliath, without a humiliating struggle for him, would give his body to the birds and beasts to be devoured. But there was no need to talk for a long time. With a mark and his usual hand, David threw a stone from a sling, and the stunned giant fell to the ground, and David, jumping up to him with the speed of a doe, cut off his head with his own sword. The Philistines, amazed by such a miraculous feat of the young man, fled in confusion, pursued by the Israelites. David’s feat gained him the friendship of the valiant Jonathan, who from then on “loved him as his own soul,” and Saul brought him closer to himself and made him a military leader, although he did not marry him to his daughter as a reward for the victory over Goliath. But Saul's affection for David was soon spoiled by his enthusiastic praise of the latter. When they returned from the battlefield, women and maidens everywhere greeted them with songs and dances, with solemn tympans and cymbals; but among the songs, Saul’s suspicious ear heard a refrain that was insulting to him: “Saul defeated thousands, and David - tens of thousands! “A gloomy suspicion fell into the king’s soul in relation to the young hero, and he twice, as if in a frenzy, tried to pierce him with a spear when David indulged in sweet music in order to disperse the king’s melancholy. Having failed in this, Saul tried to encourage David’s courage in order to lead him to certain death with his brave exploits among the Philistines. But David always remained unharmed and, for Saul’s daughter Michal, performed the dangerous feat of circumcision, not even one hundred Philistines, as Saul appointed, but two hundred, and presented material evidence of the feat itself. Thus, David became the king's son-in-law and increasingly gained the love of the people; but then “Saul began to fear David even more, and became his enemy for life.” He began to openly pursue the people's favorite and his secret successor, and as a result of this, a series of amazing adventures of David began, with which Providence gradually prepared him to take the throne. This was a difficult school of testing, in which David’s conviction was to be strengthened that the fate and life of man are in the hand of God, and even the king with all his army, being deprived of God’s help, becomes more defenseless and helpless than the last slave.

Having failed in his plans to destroy David through the Philistines, Saul openly began to seek his death, and the order about this was communicated not only to all his associates, but even to David’s friend, his son Jonathan. The latter managed to temporarily calm down the bloodthirsty rage of his father, and Saul even swore that he would stop plotting against David’s life. But David’s new exploits in the war with the Philistines again irritated the wound in Saul’s heart, and in a dark frenzy he again threw a spear at him when David inspiredly played his harp in front of him. The hand, shaking with furious excitement, however, betrayed Saul this time too, and the thrown spear flew past and pierced the wall, and David escaped. Enraged by the failure of this new attempt to get rid of his hated son-in-law, Saul ordered his house to be surrounded and captured at night. And he was saved from this danger only by the cunning of his deeply devoted wife Michal. Then David fled to the elderly prophet Samuel and there, in the host of prophets, he relieved his soul, tired of persecution, with singing and music. Saul sent his servants in pursuit of him and to Ramah to capture him there; but the servants three times succumbed to the influence of the enthusiastic songs of the prophets and themselves began to prophesy. Enraged, Saul finally went to Ramah himself; but as soon as he heard the familiar sounds of prophetic songs, his gloomy soul brightened, the spirit of malice departed from him and the Spirit of God descended on him again, so that he again abandoned his bloodthirsty thought for a while. David, generously forgiving the ill-fated king, poured out his grief to his friend Jonathan and tried to win over the king through him. But the king’s bloodthirstiness was now incurable, and when Jonathan, at the opportunity that presented itself, began to intercede with his father on behalf of his friend David, he almost died at the hands of Saul, who in a rage threw a spear at his favorite heir-son. Having learned about this, David touchingly said goodbye to Jonathan, who, realizing the injustice suffered by his valiant friend, cried bitter tears when separated from him; but David wept even more. The love between them was amazing, the kind that can only exist between two valiant, pure souls. They parted almost forever and met each other only once more in their lives, but under the most sad circumstances.

David and Goliath

Having parted with his friend, David headed to the priestly city of Nob, where at that time the tabernacle was located, and the high priest lived with it (1 Samuel 21). He arrived in the city hungry and exhausted, and in order to strengthen his strength, under the pretext of an important royal commission that required extraordinary haste, he begged from the high priest Ahimelech the showbread and the sword of Goliath, which was kept in the tabernacle as a trophy, and with a supply of sacred bread, which the law could only be eaten by persons of the priestly rank, he retired beyond the borders of his native country, where, under the guise of a simple wanderer, he stopped in the Philistine city of Gath. But shelter there turned out to be unreliable. Those close to Achish, the king of Gath, began to express their suspicions about the stranger to him and said to him: “Isn’t this David, the king of that country? Was it not to him that they sang in round dances: Saul conquered thousands, and David tens of thousands?” To ward off this dangerous suspicion, David was forced to pretend to be insane, and when he was brought to the king, “he drew on the doors, threw himself on his hands, drooled over his beard,” so that all suspicion disappeared from Achish, and David, taking advantage of this, He hurried away from here to the wild cave of Adollam, where his parents and brothers gathered around him, who probably began to be persecuted by Saul, as well as everyone dissatisfied with the rejected king, so that up to four hundred people gathered around David. Having placed his parents under the protection of the king of Moab, David and his followers again returned to the borders of their native country.

Saul, meanwhile, was exhausted from impotent anger. Hearing that the high priest had given the showbread to David, and suspecting him, and with him the entire priesthood, of conspiring with David, the enraged king ordered his servants to beat them, but when the servants refused to raise their hands against the servants of God, he ordered to carry out This is a bloodthirsty deed to a certain Doik the Edomite, who precisely denounced the high priest to him. Eighty-five priests were killed and the city itself was destroyed; Only the son of the high priest, Abiathar, was saved, who, taking with him some sacred accessories (ephod), ran to David and told him about Saul’s terrible crime. David could only grieve that he had become the unwitting cause of such a disaster, and, having given refuge to Abiathar, he himself was forced to flee from the king who was overtaking him. Once in the city of Keilah, he was almost surrounded by Saul’s army, but fled with his followers in advance and hid in inaccessible mountains and forests. During these persecutions, there were cases when Saul found himself in the complete power of David, who could easily have put him to death and thus not only get rid of the persecutor, but also inherit the throne. But David shuddered at the mere thought of laying his hand on God’s anointed and grieved even after he once cut off the hem of Saul’s robe, who had gone into the cave for need, in the depths of which the royal fugitive was hiding with his followers. This last incident moved Saul to tears; when he learned about the all-forgiving generosity with which the persecuted David treated him even at that moment when his life was completely in the hands of the latter, he began to repent of his madness and, already humbly recognizing David as his future successor, asked him only for this so that he would not uproot his descendants and destroy the name of his father, which David swore to him. But the spirit of malice soon took possession of Saul again, and he again rushed in pursuit of David, who soon had a new opportunity to prove to the unjust king his unshakable and noble generosity. One night David sneaked into the king's camp and, reproaching his companion Abishai for intending to kill Saul, took with him only a spear and a cup of water at the king's bedside, and from the top of a nearby mountain loudly reproached Abner, the commander of the king's bodyguard, for his inattention and poor vigilance. near the sacred person of the king. Ashamed of this, Saul again stopped the persecution for a while, but in order to break all ties with David, he gave his wife Michal to another man. Heavily upset by such an insult, David, fearing the further wrath of the king, another time sought refuge with the king of the Philistine city of Gath. But his position there was extremely ambiguous and difficult, since the king of Gath, Achishus, having given him possession of the entire city of Ziklag, demanded from him hostile raids on his native land.

When open war with the Israelites began, David was even forced to give Achish a direct obligation to provide him with military assistance and was thus placed in the sad necessity of taking up arms against his own people. Only the suspicion of the military leaders of David’s loyalty freed him from this difficult obligation, since the Philistines forced Achish to return David from the campaign as a very unreliable ally in the war with the Israelites. Meanwhile, during his absence, the Amalekites attacked Ziklag and destroyed everything in it. This disaster so armed his very followers against David, who had lost all their property in the destroyed city, that they even wanted to stone him, and only his military success in the pursuit of the Amalekites restored the authority of David, who quickly overtook the predators, scattered them, and returned the captives and captured rich booty.

But David's trials were quickly coming to an end. An important and, at the same time, sad event took place in his native land: Samuel died in the 88th year of his life and was solemnly buried in Rama by the people who mourned him. This event weighed even more heavily on Saul's soul, since in the depths of his heart he never ceased to revere the prophet who had anointed him. His death, undoubtedly, showed his conscience even more clearly all his lies and crimes, which so deeply upset the elderly prophet and probably hastened his death. In him, despite the complete break with him, he continued to see some moral support for himself in extreme need. Now he was gone, and meanwhile the circumstances were becoming more and more threatening. The Philistines, noticing internal unrest in the kingdom of Israel, decided to take advantage of the opportunity to seize booty and moved into the country with a huge army. Saul, already clearly aware of his rejection before God and his people, had a presentiment of the impending disaster and was in despair and fear. With an instant awakening of an echo of his former faith, he asked God about the outcome of the upcoming battle, but God did not answer his weak faith. Then the ill-fated king committed another great crime and resorted to superstition, turning to magic, with the help of which he wanted to find out his fate. In Endor, near Mount Hermon, there lived a sorceress, and it was to her that night, in disguise, that Saul went, accompanied by several of his confidants. The sorceress at first refused to begin the magic, fearing punishment; but when the visitors swore “that she would not have trouble for this matter,” but would be given a good reward, the woman asked: “Whom should I bring you?” “Bring out Samuel to me,” Saul answered. The sorceress performed her magic and screamed in horror, because she simultaneously saw the ghost of Samuel and learned that her visitor was the king. “And the king said to her: Do not be afraid (tell me) what do you see”? “I see,” the woman answered, “as if a god emerging from the earth.” - “What does he look like? – Saul asked her. She answered him: “An elderly man comes out of the earth, dressed in long clothes.” “Then Saul knew that it was Samuel, and he fell face down on the ground and worshiped.” Then, getting up, he heard in fear the prophet’s voice from beyond the grave: “Why are you disturbing me so that I come out?” - “And Saul answered: It is very hard for me; The Philistines are fighting against me, and God has retreated from me and no longer answers me, either through the prophets, or in a dream, (or in a vision); therefore I called you so that you could teach me what to do.” - “And Samuel said: Why do you ask me, when the Lord has departed from you? The Lord will do what he has announced through me; The Lord will take the kingdom out of your hands and give it to your neighbor David. And the Lord will deliver Israel and you into the hands of the Philistines; Tomorrow you and your sons will be with me, and the Lord will deliver the camp of Israel into the hands of the Philistines.” The terrible voice fell silent, but its words thundered with horror in Saul’s criminal conscience; he suddenly collapsed with his entire gigantic body on the ground and lay exhausted. Only after having refreshed himself with food was he able to return to the camp, where he went that same night. Samuel's terrible sentence was not slow to come true in all its accuracy. The battle with the Philistines took place in the vicinity of Jezreel. The Israelis could not withstand the pressure of the iron chariots of their enemy and on the very first day of the battle they were forced to retreat to Mount Gilboa, littering their path with dead. Meanwhile, the Philistines pressed more and more on the fleeing Israel. The sons of Saul and among them the brave Jonathan had already fallen under the blows of their enemies; but then the enemy arrows overtook Saul himself and began to shower him with a hail of arrows, “and he was very wounded by the arrows.” Death was obvious and inevitable. The proud king, however, does not want to die at the hands of the uncircumcised and orders his squire to draw his sword and stab him. But the squire does not dare to raise his hands against God’s anointed, and then the ill-fated king commits the last crime of his life - suicide, which was followed by his faithful squire. The triumphant Philistines rushed to rob the dead and, having found the bodies of Saul and Jonathan, barbarously violated them and then hanged them on the walls of the city of Bethsan. Such a shame aroused courage in the inhabitants of the city of Jabez-gilead, who, remembering the benefit once shown to them by Saul, made a brave raid, took down the royal bodies from the wall, burned them, buried the bones in their city under an oak tree and fasted for seven days in memory of the dead king, showing such image of the rare virtue of gratitude to the fallen king.

The news of the outcome of the battle of Gilboa soon reached David. One young Amalekite, seizing Saul's crown and wrist, hastened to David, hoping to please him with the news of the king's death and, in order to increase his supposed reward, even falsely declared that he himself had pinned him. But David was horrified by this sacrilege and ordered the Amalekite to be put to death because he had raised his hand against the anointed king, and he and those around him bitterly mourned not only his friend Jonathan, but also the ill-fated king Saul. His grief was expressed in an inspired song: “Your beauty, O Israel, is stricken on your heights! How the mighty have fallen, the weapons of war have perished! Saul and Jonathan, amiable and agreeable in their lives, were not separated in their death... Daughters of Israel, weep for Saul, who dressed you in scarlet robe with ornaments... Jonathan was slain on your high places. I grieve for you, my brother Jonathan; you were very dear to me; your love was for me higher than a woman’s love. How the mighty have fallen, the weapons of war perished!..” This song became a historical monument, and all the people learned to sing it (2 Kings 1:17-27).

Thus ended the reign of the first king of the people of Israel. Saul's life falls into two periods, of which the first is his life with God and the second is his life without God. The first period therefore serves as a revelation of the best qualities of his soul - humility and trust in God, obedience to the will of God, followed by success and victories. And during this period he did a lot for the political rise of his state. The foreign yoke was overthrown, and the surrounding predatory peoples suffered heavy defeats, forcing them to abandon the plunder of the kingdom of the chosen people. But in the second period, his worst qualities clearly took over - arrogance, arrogance, disobedience, which, in turn, were inevitably followed by troubles in internal governance, melancholy, superstition, defeat, despair and suicide. In all this, he was a mirror of his people and through his fate once again taught a deep lesson that the chosen people should place their strength not in man, even if he were a king, but only in God, who is their only helper and protector, and without Him they will inevitably become the helpless and miserable prey of their wicked neighbors. This lesson was deeply imprinted on the soul of David, who was now free to act as king of the people of Israel.

could not be together due to Saul's hostility towards David. Saul knew about the prophecy that David should become king of Israel after him and could not come to terms with it. The story of David and Goliath, as well as David's military successes, also aroused Saul's envy. Having organized the persecution of David, Saul was convinced several times of David’s nobility and his loyalty to his king, but he was never able to suppress his suspicion and hostility towards David. David's situation became more and more dangerous, and he was forced to flee to the Philistines. The king of the Philistine city of Gath, Anachus, took him into his service. Anachus hoped to use David's leadership talent in the war with the Israelites, but David, not wanting to fight with his fellow tribesmen, resorted to cunning. He raided the Amalekites, Israel's longtime enemies, and presented the captured booty to Anachus as taken from the Israelites. Satisfied, Anachus said: “He has disgusted his people, Israel, and will be my servant forever.” Meanwhile, the prophet Samuel died in the land of Israel.

