Lexington Books
Pages: 160
•
Trim: 6½ x 9½
978-1-4985-4551-8 • Hardback • November 2016 • $98.00 • (£75.00)
978-1-4985-4552-5 • eBook • November 2016 • $93.00 • (£72.00)
Paul R. Abramson is professor of political science at Michigan State University.
Introduction
Chapter 1: From the Rules of Kingship to the Demand for a King
Chapter 2: Saul’s Anointment, His Military Successes, His Transgression at the City of the Amalekites
Chapter 3: David Serves Saul
Chapter 4: David Rebels against Saul and the Massacre at Nob
Chapter 5: David Spares Saul, Nabal, and Saul
Chapter 6: David at Ziklag and Saul at Mount Gilboa
Chapter 7: David’s Elegies and the Civil War between the House of Saul and the House of David
Chapter 8: David Conquers Jerusalem and Moves the Ark There, but Does Not Build the Temple
Chapter 9: David’s Conquests and His Administration
Chapter 10: The Ammonite War through the Birth of Solomon
Chapter 11: Absalom’s Rebellion
Chapter 12: Sheba’s Revolt through the Great Plague
Chapter 13: David Appoints Solomon King
Chapter 14: David’s Parting Advice and Solomon Consolidates His Rule
Chapter 15: Conclusions
Appendix A: Transliteration of the Traditional Hebrew Text, and Nineteen Translations of 1 Samuel 18:7
Appendix B: Location of Places
David’s Politics evaluates what we can learn about politics by studying David’s life as presented in the Books of Samuel through the first two chapters of 1 Kings. . . Throughout most of this account David displays remarkable political sagacity, and more can be learned studying his life than that of any other king of Israel or Judah.
— Israel Book Review
David is the most fully described Biblical character, warts and all. Abramson does a fine job of bringing the details to a wide audience, and putting them in the context of national and regional politics. His book also reminds us that there isn't much new in the behavior of people who reach the top.
— Ira Sharkansky, Hebrew University of Jerusalem
Abramson has provided a political scientist-eye view of the ancient politics of leadership and ambition. David is revealed as a master politician, yet over a long career one who exhibited faults of short-sightedness, miscalculation, weakness of will, and other frailties. By Abramson's reckoning, David and the Promised Land he governed were as complex and multi-faceted as the modern Middle East today.
— Kenneth A. Shepsle, Harvard University
Paul Abramson continues his astute political exploration of the Bible that he began in his earlier book, Politics of the Bible (2012). This time he focuses on King David, perhaps the Hebrew Bible's most controversial and intriguing human character. David helped to consolidate the rule of the Israelite kings, but his life was an amalgam of deeds and misdeeds: he showed bravery and cunning in confronting the giant, Goliath, and mercy toward his predecessor as king, Saul, but adultery, mendacity, and murder marred his personal life. David serves as an echo, 40 centuries years ago, of charismatic political figures in the last century or two, and Abramson does an excellent job of recounting his life and analyzing his politics.
— Steven J. Brams, New York University