Dāwūd, or David, is considered a prophet and messenger of

Allah Allah ( ; , ) is an Arabic term for God, specifically the God in Abrahamic religions, God of Abraham. Outside of the Middle East, it is principally associated with God in Islam, Islam (in which it is also considered the proper name), althoug ...

(God) in Islam, as well as a righteous, divinely anointed king of the United Kingdom of Israel. Additionally, Muslims also revere David for receiving the divine revelation of the Zabur. Dawud is considered one of the most important people in Islam. Mentioned sixteen times in the

Quran The Quran, also Romanization, romanized Qur'an or Koran, is the central religious text of Islam, believed by Muslims to be a Waḥy, revelation directly from God in Islam, God (''Allah, Allāh''). It is organized in 114 chapters (, ) which ...

, David appears in the Islamic scripture as a link in the chain of prophets who preceded

Muhammad Muhammad (8 June 632 CE) was an Arab religious and political leader and the founder of Islam. Muhammad in Islam, According to Islam, he was a prophet who was divinely inspired to preach and confirm the tawhid, monotheistic teachings of A ...

. Although he is not usually considered one of the "law-giving" prophets ('' ulū al-ʿazm''), "he is far from a marginal figure" in Islamic thought. In later Islamic traditions, he is praised for his rigor in

prayer File:Prayers-collage.png, 300px, alt=Collage of various religionists praying – Clickable Image, Collage of various religionists praying ''(Clickable image – use cursor to identify.)'' rect 0 0 1000 1000 Shinto festivalgoer praying in front ...

and

fasting Fasting is the act of refraining from eating, and sometimes drinking. However, from a purely physiological context, "fasting" may refer to the metabolic status of a person who has not eaten overnight (before "breakfast"), or to the metabolic sta ...

. He is also presented as the prototypical just ruler and as a symbol of God's authority on earth, having been at once a king and a prophet. David is particularly important to the religious architecture of Islamic Jerusalem. Dawud is known as

biblical The Bible is a collection of religious texts that are central to Christianity and Judaism, and esteemed in other Abrahamic religions such as Islam. The Bible is an anthology (a compilation of texts of a variety of forms) biblical languages ...

David David (; , "beloved one") was a king of ancient Israel and Judah and the third king of the United Monarchy, according to the Hebrew Bible and Old Testament. The Tel Dan stele, an Aramaic-inscribed stone erected by a king of Aram-Dam ...

who was, according to the

Hebrew Bible The Hebrew Bible or Tanakh (;"Tanach"
. '' United Kingdom of Israel and Judah, reigning –970 BCE.

Name

The Quranic Arabic form of David is ''Dāwud'' or ''Dāwūd'', differing from

Koine Koine Greek (, ), also variously known as Hellenistic Greek, common Attic, the Alexandrian dialect, Biblical Greek, Septuagint Greek or New Testament Greek, was the common supra-regional form of Greek spoken and written during the Hellenistic ...

and (which follow ). These forms appear in the Quran sixteen times.

Narrative in the Quran

David's narrative in the

, in many respects, parallels that given in the Bible. He is named a

prophet In religion, a prophet or prophetess is an individual who is regarded as being in contact with a divinity, divine being and is said to speak on behalf of that being, serving as an intermediary with humanity by delivering messages or teachings ...

(''nabī'') and also a messenger (''rasūl''), David is included in lists of those who received

revelation Revelation, or divine revelation, is the disclosing of some form of Religious views on truth, truth or Knowledge#Religion, knowledge through communication with a deity (god) or other supernatural entity or entities in the view of religion and t ...

(''waḥy''; Q4:163) or guidance (''hudā''; ) from God. In both lists his name appears next to that of his son

Solomon Solomon (), also called Jedidiah, was the fourth monarch of the Kingdom of Israel (united monarchy), Kingdom of Israel and Judah, according to the Hebrew Bible. The successor of his father David, he is described as having been the penultimate ...

. Elsewhere, the Quran explains that God gave to both of them the gifts of "sound judgment" (''ḥukm''; ) and "knowledge" (''ʿilm''; ; ). Yet the Quran also ascribes to David merits that distinguish him from Solomon: David killed

Goliath Goliath ( ) was a Philistines, Philistine giant in the Book of Samuel. Descriptions of Goliath's giant, immense stature vary among biblical sources, with texts describing him as either or tall. According to the text, Goliath issued a challen ...

() and received a divine revelation named "the

Psalms The Book of Psalms ( , ; ; ; ; , in Islam also called Zabur, ), also known as the Psalter, is the first book of the third section of the Tanakh (Hebrew Bible) called ('Writings'), and a book of the Old Testament. The book is an anthology of B ...

