The Historical David: The Real Life of an Invented Hero

In a work reminiscent of the quest for the historical Jesus, Baden (Old Testament, Yale Divinity Sch.; The Composition of the Pentateuch: Renewing the Documentary Hypothesis) attempts a biography of the real King David. He extrapolates from Old Testament authors, analyzing their agendas, to find the David of history. This biography is at odds with biblical stories and the popular imagination, replacing the psalmist and giant-slaying youth with an ambitious and morally suspect aspirant to the throne of Israel. While Baden uses the biblical text as his primary source, he acknowledges that the Bible is not history but, rather, theology and national epic. Comparing two separate accounts of the Goliath story, for instance, he determines that the giant was slayed not by David but by one of his warriors. Rather than dismiss the David story in its entirety as metaphor or myth, Baden argues that the authors' "pro-David" agenda points to the ancient king's existence, a thesis that, in the absence of genuine historical data regarding David's existence, is unconvincing. While Baden's highly speculative arguments are provocative, the real value of his book lies in its understanding of the David story as revisionist "spin."