King David: The Real Life of the Man Who Ruled Israel

Kirsch, Jonathan

ISBN 10: 0345432754 / ISBN 13: 9780345432759

Published by Ballantine Books, New York, 2000

About this Item

New York: Ballantine, 2000. First edition, 8vo. Hard cover binding, 368 pp. David, King of the Jews, possessed every flaw and failing a mortal is capable of, yet men and women adored him, and he was showered with many more blessings than Abraham or Moses. The author of Moses: A Life and The Harlot by the Side of the Road reveals this commanding individual in all his glory and fallibility. A charismatic leader, exalted as "a man after God's own heart," he was also capable of deep cunning, deceit, and betrayal. He was a voracious lover who secured the favors of his mistress Bathsheba by arranging her husband's death, a merciless warrior who triumphed through cruelty, and a troubled father who failed to protect his daughter from rape, and whose son Absalom rose against him in armed insurrection. Jonathan Kirsch brings new depth and psychological complexity to the events of David's life his slaying of the giant Goliath and his swift challenge to the weak rule of King Saul; his tragic relationship with Saul's son Jonathan, David's cherished friend (and possibly lover); and his founding of a dynasty in Jerusalem. New in new dustjacket. Size: 8vo - over 7¾" - 9¾" tall.

Seller Inventory # 021818

Bibliographic Details

• Title: King David: The Real Life of the Man Who Ruled Israel
• Publisher: Ballantine Books, New York
• Publication Date: 2000
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 0345432754
• ISBN 13: 9780345432759
• Binding: Hard Cover
• Edition: First Edition.
• Condition: New
• Dust Jacket Condition: New
• Seller catalogs:
  • Middle East
  • Ancient History
  • Biographies and Memoirs
  • Judaica

About this title

Synopsis

David, King of the Jews, possessed every flaw and failing a mortal is capable of, yet men and women adored him and God showered him with many more blessings than he did Abraham or Moses. His sexual appetite and prowess were matched only by his violence, both on the battlefield and in the bedroom. A charismatic leader, exalted as "a man after God's own heart," he was also capable of deep cunning, deceit, and betrayal. Now, in King David: The Real Life of the Man Who Ruled Israel, bestselling author Jonathan Kirsch reveals this commanding individual in all his glory and fallibility.

In a taut, dramatic narrative, Kirsch brings new depth and psychological complexity to the familiar events of David's life--his slaying of the giant Goliath and his swift challenge to the weak rule of Saul, the first Jewish king; his tragic relationship with Saul's son Jonathan, David's cherished friend (and possibly lover); his celebrated reign in Jerusalem, where his dynasty would hold sway for generations. Yet for all his greatness, David was also a man in thrall to his passions--a voracious lover who secured the favors of his beautiful mistress Bathsheba by secretly arranging the death of her innocent husband; a merciless warrior who triumphed through cruelty; a troubled father who failed to protect his daughter from rape and whose beloved son Absalom rose against him in armed insurrection.

Weaving together biblical texts with centuries of interpretation and commentary, Jonathan Kirsch brings King David to life in these pages with extraordinary freshness, intimacy, and vividness of detail. At the center of this inspiring narrative stands a hero of flesh and blood--not the cartoon giant-slayer of sermons and Sunday school stories or the immaculate ruler of legend and art but a magnetic, disturbingly familiar man--a man as vibrant and compelling today as he has been for millennia.

About the Author

Jonathan Kirsch, a book columnist for the Los Angeles Times and author of the bestselling Moses: A Life and the critically acclaimed The Harlot by the Side of the Road, writes and lectures widely on biblical, literary, and legal topics. A member of the National Book Critics Circle and a former correspondent for Newsweek, he lives in Los Angeles.