Harvard Divinity School Book on King David Challenges Political Readings of Biblical Narrative

(I-Newswire) September 1, 2010 - In "The Surprising Election and Confirmation of King David," a new book published in one of America's oldest and most prestigious academic series for biblical and theological studies, J. Randall Short challenges modern readings of the Bible that portray King David as a self-centered opportunist and propagandist. Short explains the problems with much historical and comparative research on one of the Bible's most famous narratives, and he presents a fresh reading of an old story that will interest all serious students of the Bible.

Short's book has received high praises from two of America's top biblical scholars, both of whom served as Short's doctoral advisors at Harvard Divinity School. Gary A. Anderson, Professor of Old Testament/Hebrew Bible at the University of Notre Dame, commented: "It is not frequent that a book comes along and proposes a bold new approach to a problem that was once thought to be solved. Short's bold and deftly argued thesis about the founding of the Davidic Kingdom is going to mark a new direction for the exegesis of I and II Samuel." And according to Jon D. Levenson, the Albert A. List Professor of Jewish Studies at Harvard Divinity School: "This provocative and well-reasoned interpretation of David's rise to kingship challenges the standard political reading of the narrative and impressively recovers its key theological dimensions. By refusing to assimilate the text to its putative ancient Near Eastern parallels, Randall Short enriches our understanding of an exceedingly subtle and complex narrative in a valuable way. This volume should command the attention of scholars, students, and clergy alike."

About J. Randall Short — Short has received degrees from the University of Alabama (B.A.), Tokyo Christian Theological Seminary (M.Div.), and Harvard Divinity School (M.T.S.; Th.D. in Old Testament/Hebrew Bible). He currently lives in Japan, where he is Assistant Professor of Old Testament and Director of the Asian Christian Theological Studies Program for English Speakers at Tokyo Christian University.

About Harvard Theological Studies — Harvard Theological Studies is an academic book series that originated at Harvard Divinity School in 1916. In any given year the HTS series has published the best dissertation by either a Harvard Divinity School or Harvard University Study of Religion doctoral student.

About Harvard Divinity School:
Harvard Divinity School is one of the constituent schools of Harvard University, located in Cambridge, Massachusetts. The School's purpose is to train and educate its students—either in the academic study of religion, or for the practice of a religious ministry or other public service vocation.

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