Saul now decided to demonstrate the superiority of royal power over priestly power and ordered the expulsion from the country of all sorcerers and fortune-tellers who were patronized by the priests.

Soon the Philistine kings united for a decisive campaign against Israel. Saul marched against his enemies, but when he saw the countless army of the Philistines, “he was afraid, and his heart trembled strongly.” If David and Saul had been together, then Saul would have had nothing to fear, but by rejecting David, he thereby rejected Divine protection. He turned to the Lord for advice, but the Lord did not answer the king “neither in a dream, nor through the Urim (sacred jewelry with precious stones), nor through the prophets.”

Then, to the amazement of those close to him, Saul asked if there was any soothsayer nearby who could predict the outcome of the battle. Saul was reminded that all the soothsayers had been driven out by his order. But someone remembered that in the village of Endor there lives an old sorceress who knows how to summon the souls of the dead. Saul waited until nightfall and, wrapped in a cloak, accompanied by two armor-bearers, went to the witch of Endor. He asked her to summon the spirit of the prophet Samuel. The spirit of Samuel actually appeared and asked, “Why are you troubling me to come out?” Saul answered: “It is very difficult for me; the Philistines are fighting against me, and God has retreated from me and no longer answers me either through the prophets, or in a dream, or in a vision; therefore I called you so that you could teach me what I should do.”

Samuel gave him a formidable answer: “Why are you asking me, when the Lord has departed from you and become your enemy? Tomorrow you and your sons will be with me; and the Lord will deliver the camp of Israel into the hands of the Philistines.” The next day a battle took place. The Israelites were defeated, Saul's eldest sons, including Jonathan, died, and Saul himself, seriously wounded, not wanting to surrender, committed suicide. David did not participate in this battle:despite such a difficult relationship between David and Saul, the PhilistinesThey did not trust him completely, and therefore did not take him on a campaign against Israel.

Upon learning of the defeat of his fellow tribesmen, the death of Saul and his friend Jonathan, David gave in to despair. Sobbing bitterly, he tore his clothes and composed a lamentable song: “Your beauty, O Israel, is struck on your heights! How the mighty have fallen! Saul and Jonathan, kind and agreeable in their lives, were not separated in their death; faster than eagles, They were stronger than lions! I grieve for you, my brother Jonathan..."

Now, after the death of Saul, David could return to his homeland. It has long been known among the people that the prophet Samuel anointed David as king during Saul’s lifetime. Therefore, many Israelis were ready to recognize David as their king. But some believed that it was not David, but Saul’s youngest son, Ishbosheth, who had the legal right to the throne. An internecine war began in the country, which lasted seven years. David's supporters won, and he became king over the entire Israelite-Jewish state. David was then thirty years old. Soon the Philistines again invaded Israel. David asked the Lord, “Shall I go against the Philistines?” The Lord answered: “Go, for I will deliver the Philistines into your hands.”

David opposed his enemies and inflicted such a crushing defeat on them that from then on the Philistines forever lost their power, and later even recognized the hegemony of Israel. David said about his victory over the Philistines: “The Lord has swept away my enemies before me, as water sweeps away.”

After some time, David captured a fortress that belonged to one of the Canaanite tribes and founded the city of Jerusalem there, making it his capital. The Ark of the Covenant was brought to Jerusalem.

Having built a magnificent palace for himself, David set out to build a magnificent temple for the Ark of the Covenant. But God, who appeared in a dream to one of the prophets, declared that the Ark should for now be in a simple tent, as in the time of Moses, and the son of David, Solomon, was destined to build a temple for it.

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David lived in the safe places of En Gaddi. When Saul returned from the Philistines, he was informed, saying: “Behold, David is in the wilderness of En-gaddi.” And Saul took three thousand chosen men from all Israel and went to look for David and his men in the mountains where the chamois live.

And he came to a sheep pen by the roadside; There was a cave there, and Saul went there to need; David and his men were sitting in the depths of the cave.

And his men said to David:

This is the day about which the Lord spoke to you: “Behold, I will deliver your enemy into your hands, and you will do with him what you please.”

David stood up and quietly cut off the edge of Saul's outer garment. But after this it pained David’s heart that he cut off the edge of Saul’s robe. And he said to his people:

May the Lord not allow me to do this to my master, the Lord’s anointed, to lay my hand on him, for he is the Lord’s anointed.

And David restrained his people with these words and did not allow them to rebel against Saul. And Saul got up and went out of the cave onto the road.

Then David also stood up and came out of the cave, and shouted after Saul, saying:

My lord, king!

Saul looked back, and David fell face down on the ground and bowed to him. And David said to Saul:

Why do you listen to the speeches of people who say: “Behold, David is plotting evil against you”? Behold, today your eyes see that the Lord has today delivered you into my hands in the cave; and they told me to kill you; but I spared you and said: “I will not lift up my hand against my master, for he is the Lord’s anointed.” My father! look at the hem of your garment in my hand; I cut off the hem of your garment, but did not kill you: find out and make sure that there is no evil or deceit in my hand, and I have not sinned against you; and you are looking for my soul to take it away. May the Lord judge between me and you, and may the Lord take revenge on you for me; but my hand will not be on you, as the ancient parable says: “From the wicked comes lawlessness.” And my hand will not be on you. Who did the king of Israel go up against? Who are you chasing? Behind a dead dog, behind one flea. Let the Lord be the judge and judge between me and you. He will examine, sort out my case, and save me from your hand.

When David had finished speaking these words to Saul, Saul said:

You are more right than me, for you repaid me with good, and I repaid you with evil; You showed this today by treating me mercifully, when the Lord delivered me into your hands, you did not kill me. Who, having found his enemy, would send him on his way? The Lord will reward you with goodness for what you did to me today. And now I know that you will surely reign, and the kingdom of Israel will be firmly in your hand. So, swear to me by the Lord that you will not uproot my descendants after me and destroy my name in my father’s house.

And David swore to Saul. And Saul went to his house, and David and his men went up to the fortified place.

In the land of Benjamin, in the city of Gibeah, there lived a noble man named Kis. Among the children he had, Saul especially stood out, a young man of exceptional beauty and enormous stature - head and shoulders taller than all the Israelites. The Kis family was engaged in agriculture and cattle breeding. They were known among the people as good Israelites who were not reconciled to the foreign yoke and remained faithful to Jehovah God.

One day, Keys's donkeys disappeared. He told Saul to take a servant and go in search. Saul and his servant searched for the donkeys for three days, visited many places, but could not find the missing animals anywhere. Having reached the city of Ramah, Saul invited the servant to return home, since the family might consider them missing and would worry about them. But the servant advised Saul, before returning home, to go to Ramah to the prophet Samuel and ask him about the donkeys. Saul agreed with the sound advice, and they headed into the city. They met Samuel in the city center.

The day before Saul came to Ramah, the Lord said to Samuel: “Tomorrow at this time I will send you a man from the land of Benjamin, and you anoint him as a ruler over My people Israel, and he will save My people from the hand of the Philistines.” When Samuel saw Saul approaching him, the Lord said to him: “ This is the man I told you about; he will rule my people" (). Seeing the tall and handsome Saul, Samuel realized that before him was a man worthy of the royal throne. He invited him to a festive dinner and asked him not to worry, since the missing donkeys had already been found. During lunch, Samuel seated his dear guest in the place of honor and treated him to the best dishes. Then he went with Saul to the roof of his house, and there they talked until late. And early in the morning Samuel woke up Saul and led him out of the city. The servant went further along the road to Gibeah, and Samuel, left alone with Saul, took a vessel of oil, poured it on Saul’s head and said: “Behold, the Lord anoints you to be the ruler of His inheritance [in Israel, and you will reign over the people of the Lord. ..]" (). The young man was shocked and could not believe that this was the will of God. He believed only when, on the way back home, exactly everything that Samuel predicted happened to him: near Rachel’s tomb, he met two people who said that the donkeys had been found and his father was looking forward to his return. Then, at the Tabor oak grove, he met three pilgrims who were heading to Rama for a sacrifice, and they gave him two loaves of bread; The most important, however, was the third meeting. Saul saw a host of prophets descending from the mountain. To the sound of harps, pipes and harps, they sang and prophesied. Saul felt the Spirit of the Lord come upon him, and he began to prophesy along with the other prophets. Many people who knew Saul were perplexed and asked each other: “ What happened to son Kisov? is Saul also among the prophets??» ().

The rite of Saul's anointing was performed in deep secrecy. Saul did not even tell his loved ones what happened to him in Rama. However, it was necessary for the Israelites to approve the election of Saul as king. For this purpose, Samuel called the people to Mizpah. The king was chosen by lot, and the lot fell on Saul, who had long been anointed king by Samuel. Saul was so embarrassed by his election as king that he disappeared into the baggage train, among the carts and pack animals. They found him and brought him to Samuel. Admiring the courageous appearance of the chosen king, Samuel said to the people: “Do you see whom the Lord has chosen? there is no one like him in all the people. Then the people exclaimed and said: Long live the king!” ().

After this, Samuel outlined and wrote down in the book the rights and duties of the king and dismissed everyone to their homes. Saul, at the head of his loyal people, went to his home, Gibeah. But not all the Israelites were happy with Saul's election. Some even said with contempt: “Should he save us?” (). But Saul, an intelligent and reserved man, pretended not to notice this, and was only waiting for an opportunity to prove to all the Israelites that they were not mistaken in him. Soon such an opportunity presented itself to him.

Saul defeats the Ammonites

Immediately after his election to the kingdom, Saul could not rule openly and exercise full power, for in Gibeah, as in many other Israeli cities, there were Philistine security detachments. Saul had neither a palace nor servants - he was still engaged in agriculture. At this time, the Ammonites again began their aggressive actions against the Israelites.

East of the Jordan River, in the mountains of Gilead, was the Israeli city of Jabez. Naash, the king of the Ammonites, pulled up huge forces to the city and was preparing for a decisive assault. The inhabitants of Jabez entered into negotiations with Nahash, but he replied that he agreed to conclude a peace treaty with them only on the condition that the Ammonites gouge out the right eye of every inhabitant of the city. The elders of Jabez asked for seven days of truce to consider this condition. Taking advantage of the short-term truce, they sent envoys to Saul to ask for help. Saul, having listened to the ambassadors, became enraged, cut into pieces two oxen with which he plowed the land, and sent them among the tribes of Israel, declaring “that this will be done to the oxen of anyone who does not follow Saul and Samuel” (). In response to the king's call, a large militia gathered at the appointed place. Early in the morning, the Israelites suddenly attacked the Ammonite camp and massacred them. Only a few of the Ammonites escaped.

Saul's victory made him a national hero. Now those Israelis who did not want to see Saul on the royal throne recognized him as worthy to bear the high title of king. After the victory, Samuel again convened a meeting in Gilgal, where all the people confirmed the election of Saul as king. Here Samuel, in a solemn ceremony, resigned the title of judge, transferring all his rights to the newly elected king. At the same time, he commanded both the king and all the people not to deviate from the true religion and to zealously preserve the faith of their fathers. Having transferred temporal power to Saul, Samuel continued to be the spiritual leader of all Israel.

Saul's first disobedience

Having defeated the Ammonites, Saul began to prepare for war with Israel’s most formidable enemy, the Philistines. First of all, he set out to form a permanent and strong army. From the bravest people he formed a three-thousand-strong guard. He placed a thousand soldiers under the command of his courageous and brave son Jonathan, and kept two thousand with himself. The brave Jonathan and his soldiers defeated the Philistine guard detachment in Gibeah at night and liberated his hometown from the enemy. The joyful news of this event spread like lightning throughout Israel and became the impetus for a nationwide uprising against its enemies.

Taking advantage of the general enthusiasm, Saul called the Israelites to Gilgal and there organized a rebel army from them. The Philistines, realizing the seriousness of the situation, concentrated their troops at Michmash. It was a brilliantly armed army, consisting not only of infantry detachments, but also of many war chariots. Saul's army was very poorly armed; only Saul and Jonathan had iron swords and spears. It is not surprising, therefore, that the appearance of a large Philistine army caused panic among the Israelites. People left their homes and hid in the mountains, and some crossed the Jordan, seeking refuge in the country of Gad and Gilead. Saul was at that time in Gilgal, waiting for Samuel, who should come at the appointed time and offer a sacrifice to God before the battle. The appointed day arrived, but Samuel still did not come. The army, infected with general panic, melted away every day, and in the end only six hundred of the most devoted warriors remained with the king. The situation was desperate. Any minute there could be a clash with the enemy, and Saul did not want to enter into battle without common prayer and sacrifice. Then the king himself decided to make a sacrifice to God, although he had no right to do so. But as soon as he completed the ritual of sacrifice, Samuel came. Saul respectfully came out to meet him, but heard from the prophet a terrible sentence that for violating the will of God the Lord would deprive him of the title of king and instead find him “ for yourself a husband after your own heart" (). Samuel left the Israelite camp, and Saul began to prepare for battle. With a small number of soldiers, Saul managed to put a large Philistine detachment to flight. Saul's son Jonathan especially distinguished himself in this battle. But this major victory did not decide the outcome of the war with the Philistines. The Philistines still dominated Israel.

Saul's second disobedience

Saul understood that sooner or later a decisive clash with the Philistines would occur, and he carefully prepared for it. To this end, he strengthened the capital of his kingdom, the city of Gibeah. But Saul directed all his energy to forming a regular army, enrolling the bravest and most courageous in it. Saul appointed his cousin Abner as commander of the army. In order to strengthen his kingdom, he successfully waged wars in the east with the Ammonites, Moabites, and Edomites. But especially in the southeast, Israel was worried about the Amalekites. These nomadic robber tribes who lived on the Sinai Peninsula were constant enemies of Israel from ancient times. And finally, the hour of reckoning approached for the Amalekites. Samuel, at the command of God, came to Gibeah to Saul and said to him: “Now go and defeat Amalek... and destroy everything that he has; [do not take anything from them, but destroy and consign everything that he has]..." (). Saul quickly gathered an army and marched against the Amalekites. The campaign was successful. The Amalekites were severely punished. Saul's soldiers killed everyone, not even sparing women and children. However, this time Saul showed self-will and did not fully fulfill the command of the Lord. He felt sorry for destroying the richest spoils of war - sheep, oxen and other valuable property of the Amalekites. In addition, he saved the life of the king of the Amalekites, Agag, by taking him captive. Having learned about such an unauthorized act of the king, Samuel suddenly appeared in Saul’s camp when he was celebrating his victory, and announced to him the will of God: “ Because you rejected the word of the Lord, and He rejected you so that you would not be king [over Israel]" (). Saul could not help but take into account the enormous authority of the prophet and humbly began to ask him for forgiveness. Fearing that news of their conflict would cause unrest among the people, Saul begged Samuel to remain in the camp for the sacrifice. But the angry prophet turned to leave. Seeing this, Saul wanted to forcefully detain Samuel and accidentally tore off the edge of his robe. Then Samuel said: “ Now the Lord has torn the kingdom of Israel from you and given it to your neighbor, who is better than you...." (). Samuel nevertheless remained for a while in the camp, but only in order to fully carry out God’s judgment on the Amalekites. He ordered King Agag to be brought to the altar and cut it with his own hands in front of the people. Soon after this, Samuel went to his home in Ramah and did not meet with Saul again until his death.

