He began his reign with an undertaking which shows the certainty and width of his views. His dominion over the tribes of Simeon and Judah had been established for almost eight years, but over the northern tribes it was recent, and had to be confirmed. The remembrance of Saul was cherished most warmly in the tribe of Benjamin, which lay next to Judah on the north. In this land, not far from the northern border of Judah, was a city of the name of Jebus, inhabited by the Jebusites, a relic of the old population which at the time of the settlement the Benjaminites had not been able to overcome.[283] The city stood on steep heights, surrounded by deep gorges, which formed natural trenches; the walls of the eastern height on which the citadel stood, Mount Zion, were so strong that the Jebusites are said to have boasted that the blind and lame were sufficient to defend them. This city appeared to David excellently situated for protection against the Philistines and for his own royal abode; it had the faithful tribes of Judah and Simeon to the south, and was pushed forward like a fortification into the territory of Benjamin and the northern tribes. Nor was it useful only in establishing his dominion over Israel. Even in Saul's reign it had been difficult when an enemy invaded the open cantons of Israel to find time for assembling the fighting powers, the levy of the people; there had been no fortified point on which the first shock of the enemy's onset broke, no city strongly fortified and of considerable size in which large numbers could find protection.
Soon after the assembly at Hebron, which had transferred to him the royal authority over all the tribes of Israel, David set himself to win this place. First he cut off the water from the city of the Jebusites, and then Joab with the veteran band of David succeeded in climbing the wall in a sudden attack. The inhabitants were spared; at any rate a part of them must have remained, for we afterwards find Jebusites in and about Jerusalem.[284]
The princes of the Philistines had begun to arm immediately upon the announcement of David's election to be king of all Israel.[285] David awaited their approach in the citadel of Zion which he had just conquered. The Philistines encamped before the city. When they were scattered in search of plunder in the valley of Rephaim David inquired of Jehovah whether he should go down against them. The answer was favourable. The Philistines were surprised and defeated. But they soon appeared a second time under the walls of Zion, and the oracle of Jehovah bade David not to go directly against them, but to turn aside under the balsam trees. If he heard the tops of the trees rustle he was to hasten on; that was the sign from God that he would go before him to smite the camp of the Philistines. So it befel. David gained a great victory and was enabled to pursue the Philistines as far as Gezer.[286] Yet the war was not decided, but still continued for a long time. Four battles took place on the borders near Gob and Gath, and many severe combats had to be fought with the Philistines. From all the traces of tradition it is clear that this war was the most stubborn and dangerous of all that David had to wage. In Israel there were stories of the brave deeds of individual heroes which were accomplished in these battles: of Abishai, the brother of Joab, who saved the king in battle, when the mighty Philistine Ishbi thought to overcome him; of Elhanan, who slew Goliath of Gath; and of the deeds of Jonathan, the nephew of David, and Sibbechai against the Philistines.[287] At length David succeeded in "wresting the bridle out of the hand of the Philistines," and "breaking their horn in pieces;"[288] he drove them back to their old borders. They had suffered such serious blows that for a long time they abstained from all further attacks, after they had carried on warfare against the Hebrews for about 70 years. Yet even David, in spite of this success, made no serious attempt to advance the borders of Israel towards the sea, or to subjugate the cities of the Philistines.
When the most pressing danger from the Philistines was over, David turned his arms to the south and east, against the Amalekites, the Moabites, and Ammonites, who had once caused so much misery and disaster to Israel. Against the Amalekites Saul had already accomplished the main task (p. 127). David smote them with such effect that the name of the Amalekites is hardly once mentioned afterwards; the remainder of the race seem to have been amalgamated with the Edomites.[289] David had at a former time entered into connection with the king of Moab; when he fled from Saul he placed his parents under his protection. The cause of the rupture is unknown; we only know that David utterly overthrew the Moabites and caused two-thirds of the prisoners to be put to death. It is said that they were compelled to lie down; they were then divided by a measuring cord into three parts, of which two were slain by iron threshing-carts being drawn over them, and only a third part were spared.[290] Nahash, the king of Ammon, with whom David had also previously been in relations (p. 136), was succeeded by his son Hanon. This prince insulted David's envoys, he caused their beards to be shaved off, and their garments to be cut away as high as the middle.