" ( uses an indefinite form, while uses the definite form ''al-Zabūr''), presumably a reference to the Psalms or the Psalter (the term ''Zabūr'' is perhaps related to the

Hebrew Hebrew (; ''ʿÎbrit'') is a Northwest Semitic languages, Northwest Semitic language within the Afroasiatic languages, Afroasiatic language family. A regional dialect of the Canaanite languages, it was natively spoken by the Israelites and ...

term ''mizmōr'' or Syriac ''mazmūrā'', "psalm"). The mountains and the birds praised God along with David (; in God commands them to do so; cfr.

Psalm The Book of Psalms ( , ; ; ; ; , in Islam also called Zabur, ), also known as the Psalter, is the first book of the third section of the Tanakh (Hebrew Bible) called ('Writings'), and a book of the Old Testament. The book is an anthology of H ...

). God made David a "vicegerent" (''khalīfa''; ), a title that the Quran otherwise gives only to

Adam Adam is the name given in Genesis 1–5 to the first human. Adam is the first human-being aware of God, and features as such in various belief systems (including Judaism, Christianity, Gnosticism and Islam). According to Christianity, Adam ...

(). This title suggests that, according to the Quran, David was something more than a messenger: he was a divinely guided leader who established God's rule on Earth. This role is also suggested by : "God gave him authority (''mulk'') and wisdom (''ḥikmah'') and taught him what He willed. If God did not drive back some people by others, the earth would become corrupt." Among the things taught to David was the ability to make armour (, ), a suggestion that David's military exploits were the act of God. It is also important that the Quranic reference to David's "wisdom" was sometimes explained by the classical exegetes as the gift of prophecy. The Quran also connects David and Jesus, by insisting that both cursed Jews against their prophecy who did not believe (). Moreover, according to the Quran, David was given the ability to distinguish between truth and falsehood when dispensing justice (''faṣl al-khiṭāb'', ). Furthermore, there is the allusion to a test David was put through, wherein he prayed and repented and God forgave him (). Surat Sad (the 38th chapter of the Quran) is also called "the sūra of David" Exegetes explain that since David prostrated when asking God to forgive him, Muhammad was ordered to imitate him and to perform a prostration when reading this chapter.Bukhārī, ''Ṣaḥīḥ'', vi, 155

Religious significance

David is one of the few Islamic Prophets who received Kingship as well. While other prophets preached during the reign of kings, David, in his time, was the king. Thus, he received an extremely large task, of making sure that the people of

Israel Israel, officially the State of Israel, is a country in West Asia. It Borders of Israel, shares borders with Lebanon to the north, Syria to the north-east, Jordan to the east, Egypt to the south-west, and the Mediterranean Sea to the west. Isr ...

were not only held in check spiritually but that the country itself remained strong as well. His place as both leader and prophet is revered by all Muslims as one of extremely high rank. The figure of David, together with that of his prophetic son, Solomon, are iconic of people who ruled justly over their land. God frequently mentions David's high rank as a prophet and messenger in the Quran. He is often mentioned alongside other prophets to emphasize how great he was. For example, God says: When the

Caliph A caliphate ( ) is an institution or public office under the leadership of an Islamic steward with Khalifa, the title of caliph (; , ), a person considered a political–religious successor to the Islamic prophet Muhammad and a leader of ...

Umar Umar ibn al-Khattab (; ), also spelled Omar, was the second Rashidun caliph, ruling from August 634 until his assassination in 644. He succeeded Abu Bakr () and is regarded as a senior companion and father-in-law of the Islamic prophet Mu ...

visited

Jerusalem Jerusalem is a city in the Southern Levant, on a plateau in the Judaean Mountains between the Mediterranean Sea, Mediterranean and the Dead Sea. It is one of the List of oldest continuously inhabited cities, oldest cities in the world, and ...

, the

Patriarch The highest-ranking bishops in Eastern Orthodoxy, Oriental Orthodoxy, the Roman Catholic Church (above major archbishop and primate), the Hussite Church, Church of the East, and some Independent Catholic Churches are termed patriarchs (and ...

Sophronius accompanied him on the

Temple Mount The Temple Mount (), also known as the Noble Sanctuary (Arabic: الحرم الشريف, 'Haram al-Sharif'), and sometimes as Jerusalem's holy esplanade, is a hill in the Old City of Jerusalem, Old City of Jerusalem that has been venerated as a ...

, while he searched for the ''Mihrab Dawud'' (''David's prayer-niche'') to perform a prayer. Later commentators identified this site with the

Tower of David The Tower of David (), also known as the Citadel (), is an ancient citadel and contemporary museum, located near the Jaffa Gate entrance to the Old City of Jerusalem, Old City of Jerusalem. The citadel that stands today dates to the Mamluk Sult ...