Although the first king of Israel was chosen by God, he was not obedient to the will of God in everything, for which the Lord deprived him of special grace.

David's anointing as king

Samuel painfully endured the break with Saul and grieved for him for a long time. One day the Lord appeared to him and said: “ How long will you grieve over Saul, whom I have rejected from being king over Israel? Fill your horn with oil and go; I will send you to Jesse the Bethlehemite, for among his sons I have provided for Myself a king." ().

In order not to incur the wrath of Saul, who from that time began to vigilantly monitor the actions of Samuel, the prophet decided to secretly anoint a new candidate for the kingdom. To this end, he took a sacrificial animal and went to Bethlehem for the sacrifice. The elders of the city knew about the rift between him and Saul, therefore, fearing Saul’s wrath, they did not greet Samuel very cordially and directly asked about the purpose of his arrival. But Samuel managed to convince them that he had arrived solely for religious purposes, and invited them all to make a sacrifice with him. Jesse, a resident of Bethlehem, and his entire family were also invited to participate in the sacrifice. When the sacrifice was made, Samuel expressed to Jesse his desire to become better acquainted with his sons. Jesse, one by one, starting with the eldest, began to bring his seven sons to Samuel, but the Lord did not choose any of them as king. Then Samuel asked Jesse if all his sons had come with him, and when he heard from him that there was another son, the youngest, who was tending the sheep, he ordered him to be called immediately. Soon, Jesse’s youngest son, David, also appeared to Samuel. Samuel liked the young man. » He was blond, with beautiful eyes and a pleasant face" (). His richly gifted soul burned with love for God. Possessing poetic ability, David already in his youth composed wondrous psalms in which he glorified the Creator of the Universe. He poured out his sublime religious feelings in skillful playing of the harp, which was an inseparable companion in his shepherd's life.

While admiring David, Samuel heard the voice of God commanding him: “ Arise, anoint him, for it is he" (). Obeying the voice of God, Samuel took the horn of oil and, in the presence of his brothers, anointed David as king. The ceremony took place in the family circle, and no one in Bethlehem had any idea that the future king of Israel was in the city. From the time Samuel anointed David as king, the Spirit of the Lord departed from Saul and began to rest on David, and Saul began to be troubled by an evil spirit. Tormented by an evil spirit, the king became gloomy and suspicious, he often suffered from attacks of unbearable melancholy. In order to somehow calm the restless spirit of the king rejected by God, those close to him advised Saul to find a skilled musician and listen to good music during attacks. Soon a talented musician was found who played the harp beautifully. He turned out to be a modest shepherd boy from Bethlehem named David. This is how two Israeli kings met for the first time: one rejected, the other blessed by God. Saul fell in love with young David and even made him his armor bearer. David's wondrous playing of the harp, accompanied by inspired songs, calmed Saul's soul and restored him to health; but then the war between the Israelites and the Philistines began again. Saul urgently began to gather an army, and David returned to his homeland in Bethlehem and continued to herd sheep.

Heroic feat of David

The Philistines, having crossed the border of Israel, camped near the city of Succoth. Saul moved towards the Philistines, blocking their path to his state. Both armies positioned themselves in combat readiness on two hills opposite each other. Neither side dared to be the first to engage in battle; then a warrior of heroic build named Goliath came out of the Philistine camp into the valley separating both camps. Clad in heavy armor, armed with a huge sword and a long spear, he approached the Israeli troops and shouted: “Why did you come out to fight? Am I not a Philistine, and you the servants of Saul? Choose a person from yourself and let him come to me; if he can fight me and kill me, then we will be your slaves; if I defeat him and kill him, then you will be our slaves...” (). Of course, among Saul’s soldiers there was not a single brave man who would dare to fight this giant. Finding that no one wanted to fight him, Goliath shouted all sorts of insults at the Israelites. This continued for forty days. Saul was powerless to do anything. He promised a big reward, tax exemption and the hand of his eldest daughter to the daredevil who accepted Goliath's challenge. But the giant inspired such horror in everyone that there were no brave souls.

Among the Israelite soldiers were the three eldest sons of Jesse. One day Jesse called David, gave him food and sent him to the Israeli camp to visit his brothers. David arrived at the gathering place just as Goliath was mocking the cowardice of the Israelites and insulting their God. Outraged by his impudence, David was inflamed with love for God and decided to punish the uncircumcised Philistine. David told his brothers and nearby soldiers about his intention to fight Goliath. The brothers, experienced warriors, ridiculed him, and when he continued to stand his ground, they became seriously angry and ordered him to immediately return home to his sheep. The rumor about the brave shepherd boy spread among the soldiers and reached the king. Saul called David into his tent and said to him in a fatherly manner: “You cannot go against this Philistine; to fight him, for you are still a youth, but he has been a warrior from his youth.” But David stood his ground. Seeing such determination of the brave young man, Saul agreed and said to him: “ Go, and may the Lord be with you" (). The king put his armor and helmet on him, girded him with his sword and ordered him to walk around the tent to see if David could move in heavy armor. But David felt awkward in them and declared that he preferred to fight in his usual shepherd's clothes. Then Saul allowed him to do as he wanted. Taking his shepherd's crook, sling and bag, David went to the valley where Goliath was at that time. On the way, he stopped at a stream, chose five smooth stones and put them in his bag. With this armor and with the hope of God's help, he boldly went to meet Goliath. When Goliath saw young David, with a staff in his hands, he could not help laughing and shouted to him contemptuously: “Why are you coming at me with a stick [and stones]? Am I a dog? (). But then he probably decided that the Israelis were making a mockery of him by sending a teenager to him. Swearing and cursing David with his gods, he threatened to throw the body of the daredevil to birds of prey and beasts. In response to the stream of insults, David said to his opponent: “ You come against me with sword and spear and shield, but I come against you in the name of the Lord of hosts, the God of the armies of Israel, which you have defied; Now the Lord will deliver you into my hand, and I will kill you... and all the earth will know that there is a God in Israel... and that the Lord saves not by sword and spear" (). A tense silence reigned on both hills. The Philistines waited impatiently for their invincible giant to deal a mortal blow to the enemy, and the Israelites watched with a feeling of regret the brave young man who, with such naive self-confidence, walked towards inevitable death. Goliath, holding a spear in his hands, was preparing to strike. Confident of his superiority, he did not even follow the movements of his opponent. Meanwhile, David quickly took a stone out of his bag, put it into the sling, quickly ran towards the hero and threw the stone from the sling with all his might. The stone, whistling through the air, pierced Goliath's forehead, and he fell helplessly to the ground. David instantly rushed to the stunned giant, grabbed his huge sword and cut off his head with one blow. The unexpected defeat caused unimaginable panic in the Philistine camp. The Israelites, taking advantage of the enemy's confusion, attacked them with such fury that the entire Philistine army fled. The Israelites pursued the Philistines to their cities of Gath and Ekron. After the battle, David presented Saul with Goliath's head as a trophy, and hung the giant's weapon in his tent. But David’s main trophy in this combat was military glory and popularity among the Israeli people.

The glory of David and the jealousy of Saul

As a reward for his valiant deed, Saul entrusted David with command of a detachment of soldiers. Saul's son and heir to the throne Jonathan, from the very first meeting, “loved David as his own soul” (). As a token of gratitude, he gave him his cloak, tunic, bow, sword and belt. David, despite his young age, coped well with the responsibilities of a military leader. The rumor about the feat of young David quickly spread throughout Israel. When the army returned from the battlefield, women, old and young, came out of the cities and enthusiastically greeted the victors. They danced and sang songs to the accompaniment of musical instruments. And among these songs, Saul’s suspicious ear heard a refrain that was offensive to him: “ Saul defeated thousands, and David defeated tens of thousands.! A gloomy suspicion sank into the king’s soul towards the young hero, and he said with resentment to those around him: “They gave David tens of thousands, and they gave me thousands; all he lacks is a kingdom" (). Tormented by jealousy and envy, Saul lost peace and began to rage again. To calm the king's spirit, they called David. The young man entered the king and began to touchingly play the harp. But this time the music did not help Saul. Anger against David burned in his soul. Suddenly he grabbed a spear and threw it at David. The young man dodged at the last moment and the spear pierced the wall. Seeing that the Lord was protecting David, Saul from that time began to fear him and decided to get rid of him by any means. For this purpose, he appointed him to command troops of a thousand people and sent him to war with the Philistines. But this time the young military leader went from victory to victory, winning more and more glory and love of the people.

At the same time, Saul's jealousy grew. The king did not yet dare to openly oppose David, but secretly drew up a plan of action. One day he promised David that he would give him his eldest daughter as a wife if he doubled his courage in the fight against the Philistines. The king hoped that his rival would die at the hands of his enemies. When the time came to marry David’s eldest daughter, Saul gave her to another, and gave David his youngest daughter Michal. The girl was very happy about this, since she had long fallen in love with the young hero.

Saul's open persecution of David

When David became Saul's son-in-law, the king began to fear him even more “and became his enemy for life” (). Now he moved from secret actions to open persecution of his son-in-law. One day, Saul ordered his servants to kill David, but Jonathan warned his friend in time and helped him hide, and he himself went to intercede for him. After much persuasion, Saul relented and allowed David to return. However, the reconciliation did not last long. David gained more and more victories over the Philistines, which aroused fear and envy in Saul. In a moment of anger, he threw a spear at his opponent a second time and missed again. This time David realized that he needed to save himself before it was too late, and as soon as it got dark, he ran away from the royal palace to his home. Having learned about this, Saul sent assassins to him. But Michal saved her husband at the last moment. She helped him down from the window, and laid the statue in his bed, dressing it in David's clothes and wrapping it tightly in a blanket. When the soldiers of the royal guard entered, she showed them to the bed and said that David was seriously ill and could not get up. Then Saul ordered David to be brought to him along with the bed and the sick man killed before his eyes. The deception was discovered, and Michal was brought to his father. She narrowly escaped punishment by saying that David had threatened to kill her if she did not help him escape.

Meanwhile, David safely left the city of Gibeah and went to Ramah, seeking protection from Samuel. Having learned about this, Saul sent his servants to Ramah three times to seize David, but this failed, since David was under the protection of Samuel and his disciples - the prophets. Secretly, through Jonathan, David learned that there could be no more reconciliation with the king. As a faithful friend, Jonathan asked David to take care of the safety of his life. It was unsafe to stay in Ramah for a long time, so David decided to retire to his homeland in the tribe of Judah. Having tenderly said goodbye to his beloved friend, David secretly began to make his way to the south of the country to his tribe. On the way, he went to Nob to visit the high priest Ahimelech and, with his permission, took the sword of Goliath hanging in the temple. At home, many received David with joy. Brave people flocked to him in the mountains where he was hiding. dissatisfied with Saul's policies. From these people devoted to him, David created a disciplined detachment of soldiers of six hundred people.

Having learned where the fugitive was, the angry king, at the head of a three-thousand-strong detachment of selected warriors, moved to Judea to catch David. Along the way, Saul entered Nob and put to death the high priest and all the priests for allegedly protecting the king’s sworn enemy, David. Only the son of Ahimelech, the priest Abiathar, managed to escape death. He fled from the burning city under cover of darkness, came to David and became his closest assistant. David realized that no mercy could be expected from the angry Saul. Therefore, he sent his parents across the Jordan and left them under the protection of the Moabite king, while he himself returned to the land of Judah and hid in mountainous, desert places, where it was easy to hide from pursuit.

One day, during the pursuit, Saul entered a cave to relieve himself. By chance, David and his friends hid in the depths of this cave. David could easily kill Saul, but he did not want to stain himself with the blood of God's anointed. He just quietly crept up and cut off the edge of Saul's cloak. Then, when the king and his detachment moved on further, David climbed to the top of the rock and shouted to him: “My lord, king!.. Behold, today your eyes see that the Lord has delivered you into my hands today in the cave; and they told me to kill you; but I spared you and said: “I will not lift up my hand against my master, for he is the Lord’s anointed.” My father! look at the hem of your garment in my hand; I cut off the hem of your garment, but did not kill you...” (). Saul was touched by his son-in-law's generous act. He cried, called David his son, predicted that he would be king in Israel, and after this incident he even stopped persecuting David for some time. However, driven by an evil spirit, he again rushed in pursuit of his rival.

Hiding from pursuit, David this time showed his noble generosity towards the evil and unjust king. One night, David and his armor bearer snuck into the king's camp and entered the tent in which Saul and his captain Abner were sleeping. The armor bearer wanted to kill the king, but David did not allow him to raise his hand against God’s anointed. He only took the king’s spear and a vessel of water from the tent and returned safely to the soldiers who were waiting for him. At dawn, David again climbed to the top of the inaccessible rock and from there loudly denounced Abner for poorly guarding his king, and Saul for acting unfairly towards his son-in-law. Then he ordered someone to be sent for the royal spear and the Vessel. Saul, embarrassed by the incident and touched by David's generosity, abandoned the pursuit and returned to Gibeah.

Death of Samuel and Saul

David understood that the king would not rest until he captured him alive or dead. He had no choice but to leave the borders of Israel and hide where Saul’s power did not extend. And David decided to take an offensive and humiliating step: he offered his services to Achish, king of the Philistine city of Gath. The former enemy willingly accepted him into service. It was beneficial for Achish that Israel should be weakened by internal strife. Now he could contribute to these feuds by supporting David against Saul. The king of Gath ordered David to raid the Israeli lands, but David did not even think of offending his fellow tribesmen. Instead, in secret from the Philistines, he devastated the lands of the Amalekites, the eternal enemies of Israel, and gave the spoils to Achish. Seeing David's zeal, Achish was glad to have such a talented military leader.

