A 5 page research paper that discusses the Old Testament position on kings and kingship. The writer argues that the First Samuel accounts of David's straying from the commandments of the Almighty demonstrates the central tension in the Old Testament, which pits covenantal values against the form of governmental power represented by kingship, which is basically a battle between the voice of the prophet and God's commandments versus the king and ways of humanity. Bibliography lists 2 sources.
Name of Research Paper File: D0_khotking.rtf
Unformatted Sample Text from the Research Paper:
First Samuel and the story of Israels first true king, David. An examination of the First Samuel accounts of Davids straying from the commandments of the Almighty demonstrates the central
tension in the Old Testament, which pits covenantal values against the form of governmental power represented by kingship, which is basically a battle between the voice of the prophet and
Gods commandments versus the king and ways of humanity. The central theme of this conflict is that worldly power corrupts -- even the children of Israel (OBrien, 1999). OBrien
(1999) explains that the David-Bathsheba narrative related in First Samuel occurred during a decisive juncture in Hebrew history. After liberating the children of Israel from imperial bondage, Yahweh calls for
the Israelites to form a covenantal community (OBrien, 1999). This form of governance presented a stark contrast to the stratified system of power that the Israelites suffered under while in
Egypt. This covenant with God provided a "blueprint," a new "model" for a human community unlike anything in the ancient world (OBrien, 1999, p. 16). Through their faithfulness to God,
the Israelites would be a "holy" people. OBrien (1999) points out that the Hebrew word for "holy" means "separate" (p. 16). They would "enflesh Gods will of shalom, and thereby
repair the ravages of human sinfulness" (OBrien, 1999, p. 16). However, the allure of worldliness proved too much for the Israelites and they began to express a desire for a
king to the prophet Samuel. First Samuel 8:5 states: "and said to him, You are old and your sons do not follow in your ways; appoint for us, then, a
king to govern us, like other nations." As this indicates, the people were willing to abandon their covenant in order to be "like other nations." Samuel tells the people