. In a ''

hadith Hadith is the Arabic word for a 'report' or an 'account f an event and refers to the Islamic oral tradition of anecdotes containing the purported words, actions, and the silent approvals of the Islamic prophet Muhammad or his immediate circle ...

'', the prayer and fasting of David is mentioned to be dear to God.

The Book of David

The ''Zabur'' is the holy book attributed to David by God, just as

Musa Musa may refer to: Places *Mūša, a river in Lithuania and Latvia * Musa, Azerbaijan, a village in Yardymli Rayon * Musa, Iran, a village in Ilam province, Iran * Musa, Chaharmahal and Bakhtiari, Iran * Musa Kalayeh, Gilan province, Iran * Abu M ...

(

Moses In Abrahamic religions, Moses was the Hebrews, Hebrew prophet who led the Israelites out of slavery in the The Exodus, Exodus from ancient Egypt, Egypt. He is considered the most important Prophets in Judaism, prophet in Judaism and Samaritani ...

) received the

Tawrat In Islam, the Torah ( ) is regarded as an Islamic holy book that was revealed by God to guide the Israelites. In the Quran, the word "Tawrat" appears eighteen times, particularly in passages mentioning the Jewish people or their history, inclu ...

(

Torah The Torah ( , "Instruction", "Teaching" or "Law") is the compilation of the first five books of the Hebrew Bible, namely the books of Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers and Deuteronomy. The Torah is also known as the Pentateuch () ...

), Isa (

Jesus Jesus (AD 30 or 33), also referred to as Jesus Christ, Jesus of Nazareth, and many Names and titles of Jesus in the New Testament, other names and titles, was a 1st-century Jewish preacher and religious leader. He is the Jesus in Chris ...

) received the

Injil Injil (, alternative spellings: ''Ingil'' or ''Injeel'') is the Arabic name for the Gospel of Jesus ( Isa). This ''Injil'' is described by the Quran as one of the four Islamic holy books which was revealed by Allah, the others being the Zabur (tr ...

(

Gospel Gospel originally meant the Christianity, Christian message ("the gospel"), but in the second century Anno domino, AD the term (, from which the English word originated as a calque) came to be used also for the books in which the message w ...

) and Muhammad received the Quran. In the Bible, the ''Zabur'' is known as the Psalms.

Bibliography

Primary

* ʿAbdallāh b. al-Mubārak, ''Kitāb al-Zuhd'', ed. Ḥ.R. al-Aʿẓamī, Beirut n.d., 161-4 * Aḥmad b. Ḥanbal, ''al-Zuhd'', Cairo 1987, 111–2, 114, 134 * R.G. Khoury, ''Wahb b. Munabbih (Codices arabici antiqui i)'', Wiesbaden 1972 (with bibliography) * id., ''Les légendes prophétiques dans l'Islam depuis le Ier jusqu'au IIIe siècle de l'hégire (Codices arabici antiqui iii)'', Wiesbaden 1978, 157-74 * Hibat Allāh b. Salāma, '' al-Nāsikh wa-l-mansūkh'' (in the margin of Wāḥidī, ''Asbāb''), Cairo 1316/1898-9, 262 * Ibn Qudāma al-Maqdisī, ''Kitāb al-Tawwābīn'', ed. ʿA.Q. Arnāʾūṭ, Beirut 1974 * Majlisī, ''Biḥār al-anwār'', Beirut 1983, xiv, 1-64; lxxiv, 39-44 * Muqātil, ''Tafsīr'', i, 423; ii, 87–8, 639–43; iii, 87–8, 298–9, 525-6 * Sibṭ Ibn al-Jawzī, ''Mirʾāt'', i, 472-92 * Suyūṭī, ''Durr'', vii, 148-76 * Ṭabarī, ''Tafsīr'', v, 360-76 * Ṭabarsī, ''Majmaʿ''

Secondary

* A. Geiger, ''Judaism and Islam'', Madras 1898, 144-5 * E. Margoliouth, ''The convicted in the Bible, cleared from guilt in the Talmud and Midrash (Hebrew)'', London 1949, 60-7 * F.A. Mojtabāʾī, ''Dāwūd'', in Encyclopædia Iranica, vii, 161-2 * R. Paret, ''Dāwūd'', in ei2, ii, 182 * Y. Zakovitch, ''David. From shepherd to Messiah (Hebrew)'', Jerusalem 1995 (see especially Annex A by A. Shinʾan, 181–99)

References

{{Authority control Cultural depictions of David Hebrew Bible prophets of the Quran