Trump, King David, and Gaza

Making sense of evangelical rhetoric

I have repeatedly seen evangelical arguments that compare King David and Donald Trump.

In the Bible, King David rapes a vulnerable woman, Bathsheba, while her husband, Uriah, is away fighting for David in war. King David subsequently murders Uriah when Bathsheba becomes pregnant with King David’s child bore out of rape. The prophet Nathan warns David that the child will die as a consequence of David’s ungodly actions, and that God is angry at David. When the child dies, the royal attendants are displeased with David’s lack of mourning his own child. Then, King David takes Bathsheba as his wife and (arguably) rapes her again, which brings about the birth of the third Israelite king, Solomon (who later becomes Jedidiah). King David proceeds to ravage total warfare on his enemies, restricting their water supply, enslaving the captured locals, and donning a very heavy bejeweled crown. The sunset years of King David show him turning into some version of a mad king.

However, King David is a significant character in the Judeo-Christian saga as the man who united the tribes of Israel, established the capital city of Jerusalem, and solidified the Hebrews/Jews power and presence in Israel and in the ancient world. In the Gospel of Matthew, King David’s lineage is tied to the birth of Jesus, and King David is seen as the precursor to the Messiah. In the Islamic tradition, King David is seen as a prophet. King David is a big deal for Abrahamic religions, and many point to him as a hero.

So, in a lot of ways, Trump is compared to King David, and there are many evangelical Christians who believe that Trump is divinely here to take the US into a Christian-nationalist era and that the US is some version of modern-day Israel. Add in all the connections to AIPAC money and friendliness with the state of Israel in their position with Gaza, and we’ve got ourselves a Christian nationalist movement that is quickly turning globalist. Many far-right conservative, evangelical Christians believe in a Revelations-interpretation that the Israelite take-over of Palestine is fulfilling biblical prophecy, that the Jewish people of Israel must return to their homeland so that the end times may come and Jesus will return. They believe the genocide in Gaza is not only warranted, but should be celebrated.

We can honor someone’s personal faith, albeit Judaism, Christian, Islam, or otherwise, and denounce the imposition of that faith on people, especially violent imposition. We can support Judaism while also condemning genocide in Palestine, the same way we can separate average Germans from Nazis, the same way we can separate average Americans from the US military that used biological weapons in Vietnam, the same way we can separate Christianity from the KKK. The acts of the State and followers who use religion for warfare are not representative of the people within the state who use religion for comfort and meaning. Judaism, Christianity, and Islam are beautiful faiths that have brought great hope and healing to millions, but have also brought about great destruction in their vying for power.

So that brings us to Trump and King David. Whether Trump is even familiar with the story of King David is beyond the point, what matters is that he is surrounded by Heritage Foundation advocates, including JD Vance, who is also backed by AIPAC-ally Peter Thiel (also here). Trump is deeply interested in real estate in Gaza, and his son-in-law, Jared Kushner, has deep ties to AIPAC and is a major recipient of financial investments from the largest Israeli institution. We are witnessing a genocide in the name of money from both far-right religious leaders who have weaponized religion, and one that is religiously-justified by the believers.

Where does that leave the rest of us? The ones that want people to practice their faith, but don’t believe that religious violence is tolerable? Where does that leave people who want peace and justice for the world? It leaves us heartbroken, for one. And for the agnostics and atheists and Buddhists who are watching all of this and shaking their heads at how misguided and weaponized these faiths are used in our modern-society, I don’t blame you for having such a low respect for people who follow these faiths. I wish I could convince you that not all people who attend church, synagogue, or temple are violent imperialists, but a quick look at international headlines would just make me look wrong.

Religious violence is the anti-thesis of what faith and peace leaders and advocates stand for. I have worked with Christian, Islamic, and Jewish faith leaders in inter-faith conversations, and when the State puts a religious symbol on a bomb or a soldier, we drift further and further away from the messages of religious prophets and leaders. We are allies and stand in solidarity towards the struggle for peace, autonomy, and respect.

May we have leaders more like Boaz and less like King David, more like Jesus and less like Paul, and may we focus on Muhammad’s peace over his occasional war conflict.

The US elected a man to the highest position in the land who will do anything for money and power, including cozying up with religious and financial leaders who justify violence against innocent people.

The greed for money and power brings violence. Violence only begets more violence.

This will get worse before it gets better.