It would seem, however, that even in this detail, as in many others which we will encounter, there is a note of polemic against I Kings 1–2, where the salient features of David’s figure are his advanced age and helplessness. Feeble and venerable, David conducts the matter of his successor from the hidden recesses of his chamber. With one stroke of the pen, this verse presents a diametrically opposed portrait: having assembled at Jerusalem an enormous multitude, David ‘rises to his feet’ and, full of vigour, addresses the assembly. It is also possible that the Chronicler models his portrayal of
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