David sent Joab with the levy of the people against the Ammonites to avenge the insult. Hanon called on the king of Zobah—Saul had already had to fight against Zobah—and the rulers of Beth-Rehob, Maacah, and Tob in Syria for assistance. Hadad-Ezer of Zobah sent 20,000 men; from Tob came 12,000; from Maacah 1000. Joab divided his army, left his brother Abishai to oppose the Ammonites, and turned himself with picked men against the Syrians and defeated them before they could join the Ammonites.[291] After this defeat the Ammonites also retired before Abishai into their fortified city of Rabbath-Ammon on the Nahr-Ammon. But in the next spring Hadad-Ezer collected his whole force. David marched across the Jordan to meet the Syrians, and defeated Hadad-Ezer in a decisive battle at Helam; the Israelites carried off the chariots of the enemy for spoil; 1700 horsemen and 20,000 foot-soldiers were captured.[292] David followed up this victory and overran the cities of the king of Zobah, when the king of Damascus took the field in aid of Hadad-Ezer, and the Edomites invaded Judah from the south. David remained in the field against the Syrians, and sent Joab with only a part of the army against the Edomites. In the salt valley, at the southern end of the Dead Sea, Joab and Abishai defeated the Edomites; 12,000 out of 18,000 are said to have fallen on this day.[293] In spite of this severe defeat the Edomites made a stubborn resistance. Joab, in continuous struggles which went on for six months, destroyed a great part of the male population (the son of the king of Edom was carried by the servants of his father to Egypt), and subjugated the rest of the inhabitants to the dominion of David. While Joab was fighting in Edom, David had defeated the men of Damascus and brought the war in the north to an end. Thoi, the king of Hamath, whom Hadad-Ezer had previously oppressed, entered into a league with David. Only the Ammonites still continued to resist. Joab was sent against them in the next year; he laid their land waste, and took one city after another. The captives were placed under saws and axes, and burnt in kilns, or slain like the Moabites under iron threshing-wagons. At length Joab could announce to David that Rabbath-Ammon, the chief city of the Ammonites, was reduced to extremities; the king must come to enter into the city. Rabbath was destroyed (about 1015 B.C.[294]); the inhabitants shared the fate of the other Ammonite cities. From the Syrian campaign David had brought back a trophy of 100 war-horses, copper vessels from the cities of Hadad-Ezer of Zobah which were captured, and finally the golden shields which the commanders of this king had carried. From Rabbath he brought home the golden crown of the king of the Ammonites,—it is said to have been a Kikkar (I. 285) in weight and set with precious stones,—together with other utensils of silver and gold. The Moabites, the Ammonites, and Edomites were compelled to pay tribute. Garrisons were put in the strong places; even Damascus is said to have received a garrison of Israelites.[295]
After Saul had first saved Israel out of the hand of their oppressors, after these advantages were lost by the domestic strife, David had now formed the Israelites into a ruling nation from isolated tribes who had been so often and so long plundered by their enemies. He had come victorious out of the most severe struggles. With reason could Israel now sing: "Saul has slain his thousands, David his tens of thousands."
It was a rapid and brilliant transformation. David was master from the borders of Egypt, the north-east point of the Red Sea, to Damascus. He was not content with successfully establishing his rule for the moment by these great and brilliant deeds of arms; he intended to give it a solid support for the future. He employed the spoils of his victories in order to fortify more strongly and extend the city which he had chosen for his metropolis; it was now called the city of David, and afterwards Jerusalem.[296] On Zion, the citadel of Jerusalem, David caused a royal palace to be built. In the city the remnant of the Jebusites had been joined by inhabitants from the tribes of Judah and Benjamin. If David hoped to lessen the disaffection of the tribe of Benjamin by establishing a royal citadel in their land he had not calculated wrongly. The sequel shows that Benjamin, which previously held to Ephraim, now stood fast by Judah.
In possession of a considerable and well-fortified metropolis, and a strong royal citadel, David was able to rule over Israel with greater safety and severity than Saul from his rural court at Gibeah. Moreover, David intended to create independent means and property for the crown, and kept together what he had won. From the tribute of the subjugated nations he formed a treasury, which was placed under the care of Asmaveth. In addition we hear of overseers of the royal gardens, oliveyards, vineyards, and sycamore plantations, and we learn that David kept flocks of small cattle, herds of oxen, and camels.[297]
The strongest support of the throne were his selected and thoroughly devoted troops of warriors. David was accompanied by a body-guard which was always with him (Saul had had round him some "runners"). It appears from the name, Pelethites and Cherethites, to have been entirely composed of foreigners; their leader was Benaiah.[298] The core of the army was formed not by this body-guard, but by the freebooters who once gathered round him in the cave of Adullam and at Ziklag, warriors tried often and in numerous battles. They remained in one body in Jerusalem, and were maintained by the king. This band—it was apparently about 600 men in number,[299] and in the ranks were also foreigners, Hittites, Ammonites, Moabites, and others, who formerly associated with David, or were attracted by the fame of his deeds—was called the troop of the mighty, "Gibborim;" accompanied by armour-bearers and servants, they took the field. They were divided into three portions, under three leaders; at their head fought 30 selected heroes: Abishai, Joab's brother, was the captain.[300] As simple peasants, the Israelites had always fought on foot, without horses and horsemen; David, after the pattern of the Syrians, introduced chariots. Josheb Bassebet was the captain of the war-chariots.[301] Along with the Gibborim, the chariots were intended to give, as trained divisions, firmness and support to the levy of the whole people.
In order to regulate the levy, Joab, the chief captain, with some of his subordinates, was commanded to enumerate and write down all the fighting men from the Jabbok to Mount Hermon, and from Dan to Beersheba. Nine months and twenty days were required by the captains for this task. When the muster was completed, captains were appointed for hundreds and thousands; but in order that the whole mass of the people need not be called out on every campaign and every attack of the enemy,—in which hitherto, for the most part, only those who were eager for battle had engaged, while those who preferred peace and rest remained at home,—the whole number of the fighting men was divided into twelve portions, of which each, in number 24,000 men, was pledged to service for one month in the year. Each of these divisions had a separate captain. As occasion required, several of the divisions, or all, might be called out. If we may trust these accounts, Israel had at that time 300,000 fighting men, and consequently a population of about two millions.[302]