Meanwhile, the city of Rama plunged into deep mourning, as the great prophet, teacher and former judge, Samuel, died. In the person of Samuel, the people of Israel lost their spiritual leader, and Saul, thus, got rid of another formidable enemy. The death of an authoritative man who had enormous influence on the people freed Saul’s hands, and he decided to deal with all the supporters of Samuel, and with them all kinds of fortune-tellers and magicians. After the beating, an atmosphere of terror and horror reigned in the country. At this unfavorable time for the young Israeli state, dark clouds were approaching its blue sky. A powerful army of united Philistine princes invaded its borders. Hundreds of war chariots and thousands of iron-clad warriors camped in the Valley of Ezreel. Saul stationed his army on the slopes of Mount Gilboa, from where he could see the entire valley. The sight of the huge Philistine camp aroused in him horror and resignation before the inevitability of fate. The king with deep prayer turned to the Lord for help, “ but the Lord did not answer him either in a dream, or through the Urim, or through the prophets" (). Then he asked his entourage if there was any soothsayer nearby who could predict the future. The astonished servants replied that he had ordered all the soothsayers to be killed. But then it turned out that not far from the camp there lives an old sorceress who summons the souls of the dead and learns the future from them. At night, having changed his clothes, accompanied by two armor bearers, Saul came to the house of the sorceress and asked her to summon the spirit of Samuel. The sorceress agreed and began fortune telling. Suddenly she screamed in horror. “[Tell me] what do you see?” – the king asked her. - “I see, as it were, a god emerging from the earth.” Saul asked her again, “What does he look like?” The woman replied: “An elderly man comes out of the ground, dressed in long clothes” (). Then Saul realized that it was the spirit of Samuel and bowed down to the ground. The king asked the prophet for advice on what to do in this difficult hour, for the formidable Philistines declared war on Israel, and the Lord retreated from him and did not reveal His will to him. To the king’s request, Samuel replied: “Why are you asking me, when the Lord has departed from you?.. The Lord will take the kingdom from your hands and give it to your neighbor, David... Tomorrow you and your sons you will with me, and the Lord will deliver the camp of Israel into the hands of the Philistines” (). The terrible news shocked Saul so much that he lost consciousness and fell to the ground.

The next day the battle broke out. The Israelis were completely defeated; the surviving warriors fled. Saul's three sons, including the brave Jonathan, died along with thousands of others. Saul, wounded, managed to escape from the battlefield, but the Philistines followed on his heels. Seeing that it was impossible to escape, Saul called his armor bearer and asked him to kill him. The young man, however, did not dare to raise his hand against God’s anointed, and then Saul committed suicide by throwing himself on his sword. The faithful servant followed his example.

Having defeated the Israeli army, the Philistines captured the Ezreel Valley and thus occupied an advantageous strategic position for the conquest of all of Canaan. The state that Saul had created with such difficulty ceased to exist. The period of Saul's reign lasted thirty years - from 1040 to 1010.

Reign of David (1010–970)

David did not take part in this battle and was deeply saddened to hear about the death of Saul, Jonathan and many of the valiant sons of Israel. The death of Saul saddened David, since his death simultaneously meant the decline of the first united Israeli state. The death of Jonathan was a great personal grief for David. He lost his only truly true friend, devoted and selfless. David expressed his grief in a lamentable song: “I grieve for you, my brother Jonathan; you were very dear to me; your love was for me higher than a woman’s love!” ().

After the death of the Israeli king, the elders of the tribe of Judah called David to Hebron and elected him king of Judah. At the same time, beyond the Jordan, the surviving military leader Abner, with the support of the ten northern tribes, proclaimed Saul's fourth son, Ishbosheth, king. Hostilities began between the armies of David and Ishbosheth. “And there was a long strife between the house of Saul and the house of David. David grew stronger and stronger, and the house of Saul weakened more and more” ().

The civil war lasted seven years. When Ishbosheth and Abner were killed as a result of revenge and betrayal, David remained the only serious contender for the Israeli throne. Representatives of the northern tribes, frightened by the growing power of the Philistines, gathered in Hebron and proclaimed David king over all Israel. Thus, after seven years of reigning in Hebron, David became king of the entire Israeli state. Over the next thirty years of his reign, he conquers the Philistines and creates the most powerful state in the entire history of the Jewish people.

Jerusalem - the capital of the kingdom of David

The Philistines, having learned that their vassal had become king of Israel, decided to catch him and punish him as a rebel. A powerful Philistine army entered the Rephaim Valley, west of Jerusalem, thus cutting off the south from the north. David found himself in a very difficult situation. His army, although replenished with warriors from the northern tribes, could not withstand the war chariots of the Philistines. Therefore, he decided not to repeat Saul’s mistake and, avoiding open battles, limit himself to guerrilla warfare. Here he had a wealth of experience accumulated during his wanderings. With God's help, David not only stopped the enemy's further advance deeper into the country, but also put his army to flight, pursuing the Philistines all the way to the city of Gath. From that time on, the Philistines were never able to regain their former power, and over time they even had to recognize the hegemony of Israel. The united kingdom of David did not have its own capital. Hebron was located too far to the south to meet all the requirements of a capital city. Taking these circumstances into account, David turned his attention to Jerusalem. This city, located on Mount Zion, belonged to the Jebusites for four hundred years and was an impregnable fortress. Therefore, conquering Jerusalem was not easy. But David, with the help of the talented commander Joab, managed to take the impregnable fortress. He made the hill with the fortress in the southern part of the city the capital of Israel and called it “the city of David.” He immediately launched a large construction project to fortify the city and decided to build himself a palace. To this end, David entered into trade relations with King Hiram of Tire, who sent him Lebanese cedar wood for construction, as well as architects and artisans. With their help, a building was built that was not inferior to the palaces of the most powerful kings of neighboring states. Following the example of the pagan kings, David created a large harem for himself at the palace, since harems were at that time a measure of royal greatness. From his wives and concubines, David had many sons and daughters, who filled every corner of the palace with laughter and quarrels. But, taking care of the strengthening and decoration of his capital, David did not forget that the main calling of Israel was to bring the light of true religion among the pagan world. David saw the power of Israel in strengthening the religious life of the people. Therefore, he paid special attention to the growth and prosperity of the religious life of his state, which under Saul fell into great decline. David decided to make his capital Jerusalem the religious center of Israel. For this purpose, he decided to move to Jerusalem the main shrine of the people - the Ark of the Covenant, which since the time of Samuel had been in the small town of Kariath-Jearim. David went for the Ark along with his courtiers and an army of thirty thousand. The ark on a chariot drawn by oxen was accompanied by priests and a crowd of thousands of people, who expressed their joy by singing, dancing and playing various musical instruments. But on the way, the unexpected happened: one Israeli, named Uzzah, touched the Ark and immediately fell to the ground dead. This shocked David so much that he ordered the procession to be stopped immediately and the Ark to be left in the custody of an Israeli named Abeddar. Only three months later did he decide to carry the Ark to the capital in an even more solemn atmosphere. In front of a large crowd of people, the priests reverently lifted the sparkling gold Ark of the Covenant onto their shoulders and solemnly headed to Jerusalem, where a new Tabernacle had already been built. The procession was accompanied by solemn singing, playing musical instruments and the jubilation of a crowd of thousands of people. A rejoicing King David walked ahead. He was dressed in the snow-white long robe of a priest. A royal diadem sparkled on his head, and in his hand he held his harp and played it. Every six steps he made a sacrifice to God. Captivated by a feeling of religious delight, “David galloped with all his might before the Lord” (), pouring out his delight in wondrous psalms. The Ark was solemnly installed in the new Tabernacle in Zion. When the Ark was brought into the Holy of Holies, abundant sacrifices were also made in the new temple.

Despite his happy life, David was constantly worried that he lived in a luxurious palace made of cedar wood, and the Ark of God was in a tent. He wanted to build a temple to Jehovah that would surpass the royal palace in its splendor. He expressed his thought to the prophet Nathan. The Prophet warmly approved this idea, but that same night he received a revelation from God, who forbade David to build a temple, since he had fought all his life and shed a lot of blood. David humbly submitted to the will of God and abandoned his intention to decorate his capital with a magnificent temple. Such a temple was later built by his successor, Solomon.

Expansion and strengthening of the kingdom of the Jews

Having united all the Israeli tribes and conquered the Philistines, David began to expand the borders of his state. First of all, he subjugated the Moabites and Edomites. Then, against his will, a war broke out with his friendly tribe of the Ammonites. The war was difficult and dangerous, for the Ammonites called on five Aramean kings for help. Nevertheless, the decisive battle ended in complete victory for the Israelis. Thus, a significant part of Syria also came under David’s rule. From now on, a powerful Israeli detachment was stationed in Damascus, and the royal governor was stationed there. Thanks to his conquests, David created a major power, the borders of which extended from Egypt to the Euphrates itself. The Philistines, defeated by David, gradually lost their political independence. Israel finally triumphed over its enemies and entered the only great power period in its history. Under King David, the Lord’s prediction to Abraham that his descendants would inherit the earth was fulfilled. from the river of Egypt to the great river, the river Euphrates" (). While expanding the borders of his state, David did not forget to deal with its internal structure. The basis of the power of the state was the army, and first of all the king devoted his attention to it. But in the field of weapons he did not introduce any innovations. The army still consisted of infantry armed with spears, slings and swords. For some reason, David did not take into service the formidable weapon of the Philistines, war chariots. The core of the army was the “brave band” - six hundred of David's companions from the time of his wanderings. David gave them various privileges, endowed them with conquered lands, and appointed them to high positions. This army elite was supplemented by two large detachments of mercenaries. In case of war, all men capable of bearing arms were conscripted into the militia. The command of the army was in the hands of Joab. Three main military commanders and thirty lower ranks were directly subordinate to him. Together they formed the main military council, subordinate to the king himself.

In civil administration, David also carried out some reforms. The state was headed by a council of elders and a chancellor. The largest officials were two royal treasurers, district tax collectors, clerks and seven chief managers, who were in charge of the king's fields, vineyards, orchards, and large and small livestock. The king paid great attention to legal proceedings. As a result of these reforms, order reigned in the country and prosperity grew. David enriched his treasury and the temple treasury with enormous spoils of war in gold, silver and copper. He did not kill the prisoners, but turned them into slaves, forcing them to work for the benefit of Israel.

But the king was especially concerned about the church and liturgical life of Israel. After the construction of the new Tabernacle and the transfer of the Ark of the Covenant there, for greater splendor of serving the Lord and its stronger impact on the religious feeling of the people, David introduced singing and music. Specially appointed Levites played and sang in the temple not only on holidays, but also during daily sacrifices. The Levites sang sacred songs or psalms that David himself composed. In total he wrote about eighty psalms. In them, the psalmist expressed his fiery faith and love for God, hope for salvation, and his repentance for his sins. His psalms are filled with prophecies about the coming Savior of the world. The king spoke about his sufferings in such a way that his words were fulfilled in Christ:

"I am... reproached by people and despised by the people. Everyone who sees me mocks me, saying with their lips, nodding their heads: “He trusted in the Lord; let him deliver him, let him save him, if he pleases him.” My strength has dried up... my tongue has clung to my throat... my hands and feet have been pierced... they are dividing my garments among themselves and casting lots for clothing" (). During David's reign, twenty-four thousand priests and Levites served at the temple. David divided them all into twenty-four orders, each of which performed its duties at the Tabernacle for a week. At the head of the clergy under David there were two high priests:

Zadok, who was nominated by Saul after the massacre of the priests at Nob, and Abiathar, who escaped from the hand of Saul and became David’s faithful assistant.

David's Moral Fall

David's constant successes and glory weakened his humble trust in God, aroused feelings of arrogance and autocracy in his soul, and led the king to moral decline. This happened during the war between Israel and the Ammonites. The Israeli army led by Joab was besieging the city of Rabbah. The king was in Jerusalem at that time. One day he climbed onto the roof of his magnificent palace and saw a very beautiful woman bathing in the neighboring courtyard. David was inflamed with passion for her and sent to find out who she was. The servants reported that this was Bathsheba, the wife of Uriah, a Hittite, one of the king’s bravest warriors. Uriah was with Joab on a campaign against the Ammonites, and David, taking advantage of his husband’s absence, seduced his wife. After some time, it turned out that Bathsheba was expecting a child. Then the king decided to get rid of his offended husband in a vile way. He summoned Uriah to report on the progress of the war, and then gave him the opportunity to rest and spend a few days with his young wife. But Uriah, as a valiant warrior, did not want to amuse himself with his wife at a time when his comrades were dying on the battlefield. Then David sent a soldier back to Joab and gave him a sealed letter, in which, among other things, he wrote: “Place Uriah where will the most powerful battle, and retreat from him so that he will be struck and die” (). Joab obediently carried out this shameful order, and poor Uriah, abandoned by everyone on the battlefield, died alone at the walls of Rabbah. David took Bathsheba, who was sincerely grieving over the death of her husband, into his harem, and she soon bore him a son.

But the king’s heinous crime did not escape the justice of the all-seeing God. To convict David of his crime and call him to repentance, the Lord sends the prophet Nathan to him. The king met the prophet with all honors and prepared to listen to the instructive speeches of God's messenger. Then Nathan, in a sad voice, told David a parable about the unjust rich man: “In one city there were two men, one rich and the other poor; The rich man had a lot of small and large livestock, but the poor man had nothing except one lamb, which he bought small and fed, and she grew up with him along with his children... and was like a daughter to him; and a stranger came to a rich man, and he was sorry to take from his sheep or oxen to prepare [dinner] for the stranger,... but he took the poor man’s lamb and prepared it for the man who came to him.” David exclaimed indignantly that the rich man deserved to die. In response to this indignation, the prophet, looking into the eyes of the king, said: “You are the man... [who did this].” And then he added that since “by this deed you have given the enemies of the Lord a reason to blaspheme Him, the son born to you will die” (). A few days later the child died. David understood the vileness of his act and sincerely repented. He poured out his feeling of repentance in a fiery penitential psalm: “ God have mercy on me..." (). Bathsheba remained David’s beloved wife even after the death of her firstborn. A year later she again bore him a son. This was Solomon, the future king of Israel.

Absalom's rebellion

It must be said that from that sad event when David illegally married Bathsheba, the calm days of his reign ended for him, and various disasters began to visit him. Before David had time to recover from the death of his first-born from Bathsheba, a disgusting incident occurred in the palace. Amnon, the firstborn son of David, was inflamed with love for the beautiful Tamar, the sister of his half-brother Absalom, and dishonored her by committing violence against her. Absalom defended his disgraced sister and killed Amnon, and he himself fled to the king of Geshur. Three years later, David forgave his fratricidal son and allowed him to live in Jerusalem. Returning to his homeland, Absalom secretly began to prepare a rebellion against his father. Absalom was already thirty years old, and he was impatient to take the royal throne. Pursuing your goals; he did everything to discredit his father and ingratiate himself with the crowd. Gradually he weaved a network of his intrigues throughout the country. Through secret envoys, he rebelled among the northern tribes, who promised him armed support in the event of an uprising. These tribes could not forgive David for overthrowing the dynasty of Saul. They also did not like him because he came from the tribe of Judah, with whom they had a long-standing enmity.

