The Historical David: The Real Life of an Invented Hero - Softcover

"All praise be--again--to those biblical studies scholars who can make ancient history matter and can shed light on long-held beliefs. In clear prose and with a documented command of what others have said before him, Baden offers a provocative reinterpretation of one of Western culture's heroes."--Publishers Weekly

Utterly fascinating and written with sublime lucidity.--Booklist, starred review

"Reading between and behind the lines of the biblical text and its silences, Baden gives an engaging reconstruction of who the true David may have been. This is a brilliant synthesis, with some unexpected and even daring twists of interpretation. A tour de force!"--Michael Coogan, Harvard Divinity School lecturer, Director of Publications for the Harvard Semitic Museum and editor of The New Oxford Annotated Bible

"This revisionist take on King David--as brilliant politician but despicable human being--combines the best of historical study and literary imagination. Baden's challenge to traditional understandings of Israel's king is always provocative, often compelling, and completely fascinating."--Amy-Jill Levine, Professor of New Testament and Jewish Studies at Vanderbilt University and author of The Misunderstood Jew

"An invigoratingly grown-up reading of the Bible, taking it seriously but not literally.... David emerges no longer as the author of the Psalms or the slayer of Goliath, yet Baden's scholarly analysis leaves the usurper-King as one of the most crucial shapers of world history."--Diarmaid MacCulloch, Professor of the History of the Church, University of Oxford, author of Christianity: The First Three Thousand Years

"[Baden] succeeds positively, powerfully, and persuasively in locating Israel's once and future king as an actual historical figure. The multiple layers of fact and fiction, history and theology are cleanly and clearly distinguished but without either modern apologetics or contemporary polemics."--John Dominic Crossan, author of The Historical Jesus

"Lively....This is a provocative book that raises questions about the nature of biblical narrative and also about the historical continuity of the Davidic line."--John J. Collins, Holmes Professor of Old Testament, Yale University

"For readers open to debating this beloved biblical figure, The Historical David will make compelling reading."--Arkansas Democrat-Gazette