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A page-turner with graceful pace, David is carefully constructed, as Swindoll dissects the king's life from boyhood to death. Nearly every chapter concludes with delineation of the lessons that readers can take from David as he slays the giant, teaches misfits in a cave to become great warriors, commits adultery, and so forth.
Swindoll, president of Dallas Theological Seminary, complements his admiration for Israel's second king with a thorough fleshing out of David's shortcomings. The author notes that David spent the first 50 years of his life walking in the integrity of his heart, while the last 20 years were composed of a "downhill slide" by which that same heart was broken as he rested with his fathers.
Through David, Swindoll gives us a strong impression of his own empathy for the general weaknesses of the human race. It's a healthy reminder that our worldly tendency to place individuals on godly pedestals is akin to reducing their humanity and, in turn, disqualifying them from the same need of grace and mercy that saves us lesser vessels.
David's many wives and children serve as a key focal point of concern for Swindoll. Polygamy was one of the dark spots in the king's life that came back to haunt him, the author asserts, as evidenced through David's lack of control toward his children. The result? Son Amnon rapes half-sister Tamar, son Absalom revolts against his father, son Adonijah declares himself king as a close-to-death David prepares to commission son Solomon to the throne. All three of these sons die tragically, two at the hand of their own half-brothers.
Of course, the key incident for David's family pain relates to his adultery with Bathsheba and subsequent killing of her husband, Uriah, but this tragedy, Swindoll notes, was almost an expected step in a pattern of passionate weakness displayed by David toward women. Swindoll also reminds readers to beware the peril in times of prosperity and ease, the setting when David committed his most tragic sins.
However, we also see in David a king who is quick to repent and return to God's blessing once his blinders are removed, whether through Nathan the prophet or another. David characterizes true repentance, with "open, unguarded admission" and "a desire to make a complete break from sin," Swindoll asserts.
And Swindoll points out that David is a shining example of how to react when God says "no" to even the most admirable of dreams. Rather than violating God's will when he is gently turned down in his request to build a temple, David gives thanks for the blessing his lineage has been provided: the eternal kingdom that culminates with Christ.
"What a Man!" Swindoll concludes on the book's final page, stating that he is even more impressed with David as a result of his studies. "Not perfect by any means, but authentic to the core."
John M. De Marco is a freelance reviewer in Orlando, FL.
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