Having prepared an uprising, Absalom asked his father for permission to travel to Hebron, ostensibly in order to offer a sacrifice of gratitude to God for returning from exile to Jerusalem. Without guessing anything, David agreed, and Absalom went to Hebron, accompanied by two hundred of his followers. In Hebron, he called out all the participants in the conspiracy and soon gathered a large army, which included warriors from almost all the northern tribes. The rebels proclaimed Absalom king and marched on Jerusalem. David learned of the rebellion at the very last moment and hastily left the capital on foot, taking with him the Ark of the Covenant. He was accompanied by a guard of his old comrades, numbering six hundred people, and two detachments of Philistine mercenaries, devoted to him body and soul. Having crossed the Jordan, David gathered a large army there and prepared for battle. Absalom, having captured Jerusalem, led his army against David. The battle took place in the Forest of Ephraim and ended with the complete defeat of the rebels and the death of Absalom. Upon learning of the death of his son, David was greatly saddened and bitterly mourned this tragedy.

Accession of Solomon and death of David (970)

After the suppression of the rebellion, David again took the royal throne and ruled Israel until his death. In the last years of his life, David became very decrepit, and no one doubted that the days of his life were numbered. In the palace, a struggle for the throne began between his sons. Adonijah and Solomon were serious contenders. Adonijah, the son of Haggithah, was a handsome and arrogant youth. With the support of such influential figures as Joab and the high priest Abiathar, he had no doubt of victory and rode around Jerusalem in the royal chariot with a palace guard of fifty people. Solomon was less popular, but he was supported by influential figures led by the high priest Zadok and the prophet Nathan. As the son of David's most beloved wife, Bathsheba, Solomon was his father's favorite and had a great opportunity to take the royal throne. But Adonijah decided to pave his way to the throne at all costs. He arranged a large feast for his supporters, at which he probably wanted to proclaim himself king. It was attended by Joab, Abiathar, all the king's sons except Solomon, and many other prominent influential persons. The prophet Nathan found out about this and ordered Bathsheba to urgently inform David that Adonijah arbitrarily intends to proclaim himself king. Bathsheba, entering the sick king, said: “My lord king! You swore to your handmaid by the Lord your God: “Your son Solomon will reign after me, and he will sit on my throne.” And now, behold, Adonijah reigned, and you, my lord king, do not know About" (). At this time, the prophet Nathan came to the king and confirmed the words of Bathsheba. Then the king said to his servants: “Take with you the servants of your lord and put Solomon my son on my mule and bring him to Gion. And let Zadok the priest and Nathan the prophet anoint him there as king over Israel, and blow the trumpet and shout: “Long live King Solomon!” (). David's order was carried out, and Solomon, in royal robes, accompanied by his many supporters and a jubilant crowd of people, solemnly returned to the palace and sat down on the royal throne. Having learned about this, the participants in the feast hastily dispersed, and Adonijah ran to the Tabernacle and grabbed the copper horns of the altar of burnt offering. Solomon pardoned Adonijah on the condition that he would not oppose the king. But Adonijah did not keep his word, and Solomon ordered him to be put to death. Joab was killed along with Adonijah. Solomon did not put the high priest Abiathar to death, but only deprived him of the right to serve. Before his death, David called his son to him. and commanded him: “... Be of good courage and keep the covenant of the Lord your God, walking in His ways and keeping His statutes and His commandments... as it is written in the Law of Moses..." (). He also commanded Solomon to build a magnificent temple for the Lord. David died in the seventieth year of his life, after forty years of reign, leaving his son as an inheritance a large state, the borders of which extended from Damascus to Egypt and from the Mediterranean Sea to the Syrian Desert. As a legacy to all the peoples of the earth, the divinely inspired prophet David left his wondrous psalms, breathing with unshakable faith and fiery love for God. The Psalter is a divinely inspired poetic chronicle of the spiritual life of the great psalmist. She amazes everyone with her amazing truth. And just as the psalms are great for their depth of religious feeling, so great was the life of David, although it was not without moral failures.

Solomon - Wise Judge and Ruler

At the time of his accession to the throne, Solomon was only twenty years old, but he turned out to be an energetic and wise ruler. He wished to begin his reign with a prayer of gratitude to God. For this purpose, he went to Gibeon, where the Tabernacle of Moses was located at that time, and there he offered a thousand burnt offerings. The Lord appeared to him in a dream at night and said:

"Ask for what to give you". Solomon answered the Lord:

"Grant... to Your servant an understanding heart to judge Your people and discern what is good and what is evil." The Lord said to Solomon: “ Because you asked for this and did not ask for a long life, did not ask for wealth... but asked for intelligence... behold, I give you a wise and understanding heart, so that there was no one like you before you or after you no one like you will rise…» ().

After this epiphany, Solomon joyfully returned to Jerusalem, made a generous sacrifice at the Ark of the Covenant and arranged a feast for all the inhabitants of the city. Then he sat down in the judge's seat and began to sort out controversial issues. At this time two women came to him. Their case was very complex and unusual. One of the women, crying, told the king the following: “This woman and I live in the same house; and I gave birth in her presence in this house; On the third day after I gave birth, this woman also gave birth... and the woman’s son died at night, for she slept with him; and she arose at night and took my son from me while I, your handmaid, was sleeping, and laid him to her breast, and she laid her dead son to my breast; In the morning I got up to feed my son, and behold, he was dead; and when I looked at him in the morning, it was not my son whom I gave birth to.”

The accused denied everything, both women screamed and cursed. After listening to the women, Solomon ordered to bring a sword. When this was done, he said: “Cut the living child in two and give half to one and half to the other.” Then the accusing woman exclaimed in horror: “Oh, my lord! give her this child alive and do not kill him.” The other one calmly said: “Let it be neither for me nor for you, chop it up” (). Solomon saw who the mother of the living child was and ordered him to be given to the first woman. The king's wisdom amazed everyone present.

Having inherited a strong and rich state from his father, Solomon directed his policy towards strengthening peace with neighboring peoples and the prosperity of his country. To strengthen the southern borders of Israel and strengthen the political power of the country, the young king married the daughter of the Egyptian pharaoh, receiving the Philistine city of Gezer as a dowry. Solomon did not break off friendly ties with the rich king of Tire, Hiram, which were still established under Saul. The neighboring peoples in the west and east, conquered under David, no longer posed a great threat to Solomon. Now, for the first time since time immemorial, the Jewish people could live in peace and engage in peaceful work without hindrance. “And Judah and Israel lived quietly, each under his vineyard and under his fig tree, from Dan to Bathsheba, all the days of Solomon,” writes the divinely inspired chronicler ().

Wisely conducting foreign policy, Solomon did not forget about the internal affairs of his state. Having removed his ill-wishers and enemies from the road, he appointed his supporters and friends to all senior administrative posts. In order to weaken the northern tribes and strengthen his power, Solomon divided the country into twelve administrative districts, the boundaries of which only partially coincided with the territory of the individual tribes. At the head of each of them he placed regional commanders. The districts took turns, each for a month of the year, supplying food to the royal court and army.

The army, now commanded by the military leader Vanya, was also undergoing a deep reorganization. As you know, under David the army consisted only of infantry. Overcoming the Israelites' deep-seated prejudice against cavalry, Solomon organized a powerful cavalry corps consisting of fourteen thousand war chariots. He also modernized the army convoys, introducing carts and horse teams. To maintain war horses, Solomon ordered the construction of stables in a number of Israeli cities. The largest stables were in Megiddo, where a large detachment of cavalry was stationed.

But with special diligence, the young king took care of the prosperity of the religious life of his people and, above all, the construction of the Jerusalem Temple of the True God. Remembering his father’s last will, in the fourth year of his reign he decided to begin construction that was grandiose for that time.

Construction of the Jerusalem Temple

Along with royal power, Solomon inherited from David a rich spiritual inheritance - deep faith and devotion to God. " And Solomon loved the Lord, walking according to the statute of David his father..." (). This strong faith and fiery love for God helped Solomon to carry out the grandiose construction of the temple to the God of Israel. First of all, it was necessary to stock up on building materials. At one time, David prepared large reserves of building material for the future temple, but they were not enough, and Solomon turned to Hiram, king of Tire, asking for help. Soon an agreement was concluded between them and Phenicia began to supply Israel with cedar and cypress wood. The tree from the Lebanese mountains was transported by raft by sea to Jaffa, and from there Israeli porters dragged it to Jerusalem. Thirty thousand people were employed in this work.

For the delivery of building materials, Solomon undertook to pay the Phoenicians annually with large quantities of bread, wine and olive oil. In turn, King Hiram sent the best craftsmen to Jerusalem, led by the remarkable artist and craftsman Hiram, a master of casting and processing of gold, silver and bronze. At the same time, a hundred and fifty thousand strong army was created in Israel at a construction site. Eighty thousand worked as stonemasons in the Trans-Jordanian mountains, and seventy thousand carried hewn stones to the construction site in Jerusalem. Three thousand three hundred overseers supervised their work.

David also chose the place to build the temple. The king planned to build a temple on Mount Ophel; According to legend, this was Mount Moriah, on which Abraham sacrificed Isaac. The top of the hill was cut off and leveled. To expand the resulting area, it was surrounded by a vertical wall of hewn stone blocks held together with tin. The construction of the temple lasted more than seven years, the temple itself was small: only thirty-one meters long, ten and a half wide and fifteen high. Three buildings with rooms for clergy and services adjoined its three walls - the back and two side ones. The walls of the temple were built from huge hewn stones. On the outside they were lined with white marble, and on the inside with cedar boards, on which images of cherubs, palm trees, and blooming flowers were carved. All this was covered in gold.

In general, the plan of the temple, with the exception of some details, was in every way similar to the plan of the Tabernacle of Moses. Inside, the temple was divided into three parts: the Holy of Holies, the Sanctuary and the Narthex. The Holy of Holies was a small room without windows, where the Ark of the Covenant was located in mysterious darkness. Next to the Ark, on both sides with outstretched wings stood two five-meter figures of cherubs, carved from olive wood and overlaid with gold. The Ark of the Covenant contained two stone tablets of Moses. The Holy of Holies was separated from the Sanctuary by a wall of cypress wood, decorated with various images and overlaid with gold. The doors to the Holy of Holies were always open, but the entrance was covered by a curtain of precious material, richly embroidered with cherubs, flowers and palm trees. Only the high priest could enter the Holy of Holies, and even then only once a year.

In the Sanctuary, in front of the curtain, there was an altar for burning incense (incense). On the right side of the Sanctuary were placed five tables of offering and five golden lampstands, one in front of each table. On the left side there were the same number of tables and lamps. On the eastern side the temple was adjacent to the Porch. On both sides of the entrance to the Narthex stood twelve-meter copper columns with magnificent carved crowns - mystical symbols of strength and greatness. On the steps leading to the Narthex, singers and musicians were located during the service.

Adjacent to the temple was a small or inner courtyard, which was separated from the large or outer courtyard by a low stone wall. In the middle of the courtyard stood the altar of burnt offering, on which an eternal fire burned. Nearby was the “copper sea” - a huge copper bowl filled with water for washing the clergy. This huge cup, cast by Hiram in the mountains of Transjordan, rested on twelve copper oxen; three of them looked to the north, three to the west, three to the south and three to the east. To wash the sacrificial animals, ten lavers were made, which stood along the edges of the courtyard. Here, in the courtyard, there was an elevated place for the king. Next came the outer courtyard, where the people prayed.

Upon completion of the temple, a great celebration took place on the occasion of the transfer of the Ark of the Covenant to the temple. During the celebration, crowds of people filled the outer courtyard, and in the inner courtyard at that time the ceremony of consecrating the temple and installing the Ark took place. The elders of the Israelite tribes, courtiers, and priests in white linen vestments, led by the high priest Zadok, gathered around the altar. On the steps leading to the temple, musicians and singers took their places. Solomon, wearing a purple, richly embroidered cloak and a golden royal crown, sat on the throne. Five hundred warriors of the king's personal guard lined up behind them with shields made of pure gold. The celebration began with such a large sacrifice that the number of victims for the burnt offering could not be counted. Trumpets thundered amid the smoke and the smell of burning meat, and the priests carried the Ark of the Covenant on their shoulders. As the Ark was carried along the steps of the temple, the singers in the choir, to the accompaniment of harps and cymbals, sang the twenty-third psalm of David. The singing continued until the Ark of the Covenant was installed in the Holy of Holies. When the priests left the Sanctuary, the glory of the Lord appeared and “ the cloud filled the house of the Lord" (). Solomon stood up from the throne and, raising his hands to heaven, said a fervent prayer, asking Jehovah not to deprive Israel of His mercy. The whole country celebrated this event for fourteen days, and there was not a person in Israel who did not participate in the celebration and did not sacrifice at least one ox or sheep. The Lord appeared to Solomon at night and said that if the children of Israel kept His commandments, He would grant peace and prosperity to his country. But " if... you and your sons depart from Me, - said the warning voice of God, -... then I will destroy Israel from off the face of the land that I have given them, and the temple that I have dedicated to my name I will cast away from before me, and Israel will be a byword and a laughing stock among all nations.» ().

The Wealth of Solomon and His Moral Fall

Solomon did not limit himself to just building the temple. Soon he built a luxurious palace made of Lebanese cedar for himself and his many wives. To protect borders and main trade routes, Solomon fortified cities and built new fortresses. Solomon covered significant expenses for weapons, construction and luxury goods from income that came in an endless stream from a variety of sources. Solomon also turned out to be an excellent trader and maintained lively trade relations with neighboring states. In Cilicia he bought horses and sold them to Mesopotamia and Egypt. From Egypt, in turn, he brought excellent war chariots, selling them to other countries. In addition, Solomon was successfully engaged in maritime trade. The fame of Solomon's wisdom and the splendor of his court spread throughout the world. Many came to listen to the wisdom of the Israeli king and to look at the luxury of his palace. Among them was the Queen of Sheba.

Towards the end of his reign, Solomon, blinded by luxury, began to forget the True God and often deviated into idolatry. Following the example of the pagan kings, Solomon constantly expanded his harem. In his huge harem there were seven hundred wives and three hundred concubines. There were women of different races and religions: Egyptians, Moabites, Sidonians, etc. The aging king was very easily influenced by his wives and concubines. They " inclined his heart to other gods" (). Pagan wives persuaded him to introduce the cult of their gods into Jerusalem, and Solomon willingly performed sacrifices in their honor even in the courtyard of the Jerusalem Temple. In addition, in the vicinity of Jerusalem, he built separate temples to Astarte, Baal, Moloch and the Moabite deity Khamis.

Then the Lord through the prophet said to Solomon: “ Because this is how you do it, and you have not kept My covenant... I will tear the kingdom away from you and give it to your servant." (). From that time on, the days of Solomon's life passed in constant worry and anxiety. One after another, the kingdoms conquered by David departed from Israel, and popular unrest began within the country. Burdened with unbearable taxes, which were used to support the royal court, drowning in exorbitant luxury, the northern tribes harbored hatred for the descendant of David and were looking for a suitable opportunity to openly declare their independence. A legend has been preserved that the formidable events of the last years of his reign had a strong influence on Solomon and caused in him sincere repentance for his crimes before God and people. The book “Ecclesiastes” was a monument to Solomon’s repentance, in which he condemns all his vain attempts to arrange earthly well-being against the will of the Lord God.

Solomon died after forty years of reign and was buried in Jerusalem. The book “The Proverbs of Solomon” is a monument to the king’s wisdom.

Division of the Kingdom of Israel into Judah and Israel (930)

The reign of the three great kings of the people of Israel was the time of their greatest prosperity, both politically and spiritually. After this blessed time in the history of Israel comes a sad and inglorious period of political division and spiritual decline. This dark period in the history of Israel began in 930, immediately after the death of Solomon, under his son Rehoboam.

The royal family of David enjoyed enormous authority in Judea, and Solomon's son, Rehoboam, unhinderedly took the throne of Jerusalem. However, the young king had to go to Shechem to obtain the consent of the northern tribes to his reign. It seemed that everything would turn out well for Rehoboam there too. The North was ready to continue to submit to the Jewish dynasty, but at the same time demanded the abolition of the unaffordable taxes imposed by Solomon. Representatives of all tribes gathered in Shechem to elect a king. At the head of the elders of the ten northern tribes was Jeroboam, who during the reign of Solomon rebelled, but then, after defeat, was forced to flee to Egypt. Representatives of the northern tribes turned to the king with the following request: “Your father put a heavy yoke on us, but you lighten us.” Rehoboam, neglecting the advice of the elders, said on the advice of the young people: “My father put a heavy yoke on you, but I will increase your yoke; my father punished you with whips, but I will punish you with scorpions” (), i.e. whips studded with metal needles.

Outraged by Rehoboam's impudent response, the Israelites refused to recognize the new king. Cries were heard among the people: “What part do we have in David? We have no share in the son of Jesse; to your tents, O Israel! now know your home, David! And Israel dispersed to their tents (). Thus ended the meeting of representatives of all tribes in Shechem sadly.

The result of Rehoboam's unreasonable policy was immediate. The ten northern tribes broke away from Judah and proclaimed Jeroboam their king. Only the tribe of Benjamin joined Judah. So the power of David and Solomon fell apart into two weak kingdoms at war with each other: Israel and Judah. The son of Solomon never wanted to come to terms with this situation in his country. He gathered a huge army and intended to move it north to suppress the rebels. But the fratricidal war was prevented by the prophet Samei. By the command of God, he forced the king to abandon his crazy idea. And although the king refused a direct invasion of Israel, from that time on the hostility between the two kingdoms never ceased, but on the contrary, at times turned into a real war.

Brief overview of the history of the kingdom of Israel (930–722 BC)

Although the Jews were divided into two kingdoms, there was still much in common between the northern and southern tribes: they spoke the same language, believed in one God - Jehovah, kept the same law and had one temple in Jerusalem. Therefore, it could be assumed that the Jewish people were divided for a short time and that a happy time would soon come when they would once again extend the fraternal hands of friendship to each other. But Jeroboam, the first king of Israel, did not think so. Seeing how his subjects went to the Jerusalem Temple for sacrifices on religious holidays, he began to fear that the Israelis would again want to unite with the tribe of Judah, as in the glorious times of David. To prevent this danger, Jeroboam decided to establish his center of religious life in Israel and thus separate himself from Judea not only politically, but also religiously. For this purpose, he built temples in the cities of Bethel and Dan and, following the example of Aaron, cast two golden calves for these temples. Addressing his subjects, he said: “You do not need to go to Jerusalem; these are your gods, O Israel, who brought you out of the land of Egypt” (). It is clear that this policy of Jeroboam led to an open religious schism, which further divided the homogeneous Jewish people into two warring kingdoms. The religion that Jeroboam instilled in Israel was pure heresy and idolatry, having nothing in common with the religion of the Jerusalem temple. Therefore, Jeroboam’s apostasy was met with sharp condemnation from the faithful Jews. The prophet Ahijah, who with his authority contributed to the election of Jeroboam to the throne of Israel, sharply denounced the king for idolatry and predicted to him that for this he and his entire family would be exterminated: “ Thus says the Lord God of Israel: ... and they will sweep the house of Jeroboam clean, as one sweeps away rubbish." (). The prophet's prediction soon came true.

Jeroboam's successors continued to "walk in his ways" and spread idolatry among the people of Israel. Of all the kings of Israel, Ahab was the most wicked. Under the influence of his wife Jezebel, the daughter of the Sidonian king, he zealously spread idolatry in Israel. Under him, the cult of Baal became the state religion. Jezebel, a zealous admirer of the Phoenician god Melkorf, built a temple for him in the capital of Israel - Samaria. Hating the religion of Israel, she persecuted and killed all zealous servants of the True God.

After Ahab, there were no significant changes in the religious life of Israel. The Lord, through the prophets, called the Israelites to repentance, but the kings and people remained deaf to the prophetic calls. Then the Lord deprived the Israelites of His help and delivered them into the hands of their enemies. The Assyrian kings Shalmaneser and then Sargon II in 721 devastated the kingdom of Israel, destroyed Samaria, and took the ten tribes of Israel into captivity in Assyria, where they were assimilated and ceased to exist as the Jewish people. The Assyrian kings resettled pagans from Arabia and Babylon to the deserted Israeli territory. Mixed with the remnants of the Israelites, these tribes formed a people who, after the capital Samaria, came to be called the Samaritans or Samaritans. They did not speak a purely Jewish language, although they accepted the Jewish religion, they did not abandon their former pagan beliefs. For this, the Jews despised the Samaritans and avoided communicating with them in every possible way.

So, the ten tribes of Israel did not fulfill their messianic purpose, broke their promise to God at Sinai, and disappeared from the historical arena. The Kingdom of Israel lasted from 930 to 721 and had nineteen kings.

Brief overview of the history of the Kingdom of Judah (930–586 BC)

After the division of the Jewish state, the kingdom of Judah, which included only the tribes of Benjamin and Judah, although small in number, had a great advantage over the kingdom of Israel. On the territory of Judea was Jerusalem, the center of the political and religious life of the Jewish people. Therefore, it is not surprising that many Israelis, especially the Levites, dissatisfied with the policies of Jeroboam, moved to Judea to be closer to the shrine of Israel - the Jerusalem Temple.

The first king of Judah, Rehoboam, after a failed attempt to subjugate the northern tribes by force, began to take care of strengthening the borders of his state. But Rehoboam did not “stand in the law of the Lord” for long. In the fourth year of his reign, under the influence of his mother, the Ammonite Naamah, he became an idolater and led his subjects into idolatry. All over the country, on the hills and under sacred trees, the Jews began to worship foreign gods. The Lord soon punished the kingdom of Judah for its apostasy from true religion and moral decay. Pharaoh Shusakim, convinced that both Jewish kingdoms were weakened by constant conflicts, attacked Palestine and devastated Judea and part of Israel. He left only when Rehoboam paid a huge ransom, giving him the greatest treasures of the Jerusalem temple and the royal palace. The splendor and brilliance of Solomon's buildings faded twenty years after their creation: where gold sparkled, bare walls remained.

After Rehoboam, his son Abijah reigned, who reigned for only three years. In religious matters he followed in the footsteps of his father and did not fight idolatry. Abijah was succeeded on the throne of Judah by his son Asa, who reigned for forty-one years. Unlike his predecessors, Asa was an ardent champion of the true faith and an implacable enemy of idolatry. First of all, he removed from power his grandmother Maacah, the wife of Rehoboam, who had propagated the cult of Astarte and Priapus. She placed a tree stump in the Jerusalem Temple, symbolizing Ashtoreth. Asa ordered to burn this stump in the Kidron Valley. He also removed all the idols from the hills and groves and drove out the foreigners who worshiped false gods from the country.

Asa's work to eradicate idolatry in the country was continued by his son Jehoshaphat. For this purpose, he sent priests and Levites throughout Judea, who taught the people to honor the True God and avoid false gods. Jehoshaphat even himself undertook a tour of his kingdom and personally encouraged his subjects to shun idolatry. The Lord blessed the reign of Jehoshaphat, and he did much good for the Jewish people.

One of the wicked kings of Judah was Ahaz. He zealously revered the false gods Baal and Moloch and diligently built temples in their honor both in Jerusalem itself and in its environs. During his reign, the Syrians, Philistines and Israelites made continuous raids on the kingdom of Judah, devastating it. A military alliance was even created between Syria and Israel, who decided to destroy the kingdom of Judah. Ahaz was in a difficult situation, but the prophet Isaiah appeared to him and said that the kingdom of Judah would not be destroyed, since the Savior of the world would be born from the house of David from the Virgin: “ Behold, the Virgin will be with child and give birth to a Son, and they will call His name Immanuel" (). But Ahaz turned for help not to God, but to the king of Assyria, and thereby brought disaster not only to his opponents, but also to his kingdom. Tiglath-pileser III destroyed Damascus in a lightning campaign and then invaded Israel. The country was devastated, and its inhabitants were taken captive; only the well-fortified capital, Samaria, was not captured by the Assyrians. It fell in the year seven hundred and twenty-one under the last Israeli king Hosea. Judea lost its independence and was forced to pay tribute to the Assyrians.

After the death of Ahaz, his son Hezekiah took the throne of Judah. During his reign, Samaria fell. This made a stunning impression in Judea. The prophet Isaiah, who lived at this time, called on the inhabitants of Judah to repent and abandon false gods so that they would not suffer the same fate that befell Israel. Under the influence of the prophet Isaiah, Hezekiah launched great efforts to revive the true religion. He fought against all manifestations of idolatry, destroyed temples, smashed idols and cut down the trees that the people worshiped on the hills. But first of all, he resumed worship in the Jerusalem Temple. Under his father, the temple was desolate, no services were performed, and the temple gates were closed. By order of Hezekiah, the temple was opened and consecrated. Under Hezekiah, after a long break, Easter was celebrated with special solemnity. Not only Jews, but also Israelis came to Jerusalem for the holiday.

But the peaceful life of Judea was soon disrupted. Hezekiah refused to pay tribute to the king of Assyria and entered into a military alliance with Egypt against Assyria. Phenicia and Babylon also joined this union. The Allies placed their main hopes on Egypt. The prophet Isaiah advised Hezekiah not to enter into this alliance, but it was too late to retreat. Soon the flames of rebellion flared up among the vassal states of Assyria. The Assyrian king Sennacherib instantly captured Babylon, crushing the uprising in Phenicia, and then defeated the Egyptian army rushing to the aid of the allies. The formidable punisher approached the walls of Jerusalem and besieged it. Hezekiah was in despair, but the prophet Isaiah reassured him and predicted that the Assyrian army would not capture Jerusalem, since the city was under the protection of the Lord Himself. The prophet's prediction came true: “ And it happened that night: the angel of the Lord went and smote one hundred and eighty-five thousand in the Assyrian camp. And they got up in the morning, and behold, all the bodies were dead" (). After this, Sennacherib ended the siege of the city and returned to Nineveh. Jerusalem remained free. Hezekiah reigned for several more years and managed to raise Judah from ruins.

The pious king died in 687, and in 612 the capital of the Assyrian kingdom, Nineveh, fell. On the ruins of Assyria, the Chaldean king Nabopolassar founded the Chaldean (or Neo-Babylonian) kingdom. After the death of Nabopolassar, the Babylonian throne was taken by his son Nebuchadnezzar II (reigned from 605 to 562 BC).

The Egyptian pharaoh, wanting to weaken the growing power of the Babylonian kingdom, began military operations against Nebuchadnezzar. Incited by Pharaoh, King Jehoiakim of Judah refused to pay tribute to Nebuchadnezzar and took the side of Egypt. Then Nebuchadnezzar arrived in Judea with a lightning march, captured Jerusalem and drove many Jews captive along with their king. Joachim's son Jehoiachin ascended the throne. Since he continued his father’s anti-Babylonian policy, Nebuchadnezzar again arrived in the country with a huge army and began the siege of Jerusalem. Jehoiachin, probably wanting to save Jerusalem from destruction, left the city and voluntarily surrendered to the enemy along with his entire family and courtiers. To appease the winner, he presented him with all the jewelry and vessels made of precious metals that were in the palace and temple. But this time Nebuchadnezzar was relentless. Together with the royal family, he drove seven thousand prominent Israeli men to Babylon. Among them was the prophet Hezekiah. In place of Jeconiah, Nebuchadnezzar appointed his uncle Mattaniah king of Judah, renaming him Zedekiah.

Zedekiah was a short-sighted politician. Very soon he fell under the influence of a pro-Egyptian group, and the country again embarked on the dangerous path of struggle against Babylon. The prophet Jeremiah, who lived at this time, often addressed the rulers and people and in fiery speeches urged them not to tease the “Babylonian colossus.” He also warned that one should not particularly count on the help of Egypt, but must first of all repent and turn to the Heavenly Patron of the Jewish people for help. But the Jews were deaf to the preaching of God's chosen one, they even put him in prison and severely beat him.

Nebuchadnezzar kept a keen eye on political events in the Middle East and finally decided it was time to act. He invaded Judea, defeated the Egyptian troops rushing to the aid of Jerusalem, and then began to lay siege to the Jewish capital. This siege lasted eight months. Famine and epidemics were raging in the city. The corpses of people who did not have time to bury were lying on the streets. It got to the point that mothers ate the bodies of their children who died from exhaustion or illness. In 586 BC. The Chaldeans launched an assault, made a hole in the wall and burst into the city. Enraged Babylonian warriors killed, robbed, and set fire to houses. Soon Jerusalem was reduced to a heap of ruins. All that remained of the temple and the royal palace were charred fragments of walls and broken columns. The city ceased to exist.

King Zedekiah with his family and a group of courtiers secretly left Jerusalem and fled towards the Jordan. A detachment sent in pursuit caught him near Jericho. Nebuchadnezzar ordered the king's sons to be killed, and Zedekiah himself had his eyes gouged out and he was sent bound in chains to Babylon. Then the victors began, according to Mesopotamian custom, to expel the inhabitants from Jewish cities and villages. Tens of thousands of prisoners were lined up in columns, tied with long ropes and driven to a distant foreign country. From this time on, a new period began in the history of the Jewish people - the period of Babylonian captivity.

9 If he defeats me in battle and kills me, we will become your slaves, and if I defeat him and kill him, you will become our slaves and serve us.” 10 The Philistine said, “Today I will put to shame the army of Israel. only give me someone to fight with!”11 When Saul and the Israelites heard these words, they were afraid and confused.

The author of this work combines or simply arranges in sequential order materials of various, written or oral, origins about the beginning of the period of the monarchy. The story of the Ark of the Covenant and its capture by the Philistines is given (1 Kings 4-6), continuing in 2 Kings 6. It is framed by two other stories: 1) about the childhood of Samuel (1 Samuel 1-2); 2) how he, as the last of the Judges, performed the duties of a ruler; in conclusion, deliverance from the yoke of the Philistines is anticipated (1 Sam. 7). Samuel plays a primary role in the establishment of royal power (1 Samuel 8-12). In the presentation of its formation, two groups of legends have long been distinguished: 9-10 1-16; 11 on one side and 8, 10-17-24; 12 - on the other. The first group is usually called the monarchical version of these events, and the second, considered later, is “anti-monarchical”. In reality, both versions are of ancient origin and reflect only two different trends. The “anti-monarchy” of the second lies only in the fact that it condemns this kind of royal power, which does not sufficiently take into account the sovereign power of God. Saul's wars with the Philistines are described in chapters 13-14, and the first version of his rejection is given in 1 Samuel 13:7-13. Another version of the same event is related in chapter 15 in connection with the war against the Amalekites. This statement prepares the anointing of David by Samuel (1 Samuel 16:1-13). Parallel and, apparently, equally ancient traditions about the first steps of David and his clashes with Saul are found in 1 Samuel 16:4 - 2 Samuel 1, where repetitions occur frequently. The end of this story is given in 2 Samuel 2-5: David, as a result of his reign in Hebron, the war with the Philistines, and the capture of Jerusalem, is established as king of all Israel (2 Samuel 5:12). In chapter 6 the author returns to the story of the Ark of the Covenant; Chapter 7 contains Nathan's prophecy, and Chapter 8 is an editorial summary.

The historical books form one whole, completed no earlier than 562 BC. (2 Kings 25:27). In the Bible they follow directly after the Pentateuch: at the end of the book of Deuteronomy Joshua is indicated as the successor of Moses, and the events of the book of Joshua begin just the day after the death of the lawgiver of Israel.

The spiritual meaning of the collection can be briefly formulated as follows: Yahweh, having laid the foundation for the existence of His people, leads them along the path of ascension to the time when He will finally reign in the world (the Kingdom of God). To do this, He gives Israel the Promised Land, appoints David as monarch and promises his descendant eternal power in the eschatological Kingdom. But at the same time, the compilers of historical books harshly and mercilessly rebuke the people of God for their unfaithfulness to the Covenant. This unfaithfulness is the direct cause of the disasters that befall Israel. Thus the story turns into a lesson and a warning. It contains a call to repentance, which sounded with particular force during the era of the Babylonian captivity.

Deuteronomy historically substantiated the doctrine of the chosenness of Israel and determined its resulting theocratic structure; then the book of Is Nav tells about the settlement of the chosen people in the Promised Land, the book of Judges sets out the alternation of apostasies and pardons, 1 and 2 books of Samuel tell about the crisis that led to the establishment of royal power and endangered the theocratic ideal, which is then realized under David; 3 and 4 Kings describe the decline that began under Solomon: despite the piety of some kings, a series of apostasies occurred, for which God punished His people.

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1 It is possible to assume that, in attacking the Jews, the Philistines were counting on the supposed inability of the sick Saul ( 16:14-21 ) provide them with skillful resistance. But this time the Philistines were mistaken in their expectations.

Succoth and Azek are cities southwest of Jerusalem.

3 The troops were in such a position that the attacking side inevitably risked complete defeat. And since no one is his own enemy, both sides stood inactive, but in a tense wait-and-see position. It is unknown how long they would have stood like this if the Philistines had not come up with the idea of ​​\u200b\u200bsolving the matter with a military duel of two heroes - from one and the other camp. The giant from the city of Gath, Goliath, became a hero on the Philistine side.

4 Elbow - the length of the arm from the elbow joint to the end of the middle finger. A span is three palms wide. Palm - the width of four fingers.

5 shekel, as a measure of weight, was equal to 3 spools, 34.40 dollars.

8 Am I not a Philistine, and are you servants of Saul?, that is, what comparison can there be between me, a powerful, free Philistine, and you, the pathetic slaves of the sick maniac Saul?

11 Very scared and horrified, not hoping to find an opponent equivalent to Goliath.

12 Eight sons - see 16:6-13 .

15 The need for David's game temporarily ceased: the war absorbed Saul's attention and feelings and thereby protected him from acute outbursts of melancholy.

18 To the chief of a thousand- as a welcome gift.

23 Those words - see Art. 8-10.

26 Free in Israel, i.e. free from state duties.

28 Obviously, Jesse's firstborn Eliab could not forgive his younger brother for the preference that was shown to this brother by the prophet of God Samuel ( Chapter 16).

33 For you are still a youth. " David was then a youth of 15 or 16 years old, since he died at the age of 75 and reigned for 40; why, when Saul was killed, he had 30 years. And before this it was said that Saul, after a two-year reign, lost divine grace and therefore spent the rest of the time being at enmity with David"(Blessed Theodoret. Interpretation of 1 Kings, question 41).

36-37 Wed. Art. 45-47.

42 Young, blond and handsome in face, that is, without external signs of a battle-hardened, stern warrior.

52 Ekron is a Philistine city, west of Gibeon.

54 To the question about “ how David, not yet living in Jerusalem, brought into it the head of a foreigner", blessed Theodoret answers: “ True, Jerusalem was still inhabited by the Jebusites (2 Kings 5:6-8), but David, wanting to frighten the undefeated foreigners of his fatherland, pointed them to the head of the great warrior he had killed", who boldly rebelled against the chosen people of God and placed all hope in their own strength (Blessed Theodoret. Commentary on 1 Kings, issue 42).

55 Whose son is this young man? Occupying a modest place among the crowd of other court musicians, David may have been personally unknown to Saul. Listening to David's music, Saul did not pay any attention to the player; and even if he saw him, the painful seizures during which the musician was invited could prevent him from remembering the face of the player. And only now, when the humble harp player had become the hero of the day, the glory of Israel, an instrument of divine help to the oppressed, Saul paid due attention to David and, not recognizing him by sight, asked: “Whose son is this young man?”

57 What is reported in verse 54 obviously refers to the time after this presentation of the conqueror David to Saul.

Title and division of books in the Bible. The now known four books of Kings in the ancient Jewish codex of sacred books consisted of two books: one of them (which included the current first and second books of Kings) was called “Sefer Shemuel”, i.e. “Book of Samuel”, since its contents are the story of the prophet Samuel and Saul and David, anointed by him to the Jewish kingdom; the other (which included the current third and fourth books of Kings) was called “Sefer Melachim”, i.e. “Book of Kings”, since its content is the story of the last common Jewish king Solomon and the kings of the kingdom of Judah and the kingdom of Israel. The current division of the said books into four appeared primarily in the Greek translation of the LXX, where they received the names: “Βασιλείων πρώτη (βίβλος)”, i.e. “The First Book of Kings”; Βασιλείων δευτέρα — “The Second Book of Kings”; Βασιλείων τρίτη - “The Third Book of Kings”; Βασιλείων τετάρτη — “The Fourth Book of Kings.” Then it was adopted by the Latin translation of the Vulgate, where the titles of the books received the following form: “ Liber primus Samuelis, quem nos primum Regum dicimus"("The First Book of Samuel, which we call the First Book of Kings"); " Liber secundus Samuelis, quem nos secundum Regum dicimus"("The Second Book of Samuel, which we call the Second Book of Kings"); " Liber Regum tertius, secundum Hebraeos primus Malachim"("The Third Book of Kings, according to the Jewish account - the First Book of Melachim - Kings"); " Liber Regum quartus, secundum Hebraeos Malachim secundus"("The Fourth Book of Kings, according to the Jewish account - the Second Book of Melachim - Kings").

However, in the canonical reckoning of the books of the Old Testament, the Orthodox Church retained the Hebrew division of the books of Kings into two books, combining together the First and Second Books of Kings, as well as the Third and Fourth Books.

Contents of the books of Kings. The First Book of Kings tells the story of the prophet and judge of the Jewish people, Samuel, and the first Jewish king, Saul. The Second Book of Samuel tells the story of the second Jewish king, David. The Third Book of Kings tells about the third Jewish king Solomon, about the disintegration of the Jewish monarchy into two kingdoms - Judah and Israel - and about the kings of both kingdoms, ending with King Jehoshaphat in the kingdom of Judah and King Ahaziah in Israel. The Fourth Book of Kings tells the story of the remaining kings of Judah and Israel, ending with the Assyrian captivity in relation to the kingdom of Israel and the Babylonian captivity in relation to the kingdom of Judah.

The period of history of the Jewish people, embraced by the narrative of all four books of Kings, exceeds 500 years.

Writers of the Books of Kings. The original writers of the First and Second Books of Kings were the prophets Samuel, Nathan and Gad ( 1 Par 29:29). Some of the prophets of later times looked at the records of Samuel, Nathan and Gad, and added to them ( 1 Samuel 5:5; 1 Samuel 6:18; 1 Samuel 9:9; 1 Samuel 27:6; 2 Samuel 4:3) and gave them a unified, finished look.

The original writers of the Third and Fourth Books of Kings were the prophets and writers who followed Nathan and Gad, who left behind them records with titles dedicated to them: “The Book of the Works of Solomon” ( 1 Kings 11:41); "The Chronicle of the Kings of Judah" ( 1 Kings 14:29; 1 Kings 15:7.23; 1 Kings 22:46; 2 Kings 8:23); "The Chronicle of the Kings of Israel" ( 1 Kings 14:19; 1 Kings 15:31; 1 Kings 16:5.14.20.27; 1 Kings 22:39; 2 Kings 1:8; 2 Kings 10:34). One of the last Old Testament prophets (according to the testimony of Jewish and Christian antiquity - the prophet Jeremiah), and perhaps the great scribe and collector of the canon of Old Testament sacred writings Ezra himself, looked through these records and brought them to the form in which they reached our time.

Historical books

According to the division of Old Testament books according to content accepted in the Greek-Slavic and Latin Bibles, the books of Joshua, Judges, Ruth, four books of Kings, two Chronicles, 1st book of Ezra, Nehemiah and Esther are considered historical (canonical) books. A similar calculation is found already in the 85th apostolic canon 1, the fourth catechtal teaching of Cyril of Jerusalem, the Sinai list of the LXX translation and partly in the 60th canon of the Council of Laodicea in 350: Esther is placed in it between the books of Ruth and Kings 2. Likewise, the term “historical books” is known from the same fourth catechumen teaching of Cyril of Jerusalem and the work of Gregory the Theologian “On what is due to the honor of a prince.” Old and New Testaments" (book of Rules, pp. 372-373). Among the named church fathers, it has, however, a slightly different meaning than it does now: the name “historical books” is given by them not only to the “historical books” of the Greek-Slavic and Latin translation, but also to the entire Pentateuch. “There are twelve historical books of ancient Jewish wisdom,” says Gregory the Theologian. The first is Genesis, then Exodus, Leviticus, then Numbers, Deuteronomy, then Jesus and Judges, the eighth Ruth. The ninth and tenth books are Acts of Kings, Chronicles, and lastly you have Ezra.” “Read,” answers Cyril of Jerusalem, “the divine writings of the Old Testament, 22 books translated by LXX interpreters, and do not confuse them with the Apocrypha... These twenty-two books are the essence of the Law of Moses, the first five books: Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers, Deuteronomy. Then Joshua the son of Nun, Judges and Ruth make up one seventh book. Other historical books include the first and second Kings, which among the Jews constitute one book, and also the third and fourth, which constitute one book. Likewise, they count the first and second Chronicles as one book, and the first and second Esdras (according to our Nehemiah) count as one book. The twelfth book is Esther. That's what history books are like."

As for the Hebrew Bible, both the very section of “historical books” and their Greek-Slavic and Latin distribution are alien to it. The books of Joshua, Judges and the four books of Kings are classified in it as “prophets”, and Ruth, two books of Chronicles, Ezra - Nehemiah and Esther - to the section of “kegubim” - the sacred scriptures. The first ones, i.e. book. Joshua, Judges, and Kings rank first among the prophets, Ruth fifth, Esther eighth, and Ezra, Nehemiah, and Chronicles last among the “scriptures.” Much closer to the LXX division is the order of the books in Josephus. His words: “From the death of Moses to the reign of Artaxerxes, the prophets after Moses wrote down in 13 books what happened under them” (Against Appion, I, 8), make it clear that he considered the book. Joshua - Esther books of a historical nature. Jesus son of Sirach apparently held the same view. In the section “scriptures” he distinguishes between “wise words... and... stories” ( Sir 44.3-5), i.e. educational and historical books. The last ones could only be Ruth, Chronicles, Ezra, Nehemiah and Esther. The inclusion of them in the “scriptures” section of the Hebrew Bible is partly explained by the fact that the authors of some of them, for example Ezra-Nehemiah, did not accept the title “prophet” in Jewish theology, partly by their character, they are seen as a historian, a teacher and a preacher. In accordance with this, the entire third section is called “wisdom” in some Talmudic treatises.

Referring one part of our historical books to the section of the prophets, “who learned by inspiration from God the things that were early, and wrote with wisdom about the things that happened with them” (Josephus. Against Appion I, 7), and the other to the “scriptures,” which is the name given to everything composition of the Old Testament canonical books, the Jewish church thereby recognized them as inspired works. This view is quite definitely and clearly expressed in the words of Josephus: “Among the Jews, not every person can be a sacred writer, but only a prophet who writes according to the Divine with inspiration, which is why all the sacred Jewish books (22 in number) can rightly be called Divine” (Against Appion I, 8). Later, as can be seen from the Talmudic treatise Megillah, a dispute arose about the inspiration of the books of Ruth and Esther; but as a result they are recognized as written by the Holy Spirit. The New Testament church also holds the same view as the Old Testament church on the inspiration of historical books (see above 85 of the Apostolic Canon).

According to their name, historical books describe the history of the religious, moral and civil life of the Jewish people, starting with the conquest of Canaan under Joshua (1480-1442 BC) and ending with the return of the Jews from Babylon led by Nehemiah under Artaxerxes I (445 BC), during whose reign the events described in the book of Esther also fall. The facts that took place during a given period are presented in historical books either completely objectively, or are considered from a theocratic point of view. The latter established, on the one hand, a strict distinction between proper and improper phenomena in the field of religion, and on the other, recognized the complete dependence of civil and political life on faith in the true God. Depending on this, the history of the Jewish people, presented in the light of the idea of ​​theocracy, presents a series of normal and abnormal religious phenomena, accompanied either by an elevation, a rise in political life, or by its complete decline. This point of view is characteristic mainly of books 3-4. Kingdoms, book. Chronicles and some parts of the book. Ezra and Nehemiah ( Nehemiah 9.1). The thousand-year period of life of the Jewish people, embraced by historical books, breaks up, depending on the internal, causal connection of the phenomenon, into several separate eras. Of these, the time of Joshua, marked by the conquest of Palestine, represents a transitional moment from nomadic to sedentary life. Her first steps during the period of the Judges (1442-1094) were not particularly successful. Having lost their political leader with the death of Joshua, the Jews broke up into twelve independent republics that lost consciousness of national unity. It was replaced by tribal strife, and, moreover, so strong that the tribes do not take part in the general political life of the country, they live so isolated and closed that they do not want to help each other even in days of misfortune ( Court.5.15-17, 6.35 , 8.1 ). Religious and moral life was in exactly the same pitiful state. Immorality became so universal that adulterous cohabitation was considered commonplace and, as it were, replaced marriage, and in some cities the vile vices of the times of Sodom and Gomorrah arose ( Court 19). At the same time, true religion was forgotten, and its place was taken by superstitions spread by wandering Levites ( Court 17). The absence of judges during the period, restraining principles in the form of religion and permanent secular power, ultimately ended in complete unbridledness: “everyone did what seemed fair to him” ( Court.21.25). But these same negative aspects and phenomena turned out to be beneficial in that they prepared for the establishment of royal power; The period of judges turned out to be a transitional time to the period of kings. Tribal strife and the impotence it caused told the people about the need for permanent, lasting power, the benefits of which were proven by the activities of each judge and especially Samuel, who managed to unite all the Israelis with his personality ( 1 Samuel 7.15-17). And since, on the other hand, religion could not be such a force restraining the people - they were still underdeveloped to be guided by the spiritual principle - then the unification could come from earthly power, such as royal power. And, indeed, the accession of Saul put an end, although not for long, to the tribal strife of the Jews: at his call, “the sons of Israel... and the men of Judah” gathered for war with Koash of Ammon ( 1 Samuel 11.8). More of a military leader than a ruler, Saul justified the popular desire to see a strong military leader in the king ( 1 Samuel 8.20), he won a number of victories over the surrounding peoples ( 1 Samuel 14:47-48) and how the hero died in the battle on the mountains of Gilboa ( 1 Samuel 31). With his death, the tribal strife of the period of the Judges was reflected in full force: the tribe of Judah, which had previously stood alone from the others, now recognized David as their king ( 2 Samuel 2.4), and the rest submitted to Saul's son Ishbosheth ( 2 Samuel 2.8-9). Seven and a half years after this, power over Judah and Israel passed into the hands of David ( 2 Samuel 5.1-3), and the goal of his reign becomes the destruction of tribal hatred, through which he expects to retain the throne for himself and his house. Constant wars, as a national cause, also contribute to its achievement; they support the consciousness of national unity and distract attention from matters of internal life, which can always give rise to discord, and a whole series of reforms aimed at equalizing all tribes before the law. Thus, the establishment of a standing army, divided according to the number of tribes into twelve parts, each performing monthly service in Jerusalem ( 1 Par 27.1), equalizes the people in relation to military service. The transformation of the neutral city of Jerusalem into a religious and civic center does not elevate any tribe religiously or civically. The appointment of identical Levitical judges for the entire people ( 1 Par 26.29-30) and the preservation of local tribal self-government for each tribe ( 1 Par 27.16-22) equalizes everyone before the court. While maintaining the equality of the tribes and thus not giving rise to tribal discord, David remains at the same time a fully autocratic monarch. Military and civil power is concentrated in his hands: the first through the commander-in-chief of the army of Joab, subordinate to him ( 1 Par 27.34), the second through the mediation of the high priest Zadok, the chief of the Levite judges.

The reign of David's son and successor Solomon reversed the result of his father's reign. The extraordinary luxury of Solomon's court required enormous expenses and corresponding taxes on the people. His funds were now used not for the national cause, as under David, but to satisfy the personal needs of the king and his courtiers. At the same time, the rightful court of David’s time turned out to be perverted: the equality of everyone before the law disappeared. On this basis ( 1 Kings 12.4) popular discontent arose, which then turned into open indignation ( 1 Kings 11.26. Suppressed by Solomon, it reasserted itself under Rehoboam ( 1 Kings 12) and this time it was resolved by the separation of 10 tribes from the house of David ( 1 Kings 12.20). The immediate reason for it was dissatisfaction with Solomon, who imposed a heavy yoke on the people ( 1 Kings 12.4), and Rehoboam's reluctance to ease it. But judging by the words of the separated tribes: “we have no share in the son of Jesse” ( 1 Kings 12.16), i.e. we have nothing in common with him; we do not belong to him, like Judas, by origin, the reason for the division is in that tribal, tribal strife that passed through the entire period of the Judges and subsided for a while under Saul, David and Solomon.

The division of the single kingdom (980 BC) into two - Judah and Israel - marked the beginning of the weakening of the power of the Jewish people. The consequences of this kind were reflected primarily in the history of the ten-tribe kingdom. His forces are dealt a sensitive blow by the war with Judah. Begun by Rehoboam ( 1 Kings 12.21, 14.30 ; 2Par 11.1, 12.15 ), they continue under Abijah, who killed 500,000 Israelites ( 2 Chron 13.17) and took away a number of cities from Jeroboam ( 2 Chron 13.19), and for a time end under Asa, who, with the help of Benhadad the Syrian, destroyed the population of Ain, Dan, Abel-Beth-Moacah and the entire land of Naphtali ( 1 Kings 15.20). The mutual harm from this almost 60-year war was finally recognized in both states: Ahab and Jehoshaphat entered into an alliance, consolidating it with the kinship of the reigning houses ( 2 Par 18.1), - the marriage of Jehoshaphat's son Joram to Ahab's daughter Athaliah (, 2 Par 25.17-24) and under Jeroboam II they returned, of course, not without losses in people, the limits of their former possessions from the edge of Hamath to the desert sea ( 2 Kings 14.25). Exhausted by a number of these wars, the Israelis finally find themselves unable to withstand the onslaught of their last enemies - the Assyrians, who put an end to the existence of the ten-tribe kingdom. As an independent state, the ten-tribe kingdom existed for 259 years (960-721). It fell, having exhausted its strength in a series of continuous wars. During this time, the state of the two-tribe kingdom appears in a different light. It not only does not weaken, but rather intensifies. Indeed, at the beginning of its existence, the two-generation kingdom had only 120,000 or, according to the Alexandrian list, 180,000 warriors and therefore, naturally, could not repel the invasions of the Egyptian pharaoh Susakim. He took the fortified cities of Judea, sacked Jerusalem itself and made the Jews his tributaries ( 2 Par 12.4, 8-9 ). Subsequently, the number of those armed and capable of war was increased by those Israelis dissatisfied with the religious reform of Jeroboam I (not counting the Levites), who went over to the side of Rehoboam, strengthened and supported his kingdom ( 2 Par 11.17). The two-tribe kingdom and its wars with the ten-tribe kingdom responded relatively favorably. At the very least, Abijah takes Bethel, Jeshon and Ephron with their dependent cities from Jeroboam ( 2 Chron 13.19), and his successor Asa is able to field 580,000 warriors against Zarai the Ethiopian ( 2 Par 14.8). The relative weakness of the two-tribe kingdom is reflected only in the fact that the same Asa cannot alone wage war with Baasha and invites Benhadad the Syrian to help ( 1 Kings 15.18-19). Under Asa's son and successor Jehoshaphat, the two-tribe kingdom strengthens even more. Without being carried away by the thirst for conquest, he devotes his activities to streamlining the internal life of the state, makes an attempt to correct the religious and moral life of the people, and takes care of their enlightenment ( 2 Par 17.7-10), on the settlement of the court and judicial institutions ( 2 Par 19.5-11), builds new fortresses ( 2 Par 17.12) etc. The implementation of these plans required, of course, peace with neighbors. Of these, the Philistines and Edomites are subdued by force of arms ( 2 Par 17.10-11), and a political and kinship alliance is concluded with the ten-tribe kingdom ( 2 Par 18.1). Necessary for Jehoshaphat as a means to carry out the above reforms, this latter became over time a source of disasters and misfortunes for the two-tribe kingdom. According to the author of Chronicles ( 2 Par 26.6-8). The power of Uzziah was so significant that, according to the evidence of the wedge-shaped inscriptions, he withstood the onslaught of Tiglaphelasser III. The two-generation kingdom, secured from the outside, now widely and freely developed its internal economic well-being, and the tsar himself was the first and zealous patron of the national economy ( 2 Par 26.10). With the development of internal well-being, trade also developed widely, which served as a source of national enrichment ( IS 2.7). The glorious predecessor was followed by an equally glorious and worthy successor, Jotham. During their reign, the kingdom of Judah seemed to be gathering strength for the upcoming fight against the Assyrians. The inevitability of the latter becomes clear already under Ahaz, who invited Tiglaphelassar to protect him from the attacks of Rezin, Pekah, the Edomites and Philistines ( 2Par 28.5-18). As Vigouroux puts it, he, without noticing it, asked the wolf to devour his flock (Die Bibel und die neueren Entdeckungen. S. 98). And indeed, Tiglathelassar freed Ahaz from his enemies, but at the same time imposed tribute on him (( 2 Par 28.21). It is unknown how dependence on Assyria would have affected the further history of the two-tribe kingdom, if not for the fall of Samaria and the refusal of Ahaz’s successor Hezekiah to pay tribute to the Assyrians and his transition, contrary to the advice of the prophet Isaiah, to the side of the Egyptians ( Isa 30.7, 15, 31.1-3 ). The first event deprived the kingdom of Judah of its last cover from Assyria; Now access to its borders is open, and the path to the borders has been paved. The second finally sealed the fate of Judea. The alliance with Egypt, which over time turned into vassalage, forced her to take part first in the fight against Assyria, and then against Babylon. She emerged from the first one exhausted, and the second one led her to her final death. As an ally of Egypt, with whom the Assyrians fought under Hezekiah, Judah was subjected to the invasion of Sennacherib. According to the inscription he left, he conquered 46 cities, captured a lot of supplies and military materials and took 200,150 people captive (Schrader jbid S. 302-4; 298). In addition, he imposed a huge tribute on Judea ( 2 Kings 18.14-16). The alliance with Egypt and the hope for its help did not bring any benefit to the two-tribe kingdom. And yet, Hezekiah's successor Manasseh remains a supporter of the Egyptians. As such, during Assargadon’s campaign against Egypt, he becomes his tributary, is put in chains and sent to Babylon ( 2 Par 33.11). The weakening of Assyria, which began under Assargadon's successor Assurbanipal, made an alliance with Egypt unnecessary for Judea. Not only that, but a contemporary of this event, Josiah, is trying to stop the aggressive aspirations of the Egyptian pharaoh Necho ( 2 Par 35.20), but dies in the Battle of Megiddon ( 2 Par 35.23). With his death, Judea becomes a vassal of Egypt ( 2 Kings 23.33, 2 Par 36.1-4), and the latter circumstance involves her in the fight against Babylon. Necho's desire to establish himself, taking advantage of the fall of Nineveh, in the Ephrates regions was met with rebuff from Nabopolassar's son Nebuchadnoor. In 605 BC, Necho was defeated by him at the Battle of Karchemish. Four years after this, Nebuchadnezzar himself undertook a campaign against Egypt and, in order to secure his rear, subjugated the kings subject to him, including Joachim of Judah (). The rest of the kings limit themselves to the destruction of idols, cutting down sacred oak forests, etc. And even if the activities of Jehoshaphat did not bring significant benefit: “the people have not yet firmly turned their hearts to the God of their fathers” ( 2 Par 20.33), then it goes without saying that external measures alone could not destroy the pagan mood of the people, the attraction of their hearts and minds to the gods of the surrounding peoples. Therefore, as soon as the king, the persecutor of paganism, died, the pagan nation restored what was destroyed and erected new temples for their idols; the zealots of Jehovah's religion had to begin again the work of their pious predecessors ( 2 Par 14.3, 15.8 , 17.6 and so on.). Thanks to such circumstances, the religion of Jehovah and paganism turned out to be far unequal forces. The latter had the sympathy of the people on his side; it was absorbed by the Jew as if with mother’s milk, from youth it entered into his flesh and blood; the first had kings for itself and was forcibly imposed on the nation by them. It is not surprising, therefore, that it was not only completely alien to her, but also seemed downright hostile. Repressive measures only supported this feeling, united the pagan masses, did not lead to submission, but, on the contrary, provoked them to fight against Jehovah’s law. This, by the way, is the result of the reforms of Hezekiah and Josiah. Under the successor of the first Manasseh, “innocent blood was shed, and Jerusalem... was filled with it... from edge to edge” ( 2 Kings 21.16), i.e., the beating of Jehovah’s servants began with the strengthening pagan party. In the same way, the reform of Josiah, carried out with rare decisiveness, helped to concentrate the forces of the pagans, and in the struggle that then began with the supporters of religion, they undermined all the foundations of theocracy, among other things, prophecy and the priesthood, in order to weaken the first, the pagan party elected and put forward false prophets who promised peace and assured that no evil would befall the state ( Jer 23.6). The priesthood was also undermined by it: it put forward only unworthy representatives ( Jer 23.3). Josiah's reform was the last act of the age-old struggle between piety and paganism. After it there were no more attempts to maintain true religion; and the Jews went into Babylonian captivity as real pagans.

The Babylonian captivity, having deprived the Jews of political independence, had a sobering effect on them religiously. His contemporaries were convinced with their own eyes of the truth of the prophetic threats and admonitions - of the justice of the position that the whole life of Israel depends on God, on fidelity to His law. As a direct and immediate result of such consciousness, there arises a desire for a return to the ancient and eternal truths and forces that once created society, which at all times gave salvation and, although often forgotten and neglected, were always recognized as capable of giving salvation. The community that arrived in Judea took this path. As a preparatory condition for implementing the religion of Jehovah, she fulfilled the requirement of the Law of Moses for the complete and complete separation of the Jews from the surrounding peoples (dissolution of mixed marriages under Ezra and Nehemiah). The basis of further life and history is now based on the principle of isolation, isolation.

1 “For all of you, belonging to the clergy and laity, let the books of the Old Testament be revered and holy: Moses’ five (Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers, Deuteronomy), Joshua one, Judges one, Ruth one, Kings four, Chronicles two "Ezra is two, Esther is one."

2 “It is proper to read the books of the Old Testament: Genesis of the World, Exodus from Egypt, Leviticus, Numbers, Deuteronomy, Joshua, Judges and Ruth, Esther, Kings 1 and 2, Kings 3 and 4, Chronicles 1 and 2, Ezra 1 and 2